The First Epistle of Names

Introduction

From Jesse, as one who has been called to spread the glory of the name of Yahweh, to my dear friends and family in the faith.

Dear friends and family in the faith, I have been given a gift that I would like to share with you all. Indeed, this gift is that which is brought by the Spirit of Truth that the apostle John spoke of, guiding me into a deeper understanding and relationship with the Most High God that we love and worship. My eyes are being opened to new truths every day.

This profound truth which I would like to share with you is to know, to love, and to call upon the eternal, unchanging name of God, which we know as YHWH, or Yahweh. I pray that through reading this letter, the truth of the knowledge of God’s name will be revealed to you on an intimate level.

The Reason for the Name

By now, I’m sure that many of you are asking why such a thing deemed trivial by most standards is being heralded as a “revealed truth” by me. It is my goal that through the reading of my letter to you, that you will see the truth behind several objective points, namely first and foremost, that our God has a holy and divine name, this name being Yahweh, and has blessed us with knowledge of it. Secondly, my friends, I fear that the reason it has been hidden from you for so long is that the devil seeks nothing more than to soil the holy name of Yahweh. His holy name has been eradicated from over 6000 occurrences within the Scriptures. The result is that today, we are left with such substitutes as “Lord” and “God” in stead of His holy name. A title is not a name, and to use “God” or “Lord” as replacements of His name is to forsake the name.

My friends, there are words yet to speak on behalf of the Most High. It is not I who says this, but Yahweh Himself has said it. To our forefathers He has said in Leviticus 22:32-33, “Neither shall you profane My holy name; but I will be hallowed among the children of Israel: I am Yahweh which sanctifies you, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, to be your God: I am Yahweh.” And again in Exodus 3:14-16, to Moses, “Yahweh the God of your fathers has sent me to you. This is My name forever, and this is My memorial to all generations.” Yahweh spoke this to Isaiah the prophet as well, saying in Isaiah 42:8, “I am Yahweh, that is My name; and My glory I will not give to another.”

Since the days of Seth, the third recorded son of Adam, men have called upon the name Yahweh. (Genesis 4:26) Although that was thousands of years ago, nothing has changed since then. We are His offspring (Hosea 1:10; Romans 9:26), and His creation (Genesis 1-2), and we have been commanded by the holy Scriptures to use His name in prayers, in blessings, in exaltations, in forms of respect, and even in spreading His name to others.

At this point, one is inclined to ask- “Why? What’s in a name?” This is exactly what I would like to share with you, unashamedly declared by Jeremiah 10:6, that there is power in the name of Yahweh: “Forasmuch as there is none like You, O Yahweh; You are great, and Your name is great in might.” It is my conviction that if one is to go through the Scriptures, to actually seek out and study the overwhelming evidence in support of using His name– not His title– the results are astounding.

Fear (Respect) His Name

We are commanded to fear His name, or to hold reverent respect for both His name and the character that His name represents. 1 Chronicles 16:29 declares, “Give unto Yahweh the glory due unto His name: bring an offering, and come before Him: worship Yahweh in the beauty of holiness.”

His name is beautiful! His name– an extension of Himself– is worthy to be revered according to Psalm 111:9. “He sent redemption unto His people: He has commanded His covenant for ever: holy and reverend is His name.”

Praise His Name

We are instructed to exalt His name, and to elevate His name to the highest place of worship– not just because of a name, but because of who this name represents. We are to exalt His name not only in our private lives, but in fellowship of others as well.

As told in Isaiah 12:4, “And in that day you shall say, ‘Praise Yahweh, call upon His name, declare His doings among the people, make mention that His name is exalted.’ ”

Again it is said by Psalm 7:17, “I will praise Yahweh according to His righteousness: and will sing praise to the name of Yahweh most high.”

And yet again by Psalm 34:3, “Oh- magnify Yahweh with me, and let us exalt His name together.”

This is my urging to you, my friends: worship Yahweh with me. Do not give your praise to a distant god; but rather, to the living God of Israel: His name is Yahweh, and He seeks your praise. Psalms 68:4 declares, “Sing unto God, sing praises to His name: extol He who rides upon the heavens by His name Yah, and rejoice before Him.”

