We read in Psalm 91:14,“Because he holds fast to me in love, I will deliver him; I will protect him, because he knows my name.” (ESV)
As we continue this series of studies on Psalm 91, from verse 14 on wards are the words of assurance from God Himself. To those who have known that mighty name of the Lord, He promises to be their mighty fortress and protection from every peril.
We might wonder as to how one could receive such a great blessing just by knowing the name of the Lord Almighty. Let me explain this with a personal experience of mine. I had to go to an office regards some work that I needed to get done. As I went from person to person requesting that they look into the matter at hand, everyone seemed busy and no one was willing to help me or to even respond to my queries. The response I received brought me to a point where I thought that the work would not be completed as I expected.
Just then I remembered the name of a friend of mine, who had at some time mentioned to me that he worked in that office. When I cited his name to a staff there, there was a total change of attitude by the staff. They made me sit down and told me that he would be in office in five minutes. Once my friend came, I was taken in to his office and within half an hour the work was completed and I returned back joyfully. The one thing that made a difference to the situation, was that I knew my friend’s name and cited the same. If there is so much of authority in a man’s name to get our work done, how much more awesome to know the name of the Lord Almighty who made heaven and earth. Those who know His name can be sure that they will be secure in the shelter of the name of the Most High God. It is therefore paramount for us to know the name of this amazing God in whom we believe.
The way God revealed Himself to Moses
We read in Exodus 3:13,“Then Moses said to God, “If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ what shall I say to them?” (ESV)
As Moses encountered God at the burning bush and was commanded by God to go to Egypt, meet Pharaoh and deliver the Israelites, this was Moses’ query to God. He asked God as to what was the name by which he should introduce God to the people of Israel, if they questioned him as to the name of the one who sent him to free them from their bondage.
This was God’s response to Moses as recorded in Exodus 3:14,“God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” And he said, “Say this to the people of Israel: ‘I AM has sent me to you.’” (ESV)
God introduced Himself as “I Am who I Am” meaning that He is one who has no beginning or end. This also implies that He is the unchanging God.
Malachi 3:6 says it this way,"For I am the LORD, I change not.” (AFV)
The Lord who performed mighty miracles in the days of Moses, is the same God and is able to do great wonders even today, because He is the unchanging God.
The people of Israel cried out to God in their distress.
We read in Exodus 2:23-24,“Years later the king of Egypt died, but the Israelites were still groaning under their slavery and cried out for help. Their cry went up to God, who heard their groaning and remembered his covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.” (GNB)
The people of Israel were the descendants of Abraham. At this particular moment in history they were under bondage to Pharaoh and the Egyptians. They were slaves who were dominated by Pharaoh and his men, with no will of their own. They served like bonded laborers, who for generations were subdued by cruel enslavement and received no reward for their hard labor. It was at this time that they in desperation, cried out to the Lord and sought for His divine intervention. It is interesting to note that God heard the deepest groans of His people.
There may be those who are undergoing tumultuous situations in your life, with no relief in sight.
If you will call upon the Lord, He is faithful to give heed and liberate you from all your hardships. Every time I read Exodus 2:23-24, it fills my heart with a deep sense of peace to know that we have a God who not only hears our prayers and our laments, but is one who can even hear our heart’s sigh. To hear another’s groans, one has to be really at close proximity to that person and that’s how near the Lord is each one of us. He is also a God who not only hears our groans, but is also willing and able to free us from all our calamities.
The Lord was mindful of the plight of the Israelites
We read in Exodus 3:7-8, Then the LORD said, "I have seen how cruelly my people are being treated in Egypt; I have heard them cry out to be rescued from their slave drivers. I know all about their sufferings, and so I have come down to rescue them from the Egyptians and to bring them out of Egypt to a spacious land, one which is rich and fertile (GNB)
The above mentioned verses vividly describe the way in which the Lord was involved in the lives of the Israelites. He saw the cruel bondage which the people were enduring for many long years. God also heard their cries, understood and empathized with all of their sufferings. The Almighty God who sits on the throne of heaven, was willing to come down to intervene and rescue His people from the cruel hand of the Egyptians.
What a comforting thought to know that we have a God who perceived all that we go through, gives heed to our cries, sympathizes with our hardships and is ever ready to help free us from all our adversities.
Why did Jesus come down from heaven?
These are the words of Jesus as recorded in John 6:38, “I came down from heaven to do what God wants, not what I want.” (ERV)
We further read in Matthew 1:21,“She will give birth to a son. You will name him Jesus. Give him that name because he will save his people from their sins.” (ERV)
The predominant reason why Jesus came down to the earth was to save all of mankind from their sins.
The way Jesus did this is explained in 1 Peter 2:24, “Christ carried our sins in his body on the cross. He did this so that we would stop living for sin and live for what is right. By his wounds you were healed.” (ERV)
Jesus Christ took all of our sins in His body by His death on the cross, so as to set us free from the enslavement to sin. Jesus paid the price for our redemption with His own blood. There are so many people who are struggling with sin, and want to be released from its clutches, but have no idea what to do. For such, there seems to be no release from the guilt of sin or the bondage to sin. Many others are trying to do numerous good deeds year after year, with the hope that their sins would be atoned for. Jesus the sinless Son of God paid that price for our atonement on the cross of Calvary, but sadly so many are still not aware of what Jesus has done for them to liberate them from the grips of sin.
