REVIEW
 
In our series on the Names of God, we have been learning more about Him which certainly will cause us to approach Him differently – in more confidence, assurance, and boldness. This is what Jesus was trying to teach His disciples when He taught them to pray by first “hallowing” His name.
 
You see, when we see His name as different than just any other name and when we come to know His true character, the natural result will be drawing near to Him in faith. And we all know – if we want to receive from the Father, we must come to Him in faith and by faith.
 
So we started off looking at the first name the LORD was given in the Scriptures – the name for “God” which is Elohim. And we learned that this name describes what most people inherently know about God – that He is the Ruler, the Judge, the Supreme, Almighty, All-Powerful God.
 
You see, most of the people on this planet – believers and unbelievers alike – have no issue seeing God in this way. And you know what? That’s actually a healthy thing! Yes, it’s good to understand that God is the top of the food chain and is the Creator of all things. It is a good thing to understand that He is the All-Powerful and All-Knowing God whom we must give an account to one day.
 
The problem is, however, if we only see God this way, we miss so many of the privileges that are afforded us of having a personal relationship with Him. Yes, those who know Him as “Elohim” (no, not by that actual name but by what that name means) have a difficult time seeing God as He is in truth – as love, as merciful, as good, as kind, etc. This is why we need to learn about ALL of His names because that is what will cause us to draw near to Him and desire to know this wonderful God named Elohim.
 
This is why we also then looked at a few of the names given to Elohim in the Book of Genesis – El Elyon, El Roi, and El Shaddai. Each of these names showed us another element of who our Supreme and Sovereign God truly is.

1. He’s the Most High God who dwells together with those who are contrite and humble themselves under His mighty hand. Therefore, our Almighty God is truly a God of humility.
2. He’s the God who Sees – the One who sees us even when we feel unseen – meaning even though He is the God over all creation, He still takes it upon Himself to see us individually and know everything about us.

 

1. He’s the God who is More than Enough who supplies the needs of His people in fullness and abundance. In other words, He doesn’t just barely meet our needs and desires; He gives more than enough provision because He’s that good.

 
So Elohim is all of this and so much more.
 
But we looked at what His most popular name is last week and the name that He said will be remembered as a memorial before Him forever – and that name is Yahweh.
 
Now as we made the point of last week, this name has other names that have been derived from it:
 
For example, the name Adonai came from this name in that the Jewish people got to the place where they didn’t want to risk taking His Name in vain, so they started calling Him Adonai instead of the name He gave them, Yahweh. And we can see when this was used in our English Bibles because when Yahweh was the Hebrew word, they put the word LORD in all caps. However, when Adonai was used it was like so – Lord.
 
Also, when Yahweh was transliterated from Latin, the letter “Y” was substituted for a “J,” and this is where we get the word “Jehovah” from. So Jehovah is well known to us in English speaking countries because our Bibles gave us this transliteration of Yahweh.
 
Now we addressed these things in last week’s message because it’s important for us to not become “Pharisaical” about what name we use because the Holy Spirit told me – “I don’t care what you call Me, just don’t call me later for dinner” – meaning, it’s not about the name we use but that we know what His name represents and invite Him into our hearts and enjoy good, rich fellowship with Him.
 
You see, church, it’s all about relationship with Yahweh. In fact, this name of His is a very relational name as it’s used when God gets involved with His creation and shows us His redeeming power. Yes, Yahweh is God’s covenant keeping name and what He “exists” to do on our behalf.
 
I intentionally use the word “exist” there because, at its root, Yahweh means “to be.” We learned that this is why, when Moses asked God to give him His name that He said to tell the children of Israel that “I Am Who I Am” had sent him to them. So Yahweh’s full meaning is – “The One who was, who is, and who is to come” – which is what Jesus revealed Himself as to the apostle John (Revelation 1:8).
 
But we also learned that Yahweh was the name that God had intended to reveal Himself as to the children of Israel – a name that was not fully realized by even Abraham and the rest of the patriarchs (See Exodus 6:1-8). In other words, Yahweh/Jehovah was going to be the name that God was going to further expound on His nature & character through the covenant He would establish with Israel.
        
Which leads us to what we will begin looking at today – the Yahweh/Jehovah names of God that further amplify what our God is, was, and ever more shall be, our Lord who always keeps His covenant, and who will do what He promised for those He is in relationship with.
 
Yes, these names are the fulfillment of what God meant in Exodus chapter 6 when he said that He was going to reveal His name as Yahweh to His people and they would REALLY come to know Him in a way that the patriarchs never did. Thereby, Israel would be able to obtain the promises that escaped the patriarchs.
 
So are you ready to look at these covenant keeping names of God? These are who God IS for those believe on Him and what He has promised to be for those in covenant with Him.
 
Now I am going to use the name Jehovah for all of these names because that is how I learned them as an English-speaking American, but you are free to substitute Yahweh for Jehovah on each of these names if you so desire.  
 
According to my count, there are nine Jehovah names of God:

1. Jehovah Jireh
2. Jehovah Rapha
3. Jehovah Rohi
4. Jehovah Nissi
5. Jehovah M’Kaddesh
6. Jehovah Tsid Kenu
7. Jehovah Shalom
8. Jehovah Sabbaoth
9. Jehovah Shammah

 
Now the spelling of each of these names can vary based on the source, but again, things like the spelling and the pronunciation are not as important as knowing in our hearts what they mean and seeing Yahweh this way.
 
Let’s begin this week with the last name on my list – Jehovah Shammah.   
 
JEHOVAH SHAMMAH
 
The name Jehovah Shammah appears in Ezekiel 48:35 as the name of a city the prophet Ezekiel was shown in a vision. Jehovah Shammah means “THE LORD IS THERE” (Ezekiel 48:35). Thus it denotes – Yahweh is present in that place.
 
Now the background to this Name of God is as follows: When Ezekiel received this vision from God, the Jews had been in captivity in Babylon for twenty-five years (See Ezekiel 40:1). Jerusalem and the temple were in ruins. But God had promised that His people would be restored, and that the city and the temple would be rebuilt (See Jeremiah 25:11,13; Daniel 9:20-27).
 
So in the closing chapters of Ezekiel, the prophet describes what God told him in a vision about this coming restoration of the land, the city, and the temple. It included detailed plans and measurements for the restored city. And so the final words of Ezekiel’s book are these: “And the name of the city from that day shall be: THE LORD IS THERE [Jehovah Shammah]” (Ezekiel 48:35).
 
Of course, the name, Jehovah Shammah, doesn’t occur in the New Testament in that you don’t find too much Hebrew contained in the New Testament. But the apostle John clearly takes Ezekiel’s description of the restored city and applies it in his vision of the New Jerusalem which will come down to Earth out of heaven when sin is no more (See Revelation chapter 21).
 