By this, we are taught to praise and exalt His name both in word and in action. Even in most English translations, we are given His name as Yah (shortened or poetic form of Yahweh), and thus are left without excuse.

Psalm 96:2,8; “Sing unto Yahweh, bless His name; show forth His salvation from day to day… Give unto Yahweh the glory due unto his Name: bring an offering, and come into His courts.” By substituting a title for a name, we have robbed Yahweh of the glory due unto His name.

Blessed be the Name of Yahweh

My friends, I firmly believe that speaking blessings to His name must go beyond praise, exaltation, and worship; we must salute, adore, and to kneel before our God by His name with high respect. His name is eternal, and His blessing is eternal, as Psalm 72:17 declares, “His name shall endure for ever: His name shall be continued as long as the sun: and men shall be blessed in Him: all nations shall call Him blessed.”

In many congregations today it is common to sing out, “Blessed be the name of the Lord”. But what name is this? Is it not more fitting to sing out, “Blessed be the name of Yahweh” and to actually speak a blessing to His name, both in Spirit, and in Truth?

This blessing is from Job 1:21, “And said, Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return there: Yahweh gave, and Yahweh has taken away; blessed be the name of Yahweh.” Also it is reflected in Psalm 113:2, “Blessed be the name of Yahweh from this time forth and for evermore.”

Scripture has so clearly defined this truth for us, that we are to eternally bless the name of Yahweh, in good times and in bad. To worship Yahweh in Spirit and in Truth, we must respect and kneel before Him, regardless of life’s circumstances, and regardless of where we feel He has lead us, and worship Him by name, as He has clearly commanded and instructed us to do.

Declare His Name to Others

The commission to spread the good news of His name to others is one that has been carried out longer than most people realize. Moses proclaimed to the nation of Israel in Deuteronomy 32:3, “I will publish the name of the Yahweh: ascribe greatness unto our God.” He made good on his promise by giving us the first five books of the Scripture. These books, known as Torah, unashamedly proclaim the name of Yahweh from front to back.

When Yashua, the only begotten Son of Yahweh came into the world, He came to continue this promise. In the words of Yashua’s prayer from John 17:6, “I have manifested Your name unto the men whom you have given Me out of the world: Yours they were, and You gave them to Me; and they have kept Your word.” Why did He manifest His Father’s name so diligently? He later explains in verse 26, “And I have declared unto them Your name, and will declare it: that the love with which You have loved Me may be in them, and I in them.”

Conclusion

Why have we have replaced His name with the same title that we give to the false gods and the idols? It is time to repent of this practice which Yahweh has instructed us not to do by Hosea 2:17, “For I will take from her mouth the names of the Baals (masters, gods, lords), and they shall be remembered by their name no more.” Are there not these many gods within the world, yet one God rules over them all? Is not Zeus a god, and he has a name? Is not Molech a god, and he still has a name? Has not even Baal taken the title of god– and his name is still remembered? Why then do we not render glory to the name of the God of gods– the God of Israel– the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob?

Yahweh is this God, and holy His name sets him apart from and above all others. The apostle Paul has rightly said that even the pagans know Him as the “unknown god”. What is there to set us apart as His children, if we do not know and love His holy name? For this, He is worshiped in ignorance, as Yashua rebuked in Mark 7:8, “For laying aside the commandment of God, you hold the tradition of men.”

He is not a distant title, but rather, He is a living Being. He dwells not in temples made with hands, but rather, He dwells in the temples of our bodies that He has prepared since the beginning, not for us, but for Himself. To know Yahweh is to love Him. It is for this reason that He must be worshiped in Spirit and in Truth; not only in Spirit, and not only in Truth. There are many who worship in spirit, but in forsaking His holy name, do not worship Him in truth. Is He not the God of truth? Is His Spirit not the Spirit of Truth which brings revelation, and are the Scriptures not His written truth which is more pure than refined silver? “Yes,” the Spirit declares; “Yes,” the Word declares; the Father is to be worshiped in truth by His holy name Yahweh, which will endure forever.