Ex. 3:13 – ‘…Then Moses said to God, “Behold, I am going to the sons of Israel, and I will say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you.’ Now they may say to me, ‘What is His name?’ What shall I say to them?”’ (NASB)
A lot of us are aware of the famed names of God in the Old Testament. These names are revelations of God and His character/attributes to His people. As Christians, we believe in a God who is BOTH transcendent (beyond us in every sense and not limited in the same ways we are as created beings) AND imminent (close to every heart and not far off from us). This gracious God of ours delighted (and delights) to reveal Himself to a fallen creation which would otherwise be unable (and unwilling) to know Him—to its own peril.
Here are just a couple of the names of God with reference scriptures:
El Elyon (The Most High God) – Gen. 14:18
El Roi (The God Who Sees) – Gen. 16:13
Jehovah Jireh (The LORD Will Provide/The LORD my Provider) – Gen. 22:18
Jehovah Raah (The LORD my Shepherd) – Ps. 23:1
Jehovah Tsikednu (The LORD Our Righteousness) – Jer. 23:6
These names not only give us insight into who God is, but also into the relationship He has with His people. For example, Jehovah Raah being our Shepherd implies that His children ‘shall not want’ (Ps. 23:1b), because all life is His (Ps. 24:1), and He knows our needs even before we ask (Luke 12:22-30, Matt. 6:8). El Roi being ‘the God who sees’ informs us that He is aware of our trials and struggles (Ps. 94:9-10), and so He is very much acquainted with what we are going through (Ps. 34:19-20).
“As Christians, we believe in a God who is BOTH transcendent (beyond us in every sense and not limited in the same ways we are as created beings) AND imminent (close to every heart and not far off from us).”
As you can see, these revelations of God’s character increase our knowledge of Him and thereby strengthens the basis of our faith in Him—who He is.
Now, contrary to some mainstream beliefs, the God of the Bible is the same ‘yesterday, today, and forever’ (Heb. 13:8, cf. Mal. 3:6, Ps. 102:25-27). There is no difference between the ‘God of the Old Testament’ and the ‘God of the New Testament’.
‘“Hear, O Israel! The LORD is our God, the LORD is one!’ (Deut. 6:4, NASB)
People tend to misinterpret how God dealt with His people in the past and how He deals with His people now as a contradiction, and therefore conclude that He has either changed over the years, or there are two different Gods in the Bible.
Not so.
The focus of God’s dealing with His people prior to the coming of Jesus Christ was to preserve for Himself a people as His own; He held them as an example of His grace, mercy, and righteousness to the rest of the nations around them, and so they were called to a higher standard—His. The events and happenings of Israel in the past served as reminders, symbols and foreshadowings of God’s overall purpose for His people, and so there was more of an emphasis on the outward appearance of keeping to this standard (although it was supposed to reflect an inward reality of obedience and faith, cf. Isa. 29:13).
Now, as we live under God’s new covenant with His people through our Saviour Jesus Christ (whom was prophesied to come through the nation of Israel and so the lineage had to be preserved), there is now an emphasis on the inward reality (although this is expected to be lived out outwardly, cf. Jas. 2:26). This however does not change what God’s overall purpose for His people is; we are still held as an example of His grace, mercy, and righteousness:
‘…But God is so rich in mercy, and He loved us so much, that even though we were dead because of our sins, He gave us life when He raised Christ from the dead. (It is only by God’s grace that you have been saved!) For He raised us from the dead along with Christ and seated us with Him in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ Jesus. So God can point to us in all future ages as examples of the incredible wealth of His grace and kindness toward us, as shown in all He has done for us who are united with Christ Jesus.’ (Eph. 2:4-7, NLT, emphasis added)
“Now, contrary to some mainstream beliefs, the God of the Bible is the same ‘yesterday, today, and forever’… There is no difference between the ‘God of the Old Testament’ and the ‘God of the New Testament’.”
We are still called to the same higher standard (His) as the Israel of old was, only this time the focus is unquestionably on a heart that is right before God, and not on externalities that only serve to mask a cold and unregenerate heart. We rest in what our Lord Jesus Christ has accomplished for us and the grace poured out on God’s people through Him, knowing that when we fall short we no longer need to offer sacrifices to atone for our sins, for Jesus Christ became the perfect and all-effectual sacrifice for sin for all those who put their trust in Him. ‘For by one offering He has perfected for all time those who are sanctified.’ (Heb. 10:16, NASB)
Now, the same God who revealed Himself in the Old Testament is still the same God of the New Testament, and He also revealed more of His nature and His relationship with His people in the New Testament. In the Old Testament, this was seen more in His names, whereas in the New Testament it is seen more in His titles. Here are just a few with reference scriptures:
The Lord of Peace – 2 Thess. 3:16
The Father of mercies – 2 Cor. 1:3
The God of all comfort – 2 Cor. 1:3
The Father of Lights – Jas. 1:17
The God of Glory – Acts 7:2
“We are still called to the same higher standard (His) as the Israel of old was, only this time the focus is unquestionably on a heart that is right before God, and not on externalities that only serve to mask a cold and unregenerate heart.”
Again, we can see in these titles for God that they not only give insight into who God is, but also into the relationship He has with His people. For example, as the Lord of Peace, He is the one who grants His people peace in times of trials and anxieties (Isa. 26:3, Phil. 4:6-8). As the Father of Lights, He is the one who is good and only does good (Ps. 119:68a); He does not tempt with evil and cannot be tempted by evil (Hab. 1:13a, Jas. 1:13), and there is no spot or blemish in His unchanging holiness (Isa. 6:1-3, 1 Pet. 1:14-16).
These revelations of God’s character increase our knowledge of Him and thereby strengthens the basis of our faith in Him—who He is. However, no revelation in the past or present can surpass the revelation of God’s nature and His relationship with His people as revealed in His Son Jesus Christ. He came into the world He created, put on the form of lowly man, lived a sinless life but died as an offering for sin; He rose on the third day, and all who put their trust in Him will not perish but have eternal life. In His life we see God’s love and righteousness. In His death we see God’s justice and mercy. All that He is and all that He did encompasses all of who God is, for ‘in Him dwells all the fulness of the Godhead bodily’ (Col. 2:9, NKJV).
“…no revelation in the past or present can surpass the revelation of God’s nature and His relationship with His people as revealed in His Son Jesus Christ.”
If you do not get to know any other name, reader, get to know the name of Jesus Christ; it is the most important name your soul will ever know.
‘…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.’ (Phil. 2:9-11, NKJV)
‘…And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.”’ (Acts 4:12, NKJV)