Notice the parallels between the two cities:
 
Again, its name is Jehovah Shammah—God Is There – in Ezekiel 48:35. The apostle John says of the New Jerusalem in Revelation 21:3 – “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God.”
 
In Ezekiel’s vision, God takes him up to a high mountain to show him the restored city (See Ezekiel 40:2). And the apostle John says that an angel “… carried me away in the Spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me the great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God” (Revelation 21:10).
 
Ezekiel saw a man with a measuring rod who begins to measure the different parts of the city and announce its dimensions (See Ezekiel 40:3), and the apostle John says, “He who talked with me had a gold reed to measure the city, its gates, and its wall” (Revelation 20:15).
 
Ezekiel’s city had twelve gates (three in each of the four walls), and each gate is assigned to one of the twelve tribes of Israel (See Ezekiel 48:30-34). In like manner, John’s city has the same—three gates in each wall with a gate for each of the twelve tribes of Israel (Revelation 21:12-14).
 
Ezekiel’s city was in the shape of a square, with each side measuring “four thousand five hundred cubits” (See Ezekiel 48:30-34). The apostle John’s city is also a square, although the dimensions are slightly different (Revelation 21:16).
 
So it is clear that what Ezekiel was seeing and prophesying would come to pass was something that was way off in the future, where to even we today have yet to see its fulfillment because it’s literal and complete manifestation will come when His kingdom comes, the New Jerusalem from heaven.
 
I AM PRESENT
 
But I’m here to give you some good news today: This promise of a city where God is present is not only for those in the past or for us in the future. God is there for us today as well …
 
Let me remind you that Yahweh means at its very root that the Lord is the Great I AM. Yes, this includes Him being the One who was and the One who will be, but this indicates that He always IS.
 
So as we consider this name of God that means THE LORD IS THERE or THE LORD IS PRESENT, we don’t need to look at this promise as THE LORD WAS THERE or THE LORD WILL BE THERE; no, He is not just in the past or in the future. He is in the PRESENT! No, He is not Jehovah Shammah, the Lord who will be there. HE IS THERE! Yes, right now Yahweh is present!  
 
You see, the first time this Hebrew word “shammah” is used where we get the word “there” from is in Genesis 2:8 when we are told – “The LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden, and there He put the man whom He had formed.”
 
So the picture that is painted here is of God planting a garden and then placing the man whom he created “there” (i.e. Shammah). And so when we look at this name of God – Jehovah Shammah – this is exactly how we should view our God!
 
You see, when we were born again, God planted a garden in us. Yes, He gave us a new spirit. He took out that old calloused & hardened heart and put a new soft and sensitive heart inside of us. But do you know what else He did? He placed the Last Adam in us! Yes, Christ is in us! He is “shammah”; He is there! (If you’re a born-again believer in this place, point at your belly and say, “He is there!”)
 
So the reality here is that God cannot get any closer to you than He already is – for He lives within you and plans to abide there forever!
 
But it sure doesn’t always feel that way, does it?
 
You see, the name Jehovah Shammah would have had special meaning for those Jewish exiles that Ezekiel’s prophecy was written to. Why? Because can you imagine how they might have felt all of those years in Babylon? I’m sure they felt forsaken and cut off from God. They knew that they got themselves in this situation. So you know that emotions such as condemnation, guilt, regret, etc. had to have been feelings that they were experiencing.
 
This reminds me of what happened in the Garden of Eden after man’s sin:
 
You see, Adam and Eve were perfect. They were righteous, holy, and had God’s glory. But when they sinned, they fell short of the glory of God. Sin entered and they died spiritually. And I’m sure that at this time, they had all the same feelings that the Jews had while in Babylon – feelings of guilt, condemnation, etc.
 
And I want you to realize that there are a lot of us here today who probably feel a lot like both these Jewish exiles and Adam & Eve did. We feel forgotten. We feel exiled from the presence of God. We feel we’ve been kicked out of the Garden because of our sin. Sure, we know we made mistakes and, therefore, feel justified in being “exiled” from the place of His presence.
 
THE NEW JERUSALEM
 
You see, many believe that God hates sin so much and is ready to punish us when we sin because of what happened to Adam and Eve after they sinned. Many believe that God kicked them out of the garden because He wanted to judge and punish them for their mistake, but this is simply untrue…
 
If you look at the end of Genesis chapter 3 you will find the reason why God had to banish them from the garden after their sin…
 
Genesis 3:22 says, “Then the Lord God said, ‘Behold, the man has become like one of Us, to know good and evil. And now, lest he put out his hand and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever’- therefore the Lord God sent him out of the garden of Eden to till the ground from which he was taken. So He drove out the man; and He placed cherubim at the east of the garden of Eden, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to guard the way to the tree of life.”
 
You see, God did not kick them out of the Garden to punish them; He sent them out of the Garden to protect them! He knew that the tree of life was inside the garden and if they were to partake of the fruit of that tree after partaking of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, they would live forever in a dead and cursed state. In other words, if they were to eat the fruit of the tree of life then they would live forever physically in a spiritually dead condition. And God loved them too much to let that happen. So He sent them out of the garden and guarded its entrance.
 
This is how much God loves us! He loves us enough to protect us. Ultimately, this is why God gives us commandments, statutes, and ordinances. He is not saying “Thou shalt not…!” from the standpoint that He is trying to control us and keep things from us. It is ultimately His protection! He, as any good father, will give His children boundaries, not just because He is trying to get us to do what He wants us to do, but because He wants the best for us! We don’t tell our children to look both ways before they cross the street because it brings us pleasure to see them obey us. No, we give them those types of commandments because we are trying to protect them and because we want it to be well with them. So how can we believe that God is any different when He loves us infinitely more than we love our own children?
 
No, this is the nature of our God… He is love! He is merciful! He is full of grace! And He only gets to a place of anger and judgment when His great longsuffering is tested. So don’t ever let the devil or religion tell you otherwise! He is for you, not against you! 
 
Likewise, this belief we have that God forsakes you when you sin is not true either. No, He doesn’t leave us. What happens is we leave Him. Yes, our guilt and condemnation cause us to leave His presence because we either believe that God won’t have anything to do with us or because we feel we don’t deserve to be close to Him, and so we willfully flee from his presence like Adam & Eve did.
 
But what we learn is that what the First Adam lost in the beginning, the Last Adam restored to us in the end. Let me explain … 
 
What we see in the first two chapters of the first book of the Bible is exactly what we see in the last two chapters of the last book of the Bible. We see the original creation of the heavens and the earth in Genesis chapters 1&2 and in Revelations chapters 21&22 we see the new creation of the heavens and the earth! In the beginning, we see the birth of the Garden of paradise and in the ending, we see the new birth of the Garden of paradise! And everything in between is the process of our restoration to that place we held in the Garden!
 
