Worship Workshop Session 2: Worship Deeper by…
Knowing More Of God
The Names of God
El, Elim, Elohim Eloah: Genesis 1:1 generic term for God.
El-Elyon: God Most High El-Shaddai: God Almighty/ Satisfier
Jehovah or Yahweh: Exodus 3:13-14 Gen 2:4, compare with Gen 15:2 is the Personal name of God. It means I Am.
Jehovah-Jireh: Gen. 22:13-14; The Lord will Provide.
Jehovah-Rapha: Exodus 15:26; The Lord that Healeth
Jehovah-Nissi: Exodus 17:8-15; The Lord our Banner
Jehovah-Shalom: Ex 17:8-15 The Lord our Peace.
Jehovah-Raah: Ps 23:1The Lord my Shepherd.
Jehovah-Tsidkeny: Jer 23:6The Lord our Righteousness.
Jehovah-Shammah: Ez 48:35; The Lord is Present.
Theos is the New Testament equivalent of El.
Pater: Matthew 5:16 Father in Greek.
Abba: Mark 14:36; Father or Daddy in Aramaic and was specially used in prayer to address God.
Names of Jesus, God The Son
The Angel of the Lord: (Exodus 3:2-4)
Captain of the Lord’s host: (Joshua 5:13-15)
Immanuel: Means God with us. (Is 7:14)
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace. (Isaiah 9:6)
Jesus: Is the Greek name for Joshua (Yeshua) which means Jehovah is Salvation. (Luke 1:30-31)
Son of Man (Luke 9:56)
The Word: Logos, Personal Manifestation of God . (John 1:1)
Son of God: (John 1:34)
Saviour (John 4:42)
Christ: This is the Greek word Christos, for the Hebrew term Messiah, the anointed of God. (John 4:42)
Alpha and Omega: First and last letter of Greek alphabet, it means the first and last. (Revelation 1:8)
Lion of the Tribe of Judah: Rev 5:5 And one of the elders saith unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Juda, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof.
Names of Holy Spirit
Spirit: in Hebrew is Ruah-Breath, wind. In Greek it is Pneuma, Breath, wind.
Spirit of God, Lord. Romans 8:9
Spirit of Christ Romans 8:9, 1 Peter 1:11
Spirit of Jesus Philip. 1:19
Spirit of adoption Romans 8:15
Spirit of promise Eph. 1:13
Spirit of truth John 14:17
Spirit of grace Hebrews 10:29
Spirit of life Rev 11:11
Comforter: Greek word Parakletos: one called along side to help. (This is the personal name of the Holy Spirit.) John 14:26, 15:26, 16:7
The Essence and Attributes of God
He is immaterial and incorporeal. Jesus said, “A spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have” (Luke 24:39). If God is spirit, he is immaterial and incorporeal. The second commandment of the Decalogue, which forbids the making of any graven image or likeness of anything (Exod. 20:4), is based on the incorporeal nature of God. So also are the numerous commands against idolatry (Lev. 26:1; Deut. 16:22).
He is invisible. The Israelites “did not see any form” when the Lord appeared to them in Horeb, and, therefore, they were prohibited from making any image of him (Deut. 4:15–19). God told Moses that no man could see him and live (Exod. 33:20). John says, “No man has seen God at any time” (John 1:18). Paul calls him “the invisible God” (Col. 1:15; cf. Rom 1:20; 1 Tim. 1:17) and declares that no man has seen him or can see him (1 Tim. 6:16). Certain Scriptures, however, indicate that the redeemed will some day see him (Ps. 17:15; Matt. 5:8; Heb. 12:14; Rev. 22:4).
He Is Self-existent. While man’s ground of existence is outside of himself, God’s existence is not dependent upon anything outside of himself. As Thomas Aquinas said, “He is the first cause; himself uncaused.” His self-existence is implied in his affirmation, “I am who I am” (Exod. 3:14; cf. the “I am” of Christ’s teaching concerning himself, John 8:58, and Isa. 41:4; Rev. 1:8), and as is usually held, in the name “Jehovah” (Exod. 6:3). Yet God’s self-existence is not grounded in his will, but in his nature.
He Is Infinite and Immense. God is infinite in relation to space. He is not limited or circumscribed by space; on the contrary, all finite space is dependent upon him. He is, in fact, above space. Scripture clearly teaches God’s immensity (1 Kings 8:27; 2 Chron. 2:6; Ps. 113:4–6; 139:7f.; Isa. 66:1; Jer. 23:24; Acts 17:24–28). Due to the spirituality of his nature and our inability to think in spaceless terms, this is a difficult doctrine to apprehend. However, this much is clear: God is both immanent and transcendent, and he is everywhere present in essence as well as in knowledge and power.
