YHWH What is in a Name

8/8/2019 YHWH What is in a Name

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What is in a name? Indeed, maybe the question ought to be asked, "What is not in a name"?

We have come to an opportunity in our expression of Christianity that many refer to as Sonship,or Kingdom Living. I, also, embrace many of these ideas and thoughts that are said to be

expressions of Holy Spirit living. There are many thoughts and insights and concepts that are

being shared among the Body of CHRIST as intelligent and rational expressions of Truth.And as more of HIS TRUTH is unveiled in HIS Word and in HIS Body, we say Hallelujah!

One facet of these unveilings that is poorly communicated, and even more poorly understood,is the "name"(s) of GOD, Our FATHER. The name(s) of GOD, and the face(s) of GOD, is

still very much cloaked in religious mysticism, in my humble opinion, and I have being trying

for some time to find the words and the courage to address this subject. here goes....

I have two sons. The elder is 28 years of age, the younger is 26 years of age. The elder has not

yet married. The younger has recently entered into the covenant relationship we refer to as

'marriage'. I tell this only to illustrate an analogy. My sons love me very much, and refer to meas 'Dad', 'Pops', 'Old Dude' and 'Cave Man'; affectionately, I might add. With no irreverence do

my sons address me by any of these 'names'. And yet they do, at different times and

circumstances, see me differently. When my sons were 5 and 3 years respectively, they knewme only as 'Daddy'. I was their hero, their provider, their protector, their mother's lover and

friend, their teacher and their disciplinarian. I was a man of many responsibilities when my sons

were very small, and yet they knew me only as 'Daddy'. When my sons were very small, I wasnot only a dad, but I was also a husband, an employee, a son to my parents, and on and on and

on. You get the picture. And yet while I was, at any given time, wearing a number of differenthats, indicating a number of differing roles, my own two sons knew me only as 'Daddy'.

My sons have now grown, and gone through many character building experiences that have

been instrumental in making of them the men they are today. And as their understanding of the

world around them has expanded, the intimate relationship they experience with their 'Dad'has also grown and expanded. They are now men who are having some of the same experiences

that I had when I was in my twenties. And they can now 'see' me differently; when they endure

an unpleasant experience, or 'teacher' as I refer to them, I can say to them "...been there, donethat", and it matters to them. Their vision of me, as their 'Dad', has expanded. They realize that

they have more in common with me now than when they were 5 and 3. And yet for all of these

differing perspectives, I am still their 'Dad'.

Let me now try to apply some of this concept to the relationship we have with Our FATHER,

which art in heaven.

Twenty-some odd years ago, I got 'saved'. I was a new-born to religion, and knew nothing

about my Spiritual parentage. I was now of interest to a certain group of people at 'my church'.

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I began to be of interest to certain ones that wanted to get involved in my 'training', and also to

enlist me into their religious regimen. They were interested in me as a source of supply towhatever they perceived their need to be. I don't say this with any malice, or hurt, or

unpleasantness. That is just the way it was. And I am sure your own experience was not much

different. Before long, I began to see that I wasnt attending that fellowship for the same reasons

that many of them were attending. I had been called by a voice, a LIFE, that I have since cometo know as My Heavenly Father. And my need to fill a void in someone else's religious

inadequacy was no longer strong enough to continue the trek to the 'church' whenever the doors

would be opened. I expect you have a similar story. We knew then, and hopefully we knoweven more securely today, that we had been called to be Sons of GOD, and religion could not

answer that calling in us. But for all of that, and for all the growing experiences we have been

exposed to, most of us who call ourselves 'Son of GOD' seem to still have a limited vision andunderstanding of this "ONE" that has birthed us. Our Spiritual Parentage is still a great mystery

to us, and we almost seem to be willing to accept the 'religious taboos' that have been associated

with OUR FATHER, and HIS many 'names'. I timidly continue...

In Exodus, 6:3, we read the following: "I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, as God

Almighty, but My name LORD(HWHY) was not known to them." Moses has just had the

blessed experience of telling the Israelites that "HAYAH"(I AM) has revealed Himself. Mosesthen went to tell Pharaoh to release God's people, and Pharaoh responded by tightening the noose

around his slaves, and make their lives even more difficult. And now Moses is not real popular

with the Israelites, and he is the laughing stock of the Egyptians. And when Moses complains toGod that 'the trick' didn't work, God explains to Moses that "...My Name "YHWH" is not known

to them." Wait a minute, God. Are you trying to tell me that if I don't know your currently

popular name, that I won't have any success invoking Your Name? Hmmmm!Remember the seven sons of Sceva? [Acts 19]

