“He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it” Revelation 2:17.

According to this text, and I believe God’s promise, when I get up to Heaven, one of the wonderful things which is going to happen is that Jesus is going to give me a white stone. In the stone there will be a name written. It’s a new name. And nobody else ever had it, and nobody else will ever have it. It is a special name. It is Jesus’ pet name for me. And nobody else will know it. Nobody else will understand it.

I suppose some of you, when you were youngsters, had a pet name that father or mother or brother or sister called you. Am I right? Yes. You knew what it meant. Daddy and mother knew. Jesus is going to give me a white stone, and in that stone a new name written, which nobody else knows, except the one who receives it.

You see, in the Bible, a name stands for character, or nature. Names in the Bible were special things. Hannah called her little boy Samuel, which means, “asked of God.” The angel said to Joseph, concerning the birth of Jesus to “Call His name Jesus, for He shall save His people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21). It means “Saviour.” And so with many of the other Bible names.

So, when Jesus gives you your name, the reason it will be a name that nobody else knows, is that nobody else has your character. You will be unique in Heaven as you have been on earth. Through eternal ages you will be a special treasure, something very valuable, because there is nobody else like you – a rare gem – more precious than any ruby or emerald or amethyst or diamond, more precious than gold, for it is written: “I will make a man more precious than fine gold; even a man than the golden wedge of Ophir” Isaiah 13:12.

I love that little song the children sing:

When He cometh, when He cometh To make up His jewels,
All His jewels, precious jewels, His loved and His own;

Like the stars of the morning, His bright crown adorning, They shall shine in their beauty, Bright gems for His crown.

Little children, little children Who love their Redeemer, Are the jewels, precious jewels, His loved and His own;

Like the stars of the morning, His bright crown adorning, They shall shine in their beauty, Bright gems for His crown.

And concerning the stars that light the dome of Heaven, it is written: “One star differeth from another star in glory” 1 Corinthians 15:41. Search the heavens with your eye or with the aid of a telescope, and you will never find two alike. Each has its peculiar hue and degree of light. Each one is unique. Our God is infinite, and He delights in creating everything He makes by a new and separate and distinct pattern. If this is true of the star and the snowflake, oh, how much more it is true of the being that He has created for fellowship with Him!

Through eternal ages, the fellowship which He will enjoy with you will be unique. Nobody else will share that inner joy, that sweetest fellowship which belongs to you and Him alone: Oh, friends, what will your new name be? I don’t know. You don’t know yet. Jesus is going to present it to you. And friends, that is only the beginning. That is only the beginning of an eternal,  close, intimate, personal, exclusive fellowship which you and Jesus are going to enjoy all through eternity.

One of the things we are going to enjoy with Jesus there is that He is going to explain all the perplexities of this life – all the disappointments that we could not understand. He said to Peter there at the supper in the upper room: “What I do thou knowest not now; but thou shalt know hereafter” John 13:7.

And He says that to each of us. Are there some things that you wish you could understand? Are there some things you don’t understand? Ah, He is saving them up to explain them to you when they will bring the greatest joy and mean the most. Under those spreading branches of the tree of life down by the river, Jesus will walk with you and explain everything that has ever perplexed you.

Read the closing pages of Testimonies for the Church, Volume 9. Catch the thrill of the picture, as Jesus unrolls the scroll, unravels everything, makes plain everything. And joy, unspeakable joy, will fill our hearts.

There is another thing that Jesus is going to do for us on those walks, something that He is going to give us, personally. I don’t know how He is going to walk with a million, million people and give each one individual attention. I don’t trouble my head about the logistics of that at all. It doesn’t bother me. I know if I am ever going to get any attention at all, it will be because He is not diverted or distracted by anybody else. That is what He has promised, to give me His individual attention in Heaven, as on earth, just as though I were the only one in the universe. He is able to do that because He is infinite. I believe it. I know it because that is the kind of attention He is giving me now.