Know God By Knowing His Name

 . . . Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name.

— Matthew 6:9 (NKJ)

Jesus is telling us that the Lord’s name is to be set apart, to be held sacred. And God tells us in Psalm 138:2 that He has exalted above all else His Name and His Word. His Name and His Word are always in perfect harmony. One will not contradict the other, but will support the other. 

Why is God’s name so important to my life? Well, it’s just fun to know all the different names God refers to Himself by throughout the Old Testament and maybe I’ll impress Him. But what good does that do for my everyday life? How does it help me? 

I want to know God, really know Him and experience Him in my life. I want to know His will in situations. Knowing the names of God will help me know Him because they give me an understanding of who God is. These names show His character. Jesus, of course, knew His Father better than any of us and as a human, he depended on God’s character. He lived out the meaning of God’s names.

I grew up knowing that I was to honor the Lord’s name and I was not to take it in vain as it says in Exodus 20:7. The teaching I grew up under said that taking the Lord’s name in vain meant not to use his name as a swear word.This wasn’t difficult for me because I am not one to use swear words. However, I have come to understand that the meaning of not taking the Lord’s name in vain goes much deeper than just spoken words.

I mentioned that God’s name and His word always support each other. When God calls Himself by a certain name, He will not violate the meaning of that name. However, anything that indicates or says something different does violate His name. Why? Because His Name represents who He is!

What if I accused or blamed God for an action that does not support the meaning of His name? What if I said that God gave someone a disease or blamed Him for some horrible mishap when His Name clearly reveals that He is a Healer and a Protector? 

I would be taking the Lord’s name in vain!  Not trusting that God is who His name is telling me He is slanders His name and is very serious business. This is what He means when He says, “Do not take my name in vain”. In other words, do not say I am something that My Name does not agree with. 

We are going to be looking at some of the Covenant names of God and the scriptures that show us these names. Then we will see how the promises related to these names are fulfilled in the life of Jesus. And how we can experience these names in our own life.  

You will come to know God in a more personal way and you will be encouraged by the amazing names of God because they show His love and care for you and me. He is giving us everything we need. His Names reveal that. We honor His Name by believing and proclaiming He is who His Name says He is.

“Some trust in chariots, some trust in horses; but we will remember the name of the Lord our God.”