Bible Names

Here is a bit of information on some key names in the Bible:

JEHOVAH--The name of God--The Jews of the OT were afraid to even say the name of God for fear of incurring His wrath. This likely came from a misunderstanding of the passage in their law, Leviticus 24:16, that said, "And whoever blasphemes the name of the Lord shall surely be put to death." Jewish tradition developed where only the High Priest could pronounce "Jehovah" once a year as he entered the Holy of Holies in the Tabernacle. But God doesn't care if we say His name, IF we do it with respect. The 3rd of the 10 commandments in Exodus 20 says, "You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain." Vain is not negative; vain means "empty, without purpose." Jesus in the Lord's prayer said, "Our Father who art in heaven, Hallowed by Your name." Thus, we must not use God's name in an empty way, as a common expression. Everyday we hear, "Oh God" or OMG, and such expressions, not in a negative way, but in an empty way, a vain way. We cannot do this! God said such would not be held "blameless" (Exodus 20:7).

CHRIST-- "the Anointed"--Greek for the Hebrew word Messiah

JESUS-- Greek for "Joshua" in Hebrew; a name

Christian--"like Christ"

Let's honor the name of God, the Father, and Jesus; and wear the name of "Christian" with
honor. Thanks for reading. Check in next week.