You see, Second Corinthians 5:17 says that when we were made new creations in Christ Jesus that old things had passed away and behold all things became new. Did you know that this same verbiage is used in the last couple of chapters of the Bible, in Revelation chapters 21 & 22, referring to the coming of the New Heavens and the New Earth? Yes, these verses in Revelation unveil how Second Corinthians 5:17 is almost repeated verbatim in these verses. Let’s take a look at them…
 
Revelation 21:1-5 says, “Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had (what?) passed away. And there was no more sea. Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, Behold the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away. Then He who sat on the throne said, ‘Behold, I make all things new…’”
 
Any of those phrases in there sound familiar?  
 
Now, of course, this is referring to the literal coming of the kingdom of God on the earth after Jesus has returned and destroyed all of His enemies. But what the Lord has shown me is that this also typifies what has already taken place in us when we were made new creations in Christ. In other words, what we see here in the end, when God creates the new heaven and new earth, is the fulfillment of what He has already done in every born-again believer’s spirit. 
 
Now the price was paid for the salvation of our soul and body as well, but they will not experience what we have already experienced in our spirit until the return of the Lord Jesus Christ. And on that glorious Day, when He returns, this mortality will take on immortality and we will receive in our bodies exactly what we received in our spirits. 
 
And this is my point: If we have been born again, we have already received spiritually what we will receive naturally when God creates the new heavens and the new earth and brings His kingdom to the earth. So what I want us to do is look at these Scriptures in Revelation as already being fulfilled - in our spirit.
 
Again, Revelation 21:1 says that the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. That sounds like familiar verbiage, does it not? You see, just as Paul said that when we became new creations in Christ, that old things have “passed away”, so our life before Christ came into our world had passed away. All that was first, has passed away! Praise the Lord!
 
Then notice verse 2…
 
Notice, first of all, how the holy city, the New Jerusalem, was “coming down out of heaven from God”…
 
Did you know that when the Bible speaks of being born again that the literal translation of that phrase “born again” is to be “born from above”? And this paints a beautiful picture of where the new birth originates. It originates from heaven! We are born of God! Our new nature, the new creation itself, has come down from heaven and replaced our old, sinful nature. Praise the Lord!
 
Then just as the holy city of God—the New Jerusalem—came down from heaven to the new earth, God placed within us His holy city - His New Jerusalem! We were made His temple - His Jerusalem - that is, His chosen people, His kings and priests are we! As First Peter 2:9-10 says, “But you (all who are Christ’s) are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a (what?) holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light, who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy.” As Gentiles, we were without hope and without God in the world. Then God, in His infinite mercy, made us His covenant people. And He didn’t put us in the holy nation; He put the holy nation in us! Therefore, the holy city of God now resides within us, and we are now the Israel of God.
 
This is why Paul can say in Romans 2:28-29- “For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh; but he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, not in the letter; whose praise is not from men but from God.” This clearly tells us that those who are born again, those who have received the spirit of Christ, are the chosen people of God today. We are the New Jerusalem! Not that God has forsaken His original chosen people—the nation of Israel—for He cannot deny Himself and is faithful to His covenant with Abraham. But what we need to understand is that we who are in Christ have been made what the original chosen people of God were made. The difference is that they were made the people of God naturally; we were made the people of God spiritually. They were placed in the holy nation; we had the holy nation placed within us. They were born Jews from a physical standpoint; we were born again as Jews from a spiritual standpoint.
 
This is in no way intended to make us look at the original covenant people of God in a lesser way. We should certainly honor God’s covenant with Israel by faithfully praying for His chosen people. But at the same time, we need to elevate in our minds the covenant God has made with us through Christ. We do not need to act like we are still stuck in the outer courts! We are not in outer courts anymore! We have been given access into the inner courts through Jesus Christ, and not only that, but our new and better covenant has rent the veil and now we can enter the holy of holies. Hallelujah!    
 
And notice how else verse 2 describes this New Jerusalem that descended from heaven… It says it was “prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.” Now we see a repeat of what we talked about last time we were together…
 
Not only are we made the Israel of God and a holy nation in our spirits, but we were at the same time made the bride of Christ! This was all made possible because we have been washed in the water of the Word and cleansed where there is no spot nor wrinkle in His new creation. We are, right now, the bride of Christ because we have been born from above. Thank You Jesus!
 
Then in verses 3-6 we see further what spiritual realities have taken place within us…
 
Revelation 21:3 says, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God.”
 
What an awesome promise! Just as God will physically “tabernacle” with us when the new heavens and new earth are created, coming to dwell with us forever, He has already accomplished this in our spirits! He has come to tabernacle within us! He has promised to never leave us or forsake us, and to be with us and in us until the end of the world! The Apostle Paul said that this is the mystery of the New Covenant - Christ in us, the hope of glory! One of His names is Jehovah Shammah, which means the Lord is present! Praise the Lord, He is present! He is in our midst because He dwells within us! The Lord has made His tabernacle within us and our spirits are now the holy of holies. This is where God resides! Hallelujah!
 
Now notice Revelation 21:5&6… These verses quote the Father as saying, “Behold, I make all things new!” (This sounds strangely familiar, does it not?:) Then He says, “It is done!” (or, it is finished!) Everything in regard to our salvation and sanctification of spirit has been completed! It is finished, as Jesus said on the Cross!
 
Truly, He is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end! His work in us is typified in both the beginning (i.e. Genesis) and in the end (i.e. Revelation)!
 
So again, He is Jehovah Shammah today just as much as He promised to be in both Ezekiel’s prophecy and the apostle John’s revelation. He is present! And we have boo coos of promises of this.
 
So let’s end today’s teaching with a bunch of Scriptures in the Bible that emphasize this truth that God is Jehovah Shammah …
 
JEHOVAH SHAMMAH PRESENT THROUGHOUT THE SCRIPTURES
 
First of all, once God cut covenant with the children of Israel, there was a promise that He emphasized and reemphasized again that He would be with them.
 
In the Book of Exodus, when Moses asked God to go with them on their journey through the wilderness, God made a promise to Him …
 
He said in Exodus 33:14 – “… My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.”
 
Here, the LORD assured Moses of His presence and promised to bring rest to His people. Likewise, as we travel through life, God goes with us too. And guess what this should result in? Us entering into His rest. Yes, knowing God is with us wherever we go should cause us to be at peace and rest, even in the midst of the busiest and most tumultuous seasons.
 
