From Voldemort to the Vatican, it is not uncommon for beings of great power to illicit strong visceral responses at the mention of their name. For the former it is out of fear. For the latter, God, it is out of reverence. In fact, in our culture, people used to react when God’s name was taken in vain, but not so much anymore. Now it is not uncommon in many family films to have the name of God or Jesus be used flippantly and thrown away at least once or twice, if not more. But why is the name of God, and more specifically Yahweh or Jehovah so sacred?

God’s people Israel were slaves in Egypt and God has raised up a guy by the name of Moses to free His people and lead them into a promised land. As Moses was at times seemingly insecure, God went to some extra lengths using visual aids like a burning bush to persuade Moses to take up the task. When Moses asks God what to tell the people, when he is trying to free them to convince them that he is legit, God tells Moses to use His personal name. As we consider todays text, we will see why God personal name is sacred.

3 reasons the name YHWH/YAHWEH/JEHOVAH must be sacred for us. (Exodus 3:13-15)