Prepare for Life

The nature of God is beyond our figuring out. We need help if we are going to begin to understand who God is and how we can relate to Him. It takes God to know God. This is why He gives us His many names that describe who He is. We need these many names to begin to get a true picture of the nature of God.

I am old enough to remember when the name El Shaddai first came into the mainstream in 1982 through the hit song El Shaddai sung by Amy Grant. I remember loving the song while having no idea what El Shaddai meant nor knowing that there were many other Hebrew names for God. It didn’t stop me from joining my voice with the chorus, We will praise and lift you high El Shaddai!

Are you growing in your relationship with the Lord? Do you want to trust Him more? Do you want to know Him better and rely on Him in a deeper way? Do you feel stuck? How can you grow in your trust of God?

Do you want to know God better? Do you want to trust Him more? Taking the time to understand the many Hebrew names for God is an important way to gain insight into just who our great God is and to know Him better. God's many names describe different aspects of His character. By learning what these names mean we grow in our appreciation and adoration of the Lord.

I want to focus upon one of the names for God that is compounded with the name El, El Olam. El refers to God and means prominent, out front, dominating. Olam means everlasting or eternal. It also carries the concept of hidden.

Names in the Bible are more than just a way to differentiate one person from the other. In Old Testament names convey the very essence of the person, their character, their attributes. Names are full of meaning and are instructive, especially the many names for God. Learning about His names helps us to know Him better, in His fullness and reality. In the words of the Lord’s prayer, we are to hallow His name.

No wonder again and again in the Bible God points to the act of creation and basically says, “ Why do you chase after false gods? You make them with your own hands, how can you bow before them? They have no power, I alone have the power to create the universe. Have no other gods before Me!”

The first name that God uses to introduce Himself is found in the very first verse of the Bible, “In the beginning Elohim.” Elohim is basically the signature name of God. This name is used about 2750 times in the Old Testament to refer to God.

The root of Elohim, el, is borrowed in the Hebrew language from the Canaanites. It means strong, to be in the front, to dominate. El is the same root from which the name Allah derives. Elohim is supreme, He is the mighty One.

I wonder if most of us in the contemporary church have misunderstood the third of the Ten Commandments. I think I have for many years. Exodus 20:7 commands, You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not leave him unpunished who takes His name in vain. We think this clearly refers to our speech and the fact that we should not swear using the Lord’s name or speak of Him in a disrespectful or cavalier way. His name is too precious to throw around with irreverence. Our inner response to this commandment may be, “Hmmm, I’ve got some work to do here.” or maybe, “I’m usually ok with this, just a slip up now and then.” So we quickly move on to the next commandment working through them like a checklist.