Then in Deuteronomy chapter 31, we have the instance where Moses said at 120 years of age, that it was time to turn the reins over to Joshua. And in his words to the children of Israel, he says, “Be strong and of good courage, do not fear nor be afraid of them; for the Lord your God, He is the One who goes with you. He will not leave you nor forsake you.” (Deuteronomy 31:6).
 
Now why do you suppose Moses said this to them? I can guarantee you it was because they might have believed in their hearts that Moses was the reason why God had been with them up to this point. So Moses here was encouraging them to be strong and of good courage in knowing that God will still go with them.
 
In fact, Moses then turned to Joshua himself in Deuteronomy 31:7-8 and said, “Be strong and of good courage, for you must go with this people to the land which the Lord has sworn to their fathers to give them, and you shall cause them to inherit it. And the Lord, He is the One who goes before you. He will be with you, He will not leave you nor forsake you; do not fear nor be dismayed.”
 
Now what is interesting about this is that later on, after Moses had died, the Lord speaks directly to Joshua and essentially says the same words –
 
He says it multiple times to him, but says one last time in Joshua 1:9 – “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”
 
Church, it’s important that we realize that God is with us wherever we go to. When God enters into covenant with His people, He is resolved to always be present and there for them – and that certainly includes us.
 
And the fact that God spoke this multiple times to His people first through Moses and then Himself directly shows us that there will likely be a need for us to have to hear this more than once because it’s just natural (and might I say, carnal) to not let our hearts embrace this as truth. 
 
But it did not end in the Torah … I have found several passages of Scripture in the Psalms themselves that declare to us God’s promise to continue to be Jehovah Shammah.
 
Psalm 23:4 says, “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.”
 
Here, we are reminded that even in the midst of our darkest moments, God is with us, providing comfort and protection. And His presence is a source of strength and assurance that we need not fear.
 
Psalm 34:18 says, “The Lord is near to those who have a broken heart, and saves such as have a contrite spirit.”
 
This Psalm reminds us that specifically in times of heartbreak and sorrow, God is close to us. Why? Because He is compassionate and saves those who are crushed in spirit.
 
Psalm 139:7-10 says, “Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.”
 
This Psalm reminds us that no matter where we are, whether in the highest heights or the deepest depths, God is with us. His Spirit is present even in the most remote places. This verse brings comfort, knowing that there is nowhere we can go where God’s presence cannot reach us. His guiding hand is always there, leading and protecting us, regardless of our circumstances.
 
Psalms 46:1 says, “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” Later on in the same Psalm, the psalmist repeats this truth – “The Lord of hosts is with us; The God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah.” (verses 7&11)
 
Of all the verses that we are using, I think this one best describes Jehovah Shammah …
 
You see, as our refuge and strength, God is a very present help in trouble. That means that He is there, yes. But He’s there, He’s present, to help us in whatever trouble we find ourselves in. So if that is physical trouble, then He’s there as our healer. If that’s financial trouble, then He’s there as our provider. Whatever we need, Jehovah Shammah is there to help. Glory!
 
As we move on to the Book of Isaiah, we see this repeated in Isaiah 41:10, we are told – “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”
 
God’s promise again connects fear with God’s presence – meaning, when we understand that God is with us, it expels fear. Yes, knowing that the Almighty God is holding us with His righteous right hand gives us a sense of security and peace. We can trust in His strength and find comfort in His unfailing love.
 
Isaiah 43:2 also says, “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.”
 
In times of trials and difficulties, this verse assures us that God will be with us. He promises to protect us and keep us safe, even as we navigate through the most challenging circumstances.
 
God’s presence is our shield against the overwhelming floods and fiery trials of life. With Him by our side, we can have confidence that we will not be overcome or destroyed.
 
Again, in Isaiah 43:5, the Lord goes on to say, “Do not be afraid, for I am with you; I will bring your children from the east and gather you from the west.”
 
In this verse, God assures His people that they need not fear, for He will be with them and gather them from all directions. This promise extends to us today, reminding us that God’s presence is with us, providing comfort and protection.
 
Even in times of uncertainty or when our loved ones are far away, we can take solace in the fact that God is with us. His watchful eye is upon us as He gathers and reunites His people.
 
But what we can find even more solid certainty in, is in the promise of Him being Jehovah Shammah in the New Testament …
 
At the very beginning of the New Testament, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph and quoted Isaiah’s prophecy, saying, “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel (which means ‘God with us’).” (Matthew 1:23)
 
You see, Jesus is referred to as Immanuel, which means “God with us.” This name highlights the incredible truth that God became flesh and dwelt among us, fulfilling God’s promise to be Jehovah Shammah.
 
At the end of His ministry, Jesus promised His disciples – “…and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:20)
 
Jesus spoke these words to His disciples before ascending to heaven, assuring them that He would be with them always. This promise extends to us as His followers today.
 
Jesus even said during His ministry – “For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.” (Matthew 18:20)
 
When we gather together in Jesus’ name, His presence is among us. This verse emphasizes the importance of community and reminds us that we can experience the presence of God as we come together in fellowship and worship.
 
Later on in the New Testament, in Hebrews 13:5-6, we have another awesome truth. It says, “… For He Himself has said, ‘I will never leave you nor forsake you.’ So we may boldly say: ‘The Lord is my helper; I will not fear. What can man do to me?’ ”
 
Here, we are encouraged to trust that God will always be with us, never leaving or abandoning us.
 
But did you know that the same is true for the Holy Spirit? He is the Third Person in the Godhead, so guess what? He is also Jehovah Shammah.
 
Let’s look at a couple of verses that declare this …
 
Jesus said in John 14:16-18, “And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever—the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you. I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.”
 
In these last chapters of John’s Gospel, Jesus was preparing His disciples for His soon departure. And here He was promising to send them someone who will “remain forever”— the precious Holy Spirit.
 
You see, the Holy Spirit is our advocate and helper, assuring that we will never be alone. The Spirit of truth resides within us, providing guidance, comfort, and the constant presence of God.
 
So Jesus assures us that we will not be left as orphans, for He Himself comes to us through the Holy Spirit. We can take solace in the fact that we are never alone, as the Spirit of God dwells within us.
 
And finally in First Corinthians 3:16, the apostle Paul reaffirmed the fact that He will abide with us forever, and the main reason is because He lives in our body.
 
He asked the question – “Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?
 
This verse highlights the incredible truth that as believers, we are the dwelling place of the Holy Spirit. God’s Spirit resides within us, and He too will never leave us nor forsake us. Yes, He is there to bring God’s presence and power into our lives constantly.
 
But oh, how often do God’s people feel like God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit have left them and forsaken them? It’s a lot. So just because it feels that way, does that make it true? Not hardly. Feelings are not indicative of reality.
 
