New Series:

The Nature of God - Two reasons

• The nature of God needs to be discussed because people are ignorant of who He is
  • Like a cartoonist making an exaggerated picture of someone
• The story
  • Aaron and the calf while moses and the ten commandments
  • God writes them a second time after Moses pleads with Him for mercy
  • God told Him “I will let all my goodness pass before you and call out my name”
• The passage
  • Exodus 34:5–8 (NLT) — 5 Then the LORD came down in a cloud and stood there with him; and he called out his own name, Yahweh. 6 The LORD passed in front of Moses, calling out, “Yahweh! The LORD! The God of compassion and mercy! I am slow to anger and filled with unfailing love and faithfulness. 7 I lavish unfailing love to a thousand generations. I forgive iniquity, rebellion, and sin. But I do not excuse the guilty. I lay the sins of the parents upon their children and grandchildren; the entire family is affected— even children in the third and fourth generations.” 8 Moses immediately threw himself to the ground and worshiped.
  • Throughout the Old Testament, this name for God is used over and over

The Nature is in the Name:

• This whole passage starts with God declaring His name.
• There is meaning in the name
  • We name our kids crazy names these days
  • In the early days, names were literal and told a story
    • Adam - of earth; Eve - to give life; Abraham - father of nations
• When we identify people
  • Human - somewhat distinguishing
  • Name - even more distinguishing
  • Name with a description - the most distinguishing 
    • Jonathan tall, blonde, sings and preaches, from Baker LA, married way out of his league
• Names used for God
  • Elohim - means deity
  • Adonai - means lord or master 
  • Yahweh - means “He was, He is, He will be” 
• God finally gives humanity his personal name
  • Exodus 3:13–15 (NLT) — 13 But Moses protested, “If I go to the people of Israel and tell them, ‘The God of your ancestors has sent me to you,’ they will ask me, ‘What is his name?’ Then what should I tell them?” 14 God replied to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM. Say this to the people of Israel: I AM has sent me to you.” 15 God also said to Moses, “Say this to the people of Israel: Yahweh, the God of your ancestors—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob—has sent me to you. This is my eternal name, my name to remember for all generations.
  • Ehyeh-Asher-Ehyeh - I will be what I will be
  • Yahweh - He is

Four things about His nature from His name

1. His nature is CONSISTENT - “Yahweh”
   1. “I will be what I will be” “I will be what I was” “I am what I will be” 
      1. New Testament - “I am the Alpha and Omega, the one who was, is, and is to come”
      2. There is no time in the past you can go to where He will not still be the one who was
      3. We still experience Him like this today.. We talk about Jesus in the past, He lives in us now, and He is coming. 
   2. He is unchanging
      1. Have you seen an old friend after years and said, “you haven’t aged a day,” or the opposite, “Gah, time has been cruel to you.”
      2. God is absolutely exactly what He’s always been.
   3. He is the consistent embodiment of His character
      1. He is LOVE, JUSTICE, PEACE, (for example)  and He will never not be these things
   4. He will always be what He was
      1. What you see in the Scriptures will be what you can expect, if He was good, it means He is good
         
         
2. His nature is CONNECTION - “the God of your ancestors”
   1. He is a relational and personal God 
   2. He moved from Elohim to Yahweh
   3. Jesus moved from having servants to friends
   4. He doesn’t need any of us, but He wants all of us
   5. Example
      1. Bethany church has been here a long time, periodically I will have people say they knew my grandfather, and my father, but I have never known them. It really is strange when they say they have been watching me for years! 
   6. God has been watching you for years! He has been connected to your story.
      1. You are tasting the fruit of prayers that have been prayed for you long ago
   7. He remembers who you are connected to! 
      1. By faith we are connected to Jesus! 
         
         
3. His nature is COVENANT - “The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob”
   1. Covenant is an oath to perform something. God makes covenants so we can know what to expect. 
   2. Whatever God promises, He will do. 
      1. He won’t destroy the world with water
      2. He will call Israel his people if they are faithful to obey His law
      3. His body and blood were given for us to be forgiven perpetually of sin and if we abide in Christ, we will have access to the throne of God
   3. To do - Believe his covenants, act on them
      
      
4. His nature is COMMISSION - “has sent me to you”
   1. God has the ability to do anything He wants at any time, but He chooses to work through people. 
   2. I sent Beckham to get the trash, and it felt SO GOOD :) 
   3. Adam - He chose to have someone oversee His creation
   4. Isaiah - “Who should go for me”
   5. The apostles - “As the Father has sent me, so I am sending you”
   6. Many people wonder why God doesn’t do something about the pain and suffering in the world. That is a complicated question. But one thing is for sure, He has called and asked us to go for Him.

Closing

• Today we have seen from God’s name that He is consistent, connected, covenantal, and commissioning.
• Let’s talk about the name of God made flesh... Yeshua. If you take the first part of Yah-Weh and replace the ending with Shua “salvation”... you have God Saves. The name of God in the flesh is God saves. 
• If you ask the question, who can help me, who can save me, who can rescue me, it is Yeshua
• Acts 4:12 (NLT) — 12 There is salvation in no one else! God has given no other name under heaven by which we must be saved.”