The Power of His Name!
Introduction
Acts 3:1-11
1 Now Peter and John went up together into the temple at the hour of prayer, being the ninth hour. 2 And a certain man lame from his mother's womb was carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful, to ask alms of them that entered into the temple; 3 Who seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple asked an alms. 4 And Peter, fastening his eyes upon him with John, said, Look on us. 5 And he gave heed unto them, expecting to receive something of them. 6 Then Peter said, Silver and gold have I none; but such as I have give I thee: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk. 7 And he took him by the right hand, and lifted him up: and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength. 8 And he leaping up stood, and walked, and entered with them into the temple, walking, and leaping, and praising God. 9 And all the people saw him walking and praising God: 10 And they knew that it was he which sat for alms at the Beautiful gate of the temple: and they were filled with wonder and amazement at that which had happened unto him. 11 And as the lame man which was healed held Peter and John, all the people ran together unto them in the porch that is called Solomon's, greatly wondering.
Acts 3:16
And his name through faith in his name hath made this man strong, whom ye see and know: yea, the faith which is by him hath given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all.
Acts 4:7-12
7 And when they had set them in the midst, they asked, By what power, or by what name, have ye done this? 8 Then Peter, filled with the Holy Ghost, said unto them, Ye rulers of the people, and elders of Israel, 9 If we this day be examined of the good deed done to the impotent man, by what means he is made whole; 10 Be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by him doth this man stand here before you whole. 11 This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner. 12 Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.
The Gospels tell us the story of the Incarnation. The epistles tell us how the saved are to live and what it means to be in Christ. The book of Acts gives us a picture of the first-century church. It tells us how we ought to model the Christian life!
The book of Acts is the where and how of the New Testament Church. It shows that the church is built upon the foundation of the Name of Jesus.
The Name of Jesus is mentioned almost 70 times in Acts, not to mention the allusions and derivatives. The book of Acts church was a church of the Name!
There is Power in the Name of Jesus and the book of Acts documents it.
The man at the Gate Beautiful had been seated there for years, begging. The temple courts were closed to him. He was dependent on the mercy of those around him completely. And then in one instant everything changed. It changed because of a Name, Jesus.
The Jewish leaders were upset. They weren't so upset with the preaching or teaching of the apostles. It was the Name that upset them.
From the very first time the Name is mentioned in the New Testament brought Power.
The Name of JESUS was first spoken from heaven through an angel to a virgin. Although there may have been people who bore the name before that angelic encounter and there are people today who have the Name, when it was spoken by the angel to the virgin it signified more. It signified that the Power of God was being released in a way it never had before.
Peter said "His Name, through faith in His Name" the man was made strong. The experience introduced then to the power of the Name. We must bring experience and revelation into relationship. There has to be an exercise of faith in the Name. Then we continue our journey experiencing the Power of the Name!
Understanding the Power of the Name will embolden you to do the things God has called you to do.
When we hear names we get a picture of the individual whose name we hear. Listen to the names the presidents for the last few decades: John F. Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson, Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Regan, George Bush, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Barak Obama, Donald Trump, Joe Biden. We get a sort of mental image of them. Perhaps we see something significant that they accomplished or some scandal. Their names are connected to their person and character.
Names in the Hebrew Bible were often prophetic of the character that parents hoped for or foresaw in their children.
There were also compound names for God that showed various aspects of HIs character.
There are things that the Bible says that the Name of the LORD brings.
Psalm 5:11 the Name of the LORD brings joy.
Help is in the Name of the LORD (Psalm 124:8).
There is power and deliverance in the Name of the LORD (Psalm 91:14; 111:9).
His Name brings victory (Psalm 44:5; 72:17).
The Name of the LORD is a strong tower, the righteous run into it and are safe! (Proverbs 18:10).
Salvation is in the Name of the LORD. It shall come to pass that whoever calls on the Name of the LORD shall be saved!
There is no Name higher than the Name of JESUS (Philippians 2:9-11)
Tonight we will begin a two-part series on the names of God and what they mean for us!
We will explore the Name that is above every Name!
