THE NAME I LOVE - PART ONE

 “Therefore (because He stooped so low), Elohim (God) exalted Him to the highest place, and gave Him THE NAME THAT IS ABOVE EVERY NAME that at the Name of Yahshua every knee should bow - in heaven and on earth and under the earth - and every tongue confess that Yahshua the Messiah is Master/Lord (the Heavenly Master), to the glory of YHWH, Elohim (God) the Father.” Philippians 2:5-11

 THE NAME I dearly love – the Name I love more than any other name, is not my own name, it is not my husband's name, nor my son’s name. It’s not the name of a friend. It is the Name of my FATHER - my HEAVENLY FATHER. And my Father’s Name is also included in the Name of His beloved Son - my SAVIOUR - a fact that gives the Son’s Name such a significant meaning, and such sweet fragrance.

 Many Believers have discovered the real, authentic Name of the Heavenly Father. Of course, it has always been there - but it has been long neglected or covered up.

 Personally, in discovering the original, revealed Name, I have come to understand in a new and deeper way, the unity of the Father’s Name and the Son’s Name. With that discovery, there has come also a deep love - a love that makes me want to tell everyone about that wonderful Name. In the words of my Saviour . . .

 “I WILL DECLARE YOUR NAME TO MY BRETHREN,

 IN THE MIDST OF THE CONGREGATION

 I WILL SING YOUR PRAISE.” Hebrews 2:12

 For years I was content to call my Father and my Saviour by the various accepted English titles and substitutes - God, Jehovah, Jesus, Lord, Christ. Then I discovered that these are not the ORIGINAL NAMES of the Father and the Son. God, Lord and Christ, are, in fact, descriptive TITLES, and they are titles that need to be defined, for in the world there are “gods many,” and “lords many” - and especially these days, there are many “Christs.” 1 Corinthians 8:5. Matthew 24:5

 Christians insist rightly, of course, that there is only one true Lord; there’s only one true God - the Almighty. But other religions also use the terms “Lord”, “God”, and “Almighty” in referring to their gods. Therefore, we must define what we mean when using these terms - not for our own sake, merely, but for the Truth’s sake. Indeed, the eternal destiny of many, depends upon it - the Truth!

 Normally we describe the attributes of the One we believe to be “The Lord”; and in so doing, we usually fail to mention His Name. Some even feel that the Almighty God is too big to have a Name, and that it is quite sufficient to refer to Him simply as “God,” “Lord,” or “Lord God.”

 In the Preface to its 1973 edition, the Revised Standard Version (1946), expresses this idea when it comments on the Name of God:

 “(1) the word ‘Jehovah’ does not accurately represent any form of the Name ever used in Hebrew; and,

 (2) the use of any proper name for the one and only God, as though there were other gods from whom He had to be distinguished, was discontinued in Judaism before the Christian era, and it is entirely inappropriate for the universal faith of the Christian Church.”

 Point one is true. “Jehovah” is not a correct form of God’s Name. Point two however, is not true!

 The ancient Hebrews, several hundred years before Messiah came, began to refrain from speaking the Name out of extreme reverence for the Name. They used the words Adonai (Lord), or Ha Shem (the Name), in its place. But the Name was WRITTEN, and still is, in the Hebrew Bible. And to maintain that it is inappropriate for God to have a Name in the Christian Church, is absurd! There is not one man on earth who does not have a name. And if there is not a single known species of insect that does not have a name, why should God not have a Name? And certainly, the true God MUST be distinguished from the multiplicity of so-called gods. They are false, of course, but to the peoples of the nations they are real. Hindi gods are also referred to as God with a capital G.

 It is because of the “Elohim ~God-is-too-big-for-a-Name” attitude that many Christians have defaulted and settled for using the titles “Lord” and “God” as substitutes for His real Name. It’s like saying, about a human father, “Oh, I’m not sure what my father’s name is. I just call him ‘Daddy’.”

 Our Heavenly Father DOES have a Name - a Name of which He Himself has declared, “This is My Name forever.” That Name is written in the Hebrew Bible 6,855 times. But the Christian Church has largely been robbed of the Name.

 ...NEXT... WHAT IS OUR FATHER'S NAME? — —