The Name Of The Lord

Have you ever had the Lord reveal something to you that was so simple your brain just kind of froze up for a minute? I had it happen a few months ago.

We were in church singing, "The Name of the Lord is a strong tower. The righteous run into it and they are saved." (In fact, you're listening to it now.) It's a very nice song, but I never quite understood the "Name of the Lord" part. I mean, how can you run into a name?

Well, a few days later I was reading my Bible and I came across this: "But you shall seek the place which the Lord your God shall choose out of all your tribes to put His Name and make His dwelling place, and there shall you come; . . . But when you go over the Jordan and dwell in the land which the Lord your God causes you to inherit, and He gives you rest from all your enemies round about so that you dwell in safety, then there shall be a place which the Lord your God shall choose to cause His Name [and His Presence] to dwell there;" -- Deut. 12:5; 10-11.

Hmmm. Name. . . Presence. . .

Then I took a peek at the footnote (in the Amplified Bible): "The "Name" of God is equivalent to His gracious presence in passages such as this one. The place where God puts His Name is the place where the Lord Himself chooses to dwell. When it stands for God's presence at the sanctuary, "Name" is capitalized." Oh, my little brain was starting to get ahold of something!!

The Name, or presence, of the Lord is our stronghold. What exactly is a stronghold? According to The Random House Dictionary it is "a well-fortified place. A center of influence and support."

So, when we are in the presence of the Lord we are in a well-fortified place and we are safe! Oh I like this!!

But how can we, mere humans, come into the presence of God? In Hebrews 10:19-22 we read, "Therefore, brethren, since we have full freedom and confidence to enter into the [Holy of] Holies [by the power and virtue] in the blood of Jesus, by this fresh (new) and living way which He initiated and dedicated and opened for us through the separating curtain (veil of the Holy of Holies), that is, through His flesh, and since we have [such] a great and wonderful and noble
Priest [Who rules] over the house of God, let us all come forward and draw near with true (honest and sincere) hearts in unqualified assurance and absolute conviction engendered by faith (by that leaning of the entire human personality on God in absolute trust and confidence in His power, wisdom, and goodness), having our hearts sprinkled and purified from a guilty (evil) conscience and our bodies cleansed with pure water."

By accepting the sacrifice Yeshua (Jesus) has made for us, the way becomes clear for us to enter in to the Throne Room of God! When we come before God through praise, worship and prayer, we are in His presence and we are safe in His strong tower! What a wondrous thing!

You may have noticed the picture of the lighthouse at the top of this page. Having grown up in San Diego, I'm much more familiar with lighthouses than strong towers, but I believe they serve the same purpose. If you were inside a lighthouse, it wouldn't matter how fierce the weather outside might become; you would be safe. And it's that way with God. If you remain within His strong tower, it doesn't matter what the devil or the world might throw your way; you're safe inside the Throne Room of God.

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