Isaiah 9:6 Christmas Series: The Revelation OF The Name Isaiah 9:6 For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. The Significance of God s Name Parents today usually choose a name for their child because they like the sound of that name o Or perhaps they wish to honor someone who bears that name. o Most of the time the true meaning of the name has a very minor, if any role, in the choosing of the name. In Bible days, however, a name was usually chosen for its meaning. The Old Testament uses the word "name, " no less than 854 times, with "in the name of" occurring over 130 times. o The Old Testament records many instances where the name given to a child related to the circumstances at the time of that child s birth Or the meaning of the name related to the parents hopes and dreams for the child. o The reason for this was that in biblical thought a name was not merely a label for purpose of identification. A name was the expression of the character of the individual that it identified. The name, and the meaning of it spoke volumes about the individual that carried it. To know someone s name was to know them, to know their character, and to know about them. The name was the essence of personality, the expression of the inner man. And names could be changed to reflect changes in circumstances we often find that biblical names reflect the circumstances in which the person lived. God also placed great significance on names. o He changed the name of Abram (exalted father) to Abraham (father of many) when he promised to make him the father of many nations. o After Jacob wrestled with God, his name was changed by God from Jacob (supplanter) to Isreal which indicated he had found favor with God. In much the same way God used names and titles to reveal Himself. o To Moses God said, Exodus 6 (ESV) 3 I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, as God Almighty, but by my name the Lord I did not make myself known to them.
6 Say therefore to the people of Israel, I am the Lord, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will deliver you from slavery to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great acts of judgment. 7 I will take you to be my people, and I will be your God, and you shall know that I am the Lord your God, who has brought you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians. o What God was saying to Moses was that Abraham, Isaac and Jacob knew him as God Almighty -- the all powerful, all sufficient God. But, although they knew him, they never knew him fully. They never knew that he was a deliverer. But God said to Moses, I m going to show you something new about myself -- I am a deliverer. I m going to bring you out of bondage. God said, I m not just going to add this aspect of my character to my revelation of myself I want you to add it to my name, associate deliverance with my name. The name of God was significant to the ancient Hebrews because it declared who and what God was. o In fact, "the name" was a synonym for God; so they were forbidden to take the name of the Lord in vain (Exod 20:7). o God's people were instructed to reverence, love, praise, trust, call upon, and hope in the name of God. o To know God s name was to know his true identity, his character, and his nature. When Moses asked to see God, and God hid him in the cleft of the rock and caused his glory to pass before him, God associated that glory with his name. In Exodus 34:5-6 The Lord descended in the cloud and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name of the Lord. 6 The Lord passed before him and proclaimed, The Lord, the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, o This was the nature of Old Testament revelation. God progressively revealed more about his character to his people and this progressive revelation was often signified by new names. The list is long, and deserves a separate time of study but it includes: Jehova-Jireh (The God who Provides) Jehova-Rapha (The God who Heals) Jehova-Shalom (The God of Peace) o Throughout scripture, those people who longed to know more about God would express that desire by inquiring about the name of God.
Even with a preponderance of names by which God was revealed, there was an understanding that there was a single name by which God was known, a name that embodies all that he is. God s name reveals not only His character but also His power. o God told Pharaoh thru Moses Exodus 9:16 But for this purpose I have raised you up, to show you my power, so that my name may be proclaimed in all the earth. All nations saw the power of the God of Israel when he defeated the Egyptians, the mightiest kingdom of the day. When people heard the name of the God of Israel, they thought of the power of the God that brought Egypt to ruin. o Rahab told the two Hebrew spies, Joshua 2:10-11 For we have heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea before you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to the two kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan, to Sihon and Og, whom you devoted to destruction. 11 And as soon as we heard it, our hearts melted, and there was no spirit left in any man because of you, for the Lord your God, he is God in the heavens above and on the earth beneath. God s name also represented God s immediate presence. o When the Israelites would build an alter God said, in Exodus 20:24, that He would record his name there and that he would come to them there and that he would bless them there. God said in Deuteronomy 12:5 that where he put his name, there he would make his habitation. o When Solomon dedicated his temple, he acknowledged that the omnipresent God couldn t be confined to a single location but he asked for a unique manifestation of God s presence by asking god to place his name there. God answered with a visible manifestation of his glory as he placed his name upon the temple. To know the name of God is the key to understanding the bible. o The progressive revelation of God through the scripture is accompanied by an escalating glimpse into the name of God. o To know the name of God is to know God as he has revealed himself. o To call upon the name of God is to call upon him on the basis of his revelation of himself to us. This is why the name was so incredibly important in scripture and why the patriarchs diligently sought to know the name of God. o Isaiah was unique as a prophet. He was given by virtue of his anointing a unique glimpse into the plan of God.
