The God Who Is More Than Enough | Names of God | Pastor Jerrell Jobe

Come on, let's cross over and keep our hands like this, hey! Come on, let's cross over and let's sing! Come on church, declare! You get all the praise when you say, Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia Come on, let's declare this together! And far more than I could explain And through every season, in spite of my weakness He gave me a song I could sing And I came to praise And I came to praise That's why I woke up today That's why I woke up today I came to praise When you say, Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia You get all the praise When you say, Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia You get all the praise Always I've got a king who is risen He put my slave in the grave Went to hell and back again Now I never have to begin it Only three days And I came to praise And I came to praise That's why I woke up today That's why I woke up today I came to praise When you say, Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia You get all the praise

When you say, Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia You get all the praise Always I'm singing in the morning I'm singing at night I'm singing in the battle That's how I fight I'm singing He's holy I'm singing it twice I'm singing He's holy the rest of my life I'm singing in the morning I'm singing at night I'm singing in the battle That's how I fight I'm singing He's holy I'm singing it twice I'm singing He's holy the rest of my life I'm singing He's holy the rest of my life And Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia You get all the praise When you say, Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia You get all the praise Always Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia You get all the praise When you say, Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia You get all the praise Always I'm singing in the morning I'm singing at night

I'm singing in the battle That's how I fight I'm singing He's holy I'm singing it twice I'm singing He's holy the rest of my life Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia You get all the praise Always I came to pray I came to pray Get out of my way Get out of my way I came to pray I came to pray Come on let's give Him praise Alleluia They can't hear you when you pray They can't save you, there's no power in that Cause there is only one, only one ♪ And every other king has a rival ♪ ♪ But in the end they pass away ♪ ♪ There's no other that could put death in its grave ♪ ♪ Cause there is only one, only one ♪ ♪ And Jesus the only one who is worthy ♪ ♪ Only one, only one, Jesus the only ♪ ♪ Gave all the glory to the one true living God ♪ ♪ Jesus the only one who is worthy ♪ ♪ Only one, only one, Jesus the only ♪ ♪ Gave all the glory to the one true living God ♪ ♪ You are holy, you are righteous ♪

♪ The one that sin could never stay, no ♪ ♪ And though you did no wrong, you got up on that cross ♪ ♪ And you're the only one, the only one ♪ ♪ And Jesus the only one who is worthy ♪ ♪ Only one, only one, Jesus the only ♪ ♪ Gave all the glory to the one true living God ♪ ♪ Jesus the only one who is worthy ♪ ♪ Only one, only one, Jesus the only ♪ ♪ Gave all the glory to the one true living God ♪ ♪ To the one true living God ♪ ♪ To the one true living God ♪ ♪ Every knee will bow, every tongue will cry ♪ ♪ At the name of Jesus ♪ ♪ Hear the shackles fall, every sickness gone ♪ ♪ In the name of Jesus ♪ ♪ Every demon flee, all his children free ♪ ♪ In the name of Jesus ♪ ♪ See the one true God rise above them all ♪ ♪ In his name is Jesus ♪ ♪ Every knee will bow, every tongue cry out ♪ ♪ At the name of Jesus ♪ ♪ Hear the shackles fall, every sickness gone ♪ ♪ In the name of Jesus ♪ ♪ Every demon flee, all his children free ♪ ♪ In the name of Jesus ♪ ♪ See the one true God rise above them all ♪ ♪ In his name is Jesus ♪ ♪ Jesus in his name is ♪ ♪ Jesus in his name is ♪ ♪ Jesus in his name is ♪

♪ Jesus in his name is Jesus ♪ ♪ Jesus the only one who is worthy ♪ ♪ Only one, only one ♪ ♪ Jesus the only, give all the glory ♪ ♪ To the one true living God ♪ ♪ Jesus the only one who is worthy ♪ ♪ Only one, only one ♪ ♪ Jesus the only, give all the glory ♪ ♪ To the one true living God ♪ ♪ Every knee will bow, every tongue cry out ♪ ♪ At the name of Jesus ♪ ♪ Hear the shackles fall, every sickness gone ♪ ♪ In the name of Jesus ♪ ♪ Every demon free, all the children free ♪ ♪ In the name of Jesus ♪ ♪ See the one true God rise above them all ♪ ♪ In his name is Jesus, in his name is Jesus ♪ ♪ In his name is Jesus, in his name is Jesus ♪ ♪ In his name is Jesus ♪ ♪ His name is Jesus, his name is Jesus ♪ ♪ Yes we praise you Lord, yes we praise you Lord ♪ ♪ Cause his name is Jesus, you're the only one, the only one ♪ ♪ You're the only one, the only one ♪ ♪ The only one, yes we love you ♪ ♪ You're the only one, the only one that can save and heal ♪ ♪ He's the only one, He's the only one that can save and heal ♪ ♪ Because His name is Jesus ♪ ♪ His name is Jesus ♪ ♪ Every knee will bow, every tongue cry at the name of Jesus ♪ ♪ Hear the shackles fall, every sickness gone in the name of Jesus ♪

♪ Every tear will bleed, all the children free in the name of Jesus ♪ ♪ Jesus is the one true God, eyes above them all and His name is Jesus ♪ ♪ Every knee will bow, every tongue cry out at the name of Jesus ♪ ♪ Hear the shackles fall, every sickness gone in the name of Jesus ♪ ♪ Every demon flee, all the children free in the name of Jesus ♪ ♪ Jesus is the one true God, eyes above them all and His name is Jesus ♪ ♪ Jesus is the one true God, eyes above them all and His name is Jesus ♪ ♪ Every knee will bow, every tongue cry out at the name of Jesus ♪ ♪ Hear the shackles fall, every sickness gone in the name of Jesus ♪ ♪ Jesus is the one true God, eyes above them all and His name is Jesus ♪ ♪ His name is Jesus, His name is Jesus, His name is Jesus, His name is Jesus ♪ ♪ His name is Jesus, His name is Jesus, His name is Jesus, His name is Jesus ♪ ♪ Jesus the only one who is worthy, only one, only one ♪ ♪ Jesus the only, give all the glory to the one true living God ♪ ♪ Jesus the only one who is worthy, only one, only one ♪ ♪ Jesus the only, give all the glory to the one true living God ♪ ♪ To the one true living God ♪ ♪ To the one true living God ♪ ♪ To the one true living God ♪ ♪ To the one true living God ♪ Thank you, Jesus. ♪ Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus ♪ ♪ So turn your eyes upon Jesus ♪ ♪ Look for in his wonderful face ♪ ♪ And the things of earth will grow strangely dim ♪ ♪ In the light of his glory in the night ♪ Sing again, sing turn your eyes. ♪ So turn your eyes upon Jesus ♪ Come on church, let your voice sing. ♪ Look for in his wonderful face ♪