And so, what is in a name? The word that we have translated into English as 'name' is the

Hebrew word 'shem'. And the word 'shem', or 'name', also indicates or ascribes 'nature, orcharacter'. And I wish that taking the Hebrew 'shem', and simply translating it as 'name'

was that simple. But as with all words that FATHER sheds HIS Light on, when you begin to

see the impact and importance of a new word or thought or concept in Holy Spirit Light andUnderstanding, the revealed truth that you can now benefit from also impacts the understanding

you had, or thought you had, on every other word or concept. And so, your Spiritual Growth is

not just a lineal Growth; it now becomes an exponential Growth: whatever that means! I don'twant to expend much time on my own personal interpretation and understanding of the word

'shem' other than to say that the word is used in many ways that must be discerned to grasp the

impact it has when translated 'name'. In Strong's Concordance, the word is given as #8034, andhas required, at least for me, more hours of study and seeking than I can count.

Let us now refer back to Ex. 6:3. Our English translations read as follows: "And I appeared to

Abraham and to Isaac and to Jacob by the name ofGod Almighty, but by my name Jehovah wasI not known to them". I believe FATHER was allowing Moses to see that the Patriarchs, or

ancestors, of Moses and the Israelites only saw GOD, or understood GOD in a limited capacity.

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Abram, as I have pointed out in other articles, was told to "...walk before ME and be perfect.

[Gen.17:1] Hmmmph! Now that doesnt sound too difficult a task. Just be perfect. And theHebrew word here translated as perfect means to be empty.

Now from this side of the Cross, we have come to understand that there is "...none righteous, no

not one". So we should be able to discern that the Covenant, as it was unveiled in Abram, was aCovenant established on a particular understanding, or level of understanding, that was built

upon how GOD had unveiled HIMSELF in and to Abram. Can I say the same thing this way?

Abram's relationship to GOD, in Covenant, was based on Abram's understanding of GOD, andhis understanding of GOD in 'name'. In Gen. 12:1: "Now the LORD (YHWH) had said to

Abram: 'Get out of your country, from your family and from your father's house, to a land that I

will show you'. And in verse 4, "So Abram departed as the LORD (YHWH) had spoken tohim,...". In both of these sentences, we are told "the LORD" had spoken to Abram, and Abram

had heeded the conversation with "the LORD". And yet in Ex. 6:3, YHWH tells Moses that "...

My Name Jehovah (YHWH) was not known to them". What is going on here? Let me remind

us that Abram had spent many years living in the presence of Shem, the son of Noah, and hadreceived considerable influence and instruction from Shem. And for all that, GOD tells Moses

that previously GOD has not been known in name as YHWH.

Whenever you see in scripture LORD, and in all capital letters, it is to remind us that the word

being translated is the Hebrew YHWH, or as we have become accustomed to saying,

JEHOVAH.

I am convinced the Name, YHWH, can only be discerned by Holy Spirit, and if you think you

can pronounce the name, you probably don't understand what the word YHWH represents. If thereligion known as 'Jehovah's Witnesses' had a proper understanding of YHWH, they would

change the name of their denomination; and their conduct. But enough of that.

Back to Ex. 6:3. "I appeared to Abraham, ..., as GOD ALMIGHTY,...". If you notice that Iitalicized 'as' in the above, it is because 'as' is not included in the Hebrew text. However, a more

accurate translation of Ex. 6:3 would be: "And being seen to Abraham and to Isaac and to Jacob

in GOD ALMIGHTY (El Shaddai), and My Name YHWH being notknown to them... ThinkI'm splitting hairs? EL SHADDAI is the name or nature or character of the God that had

revealed HIMSELF in Abram. Abraham and Isaac and Jacob had a Covenant relationship with a

God that revealed HIS character and nature, to them and in them, as EL SHADDAI, or GodAlmighty. But by HIS Name or Nature or Character of YHWH HE had not yet made

HIMSELFknown in man. Does that mean that the Name or Nature or Character YHWH did

not exist until Moses? Not at all. When my young sons knew me only as their Daddy, does thatmean that I was not yet their mother's husband? Or their grandfather's son? Or my employer'semployee? I had many roles to play long before my young sons were aware of those roles. My

sons only knew me in my role as 'Daddy'. Abraham knew GOD in HIS role as 'EL SHADDAI'.

