Nowadays, a person's name is often thought of as just as a label. Would your life be all that different if you had a different name? However, most of the time in the Bible, a person's name not only identified them, but described them as well.
So does the name God make you feel the power? Probably not. The word “god” is thrown around so much it's more of a vague authoritarian concept than a name anymore, but that's because you don't know God's real name. The word “God” is usually a generalized translation of the names of God. That's right I said names, as in plural. God has many names and each one conveys his power and authority in a different light. (It's important to note that people didn't choose these names for God. It is said that God revealed these names to his people.) Let's run through a few of these:
Elohim (e-lo-HEEM): It means “strong one” and “mighty creator.” This name appears in the first sentence of the Bible right before he makes, ya know, everything.
YHWH or the modern spelling Yahweh (I've heard it as yah-WEH and yo-VAH): It means “to exist, be.” This name appears the most in the Old Testament, most famously as the “I AM that I AM” speech for Moses from the burning bush. It is most commonly used in connection with the redeeming power of God and saving his people.
Adonai (a-do-NAI): It means “Lord” or “Master.” It is used as a term of respect and superiority. From what I've read, speaking the name YHWH is avoided out of reverence for the name, so Adonai is often used in its place.
Abba (ab-BA): This is New Testament Greek that Jesus busts out meaning “Father” or more accurately “Daddy.” It shows the personalized relationship.
That's an extremely short list. There are many more. And be careful with those pronunciations because I'm not very good with my Hebrew phonetics.
If you name your kids based on how awesome you want them to be:
So does the name God make you feel the power? Probably not. The word “god” is thrown around so much it's more of a vague authoritarian concept than a name anymore, but that's because you don't know God's real name. The word “God” is usually a generalized translation of the names of God. That's right I said names, as in plural. God has many names and each one conveys his power and authority in a different light. (It's important to note that people didn't choose these names for God. It is said that God revealed these names to his people.) Let's run through a few of these:
Elohim (e-lo-HEEM): It means “strong one” and “mighty creator.” This name appears in the first sentence of the Bible right before he makes, ya know, everything.
YHWH or the modern spelling Yahweh (I've heard it as yah-WEH and yo-VAH): It means “to exist, be.” This name appears the most in the Old Testament, most famously as the “I AM that I AM” speech for Moses from the burning bush. It is most commonly used in connection with the redeeming power of God and saving his people.
Adonai (a-do-NAI): It means “Lord” or “Master.” It is used as a term of respect and superiority. From what I've read, speaking the name YHWH is avoided out of reverence for the name, so Adonai is often used in its place.
Abba (ab-BA): This is New Testament Greek that Jesus busts out meaning “Father” or more accurately “Daddy.” It shows the personalized relationship.
That's an extremely short list. There are many more. And be careful with those pronunciations because I'm not very good with my Hebrew phonetics.
If you name your kids based on how awesome you want them to be:
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