https://youtu.be/vSXgU3crOxw
God the Father is difficult to understand, not just because He is so much greater than we are, but He even tells us so in Isaiah 55:8-9. We aren't going to uncover all of the mysteries of the Father in this lesson, but we will take a first pass by considering some of the more common questions. Who is the God of the Old Testament? Why is He perceived as a harsh judge? How is He revealed to us through Jesus? And how can we interact with Him? Well said by Tim Mackie in tonight's Bible Project kick off video, "The point is to know and be known by this God, so that we can participate in His Love."
Kick Off Videos:
Bible Project Videos:
God https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eAvYmE2YYIU
Who IS the Father?
In the [First Testament] Old Testament we see a God that exerts His strength and power through creative wonder and destructive force. Memorable moments and favorite stories include:
God creates the heavens and the Earth
He makes mankind's body from the dust then breathes them to life with His breath!
10 Plagues in Egypt
God parts the sea, then obliterates the Egyptian army
God at Mount Sinai - We will look at this
God makes the Israelites walk around for 40 years
God FINALLY let’s them go to the Promised Land, but sorry Moses, not you!
God commands the utter destruction of Jericho, Ai, and a ton of other Canaanite cities
And…. Whoa… What happened??
Scripture Links:
Exodus 19:16-25 AMP - The Lord Visits Sinai
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus+19%3A16-25&version=AMP
Exodus 32:7-14, 30-35 - The Golden Calf Angers the Lord!
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus+32&version=AMP
Video Trip to Mount Sinai
Let’s take a quick 5 minute “virtual visit” to Mount Sinai.
Finding the Mountain of Moses: The Real Mount Sinai in Saudi Arabia
This is a very interesting video. We only had time for a few clips, but it is worth watching if you have time.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YjrxHqNy5CQ&t=0s&list=PLTzPnz4G5yp9hPOmgcWQHobSSmJzIBpVz&index=12
Part 1: 1:46 - 3:30
Intro & Geography
Black Top of the Mountain
Part 2: 10:52
The Golden Calf
Moses builds an alter, and where the First Covenant was made
Elijah goes to Mt. Sinai, and his cave
Thinking About This...
Alright, so WHAT is going on? Is the Father just angry and judging all the time?
There are a LOT of rules, and building of alters, and formality… What’s the point of all this? Did the Father get kind of a bad wrap?
The Father Revealed Through Jesus
John 14:7-13 AMP
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=John+14%3A7-13&version=AMP
Praise, Worship, Intercession
Father << Son << Us as Children of God >> Unctions of the Spirit >> Father & Son
Work for the Kingdom
Father >> Son >> Us as a Representative << Empowered by the HS << Father & Son
Root Names of the Father:
The following are some “root” names for God. You may be familiar with names like:
Jehovah Jireh - God our provider
Jehovah Nissi - God our Banner
These root names are used to create these “composite” names for God.
ELOHIM
"Elohim" (or Elohay) is the first name for God found in the Bible
Used over 2,300 times in the Old Testament
The Hebrew root meaning is "strength" or "power"
It’s unusual, because it is a plural. For example
In Genesis 1:1, we read, "In the beginning Elohim created the heaven and the Earth."
This name is telling us that the manifestation of “God” is the full personalities of God.
EL
"El" is another name used for God in the Bible
Used about 200 times in the Old Testament
It is the simple form arising from Elohim
It is often combined with other words for descriptive emphasis. Some examples:
El HaShamayim - The God Of The Heavens
El Elohim - King of kings
Immanu El - God Is With Us
ELAH
"Elah" is another Old Testament Name for God, used about 70 times
Some examples:
Elah Yisrael - God of Israel
Elah Sh'maya V'Arah - God of Heaven and Earth
YHVH - Yaweh or Jehova
"YHVH" is the Hebrew word that translates as "LORD".
It’s used more often than any other name for God (approximately 7,000 times) in the OT.
Referred to as the "Tetragrammaton," (TETRA - GRAM - ATRON)
Which means the "The Four Letters".
The root is the the Hebrew verb "to be"
This is the special name that God revealed to Moses at the burning bush:
Exodus 3:14-15
"And God said to Moses, 'I AM WHO I AM; and He said, thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, I AM has sent me to you... this is My eternal name, and this is how I am to be recalled for all generations'" (Exodus 3:14-15).
YHVH declares God's absolute being which means He is:
The source of everything
Without beginning and without end.
Pronunciations for YHVH
These include “Jehova” or “Yaweh” but today Jews typically use “Adonai” in place of YHVH
But here’s the scoop… scholars don’t really know the proper pronunciation.
Jews stopped saying it about 200 A.D.
They were afraid of breaking the commandment
"You shall not take the name of YHVH your God in vain." (Exodus 20:7)
Group Exercise & Wrap Up:
Here are links to the Names for God worksheets we are using in this lesson. Feel free to use and share these files with others. They are not intended to be exhaustive or complete, but provide a good first pass for many of the Names for God.
Lesson Wrap Up
Jesus Reveals the Heavenly Father
The LORD who revealed Himself as YHVH in the Old Testament is revealed as Yeshua (Jesus) in the New Testament. Jesus shares the same attributes as YHVH and clearly claims to be YHVH
In John 8:56-59, Jesus presents himself as the "I AM." When challenged by some Jewish leaders regarding His claim of seeing Abraham (who lived some 2000 years earlier), Jesus replied, "Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I AM."
In Romans 10:9, Paul declares, "if you confess with your mouth Yeshua as LORD... you shall be saved."
Immediately thereafter, in Romans 10:13, Paul backs up this declaration by quoting the Old Testament, "Whoever will call upon the name of the LORD (YHVH) will be saved" (Joel 2:32). Calling on Yeshua (Jesus) as Lord is the same as calling Him YHVH, because Yeshua (Jesus) is YHVH (LORD), the Messiah foretold throughout the entire Old Testament.
Figuring This Out
So then, God the Father is revealed through Jesus.
The Names for the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit give us windows into who they are
These Names describe:
Each personality, but ALSO
How they are linked
How they work together
BUT EVEN MORE, if we look we can see:
Their plan for us
What we need to do to communicate to Them
How this line of communication works
How They communicate with or to us
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