OUR FATHER has many 'roles', or 'names' that HE is able to reveal HIMSELF; not only to us,but also in us. And yet, we are only able to relate to HIM as GOD in the Name (s) HE uses to

unveil HIS Characterin us. In Hebrew, the word we translate 'know' or 'known' indictates that

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we have had experience in handling or using the particular subject that is 'known' to us. Adam

knew his wife, Eve, and she conceived. Everyone, even folk that have never opened a Bible, seethat Adam had sexual intercourse with his wife. But very few consider that this word, translated

'to know', actually means very, very much more. To 'know' the Name of GOD indicates that I

have experienced the use of the Name, experienced the results of using or invoking the Name,

and had my understanding and vision of GOD changed by way of using, or 'knowing', theparticular Name involved. Abram 'knew' GOD as El Shaddai, or God Almighty.

I have come to believe that El Shaddai was the only 'name' Abram needed to 'know'. I believe

that Abram had such a trust and confidence in the GOD that blessed him, that Abram obeyedthe voice of GOD. Why else would he be called "The Father of Our Faith"? He believed GOD

in ways that cause most of us to tremble. I believe that Abram's trust and confidence in GOD

insured an uncomplicated covenant relationship with OUR FATHER. And the relationship Isaacexperienced was almost parallel to Abaham's relationship with GOD. Jacob/Israel required more

understanding of who this GOD is. And I believe Joseph had to 'see' GOD in ways that his

father Jacob/Israel could not or did not need to see. And if I can follow that line of thinking for a

few more generations, on into Egypt, the Israelites, and their deliver Moses, were going to needto see GOD in ways that previous generations had not needed. I am persuaded at this point that

Moses was going to have to reveal the 'name/nature/character' of YHWH to bring about GOD's

purposes in delivering these Egyptianized Israelites from their 'comfort zone' of being slaves andpack mules. If you consider the ancestry of these Israelites, that had forgotten what if felt like to

be Israelites, they should only need to remember the Covenant GOD of their Father Abraham

and they would call on their covenant and walk out of bondage. And yet we must remember thatthis is GOD's pageant we are watching unfold. It was YHWH who said that Abraham's seed

would go down (descend) to Egypt for a time.[Gen. 15:13-16]

I hope you are beginning to see that we must be able to Spiritually and maturely manifest the

quality of Life Our FATHER is unveiling in us! GOD is an inside job. HE has declared to usthat HE would cause to arise My Covenant in you. We translated this way: I willestablish My Covenant; or, I will make My Covenant. But the accurate translation is I will

cause My Covenant to arise in you! Our FATHER is elevating HIS Covenant in us. If HE

is only made known to us, then our relationaship to HIM is relegated to a God who is

somewhere outside of us. And then we will be continuously awaiting a time when HE willreturn, and then do whateverourtheology has restricted HIM to. Our FATHER unveils HIS

Name in us. And HIS Name, unveiled in you, equips you to act out, as HIM, the role that HIS

Name calls for. When HE unveils HIS Name in you, HE is declaring that you are the place HEhas decided for HIS Name to dwell. HIS Name, in you, enables you to manifest that quality of

HIS Life that special Name declares. And YHWH said to Moses: See, I have made you God

toPharaoh [Ex. 7:1]

And so I say again, What is in a name? Does a name not reveal all of the hopes and desires

and vision and potential and possibility and opportunities and response abilities that equip us forthe work of ministry? If Our FATHER, GOD, has chosen the Body of Christ as the place for

HIS Name to dwell, is HE not declaring us, HIS Christed Body, as the manifestation of HIS

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Name? I think so. Why else would HE tell us to go in My Name?

In Exodus, chapters 33 and 34, we have the unveiling in Moses a glimpse of what YHWHincludes. This is still my favorite passage of scripture. The more I read it, the more FATHER

reveals to me of HIS Nature. In chapter 32 we have recorded for us the golden calf incident.

Moses breaks the covenant engraved in stone, and now pleads for GOD to forgive the people.

In Ex.33:1 we read: And YHWH said to Moses, Depart, go up (ascend?) from this place, youand the people you have brought out of the land of Egypt, to the land of which I swore to

Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, saying To your seed I will give it Verse 3 continues, to a land

flowing with milk and honey; for I will not ascend in your midst, lest I consume you on the way,for you a stiff-necked people. I believeGOD was allowing the people to see their true

condition, and that HIS Name could not be placed in a people with this distorted vision of

themselves. How they envisioned themselves is how they displayed themselves. Ever wonderwhy a certain individual does not just do better? You have to help them change their vision of

themselves. And before you can help them have a better vision of themselves, you must have

your own vision of yourselfchanged and enlightened and elevated. Remember what Yashua

said about removing the timber from your own eye before you can assist another with the speckin his eye! Wow! Moses was having his vision of himself changed. His name Moses, or Mo-

Shay in Hebrew, means, to be drawn out. Moses was being drawn out through this

intercourse with GOD. And now to verse 17: So YHWH said to Moses, I will also do this thingthat you have spoken; for you have found grace in My sight, and I know you by name. And he

(Moses) said, Please show me Your Glory.