1. Elohim
In the beginning God... (Genesis 1:1)
The name Elohim is from the name El which means great and mighty. Elohim is the plural form of El signifying the plentitude of the might of the divine power. This is the name of the One who created everything "in the beginning." The name Elohim is a revelation of God's existence and His Power.
He did not create out of necessity. He simply created because He desired to. He created the universe from nothing. Elohim spoke and it was done.
In the New Testament, we see the creative power of Elohim in the conception of Jesus in the womb of the virgin and when Jesus Himself gives sight to the blind, opens the ears of the deaf, and calls the dead to life. He is Elohim!
2. El Shaddai
When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to him and said, “I am El-Shaddai—‘God Almighty.’ Serve me faithfully and live a blameless life. (Genesis 17:1 NLT)
El means "great." El Shaddai appears 48 times in the Hebrew Scriptures. It is usually translated as "Almighty." It literally means "strong breasted one."--the One who completely nourishes, satisfies, and supplies.
The basis of God's covenant with Abram and the change of his name to Abraham was this name, El Shaddai. Abraham was nourished by the Strong Breasted One. He was sustained throughout life and at the mountains of Moriah where He took his only son (Gen. 22). El Shaddai is a God who nurtures and sustains by His Power through all situations and circumstances of life.
We see El Shaddai in Jesus as He walked among the multitudes healing the sick, delivering them from bondage, and feeding thousands with only a few loaves of bread. He is El Shaddai!
3. Adonai
Adonai occurs over 300 times in Scripture and is usually translated as "Lord." It comes from a Hebrew word that means "controller, sovereign, lord, master, or owner." Adonai rules over everything. Jesus is Lord. When we understand this name and surrender our life to Him we can experience a peace that passes understanding. We don't have to control everything, because we know the One who does!
4. Yahweh (Jehovah)
The name YHWH occurs over 6,800 times in the Hebrew Bible. It is related to the way God revealed Himself to Moses at the burning bush (Exod. 3). God told Moses that He was the "I AM." YHWH means "He Is." YHWH is the self-existent One. His existence is not derived from anyone else. If nothing else was and when all else has ceased to be, He Is!
Jesus confounded the Pharisees when they questioned whether He had seen Abraham. They protested that He was not yet 50 years old. Jesus responded, "Before Abraham was, I AM" (John 8:58). Jesus is the embodiment of YHWH!
YHWH is the most venerated name of God in the Hebrew Bible. Our Jewish friends will not pronounce it. They read Adonai in its place when they read the Hebrew Bible. The Name Jesus is a compound Name that means YHWH-Savior. The Great Creator became my Savior and all God's Fulness dwelleth in Him! He came down from His Glory!
5. El-Olam
Then Abraham planted a tamarisk tree in Beersheba, and there called on the name of the LORD, the Everlasting God. (Genesis 21:33 NKJV)
El-Olam is the name for God found in Genesis 21:33. There had been a dispute between Abimelech and Abraham about a well for watering sheep. They built an altar and called on the Name of the God Who solves mysteries and reveals hidden things. The word olam has to do with the vanishing point in our sight, time out of mind, everlasting. El-Olam has no end and no beginning. Moses said from everlasting to everlasting He is God (Psalm 90:1). We don't always know the 'right thing' to do. In those moments we need to call on El-Olam. He sees from an eternal perspective.
We have been studying Revelation on Sunday mornings. Jesus proclaimed to John, "Fear not; I am the First and the Last: I am He that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore... (Rev. 1:17b-18). He knows all because time has no bearing on him. We do not completely understand history because we were not there. We do not understand the future. We can only live here, but Jesus is there! He is El-Olam!
6. Yahweh Yireh
And Abraham called the name of that place Jehovahjireh: as it is said to this day, In the mount of the LORD it shall be seen. (Genesis 22:14)
This is after the LORD showed Abraham the ram caught in the thicket. The word "jireh" means "to see, to appear, to behold, certainly." We usually translated this Name for God as "The LORD will provide." How do we get from "seeing" to "providing"? The word provide comes from two Latin words: "pro" means "first" or "before" and "vide" means to "see." Together the words mean "to see before." YHWH-yireh is the God who sees beforehand and makes provision. He saw Abraham and Isaac climbing the mountain and He saw the ram coming up the other side of the mountain to meet Abraham who faced the dilemma of his lifetime. He prepared the ram. He is YHWH-yireh!
