Too Big
We use a lot of different names for God.
Let’s count and see how many names we come up with. So starting off, we have an oldie but a goodie: Plain old “God.” That’s 1.
2: Lord
3: Good Shepherd
4: Wonderful Counselor
5: Mighty God
6: Prince of Peace
7: King of Kings
8: Immanuel
9: Father, or abba
Anyone in the congregation have a favorite name or two?
I also brought a couple of ways that artists imagine God.
People imagine God in lots of different way, right? And we have lots of different names for God in the Bible, too!
Today, when I read scripture, we hear one of those names. But this name is a little different than all those other ones we’ve shared. Because today’s name that we hear is the name that God chooses for Godself.
You want to know what that name is?
It’s kind of strange.
It’s this: “I am who I am.”
I really like this name for God. Do you know why?
Because it’s kind of weird. It’s not easy to explain, or understand, or tell someone.
We could even say that it is a little bit mysterious… it’s a little bit of a mystery.
So even though we have lots of different names for God, and we come up with all sorts of different paintings and artwork to try and show God, we’re never going to get everything right. Any time you see a painting of God, or hear a name for God, it’s not going to be perfect. Because God is so big, and mysterious, and amazing, that we can never fully name or understand God or explain God.
Let’s pray.
Dear God,
You are too big for names,
And you are too big for pictures.
Thank you for giving us lots of different names
And lots of different artists
To help us know you.
Amen.