I can feel one way like, for example, I can feel rejected because of the way a person acted, but that might not at all be what they were doing. I can feel afraid when there is truly nothing to be afraid of. Feelings are fickle and they are not the evidence of what is true.
 
So what is true? Nothing is more true than God’s Word because Jesus said, “Your (God’s) Word is truth.” (John 17:17). Therefore, God’s Word is the only true reality. So if God says He is always there and He will never leave you or forsake you, then it doesn’t matter if every sensory organ in your body tells you otherwise, He is still there!
 
Yes, God is with us and will never not be – all because He is Jehovah Shammah and He always will be. 

Today, we begin a new teaching on the names of God, and I have entitled this series “Hallowed Be Your Name.” Why this title? It’s because evidently “hallowing” His name is extremely important when it comes to how we approach God.
 
You see, this phrase obviously comes from the Lord’s prayer, which would be better called “The Model Prayer.” The reason I like this other title better is because this is not the prayer the Lord prayed. Rather, it was Jesus teaching His disciples how to pray. In other words, it was a prayer of protocol – that is, an outline of how we approach God and what We petition Him for.
 
That is not our lesson in this series, but the fact that the Lord began this protocol of prayer with “Our Father who is in heaven, hallowed be Your name …” is our point …
 
So what Jesus was teaching in Matthew 6:9 is that when it comes to prayer, we are to begin by “hallowing” God’s “name.”
 
Now the word “hallowed” comes from the Greek word hagaidzo and means “to set apart, dedicate, consecrate, or to make holy.”
 
So, what does it mean to “set apart, consecrate, and make holy” His name? It means that we are, in our hearts, making a distinction between His name and other names. It means that we are magnifying His name and glorifying it the way we ought to.
 
This is important because the tendency is to not do this. Yes, the tendency of our hearts & flesh is to not see His name in a special, holy, and consecrated way, to just normalize it. But the truth is, God’s name is indeed holy and worthy of being hallowed. And when we do this, we will see Him in an honorable way, which positions us to approach God in the appropriate way.
 
So what does it mean to make holy or set apart His name? Well, the key to answering this question is to, first of all, find out what the “name” of someone describes …
 
WHAT’S IN A NAME?
 
The “name” of a person describes all that that person is: It describes their character and their nature. It describes their authority and their power. It also describes their reputation and what they are known for.
 
So, when we “hallow” God’s name what we are doing is we are setting apart in our hearts all that He has a reputation for being and doing. And when we do this, those characteristics begin to become magnified in our own eyes because we are intentionally focusing on who He is.
 
But do you know what most people do when they approach Father God in prayer? They hallow their own name. No, they don’t do this intentionally, rather, many Christians enter into their prayer times saying things like— “Oh God, I know I have not talked to you all day or that I missed it in this area and in that area and that I am an unworthy little worm, but…” This is praying in our own name, which is the wrong way to enter into God’s presence! Instead of us approaching Him talking about all that we are, why not approach Him declaring all that He is!?!
 
You see, we need to enter into God’s presence through “hallowing His name”, not “hallowing our name.” And we do this through giving Him thanks, praise, and worship! Yes, even if we feel like we are “good for nothing” then we should praise Him that He loves us despite our inadequacies. The bottom line is we need to stop magnifying our weaknesses and start magnifying His goodness! That is why Psalm 100:4 tells us to enter into His gates with thanksgiving because we magnify Him with thanksgiving (Psalm 69:30). And the result of us magnifying Him is our faith will soar!
 
So what I see as an important part of prayer is approaching God by setting apart and consecrating His name – that is, praying His names, declaring who He has revealed Himself as and magnifying His names.
 
So when I refer to God’s names, I am not simply referring to the names He was given, but to His person, character, nature, and reputation that His names describe. 
 
You see, names are not just words. In our modern-day American culture, names don’t have a lot of meaning. We name our kids things that we like the sound of or for other superficial reasons, but in Bible times, names had meaning. Children were named what their father saw in them, even prophesying their future by what they would be called.
 
Well, the names of God do something similar: They reveal to us who God is, not just what He is called. Therefore, in order to truly know God, we must understand what He called Himself.
 
For example, most people know God just by that term, God. Therefore, they know Him as this sovereign creator, who is out of reach and beyond knowing. And sad to say, the majority of protestant churches think the same. They too call Him “God” and see Him as this unapproachable & unknowable being – this great puppeteer in the sky, if you would, who does whatever He wants to do, allows whatever He wants to allow, and sovereignly dictates everything that happens here on the earth because of some hidden purpose that He has.
 
Unfortunately, that is how most of the Body of Christ sees Him, but the truth is God is not like most have pegged Him to be. He has given us His Word, which clearly reveals to us who He is and what He will do. And one of the ways God has chosen to reveal His true nature to us is through the various names He gave Himself throughout the Bible.
 
So what we are going to do through this series is learn who our God is. We are going to come to learn His true nature through His names and thereby come to know Him better.
 
THE FRUIT OF KNOWING GOD
 
Now why is it so important to know Him better and to approach Him this way?
 
Daniel 11:32 says, “… the people who know their God shall be strong and carry out great exploits.”
 
So this is one of the promises of knowing God – that the people who come to truly know Him will be “strong” and they will do great “exploits.”
 
But along these lines, guess what the promise then is of those who don’t know their God? They will be “weak” and “be exploited.” I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to be a weak Christian who is constantly being exploited by the devil. I want to be a strong believer who is doing great exploits in His name.

Well, how is this going to happen? By coming to know God. And how can we come to know God this way? Well, one way is to learn who He is by studying His names and coming to understand His character through these ways that He has revealed Himself to us.
 
So if you want to remain a weak Christian and continue to have the devil exploiting you, then you should probably stay home on Sundays for next couple of months – because your weak, powerless, abused, cheated, and mistreated life is in serious danger of turning around. Amen? 
 
ELOHIM
 
So let’s begin studying the names of God by first looking at the first name He is given in the Scriptures. In fact, this is generally the first way that anybody comes to know Him.
 
Elohim is a Hebrew word that denotes “God.” It is one of the most common names for God in the Old Testament, starting in the very first verse of the Bible: “In the beginning (Elohim) created the heavens and the earth” (Genesis 1:1). In fact, the name Elohim occurs over 2,500 times in the Old Testament.
 
The basic meaning behind the name Elohim is one of strength or power. Elohim is the infinite, all-powerful, sovereign God and He is the creator, sustainer, ruler, and supreme judge of the world.
 
Now sometimes the word Elohim is shortened to El and used as part of a longer name. El Shaddai, for example, means “God Almighty” (Genesis 49:24); El Elyon means “God Most High” (Deuteronomy 26:19); and El Roi means “God Who Sees” (Genesis 16:13).
 