I hope you can see GOD drawing Moses out of the limited thinking and vision he has; not only

of himself, but also of the people that he is instructed to lead to a higher land and a higher

understanding of who they are. When Moses blurts out show me Your Glory, I see it almostas something that he spouted, without having thought first. Have you ever made a bold or stupid

statement, and immediately thought to yourself, Oh expletive, what did I say that for? Isometimes view this verse in the same way. I can almost hear Moses saying to himself,

shouldnt have said that. You dont know what you are asking for. And then I think I can hearGOD chuckling, and saying Thats My boy. That is just what I wanted to hear from you.

In chapter 34 GOD gives Moses some instructions on preparing himself to receive what he has

asked for. Before this time, I envision Moses as being a little arrogant and cocky, and feeling alittle superior to this rabble that he is leading about in the deseert. Sometimes his

communication with GOD seems a little self assured, and almost presumtuous with how he tells

GOD to do this; and go here; and, dont do this or that; and reminding GOD that these people areGODs project. And besides, Moses didnt ask for this job in the first place. And now, let me

try to tell you why this passage is so important to me. Remember, Moses is being drawn out.

Lets start at Ex. 34:5; Now YHWH descended in the cloud and stood with him (Moses) there,and proclaimed the name YHWH. And YHWH passed before him and proclaimed YHWH

YHWH GOD.! MercifulGraciousLongsufferingAbounding in Good and

Truth. Moses is having his vision changed. He is being allowed to see GOD in ways no

other man has seen. And his heart is changing into GODs heart. Look now in verse 8. SoMoses made haste, and fell on his face, and worshipped! No arrogance or presumtion here.

Moses is now a changed man. Talk about a Damascus Road experience! And his speach shows a

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change of vision. When we start to see the true Character and Nature of Our FATHER, we

change also. Our FATHER has chosen His Christed (anointed) Body, you and I and countlessothers of this corporate Body of Christed Ones, as the place HE will make HIS Name known.You and I are of an age and timing that is being allowed to see ourselves, In HIM, in ways I

dont believe any other generation has ever been privileged to. And, this is HIS Doing. We

didn't choose HIM. HE chose us, and is doing with us, HIS Corporate Body of Christed Ones, asis HIS Good Pleasure. No arrogance. No cocky self assuredness. No presumption. Just the

Pure and Holy flow of HIS Spirit, in us and through us, reconciling all of creation to a FATHER

creation has never known before. HE is elevating HIS Covenant, in us, to levels we have notknown before, or could know before. Hallelujah!!! I believe FATHER is quickening HIS Name

in HIS Body in ways not previously possible. Remember, HE had to change the peoples vision

of themselves. HE could not ascend in them, to where HE desired to ascend in them, until theywere properly prepared. And you and I are being prepared to hear HIS Voice, in our hearts, in

ways not allowed in ages before us. You are hearing Holy Spirit thoughts in you that you feel

are almost blasphemous to think; much less to utter.

I wish to propose to you at this point that YHWH, that which we call the Name of GOD, is a

many faceted and many functional quality of HIS LIFE that HE reveals, or unveils, in HIS Body,

in HIS Own Time. We have numerous references in scripture where YHWH is linked to aquality of understanding to reveal to us, and in us, that YHWH will be the supplier to us, and in

us, to fulfill whatever we have need of. In Gen. 22:14, Abraham has the impossible assignment

of offering his only son Isaac. And when YHWY God intervenes to provide the acceptablesacrifice, rather than accepting Isaac, Abrahams response is to declare that place (and he is not

talking about geography) where GOD meets your need as YHWH YIREH, or Jehovah Jireh.

And YHWH YIREH means, literally, YHWH sees and provides. May I say it this way:YHWH is your provision!? Is HIS Presence in you not HIS Word in you? Is HIS Word in you

not HIS anointing in you? Is Christ in you, the hope of Glory not HIS Provision that HE hasplaced in HIS Body? Is that not the place HE has declared to make HIS Name known? I

believe this to be Truth.

In Ex. 15:22-26, Moses responds to a divine Word from YHWH that allows him to heal the

bitter waters of Marah. And YHWH said, Be obedient to MY Word in you, and I will beYHWH RAPHAH, OR YHWH your Healer. YHWH in us is our healer. Is it not Our FATHERs

Word in us that heals us, and makes us whole? I believe this to be Truth.

