Divine Disconnect

Ascribing greatness to our God. It's like telling somebody the sun is bright. The Divine disconnect. Names become best known by action.

See, we humans possess a peculiar limitation in that we cannot fully appreciate the identity of someone until we've experienced their name in action. Don't tell me you're courageous. Show me. Don't merely proclaim your ability to rescue me from Egyptian bondage. Let me feel the immense oppression first, so that I can truly savor the magnitude of your Salvation. The divine flexing of muscles that shatters the chains no human power could break heretofore.

We can read the word gracious, but until we fully tasted that the Lord is gracious, will we remain ignorant of the texture, the tone, the depth, and that soul satisfying richness embedded within that singular adjective. Gracious. If so, be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious.

We must experience God's attributes uniquely and singularly before we can treasure them enough to share properly with others. You can tell me all day about your perception of God, but until I see it and experience it, I'm not going to know him properly.

Knowing this human proclivity, let us resist our tendency to file God away in neat manila folders, organizing his infinite attributes into cute categories within locked filing cabinets. Though countless books catalog the names of God with scholarly precision, what we truly need is to meditate, marinate, and immerse ourselves afresh in the Divine, each Divine attribute until it becomes precious to us.

We speak of things and people that we passionately love. So the intro question here becomes: What peculiar attribute of God is so distinctive and overpowering my life in this season that I just cannot stop talking about it?

We have all of eternity to explore his attributes. Let's begin now to envision the excellence and expanse of the immeasurable measure of who our God truly is.

Understanding Divine Attributes

Webster's 1828 dictionary says an attribute comes from "ad" and "tribute," to give or assign. To add tribute, that which is attributed, that which is considered as belonging to or inherent within, as the attributes of God belong to God.

Number two definition: Quality. Characteristic disposition, as bravery is an attribute of a good soldier.

Definition three: A thing belonging to another and a pendant that which you can pin on to someone accurately.

Number four: The reputation of a person, such as their honor.

The great God desires to express himself to us gradually, significantly, diversely. Divine names are expressions of essential attributes going beyond mere labels to reveal God's deep being and massive action. Why did you do that? "Well, because of who I am." Well, who are you? Let's talk about it.

Beyond Conceptual Names to Embracing Divine Attributes

The Scripture views divine names as far deeper than mere identifiers—does not for our knowledge in our head. It's for our feeling and doing in our heart. These attributes are revelations of God's essential nature, his character, his patterns, and his purpose for action.

The Hebrew and the Greek etymology (which means the history and the formation of language—you should love that word because God is the greatest etymology) supports this understanding.

Progressive Revelation

Number one: Divine attributes are progressive revelation. The names in Scripture are expressive of the essence of the being under consideration, that being God. There's a book called "Making Sense of the Divine Names," and Exodus explains the divine names in Scripture reveal God's nature to teach Israel about their relationship to him. The names are not static, but dynamic indicators of God's interaction with humanity. Boom! Moderate explosion of comprehension right here.

Number two: Hebrew etymology unpacks. The name may be derived from a verb that means to be, to exist, to cause, to become, or to come to pass. God's names are tied to his actions. They express both who he is and what he does. Smiley face.

Greek language context: In our New Testament, divine names move with profound theological meaning. Terms such as "theos," "creoles," and "pater" (which means father in Greek) are used to reference various facets of examining the expanse of God. It's like we have to move to get a fresh look from this perspective, and then let's go over here and let's look back and—oh wow, there's a whole new dimension from this angle.

Divine Names for God the Father

Primary Names and Their Matching Attributes

Yahweh: "I am who I am," or "I will be what I will be and have been forever." I'm me—expresses the eternal self-existence of the only one who can claim that. It's... this name reveals his continual faithfulness, his perpetual, unchanging nature. The same Jesus, the same. The father is faithful.

Next: This name, Yahweh, demonstrates God's ever-presence. He's "I am" everywhere.

Elohim or El (God): Powers—expresses his divine might flexing and his transcendence, his power to overcome. Elohim is thus the plural construct of powers. Jesus said, "All power is given unto me." That means there's no power outside the scope of his reach and realm of powers. Everything's been delegated to Him inside the Godhead, because God is overseeing and powering all power. So Elohim is thus the plural construct of powers. Hebrew grammar allows for this form to mean He is the power (singular) over all powers (plural). Smile. If you have a smile, take it out of your purse and put it on your face.

El Shaddai: God Almighty, God of the mountain, God of the flex space—expresses his design, divine sustenance and flow. He is the outflow of energy. In other words, another word much like Shaddai (and from which many believe is derived) is "shad," which means breast in Hebrew. This refers to God's completely nourishing, satisfying, and supplying his people.

