Hallowed Be Your Name

For a title to today's sermon, Hallowed be your name. Hallowed be your name. We're going to continue in our study in the Gospel of Luke, so if you have your Bibles or if you'd like to just listen along, we're going to be looking at Luke chapter 11, beginning in verse 1. Luke 11 and verse 1. Here we come to the instruction given by Jesus Christ on the important matter of prayer. Prayer. And it is here that we find those very words of our title. But let's begin here in Luke 11 to just read the verse, the first verse, to establish our foundation here. Luke is recording now, breaking into a moment where Jesus is amongst others. He's amongst His disciples here. In Luke 11, beginning in verse 1, Luke records, now it came to pass that He, Jesus, was praying in a certain place. So Jesus was praying when He ceased, when He stopped. It is that one of His disciples said to Him, Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught His disciples. Let's stop there for just a moment. Now, when you think about this moment, if you put yourself in this moment, you know, you quickly realize that this individual is asking a question on behalf of the group. And I immediately was transported back to middle school. I don't know if this, maybe you can relate to this, but have you ever been in math? Math was my particular subject that I struggled with. And you had a question, but you just didn't have the fortitude to raise your hand and ask the teacher the question. And you were always so relieved when someone else in your class raised their hand and asked the question on your behalf, something that you would have never asked. And then if you're a little fool of yourself in a little bit, you know, you just kind of shake your head and you're like, how did you not know that question when you yourself did not know the question?

But you're always so thankful when someone does ask that question. I think that's kind of the case here. Perhaps they were all wondering what it is to pray, and were thankful that this individual did ask Jesus Christ here. And you'll notice it is in the plural. He didn't ask, Lord, teach me to pray. He was asking on behalf of the group, teach us to pray. And we notice right off the bat, so I don't want to fail to mention this, the way in which Jesus first comes out and instructs them to address how to address God in prayer. And it is with this intimate relationship term of Father. That's what we notice first and foremost, the intimate way in which Jesus Christ encourages the people, the disciples, to address God as Father. So right off the bat, we acknowledge the fact that there is only some men or women that can address God in this way. Those to whom are His children can address God in this way, as this special relationship, and address Him as Father. Of course, Jesus Christ is our elder brother, and it is a miracle that we can even address God in that way, in that term. And He has enabled us. He has invited us to a relationship, enabling us to call Him Father. I just wanted to point that out before we go on. We dare not go on before underscoring that fact. Without that understanding that we are able to call Him Father because He's invited us to this special relationship, without underscoring that fact, everything that follows in the instruction in this model prayer wouldn't be as significant. And certainly, this whole idea of hallowed be your name. And that's how Jesus begins here with the instruction, this model prayer. Jesus begins there in verse 2. So He said to them, when you pray, say, our Father in heaven hallowed be your name. In other words, my Father holy be your name. Father, your name is to be reverented hallowed. That acknowledgement is crucial. It's essential. It's essential in this prayer. Why is hallowing God's name so significant? Well, it's because God's name essentially stands for God Himself. All right? So when you think of God's name, you cannot separate it from how we think about God. In other words, you cannot think of His name separate from His essence, His attributes. You can't think of God's name separate from His character. And it is by the means of the disclosure of His name that we are made aware of the fact of who He is. And today, we're going to go through some of those names. That's one of the purposes of our study today, is to go through some of the names in which God has revealed Himself, revealed His character. And by doing so, we are going to be able to connect with Him hopefully in a deeper way. And we can all connect with this. You know, when you begin to think of a study like this, and you begin to think of the significance of names, there is in this physical plane, the ability to really connect to it. Most often, we connect to names when we're going through the process of naming one of our children. The new parents will understand the significance of names. How many of you, if you had the opportunity to be in a family and raise children, at the very beginning, how many of you actually obtained a book of names or one of those books in which have a million names?