At the peak, when Abraham could climb no higher and go no further, he found YHWH-yireh! That was not the first time that Abraham called him by that Name. On the way up the mountain when Isaac pointed out that they had the fire and the wood, but lacked a sacrifice. Abraham looked at his son through the eyes of faith and said, "The LORD will provide"!
There are moments when we have to open an empty wallet or stare at empty shelves and shout into it--Jehovah-jireh! I don't see it yet, but I know the LORD will see to it!
The LORD sees not as man sees! He looked at a lad named David and saw a king. He looked at Simon and saw Peter, a Rock. We tend to judge people to quickly. We tend to judge books by their covers, but Jehovah-jireh is writing the story and he declares the end from the beginning. He will see to it. He calls those things which be not as though they already were!
YHWH met Gideon and called him a mighty man of valor even while he was hiding in the winepress! God saw in him something that needed an expression and He called it out of Him! Before Saul of Tarsus was Spirit-filled, before he was baptized, he was simply on a roundabout journey to find Jehovah-jireh! Jesus told Ananias that Saul was a chosen vessel unto Him (Acts 9:15). Jesus is Jehovah-jireh!
7. Yahweh Rapha
The children of Israel had experienced a life of slavery, all kinds of trauma, glorious miracles, and now they were three days in the wilderness without water. They arrived at the waters of Marah and found that the waters were unsuitable to drink. They were bitter. The children of Israel began to murmur.
And said, If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the Lord thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his sight, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought upon the Egyptians: for I am the Lord that healeth thee. (Exodus 15:26)
Sometimes we can't just get over it. We need help and healing for bitter situations. YHWH Rapha steps in and says, "Healing is what I AM."
Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Since He is El-Olam He can be YHWH Rapha. He can enter the dark depths of our past and heal the bitter waters of our experiences. The past is a great place to learn from, but it is a terrible place to live.
And he cried unto the Lord; and the Lord shewed him a tree, which when he had cast into the waters, the waters were made sweet: there he made for them a statute and an ordinance, and there he proved them... (Exodus 15:25)
It was the tree that answered the need for healing for the children of Israel. We need to look to the old rugged cross for our healing! There is healing power in the cross! Oh, if you can allow the cross to enter the bitter places of your life there can be true healing.
My wife experienced two miscarriages before learning that her thyroid was not functioning correctly. After being on medicines for years, in a service where a man of God called out her issue and spoke the word of faith her thyroid was healed. When I came to this church over twenty years ago I was broken in mind and spirit, but Jesus allowed me to drink from the Spring of Life and created a new person from the old. Jesus still heals today. You could testify about all the times He has healed you! Jesus is Jehovah-Rapha! With His stripes, we are healed!
8. Yahweh Nissi
"The LORD is my Banner!" My Victory! It is a Name that resounds with triumph!
And Moses built an altar, and called the name of it Jehovah-nissi: For he said, Because the Lord hath sworn that the Lord will have war with Amalek from generation to generation. (Exodus 17:15-16)
The banner was a rallying point for the troops. The banner was the place where the troops met to get ready to go out to battle. It was a statement that from generation to generation there will be victory for God's children. Amalek was in the path of God's people Amalek was contesting their right to be there. Moses told Joshua, "Go down into the valley and take him on! I'm standing on the mountain with the rod of God." (See Exod. 17:9) There is always a relationship between the rod on the mountain and the victory in the valley. Moses saw Israel as victorious. You've got to see yourself from heaven's point of view.
Israel's understanding of God's unique oneness was their banner. "Hear, O Israel, the LORD our God is one LORD" (Deut. 6:4). It was God's character that was their banner. While there were different tribes who had their own separate banners, the overarching Banner was the LORD.
Let's gather around to call on the Name of Jesus this evening.
