I AM More Than A Name.

By Pastor Vinnie

Is the Great I AM more than just a Name? A lot is already written about the name and names of God. There are full books devoted to the meanings and subtleties between names and titles, and all the complexities behind that. As most of us know, there are over 16 descriptive names in the Old Testament, alone, that form as promises, that many have committed to memory for times of trouble.

The Descriptive Promise Names for God:

1. El Shaddai (Lord God Almighty) (Genesis 17:1)

2. El Elyon (The Most High God) (Genesis 14:19-20)

3. Adonai (Lord, Master) (Genesis 15:1-2)

4. Yahweh (Lord, Jehovah) (Exodus 3:14)

5. Jehovah Nissi (The Lord My Banner) (Exodus 17:15)

6. Jehovah-Raah (The Lord My Shepherd) (Psalm 23:1)

7. Jehovah Rapha (The Lord That Heals) (Exodus 15:26)

8. Jehovah Shammah (The Lord Is There) (Ezekiel 48:35)

9. Jehovah Tsidkenu (The Lord Our Righteousness) (Jeremiah 23:5-6)

10. Jehovah Mekoddishkem (The Lord Who Sanctifies You) (Exodus 31:13)

11. El Olam (The Everlasting God) (Genesis 21:33)

12. Elohim (God) (Genesis 1:1)

13. Qanna (Jealous) (Exodus 34:14)

14. Jehovah Jireh (The Lord Will Provide) (Genesis 22:14)

15. Jehovah Shalom (The Lord Is Peace) (Judges 6:23-24)

16. Jehovah Sabaoth (The Lord of Hosts) (1 Samuel 17:45)

Jesus is more than a name. His name means “He will Save His People from their sin.”

However, while this is helpful and inspiring, there is already much written about this, elsewhere.  I want to focus on how He declared himself to Moses. In grammar school, we teach a noun was a person, place, or thing, or even, in some cases, an idea got added to the definition^[1]. However, the construct God gave Moses in Exodus 3:14 for His name was “I AM THAT I AM.”   That is interesting from a grammar viewpoint. Because a name should be a noun and “I AM” is a verb. In fact, it is from the set of verbs that express a state of being, and they are among the most common set of verbs we have^[2].

In Hebrew, אהיה אשר אהיה or “Ehyeh asher ehyeh” is the phrase from which we get, “I AM THAT I AM.”  It could also be translated, “I WILL BE THAT I WILL BE” and even more fascinating is that the Septuagint^[3] puts it this way, ἐγώ εἰμι ὁ ὤν or  Ego eimi which most directly means “I Am The Being.”

It is fair to point out, that it seems God is trying to express to our frail human minds that He is always present and He, alone, willed His very own existence. He is The BEING because the full sum of all being, all existing, and all reality in the past, present, and future is caused by His being or His existing, always.^[4]

Many charges were brought against Jesus by the Jews who wanted to put Him to death. But the one that stuck was that He blasphemed by claiming to be God. The epic showdown takes place in John 8 when the Jews accuse Jesus of having a demon.  Jesus refutes them by countering, they claim to be from Abraham, but even Abraham knew who He was. The Jewish leaders cried foul arguing that He couldn’t say that because Abraham was dead long before He was born. To which Jesus responds, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I Am.” (John 8:58) Often we take that statement lightly, without much thought, but I’d like to point out to you that in Greek this is what they would have heard… ἐγώ εἰμι ὁ ὤν or  Ego eimi which is the exact construct that the Septuagint (which was the Bible they used in the era) said God told Moses in Exodus 3:14. Jesus did more than claim being older than Abraham, or even from before the existence of the Semitic lineage.  What He really did, boldly, in the face of the chief rulers of Israel, was to quote Moses and declare Himself the God of both Abraham and Moses! It is no wonder, John, in his telling of this event, then comments, “So they picked up stones to throw at him, but Jesus hid himself and went out of the temple.” (John 8:59)

Grammar^[5] and Bible geek trivia aside, I think there is a deeper meaning here for you and me today. Jesus is not like the other “gods” of this world, who are made with human hands, who are all just mere idols, and who demand much, but can do nothing. He is the God who is always present with you. He is the Alpha and Omega, the First and the Last and everything in between. For an eternity, before you ever existed, He was “The Being” that waited on your existence for eons and eons and Millennia and millennia of eons upon eons for the very moment you were born. He remained for an incomprehensible duration of time just to be with you. And when you rejected Him after all His waiting, He simply could not bear the idea of the inconceivable duration of eternity without the possibility of you.  So He came and gave His all for the slim shot that you might hear His voice calling out through all eternity to you, and understand why it is He had planned to give His life for you even before the foundations of this world (1 Peter 1:20, Ephesians 1:4, Revelation 13:8). If there is any love in your heart this ought to compel you to respond to His longing for you; to know, beyond doubt, that whatever you are facing today, this God is not about to forsake you. While you still have breath in you, He is begging and pleading for you to understand the value he has placed on you, His very name implies that.

Last, don’t forget the verb. (Ah, did you think I labored through that grammar lesson for nothing?) This God we speak of, this Jesus who is equal with this Father and shares eternity with not only His Father but, also, The Holy Spirit, His name is not a noun; it is a verb! This Jesus who is the “Ehyeh asher ehyeh” which is to say, the “Ego eimi” which we have come to understand as the “I AM THAT I AM,” the One that always exists, and is still with you and will never leave or forsake you^[6]  is more than a person, more than a place, more than a thing and, yes, much,  much,  more than an idea!

He expressed His name as a verb because He will be a God of action in your life. He refuses to remain passive. As long as He is in you, and you are in a relationship with Him, you will not remain passive either. Just as at your first birth, with your first breath, you were called into existence by Him, with the intent that from this point forward you would always be (present) with the one who is BEING, so now, He calls you to a new life that can always be; as you are reborn under his atonement, lordship, redemption and, of course, Name!

He is more than a Name. He is the God, the highest of honor; with the Name that is above all other names! (Philippians 2:9)  Salvation is found in no one else!  “For there is no other name under heaven given to humanity by which we must be saved (Acts 4:12). Now you know why His name is more than just a name.  His name declares His love and intent towards you: His desire to be with you forever. Stop living passively in this world, and go out, boldly, and actively, knowing whose name you serve!

He is more than a name. He is the one who was named to be your Redeemer!

“Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.” Acts 4:12

He is more than a name. Jesus exists. God Is all and all. Jesus is what God is. He Is Savior. He is the I Am That I Am.

Jesus is actively saving us, even right now!

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FootNotes:

^[1] https://grammar.yourdictionary.com/parts-of-speech/nouns/what-is-a-noun.html

^[2] https://www.grammar-monster.com/lessons/verbs.htm

^[3] Ancient Greek version of the Hebrews Scriptures in use at the time of Jesus and often used as the source text in the New Testament when the New Testament writers quote the Old Testament.

^[4] Trying to conceptualize, as mere mortals, the idea of eternity is likely beyond our current ability, let alone seeking to understand the relation of God to time which plain makes my head hurt.

^[5] Which happens to be my least favorite skill set in the whole world.

^[6] Look and see how faithful God is to his own Word! Deuteronomy 31:6-8, Hebrews 13:5, Joshua 1:5, 1Kings 8:57, 1Chronicles 28:2,Psalms 37:28, Psalms 94:14, Isaiah 41:17, Isaiah 42:16, Rev 21:3-7