Often, they're in alphabetical order, and there's a million names. And as a new expectant father and mother, as they begin to peruse these names, it is quite daunting. It can also be quite discouraging. The husband will suggest a name, and she'll say, no, that's no good. That was the name of your aunt, and she was horribly grumpy. You know, we're not naming our new child her name. And so she says, well, what about this name? And he says, oh, no. If you remember, that was the name of our neighbor, and he was a little bit crazy. You know, we can't name him our child that name. And so no decisions made, and they're there in the hospital, and the birth has happened, and they're in a panic. And so they just end up naming their child after the nurse that helped, you know, deliver the baby. It goes along those lines. But we do understand there is a level of stress, because names are important. Names are important.

If you've ever, guys, if you've ever dated a girl by the name of Pamela, that's pretty good. I'm told it means all honey. That's pretty good. Pamela. Ladies, if you're looking for the strong rugged type, might I suggest to you a George? George means a farmer or tiller of the soil. That's pretty good. Guys, if you like dancing and you like waltzing, avoid a Matilda. Matilda, I'm told, means mighty battle made. Hopefully there's no Matildas here.

But again, names are important. One of my favorite stories about names. Perhaps you've heard this story. It's the story of a lawyer whose name was ODD. He was a good lawyer, but as he went through life, he was ridiculed to say the least. Growing up, they would say to him, hey, there's old oddball. Look at that odd guy over there. He always had so much trouble through life. He didn't want that to carry on in his death. So he made sure when he was given instructions in his last will and testament that he would not have his name on the tombstone. Very important. He wanted to ensure that. So instead, in scripted on his tombstone, he had the words, here lies an honest lawyer. And people would walk through the graveyard and they would look at it and they'd say, that's odd.

Names mean something. Names are significant. And, you know, the name of... sorry about that joke.

You know, the names of God are important. And the proper name of God is no exception. When you begin to study and looking at the name of God, what you will find is that when it is translated in English and in Scripture, it is translated Lord and not capital L, lowercase o r d. It's actually all capitals. I know you've probably seen this in Scripture. We're going to look at an example here. But it's when you see in our English translation, capitals, L-O-R-D, all in capital case, you will know that it's the Hebrew name, which is translated from the Hebrew letters YHWH.

Okay, so in Scripture, when you see the proper name of God, or it is translated Lord, L-O-R-D, all in capitals, you will know that comes from the Hebrew letters YHWH. Now, try to pronounce YHWH. It's almost impossible, you know. So, vowels have been added to those letters, and the most common vowels are the A at the beginning and an E toward the end. So, if you add an A, a vowel, then you have YAH, and then if you add an E, you have W-E-H, and therefore we have the pronunciation YAHWEH. But, of course, it's known by biblical scholars, then they will tell you there were no vowels in the Hebrew writing.

And so, the correct pronunciation of this name cannot be determined. It cannot be determined. So, how should we think of God's name? How should we think of the proper name of God? And this is what we want to just dig into a little bit here at the beginning here. When you start to think about God's name and how we should think about the proper name of God, we can turn to Scripture for the answer, and we can turn to one particular encounter that's recorded for us that gives us the most direct and robust explanation on how to think about God's name and how to think about God's proper name.

And it's found in an encounter between God and Moses. So, turn with me to Exodus chapter 3 and verse 1. This is where we're going to see, again, the most direct conversation and discussion and really explanation regarding God's name. Here in Exodus chapter 3, we're going to begin in verse 1. We're going to read parts of this passage included between verses 1 through verses 14.

So, verses 1 through 14, we're not going to read it all, but this is where we're going to be where we have this recording of the meeting between God and Moses in the burning bush. We will see this capital L-O-R-D here, and we're actually going to see other names of God's referenced here.

So, let's look at this to help us with the revelation regarding God's name and how we should think about it. Exodus 3 beginning in verse 1, recorded for us, it says, Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro, his father-in-law, the priest of Midian. And he, Moses, led the flock to the back of the desert, and came to Horeb, the mountain of God.