How can one receive this gift of salvation?
We read in Romans 10:9,“If you openly say, "Jesus is Lord" and believe in your heart that God raised him from death, you will be saved.” (ERV)
If you were to ask people how our sins could be absolved, they would suggest myriad of ways to do so. Some of these ways require that we spend lots of money and if this were possible, it would imply that God is not just, as this atonement would then be inaccessible for the poor.
The way to be saved is very simple and straightforward as explained in the above mentioned verse. All one has to do is confess with their mouth that ‘Jesus is Lord’, believe in their heart that God raised Him up from the dead and this alone is enough for them to be saved. This may seem elementary to us, but may we never forget the enormous price that Jesus had to pay as it cost Him His very life. Jesus came down to the earth, took the sins of the whole world on Himself and willingly laid His life for us on the cross.
Some may reason that if the death of Jesus therefore should be the atonement for the sins of the whole world, why is everyone’s sins still not forgiven and why are they still trapped in sin? The Lord Jesus has completed all that needs to be done for our salvation, however, it is up to each one of us to accept this free gift of salvation. All we are required to do is simply believe on this finished work of Jesus Christ and we will be saved from our sins.
There is salvation is no other name but the name of Jesus
We read in Acts 4:12,“Jesus is the only one who can save people. His name is the only power in the world that has been given to save anyone. We must be saved through him!" (ERV)
It is indeed the truth that only Jesus can save us from the power of sin, and also it is only through His mighty name, for there is no other name given on earth whereby anyone can be saved. To those who are willing to accept this salvation that Jesus offers, they will certainly experience total transformation in their lives.
Jesus introduced Himself to the Jews
While Jesus lived here on earth, he had many conversations with the Jews who followed Him around. Let us study one such conversation as recorded in John’s Gospel.
This is what we read in John 8:56-57, “Your father Abraham was very happy that he would see the day when I came. He saw that day and was happy." The Jews said to Jesus, "What? How can you say you have seen Abraham? You are not even 50 years old!"(ERV)
The Jews were astonished at Jesus, when He told them that Abraham who lived many hundreds of years before Him, not only longed to see the day when Jesus would be revealed, but also rejoiced when it came to pass. Not knowing who Jesus truly was, they questioned Him, as to how this could have been a possibility, as they assessed that Jesus was not even fifty years old.
This was Jesus’ reply to the Jews in John 8:58,Jesus answered, "The fact is, before Abraham was born, I AM." (ERV)
Jesus responded to them by saying, ‘before Abraham was, ‘I AM’. The word ‘I AM’ has a very special connotation and this was the way God introduced Himself to Moses when He encountered him at the burning bush.
As we already read in Exodus 3:14,God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” And he said, “Say this to the people of Israel: ‘I AM has sent me to you.’” (ESV)
When Jesus revealed this to the Jews, that He was indeed the ‘I AM’, they unable to accept Jesus’ identity, were so enraged by this declaration and took up stones to have Him stoned. Often when Jesus told the Jews that He was the one who came down from heaven, the one who came to save the people from their sins, they were unable to accept it.
Just as God came down to deliver the Israelites from the bondage to slavery in Egypt, Jesus came down from heaven to deliver humanity from their enslavement to sin. Jesus came to set us free from our sins, to give us victory over sin and to make us a people who are His own.
The great mystery of godliness
This is explained by Paul in 1 Timothy 3:16,“Without controversy, the mystery of godliness is great: God was revealed in the flesh, justified in the spirit, seen by angels, preached among the nations, believed on in the world, and received up in glory.” (WEB)
The mystery of godliness is described this way. God who was Spirit, took on flesh and was revealed to all mankind through Jesus. He was justified in the Spirit, was seen by angels, was also preached among the nations, believed in by people throughout the world and received up into glory.
There are those who are going through various trials, making them wonder if these are consequences of their own sins or the sins of their forefathers. Here’s the good news to everyone who thinks this way. Jesus came down just to save all of mankind from the bondage of sin and that is the reason why He died on the cruel cross of Calvary, taking all our sins and transgressions on Himself. Jesus died so we could be reconciled back to God and thereby obtain the gift of eternal life. It is only by the stripes of Jesus that we can receive healing.
If there are those who have not experienced this salvation that Jesus offers, you can believe in your heart and confess that Jesus came to die in your place to set you free from all your sins. Your sins are atoned for, and all you need to do is accept the finished work of Jesus on the cross. When you do so, He will become the Lord of your life and liberate you from sin’s enslavement. The Lord will take you out of your place of pressure and confinement, to a large and spacious place.
The greatest deliverance that the Israelites experienced was from the cruel bondage to slavery to Pharaoh and the Egyptians, to a place of total freedom. As the people of Israel passed through the Red Sea and came to the other side, here are the word that God assured them with, that the Egyptians they saw that day, they would never see again. Their days of slavery were over and they were brought into days of joyous freedom.
Anyone who believes on the Lord Jesus Christ in their heart, confesses Him with their mouth will also be set free from their slavery to sin and can lead a victorious life, walking in the path that God has set for us.
Pastor F. Andrew Dixon
www.goodnewsfriends.net
Transcribed by Sis. Esther Collins
