Advent 2019 - Day 20

Yahweh is the most important name for God in the Old Testament. It actually occurs about 6,800 times! We actually aren’t even sure how to correctly pronounce the original name (the one God used to identify Himself to Moses at the burning bush) so we came up with Yahweh.

Sometimes the complexity of the Trinity (the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit) can be really overwhelming. While it is hard (if not impossible) to understand, we can at least rest in reality that the infinite, supreme, and ultimate being in the universe, God, loves us. Christmas is definitely centered on the arrival of the Son, Jesus. And rightly so! But let us not forget that it was the plan of the Father who sent Jesus. Even as Jesus was praying the night before His crucifixion, He asked the Father if there was any other way. 

Read Exodus 3:14 – God replied to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: I AM has sent me to you.”

This is such a powerful moment. I sometimes get chills as I imagine this exchange between Moses and the Creator. Who are you? Isn’t that the basic question we all ask of God? Who are you? Why should people believe me concerning you? And God simply says, “I Am Who I Am.” In Hebrew, this is translated as hyh. This later got us to the somewhat familiar YHWH. This eventually got us to the more familiar Yahweh. Who is God? “I Am.” He. Is. Everything.

REFLECT

Spend some time really thinking about how big God is. Meditate on His greatness.