Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means “Teacher”). (John 20:16)
Expanded Passage: John 20:11-16
We are innately wired to hear our names; it is a phenomenon called the cocktail party effect or selective hearing. Our brains are able to focus our attention on a particular stimulus while filtering out a range of other stimuli. The best example of this is that we are able to hear our name being spoken in a crowded room, even if we aren’t listening for it. This begins as early as five months old as we turn towards our parents and guardians as they speak our name. And ever since then, the neural pathway of hearing our own name, even above any other noise, has been strengthened.
Mary is lost and confused. Imagine her grief as she cries, the noise within her own mind as she spirals around the thought that someone has taken her Lord away. She cannot see Jesus through the fog of her thoughts, even as he stands right in front of her. That is, until he says her name. Instantly, the recognition is made. Through all the noise and chaos, she hears her Savior speak her name.
God knows your name and he brings life to its meaning. When the God of the universe speaks your name, every and any circumstance fades into the background. No one speaks your name like Jesus. He sees you. He loves you. He is calling your name.
Learn the meaning behind your name. What is God saying through it?
Ethan Zent is the pastor of worship at Follow Church in Upstate South Carolina, where he lives a beautiful life with his beautiful wife.
© 2025 Wesleyan Publishing House. Reprinted from Light from the Word. Used by permission. Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®.