And the angel of the Lord, Y-H-W-H there, the angel of the Lord, appeared to him in a flame of fire, and in the midst of a bush. So he, Moses, looked, and behold, the bush was burning with fire, but the bush was not consumed. Then Moses said, I will turn aside and see this great thing, why the bush does not burn. Verse 4, So when the Lord, Y-H-W-H, when the Lord saw that he turned aside to look, God called to him from the midst of the bush and said, Moses, Moses, and he said, Here I am.

And he said, Do not draw near this place, take your sandals off your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground. Moreover, he said, I am the God. Now let's stop there for a moment. This word here, I am the God. This word is Elohim. Elohim. It means mighty one. The plural of this is Elohim, meaning mighty ones. So Elohim, of course, that is the Hebrew word found in Genesis 1. In the beginning, God, Elohim, created the heavens and the earth.

Of course, we know God the Father created all things through the Son, the Word who became Jesus Christ. So Elohim. So continuing in this phrase, we have seen Lord, Y-H-W-H, and now we've also seen Elohim. So I am the Lord continuing here, Elohim of your Father. The God, Elohim of Abraham. The God, Elohim of Isaac. The God, Elohim of Jacob.

And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look upon God. Verse 7, And the Lord, Y-H-W-H, said, I have surely seen the oppression of my people who are in Egypt, and I have heard their cry because of their taskmasters, for I know their sorrows. So I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and bring them up from that land to a good and large land, the land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Phezit, Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites.

So let's move down in the conversation here to verse 13. Verse 13. So we've seen the Lord's name, God's name referenced in a few different ways so far. So let's move down to verse 13, where we have the most direct conversation revealed to us about God's name here. Here's God's name directly revealed. Verse 13. Then Moses said to God, Indeed, when I come to the children of Israel, and say to them, The God, the Elohim, 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, here it is, I am who I am. And he said, Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, I am has sent me to you. Moreover, God said to Moses, Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, The Lord, YHWH, God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the Elohim of Isaac, the God of Jacob, has sent me to you. This is my name forever, and this is my memorial to all generations. Let's stop there. So quite an encounter and quite a recording for us here. God reveals himself to Moses in the burning bush. Moses finds out his significant mission. Moses is now going to go forward and say to Pharaoh, Let my people go. And again, there in verse 13, Moses said to Elohim, Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, The Elohim of your fathers has sent me to you, and they ask me, What is his name? What should I tell them?

So let's just stop there for a moment. This is quite striking if you think about it. Does this strike you as just a little bit unusual, perhaps?

He says, When I go to them and say, The God, the Elohim of your fathers has sent me to them, to you, what should I tell him is your name? So in other words, the answer which is about to come there is a dimension about this name that's about to be revealed that is immense. It's deep. There's a certain grandeur or power to this name that even Elohim doesn't carry. We could say Elohi or Elohim, the plural. That word which begins Genesis 1, you know, and the Elohim created the heavens and the earth. Well, there's a dimension that's about to be revealed that even that word, Elohim, mighty ones, cannot capture. There's a word that's about to be revealed, or there's a there's a knowledge that's about to be revealed that's going to be immense here. And so he says to them Exodus 3 verse 14, if they ask you that question, who sent you? You tell them these words. And he says to be or say to them, I am, has sent you. I am who I am. If they ask you, Moses, who has sent you? You say the I am. The to be, if you will, has sent you. You know, the I am has sent you. What does that mean? What does that mean, the I am? Well, it means exactly what he says. In other words, this phrase reveals the magnitude of the the halleowness, if you will, the holiness of the name of God, revealing who he is.

The I am, he is saying and declaring, I am self-existent. I am self-sufficient. I am sovereign. I depend on no one, no one. And everything depends on me, he says. Who else can claim such a name? No one. Except the ones who have been from here from all of time and who have always been. The I am, self-existent, self-fulfilled, sovereign, altogether sovereign. So the I am, who is the I am, God says, tell them I am has sent you. So in other words, we could say all others are not, right? All others are not.