Thank you, Lord. ♪ And the things of earth will grow strangely dim ♪ ♪ In the light of his glory in the night ♪ ♪ In the light of his glory in the night ♪ Yes. Holy. Holy. Thank you, Lord God almighty. Worthy is the Lamb. Worthy is the Lamb. Come on, sing it. You are holy, yes, you are holy. Holy. Lift up your voices, sing it. All you Lord God almighty. Worthy is the Lamb. Worthy is the Lamb. Amen. Thank you, Jesus. Thank you, Lord. Come on, his spirit is in the room today. I love today. Today's a special day. Today is Pentecost Sunday. It's a Sunday that we remember over 2,000 years ago, that the spirit of the Lord came down upon his church and signs, wonders, and miracles started to be. They were broken all over the room. And I love that passage in Acts 2. It says that they were gathering in a room

and suddenly the sound of a violent wind came from heaven. And I just want you to know that every single Sunday when we gather together, we have access to that same spirit. And I want to let you know today that the Holy Spirit is alive, he is real. His name is Jesus and he's in the room today. And no matter how you walk to the room today, whether you felt like worshiping Jesus or you're going through it, he's still worthy of our worship. And I just wonder what it would look like, a room filled with people who are hungry and desperate for the presence of Jesus. Come on, can you just begin to lift up your hands all across the room as a sign of surrender? Come all across the room, just like this. Come on, this is a sign of surrender and dependence on Jesus. Come on, can you begin to stir up the room today? Can you begin to bless his name, say, thank you, Jesus? Come on, would you let worship rise in the room today? Oh, we love you, Lord, we love you, Lord. Oh, we thank you, Jesus. King of kings, we thank you, Lord. Oh, we thank you, Jesus. Lift up your voice, lift up your voice. Give him praise. Oh, we love you, Lord, we love you, Lord. Oh, we love you, Lord, we love you, Lord.

Oh, we love you, Jesus. Is anyone worthy? Is anyone worthy? Is anyone whole? Is anyone able to break the seal and open the scroll? The Lion of Judah, who conquered the grave, he is David's root in the land, who died to ransom the slave. Come on, is anyone worthy? Is anyone worthy? Is anyone whole? Is anyone able to break the seal and open the scroll? He's the Lion of Judah, who conquered the grave, he is David's root in the land, who died to ransom the slave. Come on, is anyone worthy? Is anyone worthy? Is anyone whole? Is anyone able to break the seal and open the scroll? The Lion of Judah, who conquered the grave, he is David's root in the land, who died to ransom the slave. Come on, is anyone worthy? Is anyone worthy? Is anyone whole? Is anyone able to break the seal and open the scroll? As heaven shaves us, he's the Lion of Judah. ♪ We're conquering the grave ♪ ♪ He has taken Jerusalem and the land of Nile ♪ ♪ To ransom the slave ♪

♪ He is worthy, is he worthy ♪ ♪ Of all blessing and honor and glory ♪ ♪ Is he worthy of it ♪ ♪ Yes, he is ♪ Come on, sing, is anyone worthy? ♪ Is anyone worthy, is anyone whole ♪ ♪ Is anyone able or brave to see you and open this world ♪ ♪ The Lion of Judah, who conquered the grave ♪ ♪ He has taken Jerusalem and the land of Nile ♪ ♪ To ransom the slave ♪ ♪ Is anyone worthy, is anyone whole ♪ ♪ Is anyone able or brave to see you and open this world ♪ ♪ He's the Lion of Judah, who conquered the grave ♪ ♪ He has taken Jerusalem and the land of Nile ♪ ♪ To ransom the slave ♪ ♪ Is he worthy, is he worthy ♪ ♪ Of all blessing and honor and glory ♪ ♪ Is he worthy of it ♪ ♪ He is ♪ ♪ He is ♪ ♪ I thank you, Lord ♪ ♪ I thank you, Jesus ♪ ♪ You are worthy of our praise ♪ ♪ You are worthy of our praise ♪ ♪ Cause when you're in the room, everything changes ♪ ♪ When you're in the room, everything changes ♪ ♪ Sickness has to go, demons have to flee ♪ ♪ When you're in the room, Jesus ♪ ♪ When you're in the room, everything changes ♪ ♪ When you're in the room, everything changes ♪

♪ Everything changes, yes, it does, Lord ♪ ♪ When you're in the room, heaven can't hide me ♪ ♪ When you're in the room ♪ ♪ When you're in the room, nothing else matters ♪ ♪ When you're in the room ♪ ♪ When you're in the room, heaven can't hide me ♪ ♪ When you're in the room ♪ ♪ When you're in the room, nothing else matters ♪ ♪ You're in the room with your Lord ♪ ♪ When you're in the room, heaven can't hide me ♪ ♪ You're in the room ♪ ♪ When you're in the room, nothing else matters ♪ ♪ You're in the room, when you're in the room with your Lord ♪ ♪ When you're in the room, heaven can't hide me ♪ ♪ You're in the room ♪ ♪ When you're in the room, nothing else matters ♪ ♪ You're in the room, when you're with your Lord ♪ ♪ You're in the room, paradise can't hide me ♪ ♪ You're in the room ♪ Yes you are! ♪ When you're in the room, nothing else matters ♪ ♪ You're in the room, when you're in the room with your Lord ♪ ♪ When you're in the room, heaven can't hide me ♪ ♪ You're in the room ♪ ♪ When you're in the room, nothing else matters ♪ ♪ You're in the room, when you're with your Lord. Lord! ♪ ♪ When you're in the room, heaven can't hide me ♪ ♪ You're in the room ♪ ♪ When you're in the room, nothing else matters ♪ ♪ You're in the room, when you're in the room with your Lord ♪

