The Names of God

 

Scripture

 Proverbs 18:10

The name of the Lord is a strong tower;
    the righteous run into it and are safe.  (NRSVUE)

 

Exodus 3:13-14

¹³ But Moses said to God, “If I come to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your ancestors has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ what shall I say to them?” ¹⁴ God said to Moses, “I am who I am.” He said further, “Thus you shall say to the Israelites, ‘I am has sent me to you.’ ”   (NRSVUE)

Devotion

 In my last post, I mentioned that God gives us many titles to suit our different callings and ministries.  What I didn't mention is that God also many different names and titles.  When pressed by Moses to give him a name to share with the people, God responded enigmatically with "I AM WHO I AM."  This mind bending response points to a God who is too big, too glorious, and too outside of our human experience for us to fully comprehend.  While no one name can reveal all to our limited human minds, Scripture does refer to names that give us a partial glimpse of who and what God is.  Each of those name point to different aspects of the our relationship with God.

Biblical names that begin with "El" (the Hebrew word for any god) teach us something about God's attributes.  There is El Shaddai: The All Sufficient God/God of the Mountains.  This name points to a God is more than able to care for our every need. It also reminds us of how God spoke to Moses on Mt. Sinai and provides an interesting link to the ancient cultural assumption that as the highest place a person could go, mountains were thin places along the boundary between Heaven and Earth. 

Then there is El Elyon: God Most High, which stresses God's supremacy over all things.  And El Echad: the One God.  And El Emet: God of Truth.  And El Sali: God my Rock/Strength.      And El Rachum: God of Compassion .  One of my personal favorites is El Roi: God who Sees Me.  And, of course, there is Immanuel:  God with Us.

Apart from the "El" names, scripture gives us other names for God.  There is Adonai, who can be best thought of in English as an ever-faithful Lord and Master.  And there is, of course, YHVH: a name so Holy that Jewish tradition holds we should not even say it aloud.  Instead, they say Adonai when they come to it. Like the names that begin with "El," many names add on to YHVH in order to describe how the Lord is our source of peace, righteousness, strength, salvation, etc.  

One of the things I love about the Triune God having so many different names is that there is always some aspect of God that we can focus on or even call upon for our every concern.Whether we need strength, guidance, assurance, comfort, healing, Truth, or a reminder of who is really in charge, there is name for that.  And when we call upon that name for help, we can be assured that God will respond.

This day, I encourage you to reflect on your current state: your joys, your concerns, and your needs.  After doing so, ask yourself which of the many names by which we know the Triune God can help you turn to them in prayer over those things.  Perhaps it is one that I listed above.  Perhaps, is another.  Whatever name it is, keep it and the assurances that lie within it in mind as you lift your prayers to the heavens.  I promise The God who is not only familiar with each of those names but who also calls us by our own names will hear your prayer and respond.

Prayer

Today, you are encouraged to offer up your own prayer.  You may start by naming God:  

Oh, ___________, thank you for _______________.  Please_________________________.  In your Holy Name I pray, Amen.