Tag: Jehovah

Jehovah Nissi – The LORD Our Banner

The Story

A nation newly freed from captivity in Egypt, just beginning to get her feet under her, struggling for basic needs like water (Exodus 15) and food (Exodus 16), Israel meets her first military threat (Exodus 17:8-16). The Amalekites, a nomadic people distantly related to the Hebrews, had come against them. They must have felt that such a large group of Israelites was a threat to their territory, they were right.

Moses assigned Joshua to lead a choice group of warriors into battle against them while Moses, Aaron and Hur went to the top of a hill overlooking the battle and Moses raised his staff, “the rod of God”, above his head.

As the battle raged below them, as long as Moses’ staff was raised the tide of battle would be in Joshua’s favor, but as Moses’ hands grew tired and began to droop, the Amalekites gained the advantage. Aaron and Hur must have seen this pattern so they set Moses on a stone and standing on either side of him helped him hold up his hands.

Joshua and the army won the battle.

In the aftermath of this battle God promised the ultimate defeat of the Amalekites to Joshua.

“And the Lord said unto Moses, Write this for a memorial in a book, and rehearse it in the ears of Joshua: for I will utterly put out the remembrance of Amalek from under heaven.” 
Exodus 17:14  

Then in verse 15 Moses makes an altar commemorating the battle and the victory that God gave them in it. He named the Altar Jehovah-Nissi, meaning The Lord Our Banner.

Moses knew there would be battles yet to come. And while they were victorious that day, war is never pretty and never easy.

Our Banner

Nissi means banner, flag, or standard (Like a rallying point)

In a battle, this rallying point is vital. Any warrior who may be disconnected from his unit knows where to go. This is where he can find safety and where he can get further instructions for the battle. The banner waving in the breeze reminds and reassures the warrior that the victory can still be won and reinforcements will still be sent.

This is true for believers today as we labor for the cause Christ. Caught up in the details of where we are in the fight it can seem like we’re losing… I imagine this is how David felt when he penned the words of Psalm 61

“1 Hear my cry, O God; Attend unto my prayer. 
2 From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: 
Lead me to the rock that is higher than I. 
3 For thou hast been a shelter for me, 
And a strong tower from the enemy. 
4 I will abide in thy tabernacle for ever: 
I will trust in the covert of thy wings. Selah.” 
Psalm 61:1–4 (Take a few minutes as soon as you can to read the rest of this precious Psalm⁠)

God is our banner, our rallying point whether we think the battle is going well or not. When we see victory we can rally to Him, when we feel defeated we can rally to Him. When we aren’t sure where we stand or wonder if our orders have changed we can look to The Lord Our Banner.

Our Rally Point in Prayer

This is how we should see our prayer. No matter what we feel or where we are we can make it to our Rallying Point through prayer.

You are not alone

Moses and his staff provide a object lesson on prayer. Notice his strength failed, his arms got tired and his staff came down. But there were people with him who literally came alongside him. Aaron and Hur were there to help him. This is why we meet for prayer. 

One of the key, indispensable functions of a biblical church is prayer. Paul, in 1 Timothy 2:1-4 said it is “first” or the most important thing we do. Our prayer meetings are a time for us to rally together to Jehovah our Banner and raise our requests and cares to Him, and to do it with the help of our fellow believers. And to be the help our fellow believers will surely need in prayer.

Studying and Application:

  1. How can you better make prayer a “first” thing in your life or in your church? What is one practical step you can make toward this goal today?
  2. Are there some requests that have you “weary” in your prayer life? Share this with your church or Sunday school class to get others praying with you. If you can’t share it that publicly share this request with your pastor or trusted christian friend.
  3. Review your prayer list. What are the victories God has given you in prayer this week? Take a minute to add any new requests to your list now

Jehovah Jireh – The Lord will Provide

God told Abraham to Sacrifice his Son Isaac

One night God gave His servant Abraham a very usual instruction.

“And he said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of.” 
Genesis 22:2

This was a test. God wanted to see Abrahams faith. He had trusted God for his son, would he trust God with his son?

Imagine Abrahams confusion. This was the son that God had promised to him so long ago. This was answer to his prayers. His pride and joy. Now God wanted Abraham to offer him as a sacrifice.

Abraham was ready to obey God

What do you think Abraham did? the Bible says he got up the next day and got to it. He didn’t hesitate, but immediately prepared for the trip and set out to the mountain that God would show him. He took with him everything he would need to make this sacrifice. 

After three days of travel they could see he mountain off in the distance. Abraham left the young men he had brought along with the animals and most of the stuff, then he and Isaac went on to the mountain carrying the wood for the fire, the fire and a knife.

As they climbed Isaac asked a question: “Behold the fire and the wood: but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?” (Gen 22:7) Isaac could see that something was missing, he had surely seen many other offerings performed but this one lacked the key part: the lamb.

