Date of message: 4 August 2002
Subject: The Names of God - 2

Shalom, Boker-tov ( good morning ),

Last week I shared on all the names of God that has the "EL" embodied in it - Elohim, El Elyon and El Shaddai. All three names give us the impression of a God of might and power. Our God IS the God of might and power and we can depend on Him to deliver us from difficult situations. He is more than able to.

Another name used by God to describe Himself to us is the beautiful Hebrew name of YHVH and which is translated in English as LORD ( in capital letters ). To the Jews, they will not even attempt to pronounce the Name as it will be blasphemous for them to do so. So holy is the name that the scribe would go through a ceremonial washing ( washing his hands and his head three times ) every time he has to write the name as he copied the manuscripts. Therefore to the religious Jews, since they would not pronounce the name, they had conveniently substituted the YHVH word with the Hebrew word "Hashem" or Name in English. Another way that the Jews got around the problem of not being able to pronounce YHVH is to alter the name slightly and called the Lord, Jehovah.

YHVH stands for Yod-He-Vav-He. Like Chinese writing, Hebrew alphabets are rather graphical and there are pictures assigned or associated with each alphabet. "Yod" is the tenth alphabet and it has the picture of a "hand or palm". "He" being the fifth alphabet has the picture of a "window" and because one can see light, opportunities, beauty when one looks through a window, the idea of "grace" is normally attached to the alphabet. "Vav" is the sixth alphabet and is represented with the picture of a "nail". Therefore if one were to string the four letters together, we have the picture of "Hands ( or palms ) of grace, nails of grace".

The key to the Death of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ had been wrapped up in the name of YHVH all the time and yet the Jews who lived during Jesus' life failed to see the light because they were blinded by their obsession with the law. The name YHVH also stands for the covenant-keeping God. Throughout Genesis Chapter 1 we read of the activities that God did and they were all acts of power in creation. Only from Genesis 2: 4 onwards, when God created man can we find the name LORD being mentioned. The Covenant-keeping God started to get involved when man was first created because man is created in the image of God; man has a spirit just as God is Spirit.

In Genesis 7: 16 we read that God commanded Noah to bring the animals into the Ark and after all of them had boarded the Ark, the LORD shut them in. Again we see the mercy of the Lord. Had the LORD not shut Noah and his family into the Ark, they too would have perished in the flood.
The LORD also introduced Himself to Moses as "I AM". When the LORD appeared to Moses in the burning bush, he asked the LORD to tell him His Name by which He would be known to the children of Israel and the LORD replied in Exodus 3: 14, "I AM who I AM". The LORD did not say, "I WAS who I WAS" nor "I WILL BE who I WILL BE". Indeed, the LORD gave His name in the present tense because He is the God of the living and He is the God of the present, a very present help in times of need.

In Exodus 6: 6 -8, we read of the instructions given to Moses to tell the children of Israel. The LORD called Himself "I am the LORD" and that He would rescue them from their bondage and that He would redeem them with an outstretched arm and with great judgments. The LORD also told them that He would take them as His people and that He would be their God and then they would know that "I am the LORD" who brought them out from under the burdens of the Egyptians.

In the Book of John, the Lord Jesus called Himself "I am" seven times.
" I am the bread of life John 6: 35, 48
" I am the light of the world John 8: 12; John 9: 5
" I am the door of the sheep John 10: 7, 9
" I am the good shepherd John 10: 11, 14
" I am the resurrection and the life John 11: 25
" I am the way, the truth and the life John 14: 6
" I am the true vine John 15: 1, 5

In so doing, He gave us His own identity that He is none other than the LORD Himself. In fact when the soldiers came to arrest Him in the Garden of Gethsemane on the night before His Death, He answered them with the words, "I am" when told that they were looking for Jesus of Nazareth. And the disciple John recorded for us that the soldiers fell to the ground when Jesus spoke those words. So powerful is the name "I am" that the soldiers were struck twice and they fell to the ground.

What is more intriguing is that Pilate gave a title to be hung over Jesus' head on the Cross and this title was written in three languages which was the practice of the day - Latin, Greek and Aramaic - JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS. ( John 19: 19 ) When the chief priests of the Jews saw the inscription, they were shocked and quickly went to the Roman Governor, Pontius Pilate, to have the title altered but Pilate refused. So what did the chief priests saw that made them object to the title? I submit to you the title itself in Hebrew "Yeshua HaNazarei Vemelekh HaYhudim" Pilate, by the power of the Holy Spirit, did indeed declare that Jesus was none other than God Himself dying on the cross for us. What an amazing declaration! For a man who is an idol worshipper and a hard-core unbeliever, Pilate made the ultimate declaration that the Covenant-keeping God died there on the cross.
Jesus kept the covenant for us when He died on the cross. Praise the LORD, He did not remain dead in the grave but He came back alive on the third day to ensure that the blessings that go with our faith in Him are ours to keep. Have you believed in Jesus that He died for you? Have you received Him into your heart and made Him Lord of your life? Please do not wait any longer if you have not done so. Life is indeed very fragile. I have just received news that the brother of one of my friends had just passed on suddenly. He had no sicknesses; just complained of some pain in his back and then the next thing we heard was that he passed on. Praise the Lord that brother is a believer of Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior and I know He is now happily reunited with Jesus in Heaven.

How about you? Will you be able to share eternity with Jesus when you pass on? Make sure you are on the right side of eternity when you die. No one knows for sure when he or she will die except the LORD. But there is something that you can do now that will ensure that you go straight up to Heaven to be with Him when you pass on. Believe in the Lord and receive Him into your hearts - it is as simple as that. Invite Him into your life and pray this prayer.
Our Heavenly Father, our daddy Lord, thank you that You are a covenant-keeping God and thank you for Your love for us in sending Your only Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, to come into this world to die for our sins. Thank you that Jesus became a curse for me so that I am no longer cursed but that I now have all the blessings of Jesus in my life. Lord Jesus, come into my heart I pray and make your residence there.

Thank you that I am now a child of God and that I am forever forgiven, greatly blessed, highly favored, deeply loved and completely protected. Thank you for all these things in Jesus' name. Amen.

The Lord has promised that those who believe in Him will no longer be separated from Him. The moment we received Jesus into our hearts, the Holy Spirit will come in and make His dwelling place in our lives. So the moment we pass on, we step out of this earthly body and take on a new spiritual body and instantly we will be with the Lord in Heaven. That is why death does not have a hold on Believers in the Lord. The Bible calls the process of going from this physical world into the eternal world, "sleep" because it will be like we have just fallen asleep and then we step out into eternity to be with the Lord.

The Lord blesses you and keeps you,
The Lord makes His face shine upon you and be gracious to you and all your loved ones,
The Lord lifts up His countenance upon you and gives you His shalom peace.
Numbers 6: 24 - 26

Have a blessed week ahead, Shavrou-tov
Shalom,

Andrew L W Lee
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