>Names of God – Jehovah

>It’s time for another post in the Names of God series. We have done a little study on the names Elohim, El Elyon, El Roi, El ShaddaiEl Olam, and Adonia.  Today we will look at the name that God says is His memorial name to all generations… Jehovah.

The first time the name Jehovah is used is in Genesis 2:4, but it is not until the book of Exodus that God lays out the meaning of this name before us to behold it and behold Him. This name of God is the most frequent name of God used in the Scriptures.

Jehovah is the most holy, glorious name of God. It was a name that made the Jews afraid and filled them with awe. It was so sacred that they would not even pronounce it. Did you know that every time they wrote the name Jehovah they would stop, take off their clothes, take a complete bath, put on clean clothes, and then use a pen that had never been used before to write the name Jehovah? That’s how holy and sacred this name is for God! ~ Janna Arndt   

I hope knowing this gives you a whole new depth of meaning to the third commandment,

You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain,
for the LORD will not leave him unpunished
who takes His name in vain.
Exodus 20:7 
 
As you read through your Bible you will find the name Jehovah translated as LORD. If you recall the last name we looked at was Adonia, which meant lord or master. The way you know if you are reading Jehovah or Adonia is by the capitalization of the name. Adonia is Lord, only the L is capital. Jehovah is LORD, all letters are capital.
 
The name Jehovah can also be Yahweh. The Hebrew letters for Jehovah are YHWH. It is unpronounceable to us because there are no vowels. We have changed the Y to J and the W to V and added the vowels e,o,a in order to be able to attempt to pronounce this name of God. Others add only an a and e and say Yahweh. This links the name of God to the Hebrew verb hayah which means to be, to exist.
 
This name of God, YHWH, which we pronounce Jehovah or Yahweh, implies a Being who is absolutely self-existent. He doesn’t need anything outside of Himself to exist. I would say that it is no coincidence that the first time we see this name of God is in connection with Elohim, Creator.
 
This is the account of the heavens and the earth
when they were created,
in the day the YHWH Elohim
made earth and heaven.
Genesis 2:4 
 
This passage is the first use of Jehovah in Scripture, but when the meaning and importance of this name is slammed home to us is in Exodus 3:1-15… when Moses meets his God. It is here that Moses cries out to a burning bush that is never consumed though it resides in the midst of fire. Here this man who grew up being taught to serve a plethora of gods ask this God what is your name? Who shall I say has sent me?
 
God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM”; 
and He said, “Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel,
‘I AM has sent me to you.’…
This is My name forever,
and this is my memorial-name to all generations.” 
Exodus 3:14-15
 
God is the eternal I AM, He is the Self-existent One, the always present. This was His memorial name to all generations… so when He came to the earth as the Word made flesh…
 
Jesus said to them,
“Truly, truly, I say to you,
before Abraham was born, I am.”
John 8:58
 
So when He said to them, “I am”
(He is not in the original text),
 they drew back and fell to the ground.
John 18:6   
 
Yep, His memorial name to all generations…
There is no God like Jehovah!
  
 

 

>Our Happy Home

>

Then Jacob said to Joseph,
“God Almighty appeared to me at Luz
in the land of Canaan
and blessed me,
and He said to me,
‘Behold, I will make you a company of peoples, and will give this land
to your descendants after you
for an everlasting possession.’”
Genesis 48:3–4
 
Our journey through Genesis is drawing to a close. Jacob is on his deathbed. As he speaks with Joseph, he reminds him of the promise given by God to Abraham; the promise that includes the descendants of Abraham through Isaac and through Jacob.
 
This promise, this covenant, was and is an everlasting covenant. Jacob refers to God as God Almighty, El Shaddai, and he reminds Joseph that God is going to make their family a company of peoples and that the land promised them is in thelandofCanaan. God let Jacob know that it would not be in his lifetime that the land would be in their possession, but in the lifetime of his descendants.
 
We know from history and from this present day thatIsraelhas yet to fully possess her land, but we know that God’s Word is sure. He always keeps His word. One day El Shaddai will fulfill His word.
 
Behold, I will gather them
out of all the lands to which I have driven them in My anger,
in My wrath and in great indignation;
and I will bring them back to this place
and make them dwell in safety.
They shall be My people, and I will be their God;
and I will give them one heart and one way,
that they may fear Me always, for their own good,
and for the good of their children after them.
I will make an everlasting covenant with them
that I will not turn away from them, to do them good;
and I will put the fear of Me in their hearts
so that they will not turn away from Me.
I will rejoice over them to do them good
and will faithfully plant them in this land
with all My heart and with all My soul.
Jeremiah 32:37–41
 
I must admit that I eagerly anticipate that day, the day when Israelwill occupy her land, the day when Jesus will reign as Lord of lords and King of kings. I long for the day when all the world will see that when God says forever, He means forever. I long for the day when the world will see that it is God who places the boundaries of the nations (Job 12:23). One day Jesus Christ will ride in on the clouds, clothed in all His brilliant majesty, and every eye will see and all will know that God is indeed El Shaddai.
 
Oh Father,
 
You are faithful and Your Word is true. Your purpose will be accomplished. How awesome it is to call You my God. My Jesus, thank You for the price You paid, the sacrifice You made, so that I might be included in and grafted into the covenant with Abraham. Oh Father, how I pray for the grafting in again of Your chosen nation (Romans 11:24), that those who are descendants according to the flesh might become descendants also according to faith. Oh Father, I pray for the day that all would see and know that “the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable” (Romans 11:29). Oh Father, I pray for the peace of Jerusalem.
 
My Jesus, it is in Your name I pray,
Amen.
 

>Overwhelmed With Him

>

I saw this video today and I was overwhelmed with Him. Overwhelmed that He would trust me with His children. It hit me again like a brick in my chest, that my girls are not mine. They are His. He has allowed me the honor of being a steward over them… and the privilege of being called Momma, but they belong to Him.

I remember talking with some parents one day, they were women that I did not know, and may never see again… and as we talked they were shocked that our girls had chores, that they washed dishes, did laundry, their children where in high school and they did nothing but get waited on.

One thing my husband and I knew from the beginning was that our girls were not just our children. They were a future wife, a future mother, a future employee, a future employer, a future servant of the Most High God. We knew that it was our job to get them ready for life…

The burden became even heavier when the eternal weight began to hit us as we have grown in our own personal walks with the Lord. God has allowed us to babysit His babies. Our job is to train them up in the way of their Father.

I have taken care of other people’s kids my whole life. The first thing I always ask is what are your rules? What are they allowed to do, eat, drink? When do they sleep? What are they allowed to watch, read, listen to? How do you discipline? Where are the boundries? Because I want to honor your rules for your children.

If my girls are not mine… if they belong to Him… then I should be asking these same questions to Him. And I should honor His rules for His children. He is watching. The secret camera footage is being stored up. I am being recorded as I love and care for His children.

Sometimes I have to remember that they are my Father’s in heaven… it helps with my own attitude with things. It helps me to remember to cherish every moment with them and to make the most of every opportunity. To always point them to Him, their Eternal Father.

I look at my girls and the time is going by so fast… I remember seeing the imprint of their tiny feet pressed up against my skin from within my womb and now they still manage to get up under my skin, but it’s more the head-jerking, eye-twitching, pull my own hair out kinda under the skin 🙂

So when I have those moments (the head-jerking, eye-twitching, pull my own hair out kinda moments)… and God knew I would have these moments… yet He still chose to trust me with some of the most unbelievably precious girls I have ever known.
Yes, I am overwhelmed with Him.
Overwhelmed with His grace and His choosing…

Dear God, don’t let me screw this up!