IS IT SCRIPTURAL TO IDENTIFY PEOPLE BY NAME?
When a religious group propagates falsehood that, if accepted and followed, will cause people to be lost, is it in harmony with the teaching of the Bible to identify that group by name? Or, if an individual in or out of the body of the Christ teaches a message that clearly contradicts the Bible and leads people “from the truth” (Titus 1:14), is it ever acceptable in the sight of the Lord to identify that person by name? And, what about identifying or pointing out the names of congregations among God’s people that are apostatizing? Would there ever be a place for such action?
These are practical questions. We are convinced that the same biblical principles that answer one of the three questions raised above, really answers all of them. I want to address a series of relevant questions that I hope will be helpful in studying this topic.
Is it acceptable to call something by name? God has done it before. “And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night” (Genesis 1:5). When it comes to the living creatures of the earth, God brought them to Adam “to see what he would call them: and whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof” (Genesis 2:19). From these first two chapters in Genesis we learn that God approves of assigning names to things, including, as the old timers would say, “calling a skunk a skunk” (that is what Adam did). Let’s look further.
Is it acceptable to call geographic names? Again, God did. When the children of Israel murmured against Him, “…The LORD smote them with a great plague, And he called the name of that place Kibrothhattaavah: because there they buried the people that lusted” (Numbers 11:34). Thus, there is nothing wrong with identifying a place by its geographical name.
Is it okay to call or identify a person by name? God has done it many times. He gave Abram the new name “Abraham” (Genesis 17:5). God’s angel told Joseph that he would call the son that Mary would bear “Jesus” (Matthew 1:21). So, again, in and of itself, there is nothing inappropriate in identifying a person by his/her name.
What about referring to a particular nation by its name? Jehovah charged the Israelites to cast out the seven nations that inhabited the land of Canaan, identifying them by name: Hittites, Girgashites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites (Deuteronomy 7:1). Based on this, we would conclude that it is not sinful to refer by name to the people of a nation.
Is it okay to identify a specific group by name? In the New Testament we read that Jesus did so, both with those that followed Him, as well as with those that opposed Him. In one case we read that He chose twelve special men from among His disciples,“…whom also he named apostles” (Luke 6:13). On another occasion Jesus warned His apostles, saying, “Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees” (Matthew 16:6). What “leaven” of these two groups did He have in mind? A few verses later we find the answer: “…he bade them not beware of the leaven of bread, but of the doctrine of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees” (Matthew 16:12). So, Jesus identified the twelve as “apostles” and He called the Pharisees and Sadducees exactly what they called themselves: “Pharisees” and “Sadducees.” Note that Jesus also pointed out to His followers the danger of the teaching of the Sadducees and Pharisees. Jesus loved all men, so we would never accuse Him of being unloving when He pointed out the errors of specific Jewish groups, including those occasions when He did so publicly (cf. see what is written in Matthew 23:1-33).
What about calling or identifying the name of faithful saints? In the New Testament we read a number of instances where the Holy Spirit guided the apostle Paul to do this very thing. One instance of this is Colossians 4:7-14 where we read the names of nine brethren. Paul specifically referred to Tychicus and Onesimus as being “faithful” (Colossians 4:7-9). Surely none would oppose the right to call the names of faithful servants of the Master.
By way of summary, to this point we have seen Bible examples in which God Himself and His faithful servants took the action of “calling names.” They called objects by name, geographic places by name, people by name, nations by name, specific religious groups by name, and faithful saints by name. This brings us to another important consideration.
Is it ever scriptural to identify by name an individual or congregation that teaches or lives unfaithfully? The Holy Spirit did so, stating through Paul, “Holding faith, and a good conscience; which some having put away concerning faith have made shipwreck: of whom is Hymenaeus and Alexander; whom I have delivered unto Satan, that they may learn not to blaspheme” (I Timothy 1:19-20). Someone might say, “Yes, but this was a personal letter to Timothy and was not for general knowledge.” It was a personal letter (I Timothy 3:15), but what was Timothy expected to do with the information he received in this inspired letter? Paul went on to tell him, “these things command and teach” (I Timothy 4:11). What Paul wrote about Hymenaeus and Alexander was not something Timothy was to keep to himself any more than he was to keep secret what Paul wrote about the qualifications of bishops and deacons in chapter three.
When Paul latter wrote to Timothy, he was inspired to identify by name those who were teaching falsely. “And their word will eat as doth a canker: of whom is Hymenaeus and Philetus; Who concerning the truth have erred, saying that the resurrection is past already; and overthrow the faith of some” (II Timothy 2:17-18). These men were a real danger to the Cause of the Christ, and the Holy Spirit identified them by name. We have a record of it in the Bible for the whole world to read.
Some say:
1) “If I were a preacher or Bible class teacher, I would never identify any unscriptural groups or false teachers by name.” Well, Jesus did. So did Paul. Were they wrong to do so? The Bible says that we are to imitate Paul like he imitated Jesus (I Corinthians 11:1).
2) “I just feel like it is so unnecessary to identify by name those preachers, churches, and schools that are involved in false teaching or false practices. How is that going to help anything?” The Bible says, “Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned; and avoid them” (Romans 16:17).
3) “I just don’t like the way brother Blank preaches because he tells the names of false teachers.” One that says this is, in reality, doing the very thing that he/she opposes: “It’s not right for brother Blank to call names, but it is okay for me to call brother Blank’s name.”
Jesus gave a general warning about false prophets with no names specified. He simply said, “Beware of false prophets” (Matthew 7:15). At other times Jesus identified by name groups of people that were doing things that did not please God. At least seven times in Matthew 23 we read that Jesus specifically referred to “Pharisees” and/or “scribes.” Then, as we have noted, the Lord’s inspired preachers sometimes identified by name specific individuals that were false teachers or a corrupting influence in the Lord’s work.
In view of the clear biblical teaching we have observed, we conclude that there is a time for giving general warnings about false teachers (II Peter 2:1). In addition, there is a time to identify by name religious groups that do not follow the truth. There is also a time to identify by name specific individuals that are either morally corrupt or that lead others astray with false teaching. There is New Testament precedent for each of these. Such is plainly set forth for all to read. For anyone to deny this truth would be to deny the authority of the Bible itself.
How often should we sound forth general warnings about false teaching? How often should we tell by name which religious groups do not teach what the Bible does? With what frequency should we make it known which preachers and congregations of the Lord’s church are involved in unscriptural teaching or practices? Because there is no New Testament instruction that specifies how often such should be done, it falls into the realm of opinion or personal judgment.
When we step outside the arena of spiritual activities, we all understand the value of identifying by name a person, product, or activity that is harmful to society. We don’t just want to hear that “some medicine” has deathly side effects. No, we want to know the specific name of the product so we can avoid it. We don’t just want to hear that “someone somewhere” has grabbed a gun and started gunning people down. No, we want to know the specifics — tell us what state and city, the type of vehicle used (if any), and provide a picture of the suspect(s), if possible. Why? Because we care about our physical safety. In the same way, when true danger looms in the spiritual realm, we are better served by identifying by name the deathly doctrine or practices, as well as the proponents of such.
Sometimes the general statement, “Let’s all be careful out there,” is just not sufficient. Let each of us strive to speak the truth in love.