He Is Eternal: By the eternity of God we mean His infinity in relation to time, we mean that He is without beginning or end; that He is free from all succession of time; and that He is the cause of time. God is also infinite in relation to time. He is without beginning or end, he is free from all succession of time, and he is the cause of time. That he is without beginning or end may be inferred from the doctrine of his self-existence; he who exists by reason of his nature rather than his volition, must always have existed and must continue to exist forever. That God is eternal is abundantly taught in Scripture. He is called “the Everlasting God” (Gen. 21:33). The Psalmists say, “From everlasting to everlasting, Thou art God” (Ps. 90:2) and “Thou art the same, and Thy years will not come to an end” (Ps. 102:27). Isaiah represents God as “the high and exalted One Who lives forever” (Isa. 57:15). Paul says that God “alone possesses immortality” (1 Tim. 6:16; cf. Hab. 1:12).
He Is Omnipotent: 1Pet 1:5; By the omnipotence of God we mean that He is able to do whatever He wills.- Henry Thiesan.
He Is Omniscient: Jer 17:10 By the omniscience of God we mean that He knows Himself and all other things, whether they be actual or merely possible, whether they be past, present, or future, and that He knows them perfectly and from all eternity. He knows them immediately, simultaneously, exhaustively and truly. - Henry Thiesan "Lectures in Systematic Theology"
He Is Omnipresent: Jer 23:24 By the omnipresence of God we mean His infinitude in relation to His creatures. Because God is immense, He is omnipresent. Henry Thiessen:
He Is Holy: Psalms 99:3,5,9 He only is independently, infinitely, immutably holy. In Scripture He is frequently styled “The Holy ONE”. He is so because the sum of all moral excellency is found in Him. He is absolute Purity, unsullied even by the shadow of sin. Holiness is the very excellency of the divine nature: the great God is 'glorious in holiness' –Arthur Pink
He Is Sovereign: (God) is under no external restraint whatsoever. He is the Supreme Dispenser of all events. All forms of existence are within the scope of His dominion. And yet this is not to be viewed in any such way as to abridge the reality of the moral freedom of God’s responsible creatures or to make men anything else than the arbiters of their own eternal destinies. God has seen fit to create beings with the power of choice between good and evil. He rules over them in justice and wisdom and grace. - The New Unger's Bible Dictionary. Chicago: Moody Press
The Scriptures abundantly teach that God is sovereign in the universe: “Indeed everything that is in the heavens and the earth; Thine is the dominion, O Lord” (1 Chron. 29:11); “But our God is in the heavens; He does whatever He pleases” (Ps. 115:3); “Woe to the one who quarrels with his Maker—an earthenware vessel among the vessels of earth! Will the clay say to the potter, ‘What are you doing?’ Or the things you are making say, ‘He has no hands’?” (Isa. 45:9); “Behold, all souls are Mine; the soul of the father as well as the soul of the son is Mine. The soul who sins will die” (Ezek. 18:4); “All the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing, but He does according to His will in the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of earth; and no one can ward off His hand or say to Him, ‘What hast Thou done?’ ” (Dan. 4:35); and “Is it not lawful for me to do what I wish with what is my own?” (Matt. 20:15; cf. Rom. 9:14–21; 11:36; Eph. 1:11; 1 Tim. 6:15f.; Rev. 4:11) - Thiessan
He Is Righteous and just. The righteousness and justice of God is that aspect of God’s holiness which is seen in his treatment of the creature. Repeatedly, these qualities are ascribed to God (2 Chron. 12:6; Ezra 9:15; Neh. 9:33; Isa. 45:21; Dan. 9:14; John 17:25; 2 Tim. 4:8; Rev. 16:5).
He Is Immutable. God is unchangeable in his essence, attributes, consciousness, and will. All change must be to the better or the worse, but God cannot change to the better, since he is absolutely perfect; neither can he change to the worse, for the same reason. He is exalted above all causes and above even the possibility of change. He can never be wiser, more holy, more just, more merciful, more truthful, nor less so. Nor do his plans and purposes change. Scripture declares that there is no variation with God (James 1:17). He does not change with regard to his character (Ps. 102:26f.; Mal. 3:6; Heb. 1:12), his power (Rom. 4:20f.), his plans and purposes (Ps. 33:11; Isa. 46:10), his promises (1 Kings 8:56; 2 Cor. 1:20), his love and mercy (Ps. 103:17), or his justice (Gen. 18:25; Isa. 28:17).
