You and I were created to know God.
This is our ultimate purpose for existence, and it is very important that we
have a correct concept of God,
for we tend to respond to Him based upon our perception of what we know about
Him.
This
has been proven historically. The measure of greatness attained by both
individuals and nations has been in direct proportion to their perspective of
God. Where God is welcomed and worshipped, there is blessing. Where He is
rejected or ignored, there is often bondage and lack.
Immeasurable
Majesty
Though our natural minds could never
contain the unfathomable magnitude of God, we can know Him and discover what He
is like through the revelation of His Word and through relationship.
A.W.
Tozer, a writer whose works have inspired me deeply, describes the One whom we
seek to know in this extraordinary way:
The God we must learn to know is the Majesty
in the heavens, God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, the only
wise God our Saviour. He it is that sitteth upon the circle of the earth, who
stretcheth out the heavens as a curtain and spreadeth them out as a tent to
dwell in, who bringeth out His starry host by number and calleth them all by
name through the greatness of His power.
Tozer’s
words paint an eloquent portrait of God for us to consider, yet no words could
ever begin to describe the level of perfect fellowship and communion that Adam
and Eve experienced as they basked in God’s glory while they strolled through
the garden with Him (Genesis 2).
What
tongue could convey the rapturous wonder that Moses experienced when, in
response to his plea to know God, he stood in the cleft of the rock as God
passed by, revealing His glory to him (Ex. 33:13)
So
glorious was this encounter with the Lord that scripture records “the skin of
his face shone” (Ex. 33:29).
You
and I can know God, and what awaits us as we grow in our relationship with Him
is beyond comprehension, for the Bible declares, “But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither
have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them
that love him” (1 Cor. 2:9).
In
Isaiah 64:4 we find a similar assurance: “For since the beginning of the world men have not heard, nor
perceived by the ear, neither hath the eye seen, O God, beside thee, what he
hath prepared for him that waiteth for him.”
Within
the scriptures God reveals Himself to you and me in 12 glorious revelations of
His Name: One Name, 12 Revelations. Each revelation
draws us closer to Him, bringing greater depth to our relationship and
producing more intimate fellowship. And I’m sure your heart cries out as mine
does to know the depths of the Master and experience the All-Consuming Glory of
His Presence.
The
Names and Nature of God
How
important is a name? Is it merely a means of recognition, or is it integral to
identity?
In my opinion, a name represents the
authority and the qualities and characteristics that set you apart from
everyone else and those considerations are all part of your identity. This principle is true in the Spirit realm,
and is readily acknowledged when you and I pray “in the Name of Jesus.”
In
the words of Charles Spurgeon, “When the
petition is so clearly right that we dare set the Name of Jesus to it, then it
must be granted.”
Man’s
chief end and ultimate purpose is to know God, and this occurs through an
unfolding revelation: “And this is life
eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom
thou hast sent” (John 17:3).
God
Almighty reveals Himself to us in 12 Revelations of His Name. Although these
revelations were given years apart, they were recorded in perfect order by the
inspiration of the Holy Spirit, and each defines with perfection the nature of
an awesome God.
Here
are the first six Names of God:
Elohim:
My God, My Creator—Genesis 1:1
The first revelation God gives is that
He is Elohim, as recorded in the Hebrew text. This name is always connected to
creation, authority, power, greatness, dominion, and glory. It is introduced in Genesis 1:1 where
the Bible declares, “In the beginning God
created the heaven and the earth.” Elohim’s actual meaning is a plural form of God, because when
the Name is translated from the Hebrew in Genesis chapter 1, it reads “in the eternal past, Gods brought out of
nothing the heaven and the earth.”
Indeed,
in Genesis 1 we find the words, “… and
God said … and God said … and God said,” repeatedly, and in each instance
it is the plural form of Elohim. God presents Himself with the plural name
Elohim to His creation and the angels: “And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness”
(Genesis 1:26)
Jehovah:
My Father—Genesis 2:7
Whereas the Name Elohim presents God’s
existence, we see His personality revealed in the Name Jehovah. This Name is
associated with covenant relationship, fellowship, and blood sacrifice.