♪ When you're in the room ♪ ♪ I see miracles break loose God. ♪ ♪ When you're in the room, depression has to go. ♪ When you leave the room, all praise belongs to you, Jesus Cause you are worthy, Lord, yes you are, Lord The first, the last, the spotless, the only one to conquer He lives, He lives In Christ supreme, the victory, He robs the grave, He holds the deep Cause He lives, He lives The first, the last, the spotless, the only one to conquer He lives, He lives In Christ supreme, the victory, He robs the grave, He holds the deep Cause He lives, He lives The first, the last, the spotless, the only one to conquer Cause He lives, He lives In Christ supreme, the victory, He robs the grave, He holds the deep Cause He lives, He lives And He reigns forever, holy, holy, full of glory Worthy is the Lord, and He reigns forever Holy, holy, full of glory Worthy is the Lord, and He reigns forever Holy, holy, full of glory Worthy is the Lord, and He reigns forever Holy, holy, King of glory Worthy is the Lord The first, the last, the spotless, the only one to conquer And He reigns, cause He reigns In Christ supreme, the victory, He robs the grave, He holds the deep Cause He reigns, cause He reigns And He reigns forever

Hallelujah! Come on, make some noise! Come on. So good, so good, so good. Hey will you take your right hand, I want you to just put it right here, right here. We just sang that He reigns, that is a biblical, theological truth that none of you can change. Amen. However, when Paul's writing to the book of Colossians, he says, let Christ reign in your hearts. He can reign over all, but He may not reign over anxiety, He may not reign over depression, He may not reign over worry, unless, unless, unless, we declare, we submit, we live into, He rules and He reigns here. So would you pray with me? God, we sang about it, and we're grateful for that truth. And may that truth work its way into the very smallest, darkest crevice of our soul, to the doubt, to the worry, to the anxiety, to the fear, to the control, to the hurt, to the pain, to the anger, to the lust. May the peace, the wholeness of Christ rule thereto, reign thereto, and may we learn what it means to walk in that pace, in that peace, and with our lives, proclaim, You reign over all. In Jesus' name, and everybody said, amen, and amen. You may be seated both here and in Grand Rapids. Come on, it's a good day, right? It's Memorial Day weekend. I don't know what that means for tomorrow, you and work, but it is a good time just to stop and pause and to say thanks to those who have served our country, especially if you're here and you've lost someone dear to you, someone that you loved in the act of serving our country. We honor you today in their memory. We just say thank you.

Regardless of where we stand politically, I think we could all say we're grateful to live in a place that we have freedoms. And so we remember those that help us get those. If you're here for the first time, so glad you're here. Sometimes we say, I don't know what took you so long to get here. But we're glad you're here today. If you're joining from En Guerrero Español or in our Grand Rapids location, welcome to you. But also a special welcome, we got a bunch of friends that are joining us from jails near and far around Michigan through a Pando app. And I just want to say for what it's worth, we see you. And God is at work in your life, right where you're at. And He's at work in our lives here. And that's so good, that's so good. We've been in a series, started last week. Pastor Brian kicked us off looking at the names of God. And on the one hand, it seems kind of elementary. But on the other hand, when you think of like, hello, God. I mean, He's infinite. He knows no beginning. He has no end. He has no creator. He is beyond time, outside of space. He's unknowable in some ways. And we, on the other side of the spectrum, are limited to time and space and mortality and weakness and comprehension. And the mystery of the Bible is this, that the God who is beyond comprehension chooses to make Himself known to you and I. And what sets the story of Scripture apart from every other religious book or philosophical understanding is that we, our story is not of humans groping and crawling and clawing and somehow trying to make their way up to get God's attention.

Rather, it is the all-powerful, all-knowing, all-present God who steps into time and space, clothes Himself with humanity so that we can understand who He is. It's a beautiful story like any other. And to do so, He just tells you His name, right? And so, in this series, we're going to look through a couple of the names that God chooses to help you and I understand who He is. We all have a name. Like, if we haven't met, my name is Gerald. And I've been called all kinds of things. I actually have, true story, an album on my phone of all the different coffee cups and the different names people heard me when they said, what's your name? Gerald. Like, I used to spell it for them, but then I just gave up because it didn't help. I would say J, they'd write G, and I'm like, we're already, you asked me to spell it and J and you, I mean, I've been called like Joe and Jared and Jerry-el and Cheryl, right? I actually looked this week on the album just to remind me, I got a cup that says Drew. I was thinking about it this morning, I might have just stole some boy's cup. But it was a special order, so I know it was mine. And so, I don't know where my name came from. I do have an older brother, true story, his name is Terrell. Growing up, we had a next door neighbor, his name was Daryl. I'm serious, you can't, you can't. I'm from the South, maybe that explains it. But we look in baby books and find trending names or cute rhymes and does this sound good together? And when people about to get married, what's his last name? And you're like, how's that gonna sound if she takes that name? You know, and they're all about sounds and rhymes. But in the ancient Near Eastern culture of which the Bible was written, names weren't just cute or fashionable. Names were actually weighty with meaning and there were plays on words. But they always, always, always disclosed an element of who the person was you're talking about.

Their nature, their character, their personality in a human sense, their qualities in a divine sense, their traits. And often the words had images or metaphors attached to them. And you're like, why? It's because God is infinite and we are finite. And God's like, they're gonna need more than one name to understand who I am. And with that name, he gives us an image because an image is worth, right? And in scripture, you get a thousand images of who God is. A father, a friend, a shepherd, a king, a potter, water, rock, fortress. Because each and every one of those is encapsulating God's revelation to who you and I. So we're gonna continue today with one of the first names that God chooses to give humans in scripture about who he is. And what's fascinating as God reveals himself by names in scripture, he often gives a name that is so germane to what that person's going through or the facet of God they're struggling to comprehend or they don't believe. At times it's in great victory and at times it's in disappointment and discouragement and distress. And this is the context of the name that gets revealed. Today Genesis chapter 17 is what we're looking verses 1 to 7 is what we're reading. It begins like this when Abram was 99 years old that's that's pretty old where I come from 99 years old the Lord appeared to him and said I am God Almighty Walk before me faithfully and be blameless Then I will make my covenant between me and you and will greatly increase your numbers Abram fell Face down. That's what you do when God shows up and you begin to see a facet of who he is that you have not understood before you just fall face Down and God said to him ask for me. This is my covenant with you You will be the father of many nations. No longer. Will you be called Abram? Your name will be Abraham

