WHAT'S IN A NAME

When you address someone by name, it is a sign that you know them personally. 

The Bible uses the phrase, 'call upon the name of the Lord' to emphasize familiarity with (and dependency on) God. 

Salvation itself comes from relying on the power in ... 'the name which is above all names'. (Philippians 2:9) - i.e., Jesus Christ: 

• For whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. (Romans 10:13)

• Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved. (Acts 4:12)

• That if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. (Romans 10:9)

It is important to know that calling on the name of the Lord is knocking at the door ... not the door itself. What saves a person is not some verbal expression, but genuine faith in the One being called upon ... I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. (John 10:9)

Using Jesus' name as a self-serving religious 'incantation' will be judged accordingly ... Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness! (Matthew 7:22-23) 

There is a difference between knowing 'about' Jesus and knowing Him as your personal Savior. Calling on the name of the Lord is an everyday act of worship for the true believer, evidence that he understands the need for Christ to be his ongoing Advocate before the Father.