What's in a Name?

I come from a long line of nicknamed people.  My dad's given name was Marshall, but everybody called him "Buck."  My brother Jay, who did everything -- talk, walk, eat -- with the vigor of a snail with a broken leg, was nicknamed "Lightning."  There was Uncle Sook, Uncle Stud, and even an Uncle Thumbless, who wrote many famous four-fingered songs for the banjo.

I was just kidding about that last one.

Although my nickname since college has been "Skip," I've often wondered about my own given name:  Jeff Bartley Chisum.  What does it mean, if anything?

Well, I did a little research and found that Jeff is from the French, and it means "God's peace."  Bartley -- my middle name -- is Old English and means "like a farm."  Chisum (or Chisholm, as it used to be) is Scottish and means "cheese house."

Apparently, my name literally means "God's peaceful farm-like house of cheese."

I'm so proud.

In Old Testament times, a person's name was often chosen to reflect some personal characteristic or trait.  "Esau" meant "red and hairy."  "Jacob" meant "heel hanger," "supplanter" or "deceiver."  "Daniel" meant "God is my judge."  And "Jesus" (or Immanuel) meant "God with us."

In the same way, God has also revealed different aspects of His being and the different relationships He has with creation by His names.

If you think about it, our God is so awesome that one name would be inadequate to express:

• His goodness
• His greatness
• His character
• His nature

Psalm 9:10 says: "Those who know your name will trust in you, for you, LORD, have never forsaken those who seek you."

Since God has revealed Himself through His names, according to Psalm 9:10, the more we know and learn of His names, the more we can rely on Him.  And with a more intimate knowledge of Him, the more we are going to trust Him.

Jehovah is one of the names used for God.  When it is joined with another word, it forms a compound name for the Lord that represents a specific area in which He is a definite help for us in our time of need.

Here are a few specific compound names:

Jehovah-Jireh.  "The Lord provides" or "The Lord sees."  This name can be found in Genesis 22:14 when Abraham needed a sacrifice, and God provided a ram in place of Isaac.

Jehovah-Rophe.  "The Lord that heals."  This name was given to Israel in Exodus 15:25 as a promise that if they would keep God's commandments, they would not be susceptible to the disease of the Egyptians.

Jehovah-Nissi.  "The Lord is my banner."  This name was given to God by Moses as a response to his God-given victory over Amalek.

Jehovah-Shalom.  "The Lord is peace."  This name was given to God by Gideon after the angel of the Lord appeared to him to deliver Israel from the Midianites (Judges 6:24).

Jehovah-Tsidkenu.  "The Lord is our righteousness."  This is a prophecy in Jeremiah 23:5-6 about one who is to come, and it speaks to the fact that in all his dealings, He will be (and act) righteous.

How cool is it that God reveals himself through these compound Jehovah names?  And unlike man, He will always deal with us in fairness and righteousness.  He will never leave or forsake us.

No wonder Paul tells the Philippians that his desire is to "know" Him.  To know Him is to trust Him -- and God has not forsaken anyone who desires to know Him.

And that sounds like pretty good news to me.

As for me and my house of cheese, we will serve the Lord.

Be blessed -

Skip

The Fantastic Four-Fold Plan of God

"Therefore tell the Israelites: I'll take you as my own people and I'll be God to you. You'll know that I am God, your God who brings you out from under the cruel hard labor of Egypt. I'll bring you into the land that I promised to give Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and give it to you as your own country. I AM God."
      - Exodus 6:6-8

"I love it when a plan comes together."
      - John "Hannibal" Smith
        The A-Team


As Americans, I think we're often frustrated when there is no plan.  I think that's one of the reasons we love football so much:  As a team, you huddle up and make a plan, you execute the plan, then you come back and make another plan.  What could be simpler in life?  

I also think this is why we hate soccer so much.  

Soccer Player #1:  "What's the plan?"

Soccer Player #2:  "I don't know.  What if we run all over the field and try to kick the ball to everybody else?  Maybe something will happen in an hour or so."

Soccer Player #1:  "Sounds like a plan to me."

If you're not an American, I apologize.  I'm sure you have plans of some sort.

I think it's funny (and a little sad) when Christians act like there's no plan.  Even more so, I get a little miffed at Christians who don't bother reading the Old Testament.  Believe it or not, God revealed a four-fold plan to Moses in the book of Exodus (6:6-8), and the plan has never changed.

In that plan, God promised:

Deliverance.  ("...your God who brings you out from under the cruel hard labor of Egypt.")  God totally came through on that promise by rescuing the Israelites from the bondage of the Egyptians.

Community.    ("I'll take you as my own people and I'll be God to you.")  I think this scripture is the starting point of Israel's religious history, as well as the start of their relationship with God, and God knew how important community was in the grand scheme of things.

Intimacy.  ("You'll know that I am God...")  The cool thing about God is that He's the only God/god I know of who wants a relationship with His creation.  He wanted the Israelites to know Him, not just appease Him out of fear.

Blessing.  ("I'll bring you into the land that I promised to give Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and give it to you as your own country.")  After 400 years of slavery, God promised the Israelites a home in Canaan, and God had a great track record for keeping His promises.

Sounds like a pretty good plan to me.  And the amazing thing is that it hasn't changed, even though a lot of people think it has.  They believe God had to regroup and re-strategize at some point.  But He didn't.  This was the plan all along.

Today, God still offers deliverance from sin by salvation through Jesus Christ, community by establishing the church in Jesus Christ, intimacy by wanting us to have a personal relationship with Him, and blessing by promising us an eternal home.

It still sounds like a fantastic plan to me.

Be blessed -

Skip