So God's changing his name and and he's telling him like what that name means for I have made you a Father of many nations, which is what Abraham means you're the father of many nations. I Will make you very fruitful. I will make nations of you and Kings will come from you I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you for generations to come to be your God and the God of your descendants after You would you pray with me God? We pray as we open your word May our hearts be open now our ears Be open may we hear the voice of the one who spoke to Abraham and said I am God Almighty May we hear that same voice speaking to us in our life in our circumstance and who you are as that to us today in Jesus name if I said Amen Abraham God comes to him. He's 99 years old and what's fascinating if you read through the story, this isn't the first time Abram in this case Abraham has encountered God His first encounter with God was in Genesis chapter 12 at the end of chapter 11 to be technical But it Genesis chapter 12 verse 1 God comes to Abram basically says come to me leave your people leave your country Leave your father's house. I'll make you a great nation I'll give you land and I'll give you people and Abraham at that time had no kids He had a wife by the name of Sarai her name will soon also be changed to Sarah, but they had no kids And God says follow me and he leaves he's not in Canaan Israel at the time He's living up in modern-day Iraq Syria kind of the what's called a Mesopotamia area, right? And he leaves that area. That's Genesis 12. You're gonna have family. He has no family. He waits ten years nothing Genesis 15 God shows up In case you're wondering because Abraham's wondering like God, I don't know if you noticed but I ain't got no kids yet How's that gonna happen? And God says here's how it's gonna happen. You are gonna have a son with her Sarah And he waits

13 more years Years of silence and waiting and wondering in questions and at time confusion God You said I'm gonna have a son, but I I'm not I'm no closer to having son In fact a the Apostle Paul writing in the New Testament Romans chapter 4 when he's looking back at Abraham He says Abraham is good as dead You know what he's talking about, right? in the bed Just like he's not able to have a child. He's good as dead ain't gonna happen and and to boot on top of that We're told in the story throughout Genesis that Sarah his wife is barren It's a detail we're given about her long before the promise even comes that she'll have a child It's the story Genesis is amazing You see the characters on the stage but every once in a while the narrator just kind of peeps up behind the corner and he gives you and I some clues about what's going on that are meant to Cause us to be like, how's that gonna roll out? So the narrator's like she's barren She can't have a kid and then God shows up. It's like she's gonna have a kid and we're supposed to be like Oh, this will be good. This will be good, but she doesn't know The other story, right? And in the ancient Near Eastern time to be barren is not just disappointment. It's shame. It's grief. It's there's something wrong with you woman The gods are angry and what did you do it it spills over into the New Testament You remember that story Jesus and his boys are walking by they see a blind guy and the disciples are like hey boss Like like who's sinned him or his parents said he's blind and I don't know what the blind guy was thinking But if I'd been me, I'd be like hello. I'm in the room Right. I can hear yous, but they thought like like somebody messed up They did a sin gods were upset and and Sarah is living. She's already lived with this disappointment Fascinating fascinating before he even takes her as a wife before God even says she will have a child. We're told She's barren and it just tells us this character trait that Abraham takes her as a wife And he knows she's not gonna have a kid Talking about love talking about patience talking about and and and God speaks you have a kid 20. What's the point five? years

And it's in that situation it's in that Discouragement or distress or despondency that God is Going to show up and God gives them a name for who he is And so this whole series, we're just looking at different names In fact to accompany each week we do this for all our series But if you go in the app, you should download and get a church app if you don't have it But also on the website, but in there there's a link in the website at the bottom of the app It just says series resources and it's got small group plans You can do it your small group or with with a family But it's also got a Bible reading plan and then we went above and beyond on this one We actually also created kind of an extended devotional with a prayer guide and the goal is this we don't just want to talk About the names of God They're actually meant to somehow integrate into the fabric of how we relate to God and live our lives And so this prayer guide is meant to help us kind of integrate these names and realize so you could download that and check that Out, but here's a name God comes to him and he just simply says in verse 2. I am God all Mighty and the Hebrew phrase. This is our name It's one of those it's easy to read by God Almighty, but but to the readers in the early years It's like our listeners like he just told us his name and the name is this L should I know should I And theologians and Bible scholars and students all along do what they do. What does that mean? What does that mean? What does that mean? and so what do you do you look at the time and the place in the context in the culture the language of linguistics and The history and and what is that meaning and there's at least three that I want to give us The first meaning of this is believed to be understood. El Shaddai means the mountain God I know that probably didn't give you goosebumps The mountain God and why is that because the Akkadian word?

Shaddu means mountain and you you got it in Hebrew Shaddai and you're probably thinking what in the world does Akkadian have to do with Hebrew? It has a lot to do because Abraham isn't from Israel. He's not from the modern-day land of Cain He's living in what's called the Mesopotamia the land between the rivers the tigers and Euphrates And that's the heartland of the Akkadian kingdom at that time And we know at that time the language Akkadian is the lingua franca franca It's the universal language of that whole region. We have tablets from 1800 BC But specifically around 1350 BC that they found in Egypt and you got Egyptians and Mitanni and Hittites Those are people in Turkey and Mesopotamia and in modern-day Israel all the way up into Iraq and Iran We have these correspondences between countries and they're all writing in Akkadian So it's presumable to understand Abraham spoke Akkadian what's more importantly I think is is he's from the land of the rivers He's gonna follow one of those rivers to get down to Canaan and the land of Mesopotamia is these rivers that flood But because of the flooding where you live and where you do agriculture shifts At times that the soil would get very salty and they couldn't plant there They had moved so at times it would silt up in other words fill up with mud and it would divert the river What's the point? What's the point to Abraham? Who's a nomadic shepherd? Nothing is stable Everything's always shifting the only thing that was stable and a movable in the horizon were the mountains That's what you use to orient yourself and fix yourself to something that was stable. What's the point? God comes to Abraham when nothing seems uncertain He comes to Abraham when he has a promise but with every birthday that passes It's only a funeral to the hope that he wants have and and when everything seems uncertain God Steps in like you remember back home When everything moved and tides shifted with the seasons But the one thing that didn't change was that mountain range that you use to orient yourself This is the way home and it's as if God is saying that is what I am to you Interestingly Generations later the children of Israel would would go to Jerusalem at least three times a year For different feasts and festival Pentecost, which we celebrate today is one of those times where they would travel to Jerusalem and there was a series of Psalms from the book of Psalms that they would sing as they're making their way to Jerusalem one of Those is Psalm 125 verse 2 which says as the mountains