Abraham answered: “My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering” (Gen  22:8) Even this close to where God had told him to sacrifice his son, Abraham was sure that God would meet the need.

God Met Abrahams Need

They got the place where the offering was to be made, Abraham set up the altar, laid out the wood. Then he tied up his son, laid him on the wood, and took out the knife that had been brought for him to kill his son as a sacrifice to God.

Just as he was about to use the knife God stopped Abraham

“11 And the angel of the Lord called unto him out of heaven, and said, Abraham, Abraham: and he said, Here am I. 
12 And he said, Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou any thing unto him: for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from me.” 
Genesis 22:11–12 

Abraham then looked and behind him a ram was caught in the undergrowth. He used this ram as the substitute for his son. God had provided for the sacrifice. Abraham named the altar “Jehovah-Jireh” beginning the saying: “In the mount of the Lord it shall be seen.” (Gen 22:14)

But note: God didn’t provide a “lamb” like the passage leads you to expect. Vereses 16-18 give us an indication of why this is.

God Made a Promise to Abraham that would Meet the needs of all Humanity

In verses 16-18 we see God’s promised blessing of Abraham and his decedents. God would bless his faith and obedience greatly through many generations. This blessing was so great that wouldn’t be just for Abraham’s decendents. 

“And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice.” 
Genesis 22:18 

Jesus is the ultimate fulfillment of this promise. Jesus is “the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world” (John 1:29). Through Him all nations of the earth are blessed. He is the lamb that God provided. And He was sacrificed as a substitute for every human being. God has provided Himself a lamb.

The Lord will still provide for Us

But the gift of Jesus Christ holds one further lesson about how “The Lord will Provide.” 

Jesus IS the provision of our greatest need: redemption. But He is also an indication of how far God will go to meet each and every need.

“He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?” 
Romans 8:32

If God was willing to give His Only Son as the cost of the provision of our need, what would He withhold.

We tend to spend a pretty good chunk of time in our prayers telling God about our needs and the needs of those we care about. These prayers and supplications don’t fall on deaf ears. God hears, cares, and has proven that He can and will meet our needs.

As we pray, let’s present our needs to the Lord who Provides with understanding that there isn’t a need that He can’t or won’t meet.

Studying and Application:

  1. What are some needs that you have or should present to God? (List them out)
  2. Are you willing to trust God with these needs in the same way Abraham trusted God with his son? Talk to God about the level of trust you currently have.
  3. What promises of God’s provision have given you boldness in prayer?

Jehovah

Getting ahold of people

*Ring* *Ring*

I jumped up from my seat and ran across the house to the phone in the kitchen. When I got to the receiver I took a quick breath, because I didn’t want to sound rushed, then I picked up the phone.

“Hello, Spilgers. How can I help you?” I answered as professionally as I could.

“Hello, is Ken there?” Said the voice on the other end of the line. I asked them to hold and went to find my Dad, the person they had called to talk to.

This scene played out countless times between me and my 6 siblings. We would want to be the first person to the phone, but if we were being honest we knew that almost all the calls would be for Dad or Mom.

The first phone call ever was made on March 10, 1876 by Alexander Graham Bell to his assistant Thomas Watson. The entire call communicated these nine words:

“Mr. Watson–come here–I want to see you.”

Alexander Bell needed his assistant. He got ahold of him. He called him by his name. And Mr. Watson understood and came to the room Mr. Bell had spoken from.

Whether he knew it or not Mr. Bell was following the form for most of the phone calls I’ve received in my life. “Jonathan, come here, bring this, get that, go there.” Phones, and now cell phones and texting, have helped us get ahold of people in ways that were unimaginable before their invention.

Who we call is important. And knowing that we can get ahold of them is important.

Prayer is how we get ahold of God.

When we get ahold of God we call Him by His name, not just His title but His name. Let’s look again at the first mention of prayer in scripture:

“And to Seth, to him also there was born a son; and he called his name Enos: then began men to call upon the name of the LORD.”
Genesis 4:26 

Seth and his descendants were the first to pray to God by His name: Jehovah.

Jehovah is the most frequently used name of God, being used 5791 times in the Bible. This name is identified in the Bible in English by “LORD” or “GOD” in all caps (in some the publisher will use small capitals: “LORD” or “GOD”).

Jehovah means: “self-Existent or Eternal.” This is God’s proper name and the fact that it is specified is significant. It sets an example of calling on God, and that in that call we call on the name of the Lord: Jehovah.

“Jehovah” Explained to Moses

God explains the meaning of this name Himself to Moses in Exodus 3:13-14

“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?

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.”

The term“I AM” in Hebrew means to exist.

God wanted Israel to know that Moses was coming under His authority. God is the only self-existent being. Everything and everyone else was created by Him.