Good. In the larger sense of the term, the goodness of God includes all the qualities that answer to the conception of an ideal personage; that is, it includes such qualities as God’s holiness, righteousness, and truth, as well as his love, benevolence, mercy, and grace.
He Is Love. God’s love is that perfection of the divine nature by which God is eternally moved to communicate himself. The Scriptures frequently testify to the love of God. They speak of him as “the God of love” (2 Cor. 13:11) and declare him to be “love” (1 John 4:8, 16). It is his nature to love. He initiates love (1 John 4:10). He is unlike the gods of the heathen, who hate and are angry, and the god of the philosopher, who is cold and indifferent. The Father loves the Son (Matt. 3:17), and the Son loves the Father (John 14:31). God loves the world (John 3:16; Eph. 2:4), his ancient people Israel (Deut. 7:6–8, 13; Jer. 31:3), and his true children (John 14:23). He loves righteousness (Ps. 11:7) and justice (Isa. 61:8). The assurance of God’s love is a source of comfort to the believer (Rom. 8:35–39). A loving God is not unfeeling toward his own.
He Is Benevolent: Because of his goodness, God deals bountifully, tenderly, and kindly with all his creatures. “The Lord is good to all, and His mercies are over all His works.… The eyes of all look to Thee, and Thou dost give them their food in due time. Thou dost open Thy hand, and dost satisfy the desire of every living thing” (Ps. 145:9, 15f.). Creation is God’s handiwork and declared to be very good (Gen. 1:31). God cannot hate what he has made (Job 10:3; 14:15). The benevolence of God is manifested in his concern for the welfare of the creature and is suited to the creature’s needs and capacities (Job 38:41; Ps. 104:21; 145:15; Matt. 6:26). His benevolence is not restricted to believers, “for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous” (Matt. 5:45; cf. Acts 14:17).
He Is Merciful: God’s mercy is his goodness manifested towards those who are in misery or distress. Compassion, pity, and loving kindness are other terms in Scripture that denote practically the same thing. Mercy is an eternal, necessary quality in God as an all-perfect being, but the exercise of it in a given case is optional. To deny the freeness of mercy is to annihilate it, for if it is a matter of debt, then it is no longer mercy. God is “rich in mercy” (Eph. 2:4), “is full of compassion and is merciful” (James 5:11), and has “great mercy” (1 Pet. 1:3). He is said to be merciful toward Israel (Ps. 102:13), the Gentiles (Rom 11:30f.), and all that fear him (Ps. 103:17; Luke 1:50) and seek his salvation (Isa. 55:7).
He Is Gracious: The grace of God is God’s goodness manifested toward the ill-deserving. Grace has respect to sinful man as guilty, while mercy has respect to him as miserable and pitiful. Scripture speaks of the “glory of His grace” (Eph. 1:6), “surpassing riches of His grace” (Eph. 2:7; cf. 1:7), “manifold grace” (1 Pet. 4:10), and “true grace” (1 Pet. 5:12).
- Henry Clarence Thiessen and Vernon D. Doerksen, Lectures in Systematic Theology, (Grand Rapids, MI; Cambridge: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1979)
Quotes
If God be a Spirit, and therefore a person, infinite, eternal, and immutable in his being and perfections, the Creator and Preserver of the universe, He is of right its absolute sovereign.… This sovereignty of God is the ground of peace and confidence to all his people. They rejoice that the Lord God omnipotent reigneth; that neither necessity, nor chance, nor the folly of man, nor the malice of Satan controls the sequence of events and all their issues. - Hodge
God is present in all places; we should not think of him, however, as filling spaces, for he has no physical dimensions. It is as pure spirit that he pervades all things, in a relationship of immanence that is more than we body-bound creatures can understand. One thing that is clear, however, is that he is present everywhere in the fullness of all that he is and all the powers that he has, and needy souls praying to him anywhere in the world receive the same fullness of his undivided attention. Because God is omnipresent he is able to give his entire attention to millions of individuals at the same time. – J.I. Packer Concise Theology
Living becomes an awesome business when you realize that you spend every moment of your life in the sight and company of an omniscient, omnipresent God. - J. I Packer "Knowing God"
The sovereignty of God may be defined as the exercise of His supremacy… Being infinitely elevated above the highest creature, He is the Most High, Lord of "heaven and earth. Subject to none, influenced by none, absolutely independent; God does as He pleases, only as He pleases, always as He pleases. None can thwart Him, none can hinder Him. – A. W. Pink
“Power is God's hand or arm, omniscience His eye, mercy, His bowels, eternity His duration, but holiness is His beauty.” - S. Charnock.
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