surround Jerusalem Says the Lord or I the Lord also surround my people both now and forevermore and it seems poetically that should be it's the Psalms It's the Psalms boys and girls, but if you and I were pilgrims Back then or even today And we made our way up to what was the tablet or the city of David at that time or Jerusalem or Mount Zion and little higher up. You've got the temple. What's fascinating is just north of that You've got this mountain range today. We call it a place called Bethesda to the north and east You got a place called Mount Scopus just cross to the east You probably heard of this place Mount of Olives and then down below You've got a place called the Mount of corruption or evil council and then on the west side You've got the upper city and I could fill in the gaps for you and show you an image of what that looks like if You want Mount Zion in the middle and all around you've got this mountain range like what's the point? Here's the point Jerusalem's 2,500 feet above sea level All of these others are higher and in Jerusalem's in the shadow and they provide protection Here's what God is saying as the mountains surround Jerusalem God's like that's that's what I do for you. I Surround my people he is you could say this mountain God and don't get stuck on the word mountain But but the image it's unmovable. It's unshakable. It's unstoppable. It is protection. It is fortress and you're like, what's the big deal? Here's the big deal We get prayer requests every week dozens and dozens and you could summarize the situations that are listed in prayer requests from this room as Things aren't stable From finance Marriages to kids young and older to loved ones to co-workers to spouses to health That we all at times find ourselves in a situation that is just lucid and God introduces himself to Abram and Sarah and he's like hey, hey, I know I know things aren't rolling out playing out and Becoming what you thought they would be

But you need to understand before we talk about that and how and when and where you need to talk about who I am I'm not moving I'm not shaking. I Am the mountain God and again that may or may not give you goosebumps yet. So let's take it one layer deeper Shaddai El Shaddai others have kind of mentioned that it means not just the mountain God, but it means like the the all-powerful overcomer Shaddai Embedded in that is the Hebrew word Shaddad Which means like to destroy at times to devastate at times It just means to rule and to conquer conquer and to reign with no rival El Shaddai and in Genesis 17 2 just says he's the Almighty One like right got no got no rival. We sang about that earlier Shows up a lot in a one book of the Bible shows up throughout the Old Testament, but the book of Job over 30 times God you it uses this phrase Shaddai El Shaddai El Shaddai El Shaddai the book of Job. You remember that story? It's tucked in there It's a long book right before the book of Psalms. It's about a guy not that's looking for a job But his name is Job, right? That's sometimes well in the book of Job the book of Job my name my last name by the way fun fact is Job Sometimes after we get past Gerald and they're like how you spell that and I spell up for him. They're like, oh Gerald I'm like, that's what I said, right? Then I wish your last name I like Job and if they have any church Bible background, sometimes they'll be like Like somebody said Mufasa say it again put your name. I'm like Job and they're like job jobby jobby jobby I'm like Joe by now I'd be like like in the Bible and they were like And and they're like, oh but yours has an e a fun fact at once upon a time It didn't it was just J OB but some boy got a little suspect that that story may show up in his own life So he added an e changed it on the passport and now it's it's Job Just just just just case you want but the story of the book of Job is not about me It's about this guy and he's lost everything and he's suffering severely and the whole story

Like 40 some chapters really is Job and his friends who aren't really helping things to be honest They're trying to answer one question and here's the question why Why did this happen to me in our modern world that why two bad things and evil things happen to good people? Why why does a good old boy suffer? Why did she suffer? Why not her like could have been her like she's nasty But she's a good old like why and and and through the whole book they're wrestling why he's sick why he got sick Why his kids died why his house blew up? Why why why now you and I thank goodness to the story. We have a narrator He stepped in pulled the curtains back before their story ever got going It's like hey, there's this guy named Joe Job like homies got it going on. He loves God God loves him Satan came to God and said can I test him? So we know this whole backstory that he's a good guy and God let it happen and God's in control But he don't know that cuz the narrator didn't tell him and so he's asking why am I suffering? What's fascinating? Throughout the whole book, and particularly I want to show you in chapter 38, God shows up ready to answer him. And what's amazing is God never tells him why. What he does tell him is who he, God, is. It seems strange, but as you think about it, I think this may be in part why that is. God could come to him and say, here's why this is happening today. But next week, something else is going to roll out and happen. He'd be like, why this? Why this? And next month, and next month, and next month. So bigger than knowing why, God knew that he needed to know who is God and where is God in proxy to Job. It's what you and I really need to be honest with you. We often want to know why. Why did this happen? Why did she get sick? Why did he die?

Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? And there's a whole bunch of reasons we could talk about why, but bigger than the why is more than an explanation, Job needed a revelation of who God was. Job even, he's struggling with it, but the book of James even alludes to that. Remember James chapter 1, round verse 2, consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters. This is one of those verses you hate for people to quote to you when you're having a bad day. Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds because you know, like, no, I don't, but you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Yay! Let perseverance do its complete work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. And then James is like, but if you lack perspective on how God is using this bad day to bring about holiness within you, if you lack perspective to see how God is all up in this, just ask God for wisdom. That just simply means God's perspective from above on what you're going through. And he says, and God will give it to you, right? Why? Because more than why being answered, we need who he is in the midst of where we're at. And God comes to Abraham and he just simply says, I know I gave you a promise. It's been 25 years. I said, you're going to have a kid. No, you're going to have a kid. No, you're going to have a son. I know you don't believe it fully yet, but I'm El Shaddai. I am God almighty.

