JOHN 17:6: “I made your name known to the people you gave me. They are from this world. They belonged to you, and you gave them to me. They did what you told them.” (GW)
OBSERVATION: What is so significant about the “Name of the Lord”? Throughout Jesus’ High Priestly Prayer in John 17, He continually refers to the “Name of the Lord”. Yet, this one phrase caused me to pause and reflect. Jesus did not only use His Father’s name, Jesus made His Name known.
When God called Moses from the burning bush, Moses was hesitant to answer the call. He remembered his past failures in being a deliverer for Israel. Realizing that his Jewish brothers and sisters might just dismiss him as delusional, Moses asked,
- “…Suppose I go to the people of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your ancestors has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ What should I tell them?” God answered Moses, “I Am Who I Am. This is what you must say to the people of Israel: ‘I Am has sent me to you.’ ” Again God said to Moses, “This is what you must say to the people of Israel: The LORD God of your ancestors, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, has sent me to you. This is my name forever. This is my title throughout every generation.” (Exodus 3:13-15 GW)
Throughout the Old Testament, “I Am” (Yahweh or Jehovah), has revealed Himself to His covenant people through eight different revelatory names. They are:
- Jehovah Jireh: I Am your provider
- Jehovah Nissi: I Am your banner (victory)
- Jehovah Rapha: I Am your healer
- Jehovah Shamma: I Am present (always with you)
- Jehovah Roi: I Am your shepherd
- Jehovah Tsidkenu: I Am your righteousness
- Jehovah Shalom: I Am your peace
- Jehovah Sabaoth: I Am your king (Lord of hosts)
The wonderful reality of the incarnation, when the Word became flesh, when Jesus came to this earth as a man, is – He revealed the fullness of God’s name to us – THROUGH HIS LIFE!
- “The Word became human and lived among us. We saw his glory. It was the glory that the Father shares with his only Son, a glory full of kindness and truth…Each of us has received one gift after another because of all that the Word is. Laws were given through Moses, but kindness and truth came into existence through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God. God’s only Son, the one who is closest to the Father’s heart, has made him known.” John 1:14, 16-18 GW
What an awesome truth! What an powerful revelation! In Jesus’ life, through His death, and in the power of His resurrection – we see the power of the Name of God! We fully find in Jesus Christ the perfect example of what Solomon wrote in Proverbs,
- “The name of the LORD is a strong tower. A righteous person runs to it and is safe. A rich person’s wealth is his strong city and is like a high wall in his imagination.” Proverbs 18:10-11 GW
Note the contrast. The name of the LORD (JESUS) is a strong tower! Yet, a person’s wealth is strong only in his imagination. The gift of Jesus Christ is the tangible gift of the Name of the Lord. In Him we truly live, and move, and have our being. Only as we trust in Him do we find the fullness of all we need! In Him we see, hear, and touch the fullness of the godhead bodily. This is the reality of Christmas! This is His wonderful gift!
THE NAME OF THE LORD!
In Jesus Name!
