Tuesday, October 29, 2024
WHAT IS HIS NAME?
Ex 3:13-15
13 And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel,
and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and
they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall
I say unto them?
14 And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and
he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me
unto you.
15 And God said moreover unto Moses, Thus shalt
thou say unto the children of Israel, The Lord God of your fathers, the God of
Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you: this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations.
Moses was having a
conversation with a burning bush which commissioned him to rescue Israel from slavery in Egypt. Moses
thought ahead to when he would announce that “God” had sent him and someone
would surely ask: “What is His name?” It wasn’t God who was having an identity
crisis but Moses. Moses was still struggling with whether he was a prince or a
shepherd.
There are no less than
twelve names of God in the Old Testament but here the Lord offered a name that answered Moses’ question. If
someone asked the name of God, Moses was to answer simply I AM. The Hebrew word
translated I AM is the word hayah which simply means “to exist
or to be.” Verse 15 offers a more detailed answer when God says: “this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations.”
The word “ever” is translated from a word that means “time out of mind.”
When God said his name
was I AM, He was
not simply saying that He exists from now on till infinity. He was saying that
He exists from infinity to infinity. He exists from before the beginning till
after the end. Such a concept, even when thoroughly explained, is hard for a
time-dweller to grasp.
There is continuity,
consistency, stability, and singleness of purpose in a God who has neither beginning nor end.
With God there are no yesterdays or tomorrows. When He confronts us, He is as
He always was. (Malachi 3:6) There is comfort in such a God.
Rom 11:33
33 O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom
and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past
finding out!
Dear Lord, you are the same God who listened
to my childhood prayers and calmed my childhood fears. You are the same God who
heard my confession and saved my soul. You have led me until today and will see
me through tomorrow. Your thoughts toward me have not changed. Your plans for
me are sealed and fully determined. My destiny is sure because you do not
change. Thank you, Lord. AMEN
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