I am here with you. And when God comes to Job chapter 38, I'll just summarize parts of it. You can read it more on your own. God, he describes about six things that he does. And they can read very poetic and metaphorical. And sometimes we read through the Bible, it's like, oh, so poetic. But to Job, who's living in an ancient Near Eastern context, the things God says he does aren't metaphor or poetry, they're actually theological descriptions that he would have understood deeply. And I'll just give you a couple of examples. God says to Job, I command the stars. And to you and I, like, oh, nice, twinkle, twinkle, little. But to Job, like, those are deities and those are gods. And that's this cosmic power that's unknowable. And God isn't just like, I am a star, or I am a sun, or I am a moon. He's like, no, I just tell them where to go. He's saying, I'm above everything that you thought was above everything that controls what you're going through. And God would say, I control the seas. So I'm like, the stars, I tell them where to go. And the seas, he's like, I tell it where to stop, which fascinates me, the word El Shaddai, that root on the end, the suffix on the end, dai, it just means stop, it means enough. Yesterday I was walking on Lakeshore, Lake Michigan, and my father-in-law and I, we were just kind of chewing along the shore. And the waves, man, the waves are coming in. It's cold. I wanted to go swimming. And when the waves were hitting, there was like this six-inch barrier that the waves, of course, had caused. But they would go to there and they'd stop and go no more.

And the image of God over seas, at times, these oceans, those are symbiotic of chaos and disorder and disarray that you cannot control. Oceans and seas were darkness and demonic. And God, he's like, I just say stop. You're good. They ain't coming any further. He says, I control that which is uncontrollable in your lives. Another place in chapter 38, he's like, I command storms and lightning. And we're like, oh, that's poetic. But no, no, no, no. If you're living when Job lived, there's a God, particularly by the name of Baal, and his little emblem when he shows up on statues and stuff is he's holding a lightning bolt. The Greeks, you know, Zeus had a lightning bolt as well, and it's like the lightning bolt. And it's like Baal, Shemel, Zeus, Moose, like he holds the lightning bolt. Yeah, I just fling that thing where I want, right? And it's not so much God's endorsement on Baal or Jupiter or Zeus or any other God. But what he is saying is he's above all, outside of all, controls all, and whatever power you think they might will. And the storms, man, it was raining early. Did you see that? That was amazing. Some of you are like, it's Memorial Day. And some of you are like, my grass is so happy. Whatever the case, God's like, I'm over it all. He says, I feed wild creatures. And so you get this cosmic deity. And before we misunderstand that he's up there, out there, not involved, God's like, I got these wild creatures.

The Bible gives names to them like Leviathan. It describes it like it's got this tail, like a trunk of a cedar tree, whether it's a crocodile or a dinosaur, we don't know. What we do know, the thing that you and I fear, if we'd have been living back then, the thing that we could not domesticate, God's like, that's a good boy, that's a good boy, fetch. And it's like a little multi-poo, like a run-in to fetch it and bring it back. And God's like, good boy, good boy. And you're like, Mufasa, Mufasa. And God's like, no, I got this. And what's he saying to Job? He's like, that which you can't even control, that which you can't even fathom, I am Al Shaddai. You're getting the point, right? He just keeps hammering it in. Because Job's like, why, why, why? And God's like, let me just show you who, who, who, who, who I am. And he wraps it up in chapter 38, and he's just like, I laid the foundation of the world, Job. Like, were you there with your little Bob the Builder belt on? No, no, no, I laid the foundation. I was there before it began. I'll be there when it all gets wrapped up and all the toys go back in the box. Like, I see the big picture of everything.

And when he says all that, his whole point to Job is because I am all that. I see where you're going through, right here and the right now. And because I can control all that, don't you think I can stop any of this so I allow this? So now you let me step in that with you, and you'll see who I am to you in that suffering. And when Job got that, the lights came on. He started asking different questions. And so will you, and so will I. God doesn't minimize the suffering. He doesn't discredit the pain. But throughout scripture, we see that he is the one who enters that pain with us. It's ultimately, El Shaddai is demonstrated in the person of Jesus who stepped out of heaven into humanity. I love how Eugene Peterson puts it in the Message Bible, John chapter one, verse 14, that he put on skin and moved into the neighborhood. Bore our shame, Isaiah 53 would say. Experienced the ultimate suffering. Hebrews four would be like, we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weakness, but in all ways, he's been tempted as we are. Therefore, we can come boldly to him because he knows what we're going through, and he can carry that pain because he carried that pain, and now he sits with us.

And in that place, even in the pain, there's peace because he's El Shaddai. Paul, when he's trying to describe to an early church in a little city named Colossae, modern-day Turkey, that is all messed up in their theology of who God is and who Jesus is, Paul paints this picture that is just amazing. Paul, in the book of Colossians chapter one, he begins, right after he says in verse 15, like the son Jesus, the image of the invisible God, like that which you can't see, that which you can't fathom, there he is, and then in verse 16 of chapter one of the book of Colossae, he begins to describe him to us. For in him, Jesus, all things, he says, have been created, things in heaven, things on earth, visible, invisible, and then Paul just ramps it up, like whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities, all things have been created through him, for him, and he goes on to say they're held together by him. He's before him, he's after him, he created them, they're for him, and he just holds them together. El Shaddai. And Paul then continues in chapter two to move from this cosmic power to this personal transformation, when he's like, so what, who cares? So Jesus holds it all together, what's that mean for me? And Paul then begins to tell you and I what that, El Shaddai, in the person means for you and I, Colossians chapter two.

Verse 13, Paul says, when you were dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your heart, God made us alive with Christ. He made you alive, he doesn't say when you were weak, when you were struggling, when you were trying to make ends meet, when you were trying to be a good, no, no, no, you were dead, dead, like D-E-A, dead, done, dead, in your sins, dead, no hope for you, dead. He's like, but in that place, that's where El Shaddai shows up. Abraham, as good as dead, you're dead, and he says, no, in that place, he has made you alive with Christ. The very next verse, verse 14, he begins to describe what that looks like. like? He's like, for he forgave us our sins. And then Paul begins to break, like, you know all the stuff you did wrong. It's like every one of them, like, these charges that were against us and, like, condemned us. Like, Jesus took every one of them, all of those things that would have been flung at you to give you the verdict not, or the verdict guilty God Christ has taken them, and one by one he's nailed them to the cross. In other words, they have no power over you. He's forgiven us all our sins. He's canceled the charge of our legal indebtedness, which stood against us, nailing it to the cross. What's that mean? It means that the shame and the sin that I, that I, that we can carry of who we've been, and what we've done, or who we are, and what we're doing, can't be removed. And there can be this peace, wholeness of Christ that begins to set everything else in order within us. And then Paul, like Paul, he ain't done. He's just moving on. Verse 15 and 16, Paul then says, having canceled, like, having disarmed powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross. And this, some of us get a little sleepy at this point, and we're like, oh, that's so pretty. He

