I read an article years ago that said the most important word in the English language is a person's name. There's something deeply intimate about being known by your name, isn't there? In a world where we can feel like just another face in the crowd, Scripture reveals a beautiful truth: the God of the universe knows each of us personally, individually, by name. Let's look at a few verses that bear this truth:
"But now, thus says the Lord, who created you, O Jacob, And He who formed you, O Israel: 'Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; You are Mine.'" Isaiah 43:1 (NKJV)
Can you hear the tenderness in those words? "I have called you by your name." Not a number, not a category—your name. And then that precious declaration: "You are Mine."
"I will give you the treasures of darkness and hidden riches of secret places, that you may know that I, the Lord, who call you by your name, am the God of Israel. For Jacob My servant's sake, and Israel My elect, I have even called you by your name; I have named you, though you have not known Me." Isaiah 45:3-4 (NKJV)
Here's a mystery that should take our breath away: God called Cyrus by name before Cyrus even knew Him. God knows us before we know ourselves.
"So the Lord said to Moses, 'I will also do this thing that you have spoken; for you have found grace in My sight, and I know you by name.'" Exodus 33:17 (NKJV)
Even Moses, who stood before the burning bush and led millions out of Egypt, needed to hear this: "I know you by name." It wasn't just about his calling or his role; God knew him.
"To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice; and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out." John 10:3 (NKJV
Jesus, our Good Shepherd, doesn't herd us like cattle. He calls each sheep, each one of us, by name. Personal. Intimate. Individual.
"He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give some of the hidden manna to eat. And I will give him a white stone, and on the stone a new name written which no one knows except him who receives it." Revelation 2:17 (NKJV)
Not only does God know your current name, but He has a new name prepared for you—one that captures who you truly are in Him, known only between you and your Creator.
"Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven." Luke 10:20 (NKJV)
Your name isn't just known—it's written in heaven. Permanent. Recorded. Treasured.
Friend, do you see the pattern woven through these verses? From the Old Testament to the New, from prophets to shepherds to the very throne room of heaven, one truth echoes: You are not anonymous to God.
He doesn't know you as "that person struggling with anxiety" or "the one who made that mistake." He knows you by name, the name He gave you, the name He calls you, the name He's written in His book of life.
When you feel lost in the crowd, remember: the Shepherd calls His own sheep by name. When you feel forgotten, remember: your name is engraved on the palms of His hands (Isaiah 49:16). When you wonder if you matter, remember: He knew your name before you were born, and He'll call it again when He welcomes you home. You are known. You are named. You are His.
