As I have been writing these “God is my…” posts for this 40-day fast, I have (go figure) been using the word “God” a lot. But I want to clarify something. When I say “God” I mean something more specific than some ethereal force, more than even a personal force, more than an intelligence or an awareness.

This is more than mere semantics. This is of vital importance to our walk with God. I have to make this clear in this relativistic age of syncretism where “God” can mean anything from “universe” to “self-consciousness”, anything from “allah” to “love”.

Do you want to know Him? He has a name. He is more than a title, as true as these titles may be. We often call Him “God”, “Father”, “LORD”, “Creator” or ever “Father”. But these are merely titles that describe His line of work.

It’s one thing to know someone as “boss”, “friend”, or “bus-boy”. These only describe someone’s outward actions, not their inward nature. Their inward nature is only and always revealed in their name. A person’s
name is everything. Their destiny, their personality, their character is all wrapped up in that name. When you call someone by name, you are
inherently assuming on certain proper levels of intimacy. I would never walk up to the President of the United States and say, “Hey George!”. Titles
do help the right chain of command to be revered and respected. But it’s
in a person’s name that you really get to know a person. Your name is
the most important word in the language you speak (except for God’s
name, because it’s in His name that our identity is defined).

So, when I use the word “God”, I am referring to “Yahweh” the God introduced to the human race in the Hebrew Scriptures, “Yeshua” Jesus Christ His only Son as revealed in the 27 New Testament books and His Ruach-HaKodesh, His Spirit of Holiness. He is a Person, Eternally Perfect, 3 Persons in One, and He has a personality and He has a specific name. Because He has a specific name, He cannot be any other thing. Yahweh cannot be “allah”, Jesus (or more properly “Yeshua”) cannot be “Mohammed”. They are mutually exclusive. I cannot be both Matthew and Bob. I have to either one or the other.

“Yahweh” is such a holy name to the Jews that they will never speak it out loud. They will only say “Yah” because they revere and fear the holiness, the glory and the majesty of this God who revealed Himself to them. His name is usually translated as “I AM THAT I AM”. Whatever that means. Basically, it means “ALWAYS”. He is the eternal ALWAYS. He ALWAYS has been, He ALWAYS is and He ALWAYS will be. When He says I am “Yahweh Rapha” or “Yahweh Tsidkenu” or “Yahweh Jireh” or “Yahweh Rohi” or “Yahweh Shalom” anything else, He is revealing Himself as “I am ALWAYS your Healer”, “I am ALWAYS your righteousness”, “I am ALWAYS your Provider“, “I am ALWAYS your Shepherd“, “I am ALWAYS your Peace”. This is AWESOME!!!

The name Jesus (which is the English translation of the actual Hebrew name He had, which is pronounced “Yeshua”) means “Salvation”. Through Him alone can a human being be saved from the personal enslavement to things that are offensive to God – called “sin”. His name represents and comprehends His authority, character and Personhood. I certainly will not go demon-hunting in the name of “Mahatma Ghandi” or in the name of “Mother Theresa”. It is Jesus Christ of Nazareth, the One with the nail-scarred hands, who has authority over heaven and earth.

It is in no other name that man can be saved! -Acts 4:12. Do yourself a favor and ask God to reveal the glory of His name to you in an intimate way.

How about yourself? Did you not receive a good name from your earthly parents (I once heard a young girl’s name was “Ruin”)? That’s OK. God is in the business of changing names. He did it all the time in the Bible. Jacob (”supplanter, deceiver”) was renamed Israel (”Prince with God” or “Overcomer”). Simon-Peter (”little stone”) was now Cephas (”the rock”). Names always come with a massive change in identity.

He will also give YOU a new name when you see Him face to face in that day, a name that will be a secret only between you and Him. It will become your greatest source of identity for all eternity. Ask Him what He calls you, it may or may not be what everybody else calls you. You never know until you ask.

My life changed the day I did this. My name “Matthew” means “Gift from God” (with “to people” being the assumption). I like this. But my life was changed forever when the Father told me that my name really is “Matthew, Gift TO God”. My identity and the whole way I lived by life has been different from that point until now.

Revelation 2:17 – “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give some of the hidden manna to eat. And I will give him a white stone, and on the stone a new name written which no one knows except him who receives it.”