Personal names of people can include the name of God: Daniel (“El Is My Judge”), Nathanael (“Gift of El”), Samuel (“Heard by El”), and Elijah (“El Is Yahweh”) are examples. Place names, too, can contain the shortened form of Elohim: Bethel (“House of El”), Jezreel (“El Will Sow”), and, of course, Israel (“Prince of El”) are examples.
 
So my point is that God’s plural name of Elohim is oftentimes shortened to El to name people or places and to further describe things that God is and that God does.
 
Interestingly, the word Elohim is grammatically plural rather than singular. The singular form of Elohim is likely Eloah. So what does this mean – that God is not a singular entity? No, the Bible makes it clear that God is One (See Deuteronomy 6:4). So there is not a bunch of God’s floating around out there like Greek mythology believed. 
 
I believe that the reason Elohim is plural is because God is a Trinity. In other words, He is a three-part being made up of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and so with Elohim not being just a singular being, we can see all three members of the Triune Godhead. This is why, when the idea is presented about creating man in His own image and after His own likeness, Elohim said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness …” (See Genesis 1:26). Notice the three (interesting that’s the number there, huh?) references to God being plural.    
 
So it’s for this reason that I believe (along with many others) that Elohim is plural because God is plural – possessing a triune nature of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
 
It’s important to understand that Elohim is used in other ways in the Old Testament besides referring to the One True & Living God …
 
In some contexts, elohim refers to human rulers or judges (See Psalm 82:1&6)—the idea is that such people are to act as God’s representatives on earth, exercising authority wisely and ensuring justice. The warning of Psalm 82 is that the human elohim must answer to the Supreme Elohim one day.
 
Elsewhere, elohim is used to refer to false gods: For example, Deuteronomy 4:28 says, “And there you will serve gods, the work of men’s hands, wood and stone, which neither see nor hear nor eat nor smell.” In this verse, the Hebrew word for “gods” is elohim – and this doesn’t mean that these idols really are gods to be compared to Elohim, but rather that these gods are perceived as ruling, sovereign, powerful beings.

So sometimes when Elohim is used in the Old Testament, it is referring to something other than the One we know and recognize as being the GOD that we know and worship as our infinite, all-powerful, sovereign God who is the Creator, Sustainer, Ruler, and Supreme Judge over His creation.
 
Now aren’t some of these descriptions of Elohim the way that most people describe God? Yes, we see Him as all-powerful. In other words, He can do anything, and all things are possible to Him. And yes, we also see Him as the Creator of all things like He was in Genesis, being responsible for the creation of all things seen, including us. We also see Him as that supreme judge as well – as the One who rules over all and will be the judge that we must all give an account to in the end. Yes, we see God as that sovereign, top of the food chain, all-powerful, all-knowing God who rules over all.
 
This is the basic way that God is viewed, not only by unbelievers out there, but sadly, it’s the only way a lot of churched people see Him as well. 
 
For example, when Jesus cried out from the cross, “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?” (Mark 15:33), He addressed the Father with a form of Elohim, Eloi. Mark translates Jesus’ statement for us: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”
 
Now I understanding that Jesus knew His Father and knew exactly what He was saying here, but I think this reveals to us a lot of what only knowing Him as Elohim will do to us – When I see Him as “My God, my God” I see myself as forsaken, with Him being up there and me being down here.
 
Church, we need to come to the place of seeing our God as more than just the sovereign, all-powerful, ruler and judge of the whole earth. Why? Because He is much more personal than that. He is not as mysterious as religion has made Him out to be. No, we are not forsaken. We are not distant from Him. Elohim has come to tabernacle with us. And now, He takes up residence inside of us where we can sup with Him. Amen!
 
But the fact is, most don’t see “God” this way. They see Him as that distant Being who rules over this earth with an iron fist ready to judge His creation.
 
You see, the Scriptures teach us that even the ungodly “know” God to a certain degree. And in my opinion, this is how they know Him – as GOD.
 
Let’s look at some verses that teach us about this inward intuition of God …
 
Romans 1:18 says, “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness,”
 
What this verse “reveals” to us is that those who are living ungodly and unrighteous lives in their unbelief already have God’s wrath revealed to them. As we will see in the next verse, they already have it in them. Therefore, they are already wearing that condemnation and guilt upon their souls. So they already know.
 
How many of you have ever noticed that there is just an intuition in the ungodly that God is against sin? They didn’t even have to go to church to learn that! They already have God’s wrath revealed to them. Therefore, preaching sin and judgment is not as effective as preaching the love and goodness of God. Why? It is because they already know they are doing wrong. What they don’t know, however, is that God is not angry with them and has made available His very own righteousness to be received by faith. Saints, it is the goodness, love and righteousness of God that leads people to repentance (see Romans 2:4) because it is the good news for salvation. Amen!
 
Now it might seem like they don’t know it, but as we see next, what they are doing is they are “suppressing the truth.”
 
The word “suppress” means to “hold down.” This is literally what is happening in the hearts of all those who practice unrighteousness… They are “holding down” the truth- meaning, they are keeping the truth of God from coming up in their hearts and minds! Now an unbeliever will certainly deny that they are doing this, but God’s Word is true, nonetheless. No, every person on the planet knows there is a God and those who choose not to embrace the knowledge of Him are simply “holding down the truth.”
 
Now it does need to be understood that they don’t necessarily know that they are holding down the truth, but in their unrighteousness, they are keeping the truth from penetrating their conscience. Even we do this from time to time… When God is trying to tell us something is wrong, sometimes we don’t want to hear that because we want that thing so much. We will even play dumb and pretend that we are not hearing God, in an attempt to avoid having to recognize that the thing that our flesh desires is not for us. We’ve all done this. This is suppressing the truth in unrighteousness.
 
Then notice Romans 1:19 … It says, “because what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them.”
 
Here, Paul goes on to further explain the truth he just laid out in verse 18 – that people already have a revelation of God’s wrath and are simply holding down the truth of His reality and existence in their hearts.
 
Notice the phrase “what may be known of God is manifest in them” … In other words, the knowledge of God—His existence and ability—is already “evident” in them. Yes, they already know of God. Now they don’t “know God” (yet), but every person does have a general knowledge of Him on the inside of them. This is that pure conscience that we are all born with. Some just become more seared as we progress through life.
 
Why? “for God has shown it to them” … The word “shown” here is the same Greek word that was used to describe Jesus’ “appearing” when He returns again (see Colossians 3:4). So it describes having something appear or made visible to the naked eye. Now this obviously does not mean that God has revealed Himself or His Son to every person in a supernatural way, but he goes on to describe in the next verse how God has shown Himself to them …
 
Verse 20 goes on to say, “For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse.”
 