Jehovah’s Invitation to Pray

Later during the time of the Exile from the promised land God again identified Himself by His name, Jehovah, and encouraged His people Israel to call on Him. Speaking to Jeremiah He said:

“2 Thus saith the LORD (Jehovah) the maker thereof, the LORD that formed it, to establish it; the LORD is his name;
3 Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.”
Jeremiah 33:2–3

Jehovah is the maker, former, and establisher and He is inviting them to call on His name and see answers that they can’t begin to fathom.

Jesus Invites us to Use His Name in Prayer

We aren’t without promises like this in the New Testament era. In John 16 Jesus invites us to pray and ask things in His name:

“23 And in that day ye shall ask me nothing. [Speaking of when they will see Jesus again] Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you. 
24 Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full.” 
John 16:23-24

Jesus is saying that His name means something. When we pray in Jesus’ name we are calling on the name of the Lord. This isn’t a magic trick for getting what we want when we want it, but it is a promise from our savior of answered prayer.

Our prayer in Jesus name can’t be just a set of words “in Jesus name…” It must be sincere prayer, seeking God’s best, accompanied by a confidence in the fact that God will hear and answer prayer. 

Studying and Application:

  1. How did men communicate with God before the account in Gen 4:26 of the first prayer? (Look at Gen 1-4 for this information)
  2. Do you use the phrase “In Jesus Name” when you pray? If so, how has God used this in your life and prayer?
  3. Review your prayer requests from last week. How has God worked in these areas you’ve been praying about? Take a minute to add any new requests to your list now.

Names of God (Intro)

What do you call God? Father? Lord? God? All of these are good but there is much more to know about God based on His names. We can learn about the God of the universe from the ways He is addressed in scripture. God’s names show more about Him than our names show about us.

1. God’s names show His Character

God’s names are not like ours; we were given our name or names around our birth, God’s names were given to Him because of His character and acts. Some[ Abraham gave God the name Jehovah Jireh ] of these names were given to God by those who served Him throughout the Old Testament period, some are ones that God chose to call Himself. Overall they hold a significance that can be easy to miss. But if we take the time to appreciate them we gain a greater appreciation for God. 

2. God’s Biblical names add a depth that our English words don’t have.

Our English names for God are so inadequate, especially when you know some of the Hebrew names. The English words we have as names for God have been used in such a way that they don’t always show the reverence needed when approaching God. The translators of the Bible have been careful in how they translate the names of God, usually giving us an idea of which name is being translated. Knowing God’s Hebrew names give our English names back some of their meaning.

3. God’s names serve as a definition of God.

God’s names are one of the closest things we have to a definition of God. The more we understand these the more we know God. While nothing could ever fully define God, it is nice to see in scripture how God defines elements of Himself through the names He takes.

Prayer using God’s names

Any time I start a conversation with a friend it’s natural to use their name to address them. This shows them that I want their attention.

When we write a formal letter, say to a government official, you could start it with something like: “To whom is may concern” But would that appeal to any government official in particular? No. But if I started it with: “President Donald Trump” it would be identifying clearly that I wanted the President to pay attention.

When we pray, we address God in this way. We look for His attention and usually we use one or more of His names in this address. We want His attention, but even more than this once you know the character behind those names you can see how important it is to God that we pray.

Prayer is simply talking to God. We address Him by His Name (or Names) and confidently bear our requests to Him. The first reference to prayer as we know it is Genesis 4:26.

“And to Seth, to him also there was born a son; and he called his name Enos: then began men to call upon the name of the Lord.”

Before this men had talked with God, but in more of a conversational way like you would with a friend who was physically in the same room.

Adam and Eve knew a time when they “…heard the voice of the LORD (Jehovah) God (Elohim) walking in the garden…” (Gen 3:8⁠1) they had an opportunity to access with God that was very special.

Scripture points to God’s Name as a source of help and hope over and over:

"Our help is in the name of the LORD,
Who made heaven and earth."
Psalm 124:8
"The name of the LORD is a strong tower:
The righteous runneth into it, and is safe." 
Proverbs 18:10
“8 But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God:  
I trust in the mercy of God for ever and ever. 
9 I will praise thee for ever, because thou hast done it: 
And I will wait on thy name; for it is good before thy saints.” 
Psalm 52:8–9 

The Bible uses three main Hebrew Names for God, and then uses combinations of those names to form twelve or so other Names of God. Over the next couple months we’re going to look at each of these in scripture. We’re going to see how they can give us great confidence and focus in our prayer.

Studying and Application:

1. Search the English phrase “name of the Lord” in the Bible. How many times is it used? Read through some of them, what significance can be seen in the passages you read concerning the “name of the Lord”?

2. What do Proverbs 18:10, Psalm 138:2 and Psalm 52:8-9 say about God’s Name and how we ought to know and understand it as well as we can?