Day 8 with Moses: The Name of the Lord is not just a title.

“Then Moses said to God, “Indeed, when I come to the children of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they say to me, ‘What is His name?’ what shall I say to them?” And God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” And He said, “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’ ” Moreover God said to Moses, “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel: ‘The Lord 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, and this is My memorial to all generations.’”

‭‭Exodus‬ ‭3:13-15‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

Many people are familiar with the passage from “Romeo and Juliet” where Juliet is musing over the topic of the importance of a name. She basically comes to the conclusion that a name is unimportant; because, in this case, the name of Romeo and the name of Juliet dictated that they be enemies, not lovers.

It is important to note that the Lord does not take a casual approach to a name. Consider the fact that He, in placing Adam over the animals, gave Adam the authority to name them (Genesis 2:20). Adam, as the “namer,” held authority over the named.

It’s interesting to know that as Jacob wrestled with the Lord, before parting ways with Him, Jacob asked what the Lord’s name was, with the Lord offering an interesting reply:

“Then Jacob asked, saying, “Tell me Your name, I pray.” And He said, “Why is it that you ask about My name?” And He blessed him there. So Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: “For I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.””

‭‭Genesis‬ ‭32:29-30‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

It sounds as though the Lord was reminding Jacob of his position of being subservient to that of the Lord. When we see Jacob’s tendency toward self-interest, we might read into this the beginning of a process that would result in Jacob (Israel) coming to understand God’s authority over him.

Indeed, the name of the Lord contains all that He is. There is power in the name of the Lord!

“The name of the Lord is a strong tower; The righteous run to it and are safe.”

‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭18:10‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

We also know that God-Made-Flesh, our Lord Jesus Christ, has been given a name with power over all things

“Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

‭‭Philippians‬ ‭2:9-11‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

We find Moses today—as he is being given a call to duty from the Lord—wondering what name he should use to present the Lord to the Hebrews. First of all, we see that the Lord is not limited to one particular title, and indeed, in Him all things consist. Therefore, His name is best described as “I Am.” But also note that God repeatedly references Himself as a God of Covenant. In this case mentioning His covenant with Abraham and Isaac. And, as we have discussed earlier in our journey with Moses, He also came to be known as “the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.”

Meditating upon all the titles we use to reference our Lord is good as it reminds us of His greatness and the unlimited scope of His power. But, we know that our Lord Jesus made clear how we are to reference God in our communication with Him:

“In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name.”

‭‭Matthew‬ ‭6:9‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

We see two crucial components here concerning the name of our God. We see that He is our Father and that His name is holy.

Make no mistake, calling out any title of the Lord without truly being in relationship with Him will ultimately do you no good. But, if you do know Him and have recognized that He is our all-in-all, then there is no force able to stand against you as you are operating in His name!

For today let us discover what Moses discovered:

The Name of the Lord is not just a title.

#40dayswithmoses