Adonai: Lord, master—expresses his divine oversight. He's concerned. Indicates monocyte covenantal offer: "I'll hold up my end of the bargain," God says, regardless of what you guys do.

Divine Names for Jesus, the Christ

Primary Attributes and Offices

Who is he? Well, in the beginning was the word.

The Logos in Greek expresses excellence in divine communication and perfect revelation, both in stylistic selection and pacing, dexterity, armature delivery, passion, purpose and intrigue. He's compelling. He's curiosity-evoking. "Let's go listen to the man down by the sea." "Mommy, can we go listen to the teacher?" "Which one?" "You know, the guy that's entertaining. The one that tells us about the father and the stories and the... Hey, let's go listen to Jesus."

John one calls Jesus the logos, often used as "the word God." Jesus came to better reveal God's essential, harmonious nature made manifest. I love that word. It's like a softball pitch. It's just... it's nice and slow motion. It's floating right there. Come on, you can hit it. Here it comes now. It's something that's so now made abundantly, undeniably obvious and clear that if you miss it, it's not God's fault. You had every opportunity repeatedly given to you. "What do you mean you didn't understand?" Wrong answer. It was manifest.

He's the bread of life. The word bread can refer to more than just grain. It means spiritual sustenance. He's our single source of power food. He's... this demonstrates his provision and nourishment. He's all the vitamins and minerals and the taste that you need. And he's multi-flavored. In fact, he tastes great with any proper topping. Put another scoop of goodness. Boom! Right there.

Number 3: Jesus is the door. I can't pronounce that in Greek. Maybe... Exclusivity of access to God. Solo only. He's the exit and the entrance. This reveals his salvific function. There's one door. Here's the deal: No other entry. Can't get in through the window. You must come in at the door.

He's the good shepherd. "He is the good shepherd. I am following toward home. I'm so glad I let him hold my trembling hand." This expresses his care, his guidance, his willingness to sacrifice. Jesus calls himself the good Shepherd who lays down his life for his sheep. His voice has a distinctive tenor frequency that only his sheep discern and respond to. Jesus said, "My... here, my sheep know my voice."

He's the servant. This role activates as humility and obedience. Can you see it? A servant demonstrating sacrificial love. A willingness to work is stooping. He's kneeling now. He's grabbing the dirty dishcloth. And he's washing the unworthy feet of the one who just is about to blaspheme him.

He's the Prince of Peace. He's the beginning of the begotten of the beloved. He's bringing in the kingdom. It's slow on arrival, but when it gets here, everybody will know. He's the desire of all nation. He's the king of all castles. He's the prince bringing a calming effect. He unveils his mission of affiliation, to wit, that God was in Christ reconciling the world unto himself. He brings sweeter results than chamomile tea. He's ultimately calming. He speaks peace in the midst of my storm-tossed life.

Divine Names for the Holy Ghost

Which he happens to call himself the Holy Ghost most frequently in Scripture. So who are we to become embarrassed with the name?

Primary Names with Matching Actions

He's the Paraclete. That means he's a pair of cleats that you wear onto the soccer field. No, it means he's the helper, the advocate, the comforter all bundled into one. The word here, it's a combination of "para," which means to come along beside, to stand right here, and "Colleen," which is to call, or the one who picks up the call when you need a helper. When you need a friend, who are you going to call?

The word first appears in the Bible in John 14:16 as one uniquely called alongside to assist. Can you raise your hand if you've ever needed a helper? Pause to smile.

Supernatural spirit presence felt not by our senses, but in the supernatural realm. He's felt alongside welcoming believers—those who would welcome his presence, those who are not hard-hearted and resistant and already got it all figured out and don't need God, but yet rather those who humbly welcome him in to help us.

He functions as our advocate. He articulates the essence of our position and our emotions, and our confusion. He further eloquently expresses to the father on our behalf how we feel and what we desire, when we can't even express ourselves. He's our defender and he's our strengthener. He brings courage. He infuses oxygen into our tank.

He's also called the Spirit of Truth (capital T). He takes the truth that is Christ and he makes it glow. He takes the truth and he lights it on fire. He's the courage and the boldness. He's the glow in your cheekbones. He's the countenance. He's that resurgence of something from the inside. He's the...

He reveals the revelatory function, the Spirit of Truth. He dives in depth into expounding the nature of the son. The Spirit doesn't talk about himself, but rather he helps us reflect and grow in our understanding about the father and the son. He's a tour guide. He's guiding all willing students into further truth.

Number 3: The Holy Ghost is the teacher that asks us. Jesus promised that the spirit would teach his disciples all things and bring all things to their remembrance that he had said unto them. He's the illuminator, the divine glow that makes the entrance of thy words give light to the simple. He takes precise language and makes it yummy.