disarmed the powers and authorities. But Paul, Paul's writing the book of Colossians, give or take 60 AD. He's in Rome in prison on house arrest. And one of the things that would happen in Rome, in the forum, the heart of Rome, when a general or a military lieutenant would go off in some other country and, like, win a victory against another country, they would bring spoils, the gold, the silver, and all of the loot. And they begin bringing all of that, plus the prisoners that remained alive, plus the king, assuming he didn't die, and they did not want him to die. They wanted to keep him alive for what is about to happen. And they would bring all this into a huge procession into Rome. And long before they get there, there's trumpets, and music, and bands, and people are drawing to the heart of the city. And the first thing they see is gold, and silver, and bronze, and trophies, and like, oh, wow, where's that from? And then after that, they see these prisoners who are stripped naked, and humiliation, and it's apparent that they've been beat to the behooty, and they're walking by. And then after that, you've got, like, these actors and these mimes that are reenacting for the people what happened. And after all that, the king shows up on a horse and a chariot, and he's all in full reggae. And right behind him, right behind him is the king, the king that he just put the pahuki down on. And he's still dressed like he just got out of bed and showed up for the battle, but he'd been beat down bad. But he looks good, but he's being dragged behind the king. And then the king gets down off the horse, stick with me, this is going somewhere, the chariot, and he begins one by one stripping everything off of this king that represented his God, his glory, his king, his authority, till there's nothing left but him standing, how shall we say it, naked in the streets, and is publicly humiliated. That phrase is what Paul means by when he says, he disarmed powers and principalities, making a public spectacle. That's a public spectacle. Don't miss the point. What's Paul saying? That once you and I were underneath the thumb and the boot of sin, Satan, hell, and the grave, it ruled us. Paul would say in Ephesians 2, you were ruled before you knew Jesus by the prince of the power of this air.

There's this spirit that now works in the sons of disobedience that ruled you and what you did. And at times, we can come to Christ and still have some hang-ups. And what Paul is saying is don't miss the boat as Jesus drugged Satan through the streets. How shall we say this? Humiliated because of the cross. I know that's a lot of words and a little bit of time, but you get the idea. Paul is saying he is over everything. So when you and I look out in the streets and there's countries that are at war, and there's cities that are in chaos, and there's these stupid, quote-unquote, takeovers by some kid or some group of kids, and it looks like everything's going crazy, and you pull it in closer to home, and you're like, there's my own worry, and my own discouragement, and my own anxiety, and my own identity, and what's going to happen to my kids, and who's my kids going to marry, and is my kid going to come back to Jesus, and what I'm going to do, am I going to have enough money when I retire, and all the things that you may wrestle with on a good day. And then you have the things we wrestle with on a bad day, and Paul is trying to say he is, Christ is, El Shaddai. And I may not have all the answers to all these things or any of these things, but if I can know who he is and that he's good, then that peace of Christ can begin to rule here, when all hell is breaking loose here. And that's not escapism. That's not denialism. That's what the Bible calls hope beyond hope. And that's what Abraham said, Paul said, he's good as dead. Home, he ain't having a kid. And Paul's like, he had hope every night when he went to bed. beyond hope and a miracle happened and that same hope beyond hope in the midst of hope that's been deferred that brings discouragement the Bible says just hold on to El Shaddai because he is with you. The number one promise a command of God to you and I in scripture it's do not fear and nearly every time God says don't fear he gives you a promise and a reason why don't fear and it's this

because I am you know it with you the presence of you knowing he is with us and who he is somehow has the ability to deal with fear first John would put it like this where there's perfect love it casts out fear because when God who is love steps in close to you and we settle all the noise that is pulling me away into despair and I just look him in the eyes and I discover Christ is El Shaddai that perfect love cast out fear I become aware of his presence with me which leads to the third big idea of El Shaddai and it's this that God is is a nurturing God seems totally like off the hinges from the others but Shadduh mountain Shaddad overcomer Shad it's the image of a woman caring for a child nursing Isaiah 49 15 the writer Isaiah he's speaking for God and he just asked rhetorically can a can a mother Isaiah 49 15 can a mother like I don't know forget she has a child nursing at her side and I don't know I never been a mom and I never tested this with my wife to ask but like you might fall asleep but you not gonna forget and God's like but even if she forgot I can't I can't I can't and I won't I haven't I remember I remember and he uses this idea that I have all power that I have all control but but I am right here Jesus embodies this throughout the Gospels time and time again says he's like a sheep like a shepherd who sees people like a sheep without a shepherd and it's just says he's moved with compassion he goes to nurture them to feed them to care for them there's a leper or a group of lepers that no one will touch and and he goes and he just lays his hands on the blind he moves into the children he welcomes the boys the boys his boys that turned on him and denied him he shows up while they're discouraged and despondent make some breakfast and says come and eat we're gonna make this right he throughout scripture is a nurturing God I just wrote this down it doesn't capture it all but El Shaddai is strong enough to hold the universe and gentle enough to heal your wounds he's both he is strong but when I understand he's also gentle then now I know where to place my hope in times of discouragement he's the lion and the lamb and this word Shaddai it gets taking like a they take one letter from the Hebrew language and they let one letter represent this whole word as time for God and the word is

