When we are born, our parents give us our names. For some, you are named after a family member, or your parents may like someone else’s name and choose it.
Naming our children is usually one of the first decisions we make for them. If you know you are using a parent or grandparent’s name, it’s easy, but sometimes, picking a name can be a chore and may drive you crazy.
Back in the day, we didn’t always know the gender of our babies until their birthdays. Now, though, everyone is having gender reveal parties and sharing the baby’s name.
If you grew up in church or have had a relationship with God for a while, you know he has a name. Did you know God has over 1,000 names in the Bible? One of them is found more than 6,800 times in the Old Testament!
One day, a man was tending sheep on a mountain and saw something unusual. When he went to investigate, he found a bush that was not burning. Then he heard a Voice speak to him from inside the bush.
This Voice tells the man that His people in Egypt were crying out to be delivered from slavery, and this man, Moses, was the one chosen to free them.
Of course, Moses argues that he couldn’t be the one, and even if he did go, the people would ask who sent him. He needed a name to give to them.
‘God replied to Moses,” ‘I Am’ who I am. Tell the Israelites this: ‘I Am’ has sent me to you.” Then God told Moses, “Tell the Israelites, ‘The Lord—the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob—has sent me to you. This is my name forever, the name you are to call me for all generations to come.’ Exodus 3:14-15
Every name has a meaning. When we name our children, we research those meanings. Our names often reveal our character.
When God told Moses his name was I AM, he was telling Moses and us that he has always existed and will always exist. Yahweh is always near to us and constantly working on our behalf.
God gave us his proper name, I AM, so we could know him and have a relationship with him. We could speak to him by name, as we would a close friend.
There was a woman named Sarai and her maid Hagar. Sarai was older and could not give her husband Abram a child. So, as was the custom, Sarai gave Hagar to Abram, and she became pregnant.
During this time, Sarai was unkind to Hagar and mistreated her. Hagar decided to run away and wandered in the desert. She stopped next to a spring, and that is where God found her.
‘From then on, Hagar called the Lord who spoke to her, “You are the God who sees me,” because she said, “Here I saw the one who sees me.” That’s why the well is called “the Well of the Living One who Sees Me.” It’s still there, between Kadesh and Bered. ‘Genesis 16:13-14
Hagar felt like no one cared about her. That she had no worth; her master’s wife had abused her and run away, thinking no one would miss her.
But God was watching her. He knew everything about her, every detail, including every hair on her head. He cared, he knew her, and he saw her by that spring in the desert.
Sometimes, we feel alone, and no one cares about us. No one would miss us if we just disappeared. We sometimes worry things won’t get done, or everything keeps falling apart.
God is still El Roi and still sees each of us. He sees our struggles and is ready to meet with us wherever we are. He cares about every detail of our lives.
A few years after the story of Hagar, we find that Abram has been renamed Abraham, his wife, Sarai, is now Sarah, and they have had a son.
One day, God instructs Abraham to take his son Isaac and make a sacrifice on the mountain. Abraham was to take only his son and firewood. Usually, they take a ram or other animal, but God said only the wood and his son were to go.
When they arrive, they build the altar, and Abraham lays Isaac on top. Just as Abraham is about to strike his son, God calls out, and then, in a bush nearby, Abraham sees a ram caught by its horns.
‘Abraham called the place “The Lord will Provide.” Today, people still say, “The Lord will provide on his mountain.” Genesis 22:14
God knows our every need and provides for us daily. Just as he provided mana for the Israelites in the wilderness and clothed the flowers of the field in splendor, so will he do for us.
There is another way God provides for us. Near the place where Abraham built the altar to sacrifice his son is the place where God sacrificed his Son.
‘For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.’ John 3:16
Jehovah Jireh provided a way for each of us to be forgiven of our sins. He provided the perfect Lamb to take our place, who was then put on the altar as our sacrifice.
The Israelites had just left Egypt and were on their way to the Promised Land when, one day, they saw an army coming towards them and began attacking them.
Moses tells Joshua (remember him from a couple of weeks ago?) to choose some men and go out and fight. Then Moses goes to the top of the mountain with God’s staff in his hand.
As Joshua fights the battle, Moses raises his hands with the staff. When Moses raises the staff, the Israelites win, but they begin losing when his hands come down.
Then Aaron, Moses’s brother, and Hur came and stood on either side of Moses, helping hold up his hands and the staff. By the end of the day, Joshua and the Israelites won the battle.
‘Moses built an altar and called it “The Lord is my Banner of Victory.” “Hold up the victory banner of the Lord!” Moses declared. “The Lord will go on fighting the Amalekites for all generations!” Exodus 17:15-16
Today, we use banners everywhere. We honor our country and its heroes with our flag. We have the banners of our favorite sports teams. Along the highway, banners advertise the nearest gas station or fast-food restaurant.
A banner is made to be seen, something to show the way or to make an announcement.
‘At that time, the root of Jesse will stand like a banner for the nations. Foreigners will come to him, and the place where he lives will be glorious.’ Isaiah 11:10
God gave us a banner. Just when Moses lifted the staff of God and God helped the Israelites win the battle, God lifted Jesus as our Banner of salvation and saved us from sin.
I hope you enjoyed learning about these four names of God. I pray you will dig deeper and find more treasures in them.
As I said at the beginning, God has many names, and each one shows a different part of His character. I chose these four first because they are special to me, and I have seen God in each one.
I will share some of His other names in the future, but for now, ask God to reveal Himself to you through these names. My prayer is that you will be changed by them.
Exodus 3
Genesis 16
Genesis 22
Exodus 17
https://www.bible.com/bible/1932/ISA.11.10
https://www.bible.com/bible/1932/EXO.17.15-16
https://www.bible.com/bible/111/JHN.3.16
https://www.bible.com/bible/1932/GEN.22.14
https://www.bible.com/bible/1932/GEN.16.13-14
https://www.bible.com/bible/1932/EXO.3.14-15