You see, this is how God has revealed Himself to the world – through His creation!
 
So what Paul is teaching us in this verse is that all of God’s creation clearly shows mankind the invisible attributes of God. In other words, although we cannot physically see God’s attributes, He has shown them to us through nature. Yes, the working order and beauty of God’s creation can help one to understand His very attributes.
 
I cannot tell you how many people I hear say how much closer they feel to God when they are in places like the woods, the mountains, or the beach. It is funny, but I never hear people say that they feel closer to God in the big city. Why? It is because the city is full of man’s creation; nature is full of God’s creation. Here we see that nature revealing more of God to us is Scriptural. It is not that God is more present in nature, but that our knowledge of Him is more present in these places. And the awareness of God is what produces more of an awareness of His presence. Glory to God!
 
Another good example is how so many Christians visit Israel and come back saying, “Oh, you can just sense God’s presence there!” Well, it is not that God’s presence is any more manifested in Israel than He is with us here today. It is simply there that people’s awareness of God is heightened mainly due to the fact that they are seeing with their physical eyes where the stories of the Bible transpired. That creates more of a sensitivity to His presence - through our perspective and thoughts. Have you ever wondered how in church meetings some people can just be overwhelmed by God’s presence and others are oblivious to it? Well again, this awareness of His presence is tied to how we think. Now granted there are other times that God’s presence is so manifested that almost everyone becomes aware of Him, but as a general rule, our “feeling God” is tied to our setting our mind upon Him.   
 
And by saying, “even His eternal power and Godhead,” Paul is saying that it is not just a general understanding of His attributes, but creation reveals to us even His eternal power and Godhead. In other words, the specifics of God’s person are even revealed in creation. For example, tradition tells us how Saint Patrick used this very principle to preach the Trinity to the people of Ireland. He would teach that God is three in one through the three-leaf clover. So, yes, creation around us reveals everything from God’s eternal power to His Godhead. If we will just look around us and above us, we will see all of God’s glorious and eternal attributes revealed through His creation—for even the heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament shows His handiwork (Psalm 19:1). 
 
Then notice how Paul goes on to say that they are “without excuse” … Wow! This squelches the idea that some people have that the groups of people around the world who have never heard the gospel of Jesus Christ will have an excuse in the Day of Judgment. No, saints, in that Day, no one will have an excuse based on this Scripture! But someone will say, “But they never heard the truth! How could they be found guilty?” Well, as we will see in verses 21-25, what happens is that mankind has this tendency to form their own gods even when they have this general knowledge of God. In other words, even though they had the knowledge of God’s existence, they chose not to seek for a deeper knowledge of Him and glorify Him as the One True and Living God. Let me give you a real-life example of what these people should have done …
 
Here's a cool story along these lines: There was this woman who was attending a Bible College and, while seeking the Lord as to His plan for her, He gave her a name, a name of a place that she was unaware of. Well, as she did some research, she found out that this place was a remote island where no one had been before. Therefore, she concluded that the Lord was sending her there. So as her plane arrived on this island, she was met by a local tribe and their chief greeted her. He began praising God that his prayer was heard! You see, this tribe was praying to an unknown God to tell them His name. In other words, they knew that there had to be a god through that inward intuition these verses speak of, therefore, they just humbly prayed to the God they didn’t know yet and asked Him to reveal himself to them. So God got hold of this woman and sent her across the world to preach “Jesus” to them! Glory to God! But most people have not been this wise throughout history. The majority of people have made up their own gods like the children of Israel did in the wilderness when they created a golden calf as an image to worship. This is the epitome of pride and foolishness.
 
For example, verse 23 goes on to say “… and (they) changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man—and birds and four-footed animals and creeping things.”
 
What were they doing here? They were bringing God down to their level – meaning, they made Him to be like His creation by erecting idols of men, birds, animals, etc.
 
And did you know that this is exactly what mankind tends to do with the Creator, Elohim? No, it’s not always something as extreme as making a graven image, but we do tend to carve out and sculpt God’s image in our hearts & understanding – that is, we like to “imagine” God is like His imperfect, flawed creation, doing things like we do them.
 
For example, a lot of people think God is like their parents were – harsh, hard and condemning. Yes, their graven image of God is Him being just as hard to please as their father was. Their “imagined image” of Elohim is Him being just as judgmental as their mom was. That, my friends, is a variation of setting up a graven image, which is strictly forbidden.
 
The truth is, Elohim is awesome! Yes, Elohim is good & gracious, slow to anger and abounding in mercy! He’s so much more loving than your parents were, and He is certainly not deserving of being brought down to the level of how His creation conducts themselves.
 
In fact, the Lord spoke to our church the following statement a couple of years ago – “You will get the fruit of the god you believe in and serve.” You see this in other nations around the world: the ones that practice paganism and idolatry are considered some of the most cursed and impoverished nations. In fact, one that actually takes those pagan practices to a whole other level - the nation of Haiti - is one of the most poverty-stricken countries. Why? Because you get the fruit of the god you believe in and serve – and serving the devil in overt ways, will always yield curses. You see this in Egypt when God was delivering His people, there are those who tell us that all of those plagues that came upon them represented the various gods that they worshipped in Egypt. So, it was like God was saying, “You like all those gods, huh? Well, here they are then!” and He shoved them down their throats.
 
Well, it works this way with even a Christians view of God: if we believe that God is a harsh, judgmental God who sends plagues to teach us something etc. then guess what? Those groups experience more of those things! Saints, we need to be careful how we view God and what our belief systems are—because if we want to experience more grace, love and blessings, we need to see God as being the One who desires to give us those things. Amen?
 
HOW TO REALLY KNOW GOD
 
So how does one go from simply knowing God in this general, base understanding as “Elohim” to knowing Him in this personal & intimate way? I’m glad you asked …
 
Notice what Paul says next in Romans 1:21 – “because although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened.”
 
So by using the word “because” at the beginning of this verse, we have the reason why the world rejects the One True and Living God. In other words, this verse is about to show us the reasons why most people never move past knowing God as “Elohim” – general, intuitive knowledge of Him – and come to know Him as a good, gracious, & personal God.  
 
You see, when Paul began by saying, “although they knew God”, the Greek word for “knew” (Greek ginosko) literally describes a broad, general knowledge. So this is, first of all, a reference to that initial, intuitive knowledge of God that every person on the planet possesses.
 
So this can be the way we always “knew” God, but there is a deeper understanding of Him which causes one to draw near to Him, follow Him, and serve Him that we all need.
 
