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Date of message: 10 August 2002
Subject: The Names of God - YHVH Yireh
Shalom, Boker-tov ( good morning ),
Last week we looked at that beautiful name which the LORD loves the most
- YHVH and which some translation spells as Jehovah. YHVH speaks of a
covenant-keeping God and Jesus came to fulfill all the requirements of
the Old Covenant and to establish the New Covenant.
In the Old Testament, various compound names of YHVH were used to bring
out the best in the character of the LORD. With each name, we get a better
understanding of the extent of His judicious, merciful and yet righteous
character. Just as a piece of cut diamond has many faces and there is
beauty in every single face, every aspect of the LORD's character can
be understood by appreciating each subset.
In the Book of Genesis, we read of the Lord calling Abram out of the Land
of the Chaldeans in UR, out of his family setting and promised him great
blessings in the land that He would settle him and his wife Sarai. Instead
of completely obeying the Lord, Abram packed his things and brought his
father Terah and his nephew Lot with his family members and settled in
Haran in what is today known as Northern Iraq (better known as Baghdad).
The Lord wanted Abram to trust Him and follow His instructions - leave
his family behind and head straight for Canaan; however, Abram obeyed
only halfway. His entourage included his father and his nephew and his
destination was not Canaan but Haran and he stayed in Haran until his
father Terah died. (Genesis 11: 27 - 32)
Yet, the Lord was gracious with Abram (father of altitude). In spite of
His shortcoming, the Lord called him again in Genesis Chapter 12. He prospered
him in Genesis Chapters 13 and 14, made a promise to him that he would
be the father of a great nation in Genesis Chapter 15, changed his name
to Abraham (father of multitude) in Genesis Chapter 16 and gave him a
son in Genesis Chapter 18. In all those chapters, not once did the LORD
reprimand Abraham for his halfhearted obedience, nor did He scold him
for his imperfection (in fact, Abraham lied to Pharaoh and to Abimelech
that Sarah was his sister instead of his wife just to save his own skin).
Abraham loved his son Isaac and in Genesis Chapter 22, we read that the
LORD tested Abraham to see how much he loved Isaac. Because Isaac was
Abraham's son in his old age and his only son (it is physically impossible
for Abraham and Sarah to even have Isaac due to their old age and due
to Sarah's barrenness in her womb), Abraham loved Isaac very dearly. One
day, the LORD instructed Abraham to bring Isaac up Mount Moriah (in present
day Jerusalem) and offer him up on the altar as a sacrifice to the LORD.
Abraham, with a heavy heart, obeyed the LORD and made the journey with
Isaac and a few of his servants until they came to the foothills of Jerusalem.
There he left his servants behind to look after all the camels, donkeys
and their belongings while he and his son would journey on foot up the
mountains. Abraham placed the firewood on Isaac and he held the flaming
torch and the knife in his hands and together they went up Mount Moriah.
As they climbed the mountain, Isaac commented that the firewood for the
burnt offering and the lighted torch were available but he could not see
the lamb for the sacrifice. At that, Abraham replied that the Lord would
provide the animal for the sacrifice.
When they reached the summit, Abraham relieved his son of the wood, gathered
some stones together and started to build an altar for the sacrifice.
When he had finished building the altar, he took Isaac and bound him with
ropes and laid him on the altar. In Abraham's mind, he realized that he
must obey the Lord even when it meant that he had to sacrifice the only
son that he had, the son that he loved so much. He trusted that the LORD
would be able to raise Isaac up from the dead and they would be reunited
at the end of the day (Hebrews 11:19). Convinced that God was able to
deliver Isaac back to him, Abraham stretched forth his hand to worship
the LORD and taking the knife in his hand, he raised his arm and was about
to kill Isaac when the Lord interrupted him.
"Abraham, Abraham," the Angel of the LORD called out to him,
"do not lay your hand on the lad or do anything to him: for now I
know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only
son, from Me." The Angel of the LORD then directed Abraham to look
behind him and see the ram with its horns caught in the bushes. The LORD
directed Abraham to take the ram and sacrifice it in Isaac's place on
the altar. Because the LORD provided Abraham the ram for the sacrifice,
he named the place YHVH Yireh (The-LORD-Will-Provide).
Praise the LORD for He provided the animal for the sacrifice. He stopped
Abraham from killing his own son so that father and son could continue
to enjoy the bond they had. Abraham and Isaac did return to the servants
and they came home to Beersheba (Seven Wells) full of joy knowing the
wonderful sacrifice that the LORD provided at the most crucial hour.
Two thousand years later, God's own Son, His only Son and the Son that
He loves so very dearly died on the very same mountain that Abraham found
the ram. Jesus was crucified on Mount Calvary, which is north of Mount
Moriah and this time, there was no one to hold back God's hand from sacrificing
His only Son. On Mount Calvary, God again provided a Sacrifice - this
time it was His own Son.
Because Abraham obeyed the LORD and was prepared to offer up Isaac as
a sacrifice, God saw his heart and considered the sacrifice complete even
before Abraham could plunge the knife into Isaac's heart. Because of Abraham's
obedience, the LORD now has a valid reason to offer up His own Son, Jesus
Christ, as a Sacrifice for our sins. And because of that Sacrifice, the
LORD has provided us the Way of escape from our sins. By a simple act
of faith, believing that the LORD Jesus Christ had died for our sins,
we are now delivered from judgment and we can enjoy the eternal benefits
of being in the Presence of the Covenant-Keeping God.
The LORD has provided the Sacrifice for our sins; therefore if you have
not accepted His Provision for your life, I would encourage you to take
the time and do so immediately. The affairs of the world are such that
we do not know what would happen tomorrow or for that matter, in the next
hour. Should you meet any unfortunate mishap or the Lord come back in
the next moment, be sure that you are ready to be with Him in Heaven for
eternity. Only those who have believed on Jesus that He has died for their
sins and have received Him into their hearts, will be able to be with
Him in Heaven.
Believing and receiving Jesus into your life is a very simple and yet
extremely powerful act that you can take and it is eternal. All you have
to do is to pray this simple prayer of faith to invite Him into your life.
Our Father in Heaven, thank you for providing us with such a wonderful
Sacrifice in our Lord Jesus Christ. Thank you that You love us so much
that no one could stop You from offering up Your Only Son to die for our
sins on the cross. Thank you that because Jesus died, I do not have to
be separated from Your love for me but that I am now Your child.
Lord Jesus, I receive You into my life. Come and my my heart Your home.
Thank you that because of Your death, I am now a child of the Heavenly
Father and that as a child of God, I can now enjoy all the blessings that
are found in Deuteronomy Chapter 28.
Thank you that I am greatly blessed, highly favored, deeply loved, forever
forgiven and now completely protected because of our Lord and Savior Jesus
Christ and in His Name I pray. Amen.
The Lord provided His most precious Gift, His Only Son, our Lord Jesus
Christ to die for our sins. How much more He will provide for our daily
needs - our families and us. The apostle Paul reassured us in Romans 8:
32, "He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us
all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?" What
are our daily needs to YHVH Yireh compared to the provision of His Son
for our sins?
So stay blessed and continue to receive and enjoy the blessings that YHVH
Yireh will provide for you.
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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