Name-dropping

 “Anyone who welcomes you welcomes me, and anyone who welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me.”

 – Matthew 10:40

We’ve all done it once or twice ... or perhaps a lot more.

It’s name-dropping — suggesting that we have a relationship with a movie star, politician, sports star or some other celebrity. We do it at parties, and sometimes it even works at job interviews because it can create a connection. And while name-dropping can also be annoying, it’s sometimes OK to brag a bit about a relationship with the right person. In the Bible, it’s actually encouraged. Let’s consider this passage from the Gospel of Matthew:

While he was still talking to the crowds, his mother and his brothers happened to be standing outside wanting to speak to him. Somebody said to him, “Look, your mother and your brothers are outside wanting to speak to you.” But Jesus replied to the one who told him, “Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?”; then with a gesture of his hand towards his disciples he went on, “There are my mother and brothers! For whoever does the will of my Heavenly Father is brother and sister and mother to me.”

The point is that Christianity is a faith that embraces relationship

over religion. Specifically, there’s a parent/child relationship between us and God. And it’s a bond that’s only made possible through Jesus’ death on the cross — a punishment we all rightly deserve for our lifetimes stained by personal failures and shortcomings (also known as “sin”). But since we’re connected with the right person (Jesus), he’s already paid the price to save us from a certain death and eternal punishment in hell. What's more, Christ has us covered so well that we’re literally heirs to his Father’s Kingdom.

That’s the primary relationship we enjoy as Christ-followers. But God also wants us to make relationships with others so they too can begin traveling the same faith-journey. That means introducing them to Jesus, sharing his story and relating how his death on the cross means a whole new life here on earth — and later in eternity. When these soon-to-be believers come to those inevitable rough patches in life, they’ll always know The One to call.

How do we get the ball rolling? 

One of the best ways is to begin praying to God for people by name. They can be our family members, co-workers, neighbors, political leaders, the unsaved — and particularly our enemies. Jesus set our example here when he sent 12 of his followers to the nearby Jewish communities to spread the Good News (the Gospel):

“Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans. Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel,” he told them. “As you go, proclaim this message:‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give.”

Here was a time Jesus instructed his followers to actually be the answer to someone’s fervent prayers in the midst of difficulties and pain — and use their connection with him to do the seemingly impossible. As the saying goes, it’s not always what you know that counts in life. It’s who you know that makes all the difference.