And then we won't turn there, but jumping forward from Moses to the time when the Word became flesh and walked this earth and Jesus Christ, the Son, we know when he addressed the religious authorities of the time, there was great hostility which led to his crucifixion. When he declared these words before Abraham, Jesus Christ said, before Abraham was, I am, he said. That's for your notes. That's found in John 858. John 858. So we see what Jesus Christ was declaring.

Before Abraham was, I am, Jesus said. And they said, that's God's name. And he said, that's right.

And what was he declaring? He was saying, I'm self-existent. I'm self-sufficient. I am sovereign overall. And they understood. And this is the name which was being revealed to Moses there in the burning bush. Here's a quote from our booklet, our UCG booklet, Jesus Christ the Real Story. Here's a quote from that UCG booklet. Quote, The name I am is related to the personal name for God in the Old Testament. I am, and the related YHWH, are the names of God that infer absolute, timeless self-existence.

Although impossible to translate accurately and directly into English, YHWH conveys meanings of the Eternal One, the One who always has existed, or the One who was, is, and always will be. Continuing in the commentary here, quote, putting all this and many other biblical counts together, it is clear that the Word that became Jesus Christ the Man was the YHWH the men knew in the New Testament. Unquote. All right? And so we know that Jesus Christ came to reveal the Father. It was His purpose. And we know if you view or if you hear the Son, you see and you hear the Father, you know. So all the all the words, all the character, all the activity that Jesus Christ put forth is the same quick character revealed in the Father, in the same integrity, in the same essence. So again, biblical scholars will tell you that since Hebrew writing has no vowels, there's really no way to correctly pronounce the name YHWH. And maybe that makes sense because there's such a grandeur to it, right? He is, in fact, the I AM. How do you put that into words? The I AM. So then we might ask and should ask, what name should we use? It's always a common reoccurring question. And I'll tell you, it's really not as difficult as it may seem. And the answer is that Jesus Christ set the example for us. He is simply, he set the example for us. Let me quote you some more from UCG commentary here. UCG commentary quote, Jesus set the example for us. He used the name of God, the name for God, commonly understood by his audience. This was Jesus's example. And in fact, God inspired all the writers of the Bible to do the same as Jesus did, using the words for God that their readers would understand. So in reference to God's name, the original scripture text of the Bible contains not only Hebrew and Greek, but also Aramaic and Chaldean. For example, when Jesus Christ called out to his father there on the cross, he did so in Aramaic just before his death. He spoke the Aramaic word for God, not the Hebrew. Unquote. So when you think about what names should we use for God, simply stated, we follow Christ's example. We use the name of God. We use God. We use God the Father. We use the Son. We say Jesus Christ, as they are translated for us in our English language today. So I hope that provides some clarity there. And I hope you see this, the beginnings, as we begin to build the foundation. And when we consider hallowing God in our, when we approach him in prayer, we begin to see the the immensity of it here and the grandeur of it. And with that foundation, then, we can actually look in Scripture and study many of the names used in the Old Testament. And these names reveal, then, a deeper part of God's character, his essence, his integrity. And they're all based on the name YHWH. They're all based on the name YHWH. And I'm going to reference the word YHWH today and the message, just because it's a little bit easier. But I hope with that foundation, you understand about the vowels and you understand all that. So we're going to look at Scripture here, and we're going to look at some of the names which are revealed regarding God's character and attributes through these names. And I'll tell you, they're all wonderful. And so when we pray, hallowed be thy name, we're now going to have, hopefully by the end of this study, a greater foundation in which to praise his name. And as mentioned, it is clear that the word, the one who became Jesus Christ the man, he was the Yahweh, the YHWH of the Old Testament. And again, we can look at his character revealed through these names. And what we see in the Son is what we see in the Father. So I'd like to spend the rest of our study today going through some of the names.

And I'm not going to be exhaustive. What you will find is that there's dozens and dozens of names for God in Scripture. We're just going to look at five today, and I hope it'll maybe encourage you to further study, and yours further study later on. And so this will be the beginning of maybe continual study. I've picked five of God's names to go through fairly quickly for our edification. And the hope is, again, by seeing these names and reviewing them, we'll be able to hallow his name in a greater way in our praise and in our prayer.

