“Andrew then brought Simon to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, You are Simon son of John. You shall be called Cephas—which translated is Peter [Stone]” (John 1:42).
In God’s scheme of things, a person’s name is more than a label to distinguish between various individuals. Sometimes one’s official name differs from one’s heavenly name. God knows your real name–the one that matches your divine assignment, destiny or life-purpose. That is why the first thing our Lord did when He met Simon was to pronounce his heavenly name. That is why the Bible says whoever overcomes shall be given a new name, that nobody else knows (Rev 2:17). We don’t necessarily have to change our official names, but we must rise to and live up to our heavenly identity by faith.
Pastor Josh