So how do you get to know Him better? Well, notice what he says these that knew God failed to do …
 

1. “they did not glorify Him as God”

 
The word “glorify” here means to “give praise, to honor or to magnify.” So for the believer, this describes one’s failure to praise, honor and magnify Him through the fruit of our lips and also through the perspective of our hearts.
 
So what does this have to do with seeing God fully & accurately? Well, it shows us how we can know Him more – by praising, honoring, and magnifying who He is. In other words, the first way to grow in our knowledge of Him is to glorify Him.
 
So what does this look like? It means to intentionally praise & glorify the way He describes Himself throughout His Word.
 
So for example, if I am the one who only sees God as an “Elohim” and has a harder time seeing Him as a Healer, a Provider, and a loving & faithful God, then I need to deliberately “glorify” Him in the way I need to see Him. So if that’s as a Healer, then I take verses that describe His nature as Healer and praise Him for being this way.
 
Now this might seem unnatural at first because, after all, we might not see Him this way yet. But that’s how we get to that place of seeing Him this way – by glorifying Him that way by faith. Amen?

1. “nor were thankful”

 
Thanksgiving is the key to multiplicity. Do you remember the story of Jesus feeding the 5,000 in John chapter 6? Well, in verse 11 it says that Jesus took the loaves and when He had given thanks, He then distributed them to His disciples. Now most people never make the connection here, but what was the key to this miracle? Well, if you move on into the chapter, you will find a verse that tells you the answer. Verse 23 says that there were people who were searching for Jesus, and they came near to the place where they ate bread after the Lord had given thanks. Now tell me: why would John have worded it as “they ate bread after the Lord had given thanks”, unless the Lord’s giving of thanks was not the significant part to the miracle that happened afterwards?
 
You see, thankfulness for all that God has done for you is the key to receiving more grace. And this certainly applies to this subject of knowing God better. For if we want our knowledge of Him to multiply, then we must be thankful for all that we do know about Him.
 
Now you might be thinking – “I don’t know that much about Him, Pastor!” So you’re telling me that you haven’t ever seen any of God’s goodness in your life, that you’ve never experienced any of His grace, that He’s never healed you of anything, etc.? I’m sure we’ve all tasted and seen certain elements of God’s true nature.
 
So then the key to seeing that awareness multiplied is to thank God for who He is and what He’s done in our lives.  

1. “but became futile in their thoughts”

 
Now by using the word “but” here we see the result or by-product of not glorifying God and being thankful … A void of praise and thanksgiving in our heart and mind will produce a void in our heart and mind. The word “futile” here literally describes being vain, empty and useless. So evidently the Lord looks at the mind that is not filled with praise, worship and thanksgiving as an empty and useless mind. And what else could there be of more importance to fill our minds with? Amen?
 
The word “thoughts” comes from the Greek word dialogismos and describes more of the inward reasoning and opinions of man. So literally what it is that becomes empty, vain, and futile within people when they fail to glorify and thank God is their ability to reason and make sound decisions regarding things. So, for lack of better words, one can become stupid and lose any good judgment they might have had by not allowing God’s thoughts to flow through their mind.
 
So what does this have to do with knowing God’s true nature? Well, some of the greatest misconceptions about God’s nature come directly by these “reasonings & opinions” of man. In other words, these futile arguments over doctrine and theology are some of the most notorious for perverting our view of God. Yes, some of the world’s most intelligent people lack common sense the most. Their ability to reason and portray sound judgment is impeded. Of course, this is a generality, but those who choose to reject the knowledge of God and embrace only the knowledge of this world, have their senses impaired. This is what it means to become “futile in our thoughts.”
 
So can this happen to a believer too? Absolutely! By not letting God-thoughts dominate our thinking, we too can become void of wisdom and prudence and make some pretty dumb decisions. This is why the Scriptures constantly exhort you and I to meditate on His Word day and night and to esteem His Word even more than our necessary food (Job 23:12). By doing so, the entrance of His Words brings light and understanding to the simple (Psalm 119:130) (the simple would be those who are futile in their thoughts). But the lack of the entrance of His Words brings darkness and a lack of understanding to the simple.
 
So the key here is letting God’s Word form our theology. In other words, letting the truth of the Scriptures determine how we see God, not religion or our traditions. And we do all of this by studying the Scriptures. By not letting our own understanding or logic determine how we view God, but rather letting His Word determine any and all beliefs.
 
We see this in the last phrase of verse 21…

1. “and their foolish hearts were darkened.”

 
So those who have their better judgment impaired have what is called a foolish heart. You know, the Bible says that it is the fool who has said in his heart that there is no god (Psalm 14:1). Only a fool would say that! When you look around you and see the beauty and glory of man, nature, etc., only a fool would say that all of this “just happened.” No, the evidence of God is all around us. But, again, when one fails to glorify Him as God and be thankful to Him for even their next breath, they have become, by reason of choice, a fool.
 
The phrase “were darkened” shows us that when one willfully rejects the knowledge of God and decides not to glorify and show gratitude towards Him, their hearts will be filled with more darkness. In other words, their ability to see the light is impaired. They are lost, groping around trying to find peace, purpose etc., and will find none - because they are filled with darkness, and oh, how great is that darkness!?!
 
As it is with just about everything, it all comes down to the heart. Yes, what we allow our heart to be filled with and sensitive to is vital. So as it pertains to knowing God’s true nature and person, we need a wise heart that is receptive & embracing of these things.
 
You see, if my heart is closed off to say God’s grace and just how good He is, then I will certainly live in the darkness of those truths. Yes, if my heart is only open to that harsh & judgmental side of God, then I am cutting myself off from receiving light on these other things. On the flipside, if my heart is only embracive of the loving nature of God, I could also be in the dark of, say, the fear of God – that is, that reverential, respectful side of the Lord.
 
So the key is possessing a heart that is open and teachable and not allowing it to be hardened to the truths God might desire to show us.
 
Let’s not live in the dark, saints! Let’s take the knowledge of God that we have to the next level! We do this by magnifying God in our heart, mind and mouth! As we live a life of praise, worship and thanksgiving, we are giving God the glory due His name, and the benefits of this are boundless! Amen! We will keep ourselves from empty and useless thinking, and stay sharp and “on it” mentally. The devil will have a hard time making our mind his workshop! Why? Because it is not idle! No, our minds will be all about our Father’s business and filled with purpose and praise! And the end result will be us having a heart that is not darkened or hardened. No, our heart will be soft, sensitive and pliable in the hands of our Maker! Our heart will be full of light, and we will understand the reverential fear of God! No more stumbling. No more falling. No more “I don’t know God!” No, you will certainly “know” Him and your awareness of Him will be heightened. Don’t forget: The acknowledgement of God produces more of an awareness of God. Amen!