Number one name, first name to consider today, hallowed be your name. Number one, Yahweh Jairah. Yahweh Jairah. I'll spell it for you. J-I-R-E-H. J-I-R-E-H. Yahweh, or Y-H-W-H, Jairah. Meaning the God who provides. The God who provides. And it's only mentioned once in Scripture. Where do you think it's mentioned? Well, I'll tell you, it's mentioned in Genesis 22, verse 14. If you would like to turn there, Genesis 22, verse 14. Now, what's remarkable as we go through these five names, God reveals these names in a moment in which those involved in these circumstances really need to know this part of his character. So when you think of this meaning, Yahweh Jairah, the God who provides, and you think what story would God most reveal himself with that part of his character, I think you will see it makes sense here. So Genesis 22, let's actually begin in verse 9. We're going to read verses 9 through 14. And this is, of course, the very familiar story of Abraham and his near sacrifice of Isaac. This is where Yahweh Jairah, that essence of that name, the meaning of that name, is revealed. Genesis 22, let's begin in verse 9. And they came to this place, this is Abraham and Isaac, his son. This is the place where God told him. And Abraham built an altar there and placed wood in order. He bound Isaac his son, laid him on the altar upon the wood. Abraham stretched out his hand and took the knife to slay his son. But the angel of the Lord, Yahweh, called to him from heaven and said, Abraham, Abraham. So he said, Here I am. And he, Yahweh, said, Do not lay your hand on the lad or do anything to him. For now I know you fear God, Elohim, since you have not withheld your son, your only son from me. Verse 13, then Abraham lifted his eyes and looked, and there behind him was a ram caught in the thicket by its horns. So Abraham went, took the ram, offered it up as a burnt offering instead of his son. And Abraham called the name of the place Yahweh Jairah, the Lord will provide. As it is said to this day, the Mount of the Lord, it shall be provided. So Yahweh Jairah, let's stop there, the God who provides. And what a moment in which God would reveal this part of his character here. And God is really the God who perceives. You know, he actually gets out perceives, you know, he actually gets out ahead of what we need. So we could say he's the God who perceives what we need. He anticipates. He is a God who has experienced and understands then in a real sense what needs exactly needs to be provided. Of course, he walked this earth, Jesus Christ the Son, walked this earth. So he knows exactly what to provide. And of course, this story and the essence of this character of God, it goes well beyond this moment. For in fact, mankind was given exactly what we need through the sacrifice of the Son. For God so loved the world he gave, he provided his Son and whoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life. That's John 3 16 for your notes. So Yahweh, Jairah, our provider, do you know him in this way?

Do you know him? If you don't and you would like to know him as your provider, pray. Pray, let me know more of this part of your essence, Father. Let me know more of this of your character. Let me know you in a better way as provider. Yahweh, Jairah. Next to consider here the next name. And again, there's so many names. I picked five here. Next to consider number two, hallowed be your name Yahweh, Raffa. Yahweh, Raffa. He is in this name revealed as the God who heals. Raffa, heals. Yahweh, Raffa. He's the God who heals.

