"What's in a Name Anyway?"

Main Thought

A “brand” is whatever someone thinks of when they hear a name. For example, when someone says the name “Apple, you might think of a smartphone. When someone says “Amazon,” you might think of packages. What comes to mind when someone says God? One of the names God uses to describe Himself, and communicate his “brand,” is “Jehovah.” (Jehovah is one of the ways to translate this self-given name of God in the Old Testament; only the consonants were recorded in writing, so there are slight variations.) Jehovah refers to God’s self-existence: He is the Eternal Creator; the “uncaused Cause” of all things. Yet this name also communicates God’s nearness. He cares for us personally, and has a personal plan for our lives.

Main Passages

10 Come, I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring my people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.” 11 But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?” 12 He said, “But I will be with you, and this shall be the sign for you, that I have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain.”  13 Then Moses said to God, “If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ what shall I say to them?” 14 God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” And he said, “Say this to the people of Israel: ‘I AM has sent me to you.’” 15 God also said to Moses, “Say this to the people of Israel: ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you.’ THIS IS MY NAME FOREVER and thus I am to be remembered throughout all generations. 

- Exodus 3:10-15

Discussion Questions

  1. Why was it important for God to communicate His Name to Moses and the Israelites?

  2. How does God reveal Himself to us?

  3. What does the name Jehovah communicate to you? What aspect of God’s nature, communicated by His name, resonates with you most?

Family Questions

  1. When someone says “God,” what do you think of?