In Biblical times, people didn't have any last names. They had to come up with ways of identifying them. One of the ways was by the place of their origin like Joseph of Arimathea, Simon the Cyrene, and Mary Magdalene, whose last name is the name of a town, Miryam of Magdala. There were many people who went through their lives identified, marked, and labeled by the place they resided and by their past. Likewise, we're marked and defined by where we've originated from and by our past. But, in Messiah comes the power to break the past; break out of the old and into the new. Messiah was called "Yeshua min N'tzeret," "Jesus of Nazareth." His first followers were called "the Nazarenes." They were "Sam the Nazarene," "Rebekkah the Nazarene," and "James the Nazarene." In other words, they were no longer known by the place of their origin, but by the place Yeshua, where Jesus came from. When you live in Messiah, you are no longer marked or bound by your past or your circumstance. Your past belongs to Messiah. And His name belongs to you.
From Message #853 - Mr. & Mrs. Heaven
Today, imagine if instead of having your past, you had the past of Messiah, full of God's love - how would that change how you live and act? In the atonement, His perfect past is yours - live it.
Scripture: Ephesians 4:22