This particular quality of God is revealed to us in a story found in Exodus 15 verse 26. So if you'd like to turn there, where do you think God would reveal this part of his character that he's a healer? What we do find it here in Exodus 15 verse 26, this is the first time it appears. This is days, a few days after being delivered from Egypt. Israel is wandering through the wilderness, unable to find water. So God's going to reveal this part of his character in a moment where they're unable to find water. He's going to reveal to them that he's a God as a healer. So this is very interesting. So breaking into the story here, God dealing with the Israelites, Exodus 15, we'll begin in verse 25 here. There he, that's God, made a statute and an ordinance for them. And there, you know, where they're not able to find water, there he tested them. And he said, if you diligently heed the voice of the Lord Yahweh, your God, and do what is right in his eyes, and 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 Yahweh, Rapha, the Lord who heals you. Right? Let's stop there. So for I am Yahweh, Rapha, the Lord who heals you. So again, God had just delivered them out of Egyptian slavery, brought them through the Red Sea, all these miracles. They're wandering through the wilderness, unable to find water, getting desperate. And they actually found water, but it was bitter. If you allow your eyes to go up to verse 23, they did find a river, verse 23, they came to this river named Mara, but they couldn't drink it, because the waters of Mara, for they were bitter. And that's what Mara means. So they called it Mara there. So they go to Moses. As the story goes, Moses turns to God. God tells him to take a branch from a particular tree, put it in the river, and by doing so, the waters became fresh and sweet. And in that moment, in verse 26, God reveals himself, in this part of his character, as Yahweh, Raffa, the one who heals. So he healed the waters, the bitter waters. The name Raffa can also mean restore, so he restored the waters. It can also even mean mend to mend. Raffa, restore, mend, heal. So he is Yahweh Raffa, the Lord who restores, the Lord who fixes broken things, we could say. And he's declaring himself as this part of his character. So fast forward. When we have the stepping onto this earth of the word who became Jesus Christ, we read in the prophets, he took our infirmities. He took our sicknesses. He took our sicknesses. Jesus is the great physician. Therefore, he revealed his father as the great physician, the great healer. You know, so much of Jesus's ministry was healing people, healing physically sick people, healing spiritually sick people. And ultimately, he was bruised for our iniquities. Chastisement for our peace was laid upon him. By his stripes, we are healed. There. So we can call him today, Yahweh Raffa. Do you know God is the healer? Do you believe that he can mend whatever is broken in your life?

Think about this. What bitterness is happening in your life? You know, we could say or we could describe an illness as being bitter to our bodies, you know? Great! I want to know you as the healer. I want to come to this part of your character, Father, and understand it in a better way. If you're going through a relationship that is bitter, we could say, and there's conflict, ask God to heal those waters of that relationship. He will. This is part of his essence. Will you hallow Yahweh Raffa in a greater way? Will you know him in that part of his character? Next to consider. We're going through these quickly, I told you. The third name, and I know there's many, as I said. The next one I thought we would consider today in this study is number three Yahweh Nisi. N-I-S-S-I.

Do you know God as Yahweh Nisi so that you might hallow him? What do you think this means? I really am drawn to this one. It means the Lord Yahweh is my banner. Nisi. So Yahweh Nisi. The Lord is my banner. I wonder if you've ever thought about that part of his character. It's only found one time in Scripture, and it's a few chapters over. Exodus 17, and we find this in verse 15, it's the only place it occurs in Scripture. Combining the word Yahweh, the Lord with the Hebrew word meaning banner or flag even. So the Lord is my banner. So we're going to break into this story. Let's break in here. Exodus 17, and we're going to begin and read verses 14 through 16. And we're going to see that there's an altar called this name Yahweh Nisi.

Exodus 17 beginning in verse 14.

Then the Lord, YHWH, said to Moses, Write this for a memorial in the book and recount it in the hearing of Joshua, That I will utterly blot out the remembrance of Amalek, that's Israel's enemy, from under heaven. And Moses built an altar, and he called the altar its name. The Lord is my banner, Yahweh Nisi. For he said, Because the Lord has sworn, and the Lord will have war with Amalek from generation to generation. So let's stop there. So Moses actually called the altar, the Lord is my banner.

The Nisi can also be translated refuge, so it could be banner flag, it could mean refuge, it can even mean exaltation. The Lord is my exaltation.

The Lord is my banner exaltation. The Lord is my exaltation. The Lord is my refuge. So what prompted Moses to build an altar and to name it Yahweh Nisi?

