In my last several Postings I’ve been trying to show that John’s Gospel points to the fact that Jesus is God. In my effort to emphasize Jesus’ deity I may have given the idea that Jesus is God alone. That is not what I am saying. I am a strong Trinitarian, I believe in the Trinity of God the Father, Jesus the Son, and the Holy Spirit. they are co-equal and One. This is a faith issue. The human intellect or mind cannot fully comprehend it, but it is essential to coming into a relationship with God. Show More
Someone sent me a comment that “Jesus is not God; He is the Christ”. That is true the word Christ is not Jesus’ last name; it is His title. Christ is Greek and means Savior in English, and Messiah in Hebrew. However, the evidence is overwhelming that Jesus is God.
The Apostle Paul said that Jesus as God laid His Deity aside to live among us as a human being. Philippians 2:5, “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, 6 who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, 7 but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men”. The Bible says it, that settles it!
God’s Covenant Name – “I AM”
In Exodus 3:13-14 a profound change in the relationship between God and man takes place. Up to this time in history, the Israelites or Hebrews would refer to God as El or Elohim; this was the general name used for God. As God prepares to use a reluctant Moses to lead the Israelites out of Egypt, God reveals His personal name, indicating His desire for a covenant relationship with the Hebrew people. “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.’” (Exodus 3:13-14).
“I AM” can be translated as the “ever-existent one” and is God’s personal name. Before this time God describes Himself as Elohim a general name for God, note that Elohim is also a plural name, further evidence that God is Three-In-One. [Gen 1: In the beginning, God (Elohim) created the heavens and the earth].
God’s Personal Name
The Ten Commandments forbid taking God’s name in vain. The very religious Hebrews were very afraid of misusing God’s name so they would avoid saying the name of God; instead, they would “refer to God as “Ha Shem” which means “The Name” or Adonai which means Lord. The early Hebrew writings had no vowels so when writing God’s name, it was spelled YHWH; this is called the Tetragrammaton. Latin translations of the Hebrew texts used the letters JHVH because they had ho Y in their alphabet. When the Hebrews would read YHWH, out loud, they would substitute the Hebrew word “Adonai” which means Lord, for fear of using God’s name in vain.
Later when the Hebrew language developed vowels, Hebrew scholars called Masoretes substituted the vowels of Adonai (Lord) into YHWH and got YaHWeH or YaHoVaH which later became JeHoVaH (Latinized because Latin had no “y” letter). Modern Christian Bibles use Yahweh, Jehovah or LORD (note the uppercase letters in LORD), to denote the personal name of God.
Different Bibles use different conventions in the choice of this word. As a side-note the Hebrews do not use any of these conventions; they still refer to God as Ha Shem or Adonai.”
[That was an excerpt from my book called, “Seeing the Forest for the Trees: God’s Promises Revealed.” Which is available at Amazon.com].
Descriptive Names of God
In the Bible God, the Father has many descriptive names, I have included the most familiar ones below. Notice that each name means something about the nature of God.
- The Great I AM is also called El Shaddai (Lord God Almighty) It was used in establishing of the Covenant of Law- Gen 17:1, “When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to Abram and said to him, “I am Almighty God; walk before Me and be blameless”.
- The Great I AM is also called El Elyon (The
Most High God) Psalm 73:35, “Then they remembered that God was theirrock, And the Most HighGod their Redeemer”. - The Great I AM is also called Jehovah Nissi (The Lord My Banner) Jehovah-Nissi Jehovah my banner, was the title given by Moses to the altar which he erected on the hill on the top of which he stood with uplifted hands while Israel prevailed over their enemies the Amalekites (Exodus 17:15).
- The Great I AM is also called Jehovah Rapha (The Lord That Heals) In the wilderness the people began to complain about the water, and God made the bitter waters sweet. Exodus 15:25-26, “There He made a statute and an ordinance for them, and there He tested them, 26 and said, “If you diligently heed the voice of the Lord your God and do what is right in His sight, give ear to His commandments and keep all His statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you which I have brought on the Egyptians. For I am the Lord who heals you.”
- The Great I AM is also called Jehovah Tsidkenu (The Lord My Righteousness) Jeremiah 23:5-6, “Behold, the days are coming,” says the Lord “That I will raise to David a Branch of righteousness; A King shall reign and prosper, And execute judgment and righteousness in the earth. 6 In His days Judah will be saved, And Israel will dwell safely; Now this is His name by which He will be called: THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS”.
- The Great I AM is also called Jehovah Jira (The Lord Will Provide) Genesis 22 13, “Then Abraham lifted his eyes and looked, and there behind him was a ram caught in a thicket by its horns. So, Abraham went and took the ram, and offered it up for a burnt offering instead of his son Issac. 14 And Abraham called the name of the place, The-Lord-Will-Provide; as it is said to this day, “In the Mount of the Lord it shall be provided.”
- The Great I AM is also called Jehovah Shalom (The Lord Is Peace) Judges 6: 22, “Now Gideon perceived that He was the Angel of the Lord. So, Gideon said, “Alas, O Lord God!
For I have seen the Angel of the Lord face to face.”23 Then the Lord said to him, “Peace be with you; do not fear, you shall not die.” 24 So Gideon built an altar there to theLord, and called it The-Lord-Is-Peace.
The Seven “I Am”s of the New Testament
Just as the Old Testament Covenant uses descriptive names of Yahweh or Jehovah God, the New Testament Covenant uses names to describe Jesus’ identity with Father God. Jesus uses the phrase “I AM” seven times in the Gospel of John. Remember the number Seven is the number of completion or perfection in the Bible, and “I AM” is God’s name. These seven “I AM”s represent signs that identify Jesus as God”.
- “I am the bread of life.” (John 6:35, 41, 48, 51) As bread sustains physical life, so Christ offers and sustains spiritual life.
- “I am the light of the world.” (John 8:12) To a world lost in darkness, Christ offers Himself as a light in the darkness.
- “I am the door of the sheep.” (John 10:7,9) Jesus protects His followers as shepherds protect their flocks from predators.
- “I am the resurrection and the life.” (John 11:25) Death is not the final word for those in Christ.
- “I am the good shepherd.” (John 10:11, 14) Jesus is committed to caring and watching over those who are His.
- “I am the way, the truth, and the life.” (John 14:6) Jesus is the source of all truth and knowledge about God.
- “I am the true vine.” (John 15:1, 5) By attaching ourselves to Christ, we enable His life to flow in and through us. Then we cannot help but bear fruit that will honor the Father.
The only names of Jesus’ character that you need to know are that “He is the way maker, the miracle worker, the promise keeper and the light in the darkness”. Let those truths become a reality in your life and you will experience a fresh new overcoming relationship with the Lord!
