To him who overcomes…I will also give him a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to him who receives it. revelation 2:17 (niv)
Throughout the Bible, one can see instance after instance of God giving His people new names—Abram to Abraham, Sarai to Sarah, Jacob to Israel, Simon to Peter, Saul to Paul and so on. And with each new name came a whole new identity...a new life.
God has always been in the business of giving people new identities, new lives, new reasons for existence. He takes the old and replaces it with the new. He takes the blamed and changes them to blameless; the unloved and changes them to the loved. We go from sinful and unrighteous to perfect and holy in His eyes because of what Jesus has done for us.
Ultimately He calls us His children—sons and daughters of God. One day in heaven, God will give each of His children a white stone with a new name written on it. And that new name will impart a new identity. It will carry a special blessing from God to His child. What an awesome thought to ponder. What about the white stone? The white stone really has no value except for the fact that the new name is written on it. The name and the promised blessing associated with it are what make it valuable. The stone is simply the vehicle through which the blessing is imparted. We have chosen to give this church family the name White Stone because those two words carry the promise of Christ. We are simply a vehicle to help carry the blessing of Christ’s name to a hurting and dying world. It is our prayer that God will use White Stone as a vehicle to give people new names because we know that with a new name comes a new life.
And that is why Christ came… that we might have life!