His writing is full of prophecies concerning the nature of God and the fulfillment of God s plan. Some bible scholars refer to the book of Isaiah as the fifth gospel, calling it the gospel according to Isaiah. o A revelation of God, His character, and his plan was central to the vision and message of Isaiah. Isaiah had an intense desire to know God and to know about God. o No doubt he longed to know that one name of God that would reveal the fullness of God s character. However, even though he longed for the revelation, his anointing would not reveal what God had chosen to conceal. I can almost see the excitement that came upon him as he uttered, prophetically, and his name shall be called Oh how he must have longed to know that name that would only be revealed in the fullness of God s time. When Isaiah said and his name shall be called o There was no doubt who he was speaking of. o We know he spoke of the child that was born and the son that was given and in a separate but connected prophecy he said in o Isaiah 7:14 Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. Even though he didn t know the revealed name, Isaiah had a grasp of who the child was. o He called him the Mighty God, and the Everlasting Father and his name would be Immanuel which means God With Us. o This child s name would be the revelation of God. o This child s name would signify that God was with us. o This child s name would indicate the fullness of the Godhead, the completeness of the great I AM. Hundreds of years later, when that angel said to Joseph in Matthew 1:21 And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: o The chosen name of God was revealed. o The name Jesus literally means God is Salvation. o God revealed himself as our savior in that baby that was born in a manger at Bethlehem. o Isaiah said that the child would be called Immanuel which means God with us and the name of Jesus literally fulfills that prophecy. The name Jesus, in Hebrew, is a compound name combining the Old Testament name of God Yahweh and the Hebrew word for salvation. He was indeed God with us, for that child was God manifest in the flesh! He was the God who saves! Yahweh was the unique, personal name by which the one true God identified himself to his people in the Old Testament.
o The recognized English version of the word is Jehovah although it isn t a very accurate representation of the original language since Hebrew has no J with a J sound in it. o In Hebrew the name is derived from the verb to be meaning He is or He will be. o It is the third person equivalent to the first person name that God gave to Moses at the burning bush in Exodus 3:14, I AM. o Which is also the name that Jesus linked to himself in John 8:58, Before Abraham was, I AM. o The connotation of this name whether it is Jehovah, Yahweh, or I AM, is the Self Existing One, the Eternal One, the One who was and is and always will be. By incorporating that Old Testament name, the name Jesus encompasses everything that the Old Testament reveals about God. o More importantly it proclaims the truth that the child that was wrapped in swaddling clothes and laid in a manger was the God of both Testaments that s the significance of His name. o That the God of the Old Testament revealed Himself as our savior in the New Testament. o To see and to know Jesus is to see and know God in the only way that he can be seen and known. o Jesus said in John 14:6, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the father but by me. o And in verse 9, he that hath seen me has seen the father. The name Jesus is the supreme revelation of God s character. o Jesus perfectly manifested all of God s divine attributes -- his holiness, his righteousness, mercy, truth, love grace, and power. o For example the Old Testament proclaimed God love for us but only in the person of Jesus do we realize the depth of God s love. John 3:16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten son Romans 5:8 God commendeth his love towards us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. o John said, in his gospel, that Jesus declared God to us. He made the invisible God, visible to us. One writer said that Jesus was the seen of the unseen. He was the visible manifestation of the invisible God. In him, John said, God dwelt among us! o And his name is Jesus! The "Name" of Jesus is highly significant in New Testament usage in that it parallels the use of the name of God in the Old Testament. o The early Christians had no difficulty substituting the name of Jesus for the name of God.