Well, I love this part of the story, and I'll just summarize it for you. But if you read here the story of Exodus 17, you know they were traveling through the land of Canaan. They camped out. They were attacked, as they always were, from enemies, Amalekites, as they were passing through their land. So Moses puts Joshua in charge of the leading, the Israelite forces, and Moses tells Joshua, I'm going to go up to the mountain, and this is my strategy. I'm going to hold this rod, this rod that has already performed these miracles of parting the sea, and I'm going to hold it up in this mountain, this rod in my hand, and he did so. And what he was doing was inviting God to show his strong hand in this battle and fight it for them. And as long as he held that rod up high, the Israelite army was making progress and pushing them back. But as he got weak and began to lower the rod, he had to get the help of Aaron and her to hold his arm back up. So as it went down, the pursuing army began to make progress, and as they held it back up, the Israelites began to make progress back on them. And when God gave Israel victory over their enemies at the close of the battle, Moses built an altar to God and named it, the Lord is my banner. And he was recognizing that God was the source of their victory. This miracle rod was there being held up as a banner. You know, if you think about a flag or a banner, it identifies a people, a nation. We could say, your flags identify people. Well, they were identifying themselves as the people of God. This is our banner, he was saying. And just as Moses raised the rod, and God gave the the banner, and God gave that protection and victory. Likewise, Jesus was raised up and raised up on a stake at his crucifixion. And we look at him as our banner, as the source of our victory, with our eyes on that raised up for us. We are assured victory in the end.

Jesus Christ is our banner. He is the banner which identifies us as belonging to God. We are God's people.

So would you hallow God today with this part of his character? Yahweh Nisei, the Lord is my banner.

You belong to him. I hope you understand that. I hope you feel that you belong to him. He will give you victory in the end. Fourth, to consider the fourth name, and you'll think of others. You'll know this one, maybe the most recognizable of all the ones we've said so far. The fourth name to consider, let's hallow and think about this part of God's character. Yahweh Shalom. Of course, Yahweh Shalom. I think we could probably answer in unison. Yahweh, the Lord, is peace. Shalom. Shalom.

What do you think is a primary example in the Bible where God declared himself as the Lord is our peace? Where do you think he declared that most strikingly? Did you know? It's in the story of Gideon. Let's turn there. Judges 6 verse 24. Would you have thought, you know, Judges 6 verse 24, that this is the moment in which God would declare his peace?

Gideon and the people needed peace. If you have time, you could go back and review the story of Gideon. You know, they were settling into the Promised Land, and once again, the the the parasites. I know that's a joke. I almost said that earlier when I was saying one of the names, but this particular people were the Midianites. They were executing fierce persecution on Gideon and his people. They were taking their flocks. They were taking their harvests. They were, the people were living in such fear, such distress. They were hiding, cowering in the mountains, and out of this, God declares himself as Yahweh Shalom. Look at this. Perhaps you need to know God in this way today. Judges 6, let's read verses 23 and 24. Judges 6 verse 23 and 24. And the Lord said to Gideon, "'Peace be with you. Do not fear. You shall not die.'" You know, we know where God is our life. He is the truly life and giving us ultimate life in the end. "'You shall not die.' Verse 24. So Gideon, he built an altar, and he dedicated to Yahweh, the Lord, and he called this altar Yahweh Shalom. The Lord is peace." And to this day, it's still there in those areas there.

So once again, you know, we won't take the time to really get into Gideon's story. I think we are familiar with it. Tremendous troubles of heart. Can't sleep at night. Gideon couldn't even fathom what God was putting in front of him and what God was asking him to do. You remember, he said, I'm the least of the least, Father. Why are you coming to me? Lord, why are you coming to me? And what was put in front of Gideon to accomplish? And what Gideon needed to know at that time, and I think what we may need to know today, is that God is our peace. And that's what was declared to him. And God declares that to us today. What is not bringing you peace today? Troubling your hearts again, keeping up at night. If you're like me, you have a playback button in your mind, unfortunately. It plays, and then you hit rewind, you know, it plays again. And it's troubling, and you can't get peace of mind, peace of heart. There's no solution to the circumstances in front of you, like we heard in the opening message.

