In Revelation 2:17, we read of Jesus’ message to the church in Pergamum where he said, “Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who is victorious, I will give some of the hidden manna. I will also give that person a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to the one who receives it.”
You may know that names in the Scriptures are far more than just a label. They are a shorthand way of highlighting a persons character. With reference to God, for example, his name is his self-revelation. When we praise his name we are not just referencing a label, we are praising him for who he is in his character or attributes.
With that in mind, this statement from Jesus is fascinating. Jesus gives the overcomer “a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to the one who receives it.”
I suggest to you that in that new name Jesus will reveal to the overcomer something that defines the totality of who that person is in the eyes of God. And that name will remain a secret between Jesus and that person.
When referencing God’s knowledge of him, the psalmist writes,
“How amazing are your thoughts concerning me, God! How vast is the sum of them! Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand —…” Psalms 139:17-18a (NIV margin)
So imagine one name that, in essence, embodies that vast sum of Jesus’ thoughts of who that overcomer truly is. What an unbelievably precious secret. The only response possible will be unspeakable delight in the joy of knowing who we really are. But the most joyful of all will be Jesus himself in bestowing the secret name.