o Indeed, for them the divine name, YHWH, was given to Jesus, that every knee should bow to him and every tongue confess that he is Lord (Php 2:9-11). o New Testament believers are to live their lives in Jesus' name just as the Old Testament believers were to live in the name of God. o People who hear the gospel and respond positively, call upon Jesus' name for salvation, put their faith in Jesus' name, are then justified and forgiven in Jesus' name, and are baptized in Jesus' name. o Just like in the Old Testament, where the name of God represents the person of God and all that he is, so in the New Testament "the Name" represents all who Jesus is as Lord and Savior That name is just as important to us today as it was to Isaiah then. o We have the revelation of the name, the Mighty God in Christ. o That name, Jesus, is vested with all of God power and authority. Ephesians 1:21 tells us that the name of Jesus is Far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come: Jesus said in Matthew 28:18 All power is given unto me in heaven and earth. o By that name, there was given power over sickness, disease and death. o Unto that name all power was given and demons trembled, waves were calmed, the dead were raised, the blind were made to see and the lame leaped for joy. At the mention of that name all power in heaven and earth was loosed and by virtue of that name all the power of God was brought to bear. o Colossians 3:17 stresses the significance of that name when it says And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, It even goes so far as to say that we are to give thanks to God and the Father by him: by calling on that name Jesus! o Acts 4:12 tells us that there is no other name under heaven, given among me, that has the power to save us. The name of Jesus is the only name that has the power to heal, to deliver and to save. o Jesus linked the manifestation of his presence to his name: Matthew 18:20 says that where two or three of you are gathered together in my name, there will I be in the midst of them. Just like in the Old Testament, when we call upon his name, we invoke more than just a name, his presence is fully vested in his name. To speak the name of Jesus is to command the attention of God. Where my name is, God said, there I will be.
Remember, he said where you build an altar, I ll place my name there, and I will meet you there and I will bless you there. When we call on that name, God says I will meet you there, I will bless you there. o In that name, according to Colossians 2:9 we have all the fullness of God, For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. o To know the name of Jesus is to know the supreme revelation of God. This is why the apostles understood exactly what Jesus meant when he said to baptize their converts in the name (singular) of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. That is, in the name of God. Which is exactly what they did, every time they baptized someone. o Because when we are baptized in the name of Jesus, the scripture is very plain, we are baptized into him. When that name is applied to our lives, we become his. We belong to him. It signifies an intimate relationship with him. It gives us full authority to invoke that name, for it is ours. o The bible signifies, in both Testaments, that people come under God s authority by having God s name placed upon them. By his name, Old Testament Israel was identified with him, became his people and entered into a relationship with him. And the New Testament church identifies with him when we take on that name in Baptism. o My friend, I was baptized in a name, and by that name I am his and he is mine. By that name I enter into a relationship with him. By that name I gain access to the throne of God. I can call upon that name in prayer and in worship, when I speak that name the presence of God makes itself manifest. The authority vested in that name belongs to me and when I pray, in that name, I can expect God to hear my cry and answer my prayer. o By the power of that name, the miraculous is loosed. By the power of that name sin s bondage is broken. At the mention of that name every sickness has to flee. o I am thankful this morning for that name. I am thankful that I know that name. I am thankful that I was baptized in that name! o Make no mistake about it my friend, without that name there s no authority to take away sins, without that name there s no power to break Satan s bondage. The fact is that the effectiveness of baptism relies upon the name.
I m thankful today that I know that name. Close For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Isaiah was given a great revelation. o He heralded the coming of the messiah. o He longed to know the name of the Messiah, but the truth of that name was never fully revealed to him. Some years ago theologian and author Frank Tamel was speaking with a devout Jew that denied that Jesus was the Messiah. o In the course of their conversation Brother Tamel asked him to read a verse from Isaiah. o The verse he selected was Isaiah 62:11 which says Behold, the Lord hath proclaimed unto the end of the world, Say ye to the daughter of Zion, Behold, thy salvation cometh; behold his reward is with him, and his work is before him. o Notice that the salvation in this verse is a him whose reward is with him and whose work is before him. o This Jewish scholar was then asked to translate the English word salvation from this verse into Hebrew. o He responded by saying, it is Yehshua. o Brother Tamel then asked him to translate Yehshua into Greek, the language of the New Testament. o Realizing only then where Brother Tamel was going with this verse, the Jewish scholar was forced to acknowledge that the Hebrew word Yehshua is translated as Jesus in Greek. o In that moment the Jewish scholar stumbled onto the great truth that Isaiah declared without even knowing it. o The name of the one who would come, the name of the salvation whose reward is with him and whose work is before him is Jesus! The name of that child that was given, and the son that was born was Jesus! The name of the one that was Immanuel, God with us, was Jesus. o All power, in heaven and earth, has been given to that name. This morning, if you have a need, there s an answer in that name. If you need forgiveness, you have but to repent in that name. If you need victory you only need to call on that name. If you need uplifting, there s overcoming power in that name. o Whatever you need, you can find it in that name. Isaiah wrote it and spoke it without ever realizing it.
It was the name of the mighty God the name that was sought after for thousands of years and that name that has been given to you and I. For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called o I m glad this morning that I can call on his name. o In both petition and in praise. o I can call on him. o He has been given a name that s above every other name and, this morning, we should celebrate that name. o If you have a need who don t you come and make your petition known in that name. o If you don t, why don t you gather in and, for few moments, praise him in the revelation of his name.