shin to you and I it looks like a W shins a Hebrew letter shin and that represents the name of God Shaddai in fact even to this day you go into houses in Jerusalem or Israel or hotels if especially if they're Jewish you'll see on the door what you're looking at there I'll show you the full picture it's a mezuzah shin the little letter shin looks like a W's at the top that that represents Shaddai and it's basically them following out where Deuteronomy 6 has put the name put my name write my name on your house and on your gates and so to this day they put Shaddai shin right there it's a way of saying God you own this house God we want to follow you in this house God what happens in this house we want it to be honoring to you what happens in my property we want it to be honoring to you we want your name and the essence of who you are to be alive in the house I love that I love that some of you should go to Israel and buy you a mezuzah stick it on your door but what's beautiful what's beautiful is when God is writing about his people long before he says this in 2nd Chronicles 6 he says but I have chosen Jerusalem for my name to be there I have chosen David to rule my people what's fascinating what's fascinating if you would get in a hot air balloon and fly over Jerusalem we would see that you got the city of David and it's surrounded by valleys. To the east, you've got the Kidron Valley. Right in the middle, you've got what's called the Central Valley or the Tyropian Valley. Coming from the west and then down the south, you've got the Hinnom Valley. And some have observed when you look from an aerial view onto the city of Jerusalem, the place where God said He was going to put His name, you actually see the shin. It's as if in the topography becomes theology of God saying, my name is there. And it might be coincidence, I don't know. But the priest, when they would pray for people, there's a priestly blessing in number six, may His face shine on you and may the Lord give you peace and rest, remember that whole deal. At the end of it, it says that the priest will bless them and God says, I'll put my name on them. And tradition unfolds, the priest would take their hands like this. Now, not like this, that's Star Trek. And not like this, that's Mork and Mindy. And some of you have no idea who Mork or Mindy were. But it's like this, it's like this. And that's, that's the shin, right? And the

priest, when they're praying over the people, they would do that with both hands and put the hands together. So, you got like shin, shin, shin. And it's like three times I'm just placing metaphorically or in a blessing sense, God's name on the people. It's beautiful, beautiful. One of the letters Jesus wrote, book of Revelation chapter three, He's writing to a church. You know what He says? He talks, I'm going to write the name of the new Jerusalem, the name of my God. And He says, I'm going to put on you, my people, those who are victorious, I'm going to put on you my new name. I love it. I love it. What's the point? He is El Shaddai and when you look at Him as the mountain, when you look at Him as the overcomer, when you look at Him as the nurturer, we simply conclude, as many have often titled El Shaddai, what does it mean? It means the God who is enough or maybe we can say it even more clearly, the God who is more than enough for whatever you're going through. First century Nero is the emperor. He's ruling from Rome around 60 AD and the dude's crazy. Nero, emperor Nero, crazy. Hated Christians, Roman historians, non-Christians, wrote about what he did to Christians. You can go to the hill where his palace was to this day. It's right across the street from the Colosseum. And it's in those gardens, early historians tell us, that he would take Christians who refused to bow the name, to deny the name of Jesus. They would take Christians who refused to say Caesar is Lord and he would take them in his gardens. He would invite all of his diplomats to the garden to have this crazy, crazy unhinged party and to be the light to light up the garden for the party where Christians tied to posts with clothes stripped to their feet, set on fire. Set on fire as he would ride through the gardens naked, shouting, torturing him. That's a fact. A story that emerges that I don't know how factual it is, but I think it helps capsulate the point, that there was an elderly woman sentenced to die because she refused to deny Jesus. And it was known that on that night, her time would come to go into the gardens and be on display. And two young men who were struggling to follow Jesus, but wanting to follow Jesus, but not knowing, was it worth it? They found her in her cell and asked her, ma'am, we're new to this and we have friends and family that are dying and you're going to die. Is it worth it? Tonight, tonight, if you can, we're going to situate ourselves so we can see you. Would you just, as you're there, one finger, could you put one finger in the air and that will just tell us that God is enough, his presence is enough, his grace is enough. And she says, I don't know,

but I'll try and we will see. And she goes that night, she's in the garden, her hands are tied above, her clothes are stripped down to the feet. Nero rides to the garden, takes the torch, lights it to her feet. She goes ablaze, her hands are above and through the fence, the two boys see not one finger, but two fingers. She mouths to them, his grace is more than enough. I don't know what you're going through. Friends, El Shaddai reminds you and I, he's not just enough. He's more than enough. And the very name invites you and I to bring all the hurt and all the pain and all the disappointment and all the unfair, unanswered prayers that we muster up and just lay them at him. And may we be reminded who he is until the wise work themselves out Because in the end he is the first and the last the beginning and the end and he holds it all together. Amen I'm gonna pray for us In a minute if you're going through something We have a prayer team. They'll meet you over here on the right. They'd love to just pray with you I don't know if they can do that or not but they'd love to grab your hands and just pray I'll should I in your life, but As a wrap-up, I'd love to give an opportunity if you're here and you've never made a decision to follow Jesus You've never had your sins as we described nailed to the cross today could be that day You could say this is the shame and the sin from my sins God. I give them to you. So I'm gonna pray Just moment. I'll give you an opportunity to say to God I want in on that and you can do so by raising your hand. I'll cue you in It's less about showing those around you more about Just saying God here. I am. It's a God You're the hope of the world You're the hope beyond hope and I just pray for those in this room that have yet to surrender themselves to you fully And the work that Christ did on the cross today We can make a no better opportunity on this weekend than to simply raise our hand and say Jesus You are the only hope out there And I want to learn to follow you and I would choose to put my trust in you And so that's you right where you're at with eyes closed. Feel free to raise your hand to God It's a way to physically say what's going on in your heart. I want to trust and

Follow you both here and in Grand Rapids So God we give these people to you those that are wrestling and those With hands raised may you lead them and guide them and show them you are El Shaddai in Jesus name. Everybody said Amen and amen, let's give a big shout out to those who just made a decision If you did if you did just raise your hand as team leads us in a song We've got some folks up around the room and in blue. They'll make their way through the aisles Feel free to raise your hand again. They'll give you a Bible and a book With some information about following Jesus. There's a card in that if you'd fill that out Pastor Brian Message you this week. Would you stay with me? The first, the last, the spotless left The only one who conquered death He reigns He reigns Oh Christ supreme In Christ supreme The victory He robbed the grave He holds the keys He reigns He reigns Oh the first, the last The first, the last, the spotless left The only one who conquered death He reigns He reigns He reigns In Christ supreme The victory He robbed the grave He holds the keys

He reigns He reigns He reigns forever Holy Holy Lord Worthy I thank you Jesus He reigns forever Holy Holy King of glory Worthy Thank you Lord Lord He reigns forever Hallelujah