In Ex. 17:15, after a victory over Amalek, Moses built an altar and called HIS Name

YHWH NISSI, or YHWH my Banner. Moses was declaring that when YHWH in you is exalted,

or lifted up as a banner, the enemies of YHWH are defeated. When HIS Name, in you, is all thatcan be seen, the enemies of HIS Name are scattered, and defeated. I believe this to be Truth.

In Judges 6:11-24, is recorded the interaction of YHWH with Gideon. After several fleece

requests from Gideon are answered, Gideon finally realizes he has been challenging YHWH,and he was not cut off, or hewn down as he would have expected. Gideon means to cut

down, or to cut off, and this is what Gideon would have expected to happen to himself if he

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thought he truly was doubting and challending the LORD. It is only human to believe that

YHWH will deal with you just as you would deal with others. Right? And after he perceivedthat he had been wrangling with YHWH, and still lives, his response was to build an altar to

YHWH and declare YHWH SHALOM, or YHWH Peace. Shalom means to have all the pieces in

their proper place and order, functioning as FATHER designed. Shalom is wholeness and

completeness. Gideon learned that YHWH in us is our Shalom; our Wholeness. I believe this tobe Truth.

And these examples of HIS Name, in HIS Body, go on and on and on. There are many otherexamples that we could discuss of HIS Name, YHWH, being joined to our need, that brings to

pass in our own experience what HIS Name declares. YHWH TZIDKENU= YHWH Our

Righteousness; YHWH ROH-EE= YHWH Our Shepherd; YHWH MIKADISHKEM= YHWHOur Holiness. YHWH, in you, is the fulfiller of every need you perceive. Even YHWH

YASHA, YHWH Our Salvation, which we now know as YASHUA, or Jesus. YHWH in you isyour Salvation. I know this to be Truth!

I wish to share a vision, or Word, that I heard a few years back while sharing with a group in

South Carolina. I was sharing with the group about King Solomon dedicating his temple (it was

Solomons temple, you know). I was saying to the group that when the House was filled withthe Glory of GOD, no priest (man) could stand in that house while the Glory of GOD was filling

the house. I heard My FATHER say, The day is coming when I (GOD) will call out My Name,

and you (we, the Body of Christed Ones) will say to ME hin-nay ahnee, which is Hebrew, andis normally translated as hear I am. I believe the more accurate translation of hin-nay ah-nee

is it is of me as You have said of me. In 1Samuel 3 is recorded the passage of Samuel as a

young boy hearing the voice of GOD. The boy hears someone calling his name, and he answers,hin-nay ah-nee. That has been translated into English as here am I. I dont think

here am I adequately translates hin-nay ah-nee. I believe the more accurae and descriptivetranslation of hin-nay ah-nee is it is of me as YOU have said of me. The name

Samuel means to hear GOD. GOD called out Samuel, Samuel, and Samuel answeredhin-nay-ah-nee. The Word was calling to the boy and saying you hear GOD, and the lad

answered it is of me as You have said of me. I believe GOD was speaking the boys name

into action, and Samuel responded by accepting the call. Samuel said to GOD, I accept whatYou say of me as being so. Isnt that what Mary said to the Messenger, Gabriel?

Didnt she respond to Him with Be it done unto me according to Your Word? I believe Our

FATHER has elevated HIS Covenant, in us and with us as HE has declared. I hope you willforgive my exuberance, but I find this very exciting. We are coming to a level of Spiritual

Timing and Anointing that will allow us to hear Our FATHER speak Great and Wonderful

Things, and His Spirit in us is Gracing us to be able to hear The Word, and then agree withHIM by saying to HIM, Hin-nay ah-nee; it is of me as YOU have said of me. Our FATHER

cannot be limited to the definition of a name. And as HE continues to unveil facets of HIS

Name in us, we must be receptive to His Word. Our FATHER is the same yesterday, today and

forever! HE never changes Who HE is. HE is, however, changing HIS Body to completely andaccurately image HIM. HE is changing us. As my brother, Nick, has observed; GOD is still

making man into HIS image; to image HIM. We must be willing to have HIM change our

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name into HIS Name. And to continue to be growing into HIS Likeness and Expression of

HIMSELF. And I dont believe that ever stops. For of the increase ofHis Government and

Peace, there is no end,! [Isaiah 9:7] Amen!

Shalom and Shalom!

alan

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YHWH What is in a Name