For
example, Elohim presents love, Jehovah reveals love. Elohim presents power,
Jehovah reveals power. Elohim presents mercy, Jehovah reveals mercy. Elohim
presents His glory, Jehovah reveals His glory.
The
Bible tells us that the angels cry, “Holy! Holy! Holy!” while beholding His majestic
Holy Presence. When we experience a revelation of His glory, we will do the
same, but there is something that the angels cannot do. They cannot know Him as
Jehovah—their Father.
You
and I can know this privilege as believers because of the work of the cross,
which allows us to experience the intimate father-to-child fellowship that
comes as a result of having a covenant relationship with the God Jehovah.
Jehovah El-Shaddai:
My Supplier—Genesis 17:4
In
Genesis 17, God reveals Himself to Abram as Jehovah El-Shaddai. When Abram was 99 years old, “the Lord
appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty God; walk before me,
and be thou perfect. And I will make my covenant between me and thee, and will
multiply thee exceedingly” (17:1–2).
Abram knew God as Jehovah through his
covenant relationship with Him. But, at age 99, Abram was about to experience a
revelation of El-Shaddai, as God’s promise was about to be fulfilled: “Thou shalt be a father of many nations.… I will make thee
exceeding fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out
of thee” (Genesis 17:4-6).
When
Abraham was an old man and Sarah’s womb was dead, God fulfilled His
promise. Abraham did not know the revelation of Jehovah El-Shaddai (the
Supplier) until his body could not produce and his flesh was approaching death.
The seed came after their revelation of Jehovah El-Shaddai: the Supplier, the
Nourisher, the All-Sufficient One gave Abraham and Sarah their child of promise.
Adonai: My Lord, My Master—Genesis
18:3
We find an example of the fourth
revelation of God’s Name, Adonai, in Genesis 18. As Abraham was sitting in the
doorway of his tent in the heat of the day, he looked up and saw three men
standing near him. Bowing himself to the ground, Abraham, we are told in Genesis
18:3 calls out, “My Lord,” which
in Hebrew translates as Adonai, or “Master.” Being addressed as Master
implies that He is in complete ownership and control.
God
reveals His will to those who know Him as Adonai. Up to this time, Abraham did
not have a full understanding of God’s will. That’s why he tried to help God
accomplish the promise to make him the father of many nations when he took
Hagar as a wife. But when Abraham begins to call God Adonai, the Lord begins to
confide in him about His plans.
We
are told in Genesis 18:17 “the Lord said, Shall I hide from Abraham
that thing which I do?” referring to His plans of destruction for Sodom and
Gomorrah. When Abraham addressed God as Adonai, he was actually saying, “You’re my Lord,” and God rewarded Him with a deeper and more
intimate relationship. As God’s servant and partner, “Abraham drew near, and
said, Wilt thou also destroy the righteous with the wicked?” (Genesis 18:23).
From
this point, Abraham began to intercede for Sodom and Gomorrah. Great
intercessors are born in intimate fellowship with God. As Abraham “drew near,”
he experienced intimacy with God Almighty and became an intercessor.
Jehovah
Jireh: My Provider—Genesis 22:8
God’s promise to Abraham is fulfilled
with the birth of Isaac. Imagine the joy Abraham experienced as he watched his
son grow. Imagine, too, how you
might have reacted in Abraham’s place when God instructed him, “Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac,
whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for
a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of”(Genesis
22:2).
Good
servant that he was, Abraham did not hesitate to obey God’s command:
And
Abraham rose up early in the morning, and saddled his ass, and took two of his
young men with him, and Isaac his son, and clave the wood for the burnt
offering, and rose up, and went unto the place of which God had told him.
