Have you ever had someone call you by another name? How about, mispronounce your name continually? Even worse, have you felt the pang of being misrepresented? If so, you’re in good company. I think we’ve all experienced such things at some time. But any such slight or slander cannot compare with what has been done to the God of the Bible.

As we begin to wrap up chapter 29 of The Bridge from OneDayBow and see the conversation with Joe coming to an end, Tim says something that every single person in every single place needs to hear. This isn’t just for HereAndNow, but is definitely for everyone here and now:

“The King is not a beggar or a sad, love-sick fool.

He doesn’t need followers to validate His rule.

He made the world we live in, and still owns it today.

It’s only by His kindness that we can choose His way.

It’s a fact, He loved us first. It’s our choice to love Him.”

Whoa! Please don’t miss the seriousness of these words. Yes, He is a gracious, kind, merciful, LOVING God; but He is also holy, righteous, and high above every other thing. He didn’t create humans because He was lonely or lacking in any way. He is absolutely, positively, not a miser who is begging for friends or looking for handouts. While it’s true that in His love He grieves over the fallen state of mankind, He is not a love-sick fool. He is the King of the Universe, and He owns it! A person’s refusal to follow does not make God anything less than what He is.

One day every knee will bow before Him – even if they never wanted to before that time. So much better to bow in humble faith and gratitude before Him today, giving thanks for the immeasurable grace shown to us by sending His Son to die for our sins.

And for those of us who are already following the Savior, let us be quick to remember Who God is and Who He isn’t. Let us not grow lax or complacent or proud, but let us live in humility and integrity, rightly representing our Lord as He deserves.

You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had. Though He was God, He did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. Instead, He gave up His divine privileges; He took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When He appeared in human form, He humbled Himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross. Therefore, God elevated Him to the place of highest honor and gave Him the Name above all other names, that at the Name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue declare that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.    Philippians 2:5-11