Names of God: Opener

                God of Christianity goes by many names. He is given many names in scripture and it is important to know these names; not to spice up our prayer lives, but to understand who God is.

                When you realize that God calls Himself our brother, you can realize how loves we are. When you realize that He calls Himself our rock (1 Corinthians 10:4), you realize how dependable He is and How willing to support us He is. When you realize that God calls Himself the light, you see that He is the light and not just any light in the world, but the only one worth following.

                When you realize that He is the Author of Salvation (Hebrews 5:9) then you realize that salvation was a creation of His out of love to redeem us, not something that we stumbled upon. He wrote salvation just because He loved us enough to give us what we did not righteously deserve! We see His love, His authority over the laws of nature and spiritual nature, and we see His brilliance and holiness.

                By studying His holiness, we begin to understand who He is in Himself, and who He is to us. Learning about God is good, but it is nothing if we do not use it to strengthen our relationship with Him. If we know that He is love (1 John 4:8) that is great! If we know that He is love, and that He loves us, that is beyond words.

                I am not going to be writing about these names just to give you new words to throw around in your prayer life. Of course, do not be afraid to do so. I do this. If I want to remind God that He never goes back on His word, I address Him as such. If I am in the military and eating at a local diner, if someone calls me by my name, I will respond. If someone calls me by my military title, I will get up and respond differently. I do this with God, calling Him in His specific titles according to specific needs. Yes, this is a helpful tool to use; but knowing these names should strengthen our relationship with Him, not just the length of our prayer life.

                We know His name so that we may become closer to Him. We know who He is in order to learn more about Him and begin to comprehend how deeply He loves us. His names are not toys, they are gifts of love and affection. God is personal and wants to share Himself with us. Let us take Him seriously.


                                                                                                                                         -D