Names

On August 2, 2018   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Isaiah 45: 3

And I will give you the treasures of darkness, and hidden wealth of secret places, in order that you may know that it is I, the Lord, the God of Israel, who calls you by your name.

There is an economy message in this verse and it should give you great comfort for your finances. You should ponder what God is saying about the hidden wealth and buried treasures. That, however, is not what I want to bring out from this scripture today. I wish for us to look just at the last phrase, “who calls you by your name.”

Yahweh is He who has called you by your name. He is the only God. There is none before Him, nor have any come after Him. It is He who has called you. “What, me?,” I can hear some of you saying. Yes, you. If you are a Christian it is because God called you and you had the intelligence to answer. Yea!

You are important in the Kingdom. God knows your name and has called YOU! That one fact ought to stir some joy within you. In an earlier chapter of Isaiah God said, “I have called you by name; you are Mine,” (Isaiah 43: 1). So, by the time we get to chapter 45, He is just reminding you. But wait, these are not the only places either. Way back in Exodus God said, “I have known you by name, and you have also found favor in My sight,” (Exodus 33: 12). Look at the similarities between these verses and I think you will be blessed.

You may say, though, “Well, God wasn’t speaking to me in those verses.” Wasn’t He? If He wasn’t, then why did He have them included in the Bible? This is that dynamic again of a historical record and a living Word. God is still ministering His Word to us today. Have you ever read a scripture and heard it bigger and louder than the surrounding verses? That is God personalizing that verse to you. He is trying to get your attention so that you read it as a personal note to you. That is the way you should read your Bible, as a personal letter from Yahweh God to you.

Before the beginning of time, God saw you and planned for you. He wrote your name down and waited for your day to come. Then He rejoiced when you were born. Thousands of years He waited for this day, the day when He could voice your name it be uniquely yours regardless of the number of people who share it. One other thing though, don’t be surprised if God has another name for you. He has shown a propensity to changing people’s names. Because you are precious in His sight, He calls you names which edify you. You can ask Him what your heavenly name is if you want. One thing I know about it, it will put a smile on your face.

You are His beloved and called to Him. He has called you by name. He has showered you with favor and with His love. The creator of the universe knows your name and has called you to Himself. I think that is a pretty big deal.

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Gold Digger

On February 7, 2018   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Isaiah 45: 3

I will give you the treasures of darkness and hidden wealth of secret places, so that you may know that it is I, The Lord, the God of Israel, who calls you by your name.

I am reading When Heaven Invades Earth by Bill Johnson. In Chapter 3 the author writes about gold being hidden in rock. That phrase excited my imagination. The precept this idea left with me is that things of value must be dug out.

Think about it for a moment. Do we value gold, silver and precious stones because they are hidden and thus, hard to acquire? Or are they hidden because they are precious? It seems true that those things which we work for are more valuable to us than those which come to us easily.

Look at this interesting passage from the Proverbs, “It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, but the glory of kings is to search out a matter,” (Proverb 25: 2). God has hidden His precious jewels. It is not that He doesn’t want us to have them. In fact, it is quite the opposite. He has put them away, in a safe place, for us. Do we not do the same thing? If you have something precious that you wish your child or grandchild to have, what do you do with it? You put it in safe keeping. You don’t leave it lying around where it can become lost, damaged or misplaced. You certainly do not put it where any random person could walk away with it. In the same way, our father has stored up His wisdom for us. Paul wrote “We speak God’s wisdom in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God predestined before the ages to our glory,” (1 Corinthians 2: 7). God predestined all His wisdom and knowledge for us.

Bill Johnson wrote, “Some things are only discovered by the desperate, (Chapter 3, p. 39). There is truth to that, isn’t there? I think sometimes our largest liability is our comfort. While some people who read this Word of the Day live in desperate circumstances, many of us are comfortable, perhaps too comfortable. We are not desperate for change enough that we labor to dig out the golden nuggets God has stored up for us.

“There’s gold in them there hills,” is a well-known declaration. So where are the mountains where we mine gold? I am continually amazed at the gems in the Bible. For those of us who do not read the Old Testament often, we are really missing some of the greatest of all jewels. However, there is even richer territory than the Word. What? Did I really write that? Well, lest your heart fail you, the Word is the map to this richest of all gold veins. I am referring to the inspired Word of God.

God speaks directly to our hearts and minds. He has not gone mute in the last two centuries. He is still speaking today. Really, learning to hear His voice speaking directly to each of us is one of the most precious finds of all. If my experience is any judge, this blessing does not come easily to all people. I had to desperately seek God in order to have my ears opened. It was completely worth everything I did to find His voice. Now, I read the Word with Him. He, and His Spirit, lead me and instruct me as I read. It is just as though they tell me where to dig. “There is gold in them there Scriptures, Ivey. Dig here.” Some days I find it difficult to get through a chapter because the Holy Spirit reveals so much from a single sentence, or indeed, from a single word.

I wish to encourage you to seek God desperately. Seek Him with all your heart and with all your might. Seek Him as if your life depends on it. Get into the Word and begin to dig out the golden nuggets that are hidden there for you. The jewels are for those who purpose to find them. For once, it is good to be called a Gold Digger.

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Called Out

On June 15, 2015   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Isaiah 45: 3

And I will give you the treasures of darkness, and hidden wealth of secret places, in order that you may know that it is I, the Lord, the God of Israel, who calls you by your name.

Did you know that you are called of the Lord? And that he has called you by name? Well, you are called. He has called you to himself. Who will answer his call? He is willing to pour out his blessing on you to confirm his call on your life. The secret to all of this is in the answering of his call. Run to him with all that you are. Withhold nothing from him. So many people pray to him for the things they need when the real answer is to turn your face to him. You do not have to call him. He is already present with you, calling your name. You have only to acknowledge him. In every way that you acknowledge him, he will be your Lord and bless you. If you let him be the Lord of your health, he will bless you in your body. If you acknowledge him in your finances, he will release his blessings in your financial life. Acknowledge him in all your ways and he will make your paths straight (Proverb 3: 6).

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