That's why leave the language alone. If you want the presence of the Holy Spirit, stop twisting and perverting and forcing your own personality on the language. Just pretend that the language was perfect before you got here. That... that... that God doesn't need your opinion on how He talks.

Number next one: He's the anointing. That's the pouring of the oil. And it results in output, the spirit of spiritual discernment and ultimate clarity to know good from evil, right from wrong, darkness from light. He sanctifies and empowers for selective service. Somebody say "Amen" if you know how, right here.

Number 5: He's the comforter. Man, I need that in a consolation sense.
He enshrouds the grieving and the suffering and the struggling saints in deep billows of divine consolation. Like layers of a cocoon of comfort.

Why Does This Matter the Most?

Help my tongue, dear God. The multiplicity of divine names reveals the inexhaustible nature of God. A book called "Names and Titles of Jesus" explains it this way: His divine identity is also disclosed by his saving actions, the attributes of deity ascribed to him, and then the adoration that he receives as God as a result.

Each name is more than a stark clinical label. It's indeed a window into the ethereal reality, expressing specific facets, functions, and relational aspects of God's immense identity.

His names are progressively unfolding through salvation's timeline.

How Does That Look?

Well, in Genesis, first we meet him as God. Then he's timeless from the beginning. Next: "In the beginning, God created" as the Creator. Then He's massive. He created both the heaven and the earth. "Wow, must be powerful."

And then we see the trifecta of the Godhead working in harmony, where the word spoke the worlds into existence and the spirit formed the worlds, and the father intended the world. Then we see that God is by his nature, very good. Everything that he produced was initially originally good, and that he wants to preserve it as such.

However, sin entered into the world. We see then that God took a walk with humans in the cool of the day as their compassionate, compassionate communicator, carving out time for relationships that matter. And then He became their protective lawgiver. "You can go this far, but just don't go past this line. I want to protect you. I want to give you a good future. Just don't go off the road." A protective lawgiver.

Which then we messed that up. So he became then the provider of Salvation. Sacrificial Salvation. Blood Salvation. Innocent Salvation. Substitute Salvation. "My own son will have to provide salvation."

Here's the Personal Challenge: Engaging with God's Attributes

To the men and whoever reading this, I present a transformative exercise. Take a moment and write down your top three favorite attributes of God. These should be the characteristics that most immediately stir your heart, have become precious through personal experience, that you find yourself returning to again and again. When you talk about and compliment God, praise and worship—top three.

Then this is equally important: Write down the top three, the lowest three attributes that are least exciting. They're generally confusing, or they generate questions. These might be divine characteristics you struggle to understand, seem distant from your experience, or that challenge your comprehension of God's nature.

This Exercise Serves Multiple Purposes

Number one: It reveals which aspect of God's character has become real to you through experience, that part of God that you can grasp most easily.

Number two: It identifies areas of your understanding that might need deepening because you know who is responsible for your spiritual relationship, primarily you.

It creates a roadmap for spiritual growth and exploration that they may recover themselves out of the snare and the trap of stagnancy. Don't be stagnant. Be growing.

Number four: It encourages honest engagement with the full spectrum of God's revealed nature. Like, maybe I don't know that part about God yet because I just haven't... I haven't.

Number five: Helps you see how best to engage the world in spiritual conversation, back and forth, both directions. Being vulnerable and passionate, both. If people think that you know everything, they don't want to hear what you have to say. If people resonate... when you deliver the gospel, say, "You know, I got my... my I got one or two, maybe three favorite things about God. And then there's some parts that I struggle with because, you know, an unsaved person has been resisting at least one part of God, and we don't want to talk to them in condescending tones. We are indeed their equal, um, in many areas."

So remember this: Attributes that confuse us today may become tomorrow's greatest treasures. The God who seems distant in one aspect may become intimately known through that very characteristic.

As you engage with both lists, your top three and your lower three, allow yourself to be stretchy, challenged, ultimately transformed by the inexhaustible richness of who our great God is.

The Gospel Challenge

Every gospel resister (which everybody knows the gospel, they just don't like it—they resist it for some reason) are actually pushing away one or more of the attributes of who God claims to be.

Therefore, as compassionate ambassadors for Christ, we need to become familiar with the identity of the God that we represent, to the point that we can express His identity accurately and scripturally, so that people can no longer have an excuse. The Bible says in Romans one, "so that they are without excuse." They know his eternal power and Godhead. They know the invisible things that are expressed to them. They have a conscience. They have the law written in their hearts. They see clearly those who resist God, and they choose to join one team or the other.

So attributes in action are easier to express to others.