Several months ago, a friend sent me a photo with all the names of God, then a few days ago, a website called Love God Greatly began a study on the very topic. I've decided to use the verses provided from that website to begin my own study on the names of God, and I would like to share that study with you all.
Yahweh-Yireh
Jehovah-Jireh
The Lord Will Provide
The one thing Abraham longed for was a child. He and his wife, Sarah, were, for all intents and purposes, much too old to have children. God, however, made Abraham a promise that he would indeed have a child. Abraham trusted that God would keep His promise, and though it took a long time, when Abraham was 100 years old, his son Issac was born.
Abraham is mentioned many times because of his faith. His faith was most tested, when God asked what we would consider the unthinkable of him. God told Abraham to take his son Isaac to the top of a mountain and offer him as a sacrifice. To us this sounds barbaric and un-imaginable that God would ask this of Abraham. How could God promise him a son, then just take him away? Abraham, however, full of faith, trusted that God's would remain faithful to His promise and provide.
Abraham took Isaac to the top of the mountain...he built an altar...he placed his son on that altar...he had the knife raised in his hand...God called out STOP! God said, don't harm your son. I know that your faith has been proven true. You wouldn't withhold anything from the Lord, not even your only son. Abraham looked up from his precious boy and saw a ram caught in a thicket. He took the ram, put it on the altar in place of his son, and sacrificed it to God. Abraham named that place "Yahweh-Yireh", which means "The Lord will Provide".
I wonder what Abraham thought and felt as he walked up that mountain. Surely he felt fear, doubt, even dread. Abraham wasn't super human, or immune to these feelings. Surely, he had to fight his way up that hill. His faith was made evident in every step that he took toward the top. Abraham could just as easily have said, God is out of his mind - there is no way I'm going to sacrifice my only son like that. He could have taken Isaac, and run away - refused to obey.
The parallel between Abraham being asked to sacrifice his son and God sacrificing his one and only son are apparent. Only - there was no substitution for Jesus - He was the substitution for us!
God often asks us to climb big mountains. Sometimes what is waiting for us at the top of the mountain is frightening and we would really rather not trudge up the hill. Like Abraham, we have a choice. We can faithfully put one foot in front of the other, trusting that God will be waiting for us at the top of the mountain, or we can ignore Him and run in the opposite direction.
God also had a choice.
Ephesians 2:1-6 (The Message)
"It wasn't so long ago that you were mired in that old stagnant life of sin. You let the world, which doesn't know the first thing about living, tell you how to live. You filled your lungs with polluted unbelief and then exhaled disobedience. We all did it, all of us doing what we felt like doing, when we felt like doing it, all of us, in the same boat. It's a wonder God didn't lose His temper and do away with the whole lot of us.
Instead, immense in mercy and with an incredible love, He embraced us. He took our sin-dead lives and made us alive in Christ. He did all this on His own with no help from us! Then He picked us up and set us down in the highest heaven in company with Jesus our Messiah".
God chose love, mercy and grace even though we deserved just the opposite. God loved us so much that he gave us his only son. (John 3:16)
Jesus also had a choice. He was sent from heaven by His Father. Jesus knew that obedience to His Father and his journey here would ultimately lead to His death. He knew that every step He took was a step closer to crucifixion. He also knew that every step He took, brought us closer to having a hope of heaven.
At any time, Jesus could have said - these people are not worth it. They are hateful, ungrateful and this is not worth what I'm going through. At any time, he could have stopped, and returned to a glorious life in heaven. Jesus chose us! Hateful and ungrateful as we can be, He still chose to make each agonizing step toward the cross because He knew that He was our only hope. Without Him, we would never be able to face God covered in sin. With Him, however, we could stand before God, covered in the love, grace and blood of our Messiah, Christ.
Now we have a choice. Life will be difficult no matter what choice we make. Sadly, this is the nature of our sin filled world. We can choose the world - which sometimes seems much easier - doing what we want when we want - but this way is also full of fear of what awaits us at the top of the mountain.
OR, We can choose Jesus. We can walk through the fear and walk with grace and faith, knowing that Yahweh-Yireh has and will provide for us. He has already provided Jesus and He will continue to provide grace, strength and peace for each step of our journey. He will ultimately provide a beautiful place in heaven for us once we reach the end of our journey.
Today, I pray that you will choose grace; choose Jesus. The way will not always be smooth and easy. The path will often be rocky and filled with obstacles that seem too large to overcome. However, with Yahweh-Yireh; Jehovah-Jireh, we can make the journey with a sense of peace knowing that He will provide for each step we take.
Blessings,
Mandy
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