Well, I want to declare to you God, Yahweh, Shalom, would you honor him? You know, when I doubt God, I know I'm not hallowing his name in this way. I'm not, I'm not, when I doubt God, when I fear, when I have anxiety, when I worry and worry and worry and worry, I know in my heart, intentionally or not intentionally, just that I'm not honoring this part of his character. I'm not hallowing him in this way. So you can pray, bring me that part of your character.

I want to know you as Yahweh Shalom, this part of your character, Father. He'll give it to you. Be patient. It's not always in our timing, but it will come. And I think he will give you peace in that moment to keep going forward, just like Gideon.

Fifth and final name to consider today. Number five is Yahweh Shammah.

I'll spell it for you. Yahweh Shammah. S-H-A-M-M-A-H. So Yahweh Shammah. S-H-A-M-M-A-H. Hallelujah Shammah.

And this is declared and appears in Ezekiel, the book of Ezekiel. And it's quite a...I thought it was quite a fascinating name to end our study with today. Yahweh Shammah. Let's turn there. It's found in Ezekiel 48 verse 35. Ezekiel 48 and verse 35. Did you know that Yahweh Shammah is actually the name given to a city, a city? And it's declared and revealed to the people of Ezekiel's day at a time that they needed it. Now, for the sake of time, we're going to break into the passage here. But what's being described here is Ezekiel receives a vision of a future restored city, a future restored temple, a future restored sanctuary. He's given this vision of all that that was going to be coming to the people, and God reveals it to the prophet Ezekiel here to encourage them. They had been in captivity some 25 years at this point. So, if you read through this, you'll see that he's describing the sanctuary in the city here. But Ezekiel 48 verse 35, after describing what was going to be future to Ezekiel and his people, this beautiful city to come, Ezekiel 48 verse 35, all the way around what's being described here, shall be 18,000 cubics, and the name of the city from that day shall be Yahweh Shema. The Lord is there. Yahweh Shema. The Lord is there is what that means. So, this city was future and coming to the physical nation there. Again, they had been in captivity. The temple had been in ruins. But now, with this declaration of Yahweh Shema to the prophet Ezekiel, God's people, what God was declaring to the people is that he was going to keep his promise and restore them, restore the city, restore the sanctuary. Yahweh, and amongst all that, it's going to be Yahweh Shema. I will be there, the Lord was saying.

And the name of the city from that day shall be Yahweh Shema. And again, that would have been so special to the people there. They thought, now bring this to today, they thought they were forsaken. They're in Babylon, cut off from God. They knew they had sinned. They knew they had failed. But despite all that, God is now declaring to them, I have not forsaken you. And in fact, there is a city coming. And I will be there. I will be part of that city. And the very name of that restored city withstands a promise that the part of God's character is Yahweh Shema.

A promise to the people of Ezekiel's day of a glorious city to come. Now, I know your thoughts are already going there. Bring this to today.

Can you fully believe and have faith that this future city is coming? Are you feeling down your sins? Do you feel like they've cut you off from God? You're in captivity to so many things of this world. Well, I encourage you to pray. Ask for forgiveness. Ask for God's grace to be applied to you. Call upon healing. And then stand up and set your eyes on the future glorious city to come. Yahweh Shema. And in that future city, God will be there. And I got to tell you, you see this part of God's character all throughout Scripture. When Jesus Christ returned back to the Father, He said the promise to His disciples, I am with you always, even to the end of the age. And God the Father and Jesus Christ the Son are with us today.

They have not left us. They have not forsaken us. Whatever circumstance you're in, God is there. He is our Yahweh Shema. Will you hallow Him by believing that today? Endeavor, give up. Keep going. We have to make it to this glorious city. And we have to do it together. We have to do it together.

Well, I hope this brief study on the revealed names of God will be of help to us.

Yahweh Jairah He provides. Yahweh Rapha, the God who heals. Yahweh Nisei, He's our banner. Yahweh Shalom, our peace. And let's set our eyes on the future city to come. Yahweh Shema. And so when you pray, say, our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name.