(Genesis 22:3)
After
traveling for three days, they finally saw the land of Moriah (meaning
mountains of provision) in the distance. Abraham told the two young men, “Abide ye here with the ass; and I and the lad
will go yonder and worship, and come again to you” (Genesis 22:5)
Then
Abraham and Isaac set off together, Isaac carrying the wood for the burnt
offering, and Abraham carrying the fire in one hand and a knife in the other.
As
they walked along, Isaac inquired, “My father … Behold the fire and the wood: but where is the lamb
for a burnt offering?” (Genesis 22:7)
Because
Abraham knew God intimately, he responded with a glorious revelation: “My son, God (Jehovah Jireh, Yahweh) will
provide Himself a lamb for a burnt offering” (22:8).
In
this Name, Abraham identifies a God of redemption. The Hebrew text suggests two
meanings: “Jehovah shall be seen” and “Provider.” The revelation contained in
Abraham’s response is glorious! In response to Isaac’s question about the
whereabouts of the lamb, Abraham is actually saying, “Jehovah shall be seen!”
In
that moment, I believe that Abraham had a vision of Christ on the cross, for
the place where Isaac was to be offered (the land of Moriah) is where Christ
was crucified. This is confirmed in John 8:56. We are told that
while Jesus walked toward the mountains of Moriah, which are in Golgotha in
Jerusalem, He said to the Jews, “Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day: and he saw it, and was
glad.”
Provision
is impossible without possession. Abraham had a vision of the provision that
was to come as he saw Christ on the cross. And amazingly the Holy Spirit put
these revelations relating to God’s Name in such perfect order in the Word of
God.
Jehovah Rophe: My Healer—Exodus
15:26
The
sixth revelation of God’s Name is Jehovah Rophe, my Healer. This revelation
came through Moses to the children of Israel as they were coming out of Egypt.
It is presented in such perfect order in the Scriptures under the inspiration
of the Holy Spirit because to know God as Jehovah Rophe, your Healer, you must
first know Him as your God, your Father, your Supplier, your Master and Lord,
and your Provider. When you see the Lamb as your provider, healing will come.
As
the Israelites came to the waters of Marah, they found that the water was
bitter and unsuitable for drinking. Amid their complaints:
[Moses]
cried unto the Lord; and the Lord showed him a tree, which when he had cast
into the waters, the waters were made sweet: there he made for them a statute
and an ordinance, and there he proved them, And said, If thou wilt diligently
hearken to the voice of the Lord thy God, and wilt do that which is right in
his sight, and will give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I
will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought upon the
Egyptians: for I am the God that healeth thee (Exodus 15:25-26).
This
is the key. The moment we see Christ as provision through redemption, we see
healing. The word provision is connected to redemption. When
Abraham says, “God will provide
himself the lamb,” he is speaking of
redemption. While the sinner may receive healing because of grace, the believer
receives healing because of the covenant relationship that comes about through
the revelation of who God is.
Abraham
and Moses both experienced the revelation of who God is through a revelation of
His Names. Yet there was one great difference between them. Abraham knew the
Name, but Moses knew what the Name could do! He witnessed firsthand the power
of Jehovah’s Name in Egypt when the gods of Egypt bowed, when Pharaoh bowed,
and when the plagues descended upon the Egyptians.
A
glorious demonstration of that power was manifest when 430 years of captivity
came to an end for the children of Israel. With the wealth of Egypt in hand, three
million slaves were delivered from bondage as they saw the power of the Name
Jehovah demonstrated!
Many
individuals today only know God as Elohim. They have never met Jehovah or
experienced a revelation of who He is through a covenant relationship. The
covenant begins with the knowledge of Jehovah.
As
believers, and because of the covenant, you and I can know the Master in-depth
and are able to experience a glorious revelation of Him!
God Almighty reveals
Himself to us through the 12 Revelations of His Name: One Name, 12 revelations.
In part one of “The Names and Nature of God,” I’ve shared the first six
revelations of God’s Name. We will examine the final six revelations of God’s Name
in the second part of this teaching.