God’s Favorite Name

Romans 8:15 (CJB)
15 For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to bring you back again into fear; on the contrary, you received the Spirit, who makes us sons and by whose power we cry out, “Abba!” (that is, “Dear Father!”).

God has many names – up to 20 by some counts. They are powerful names that give us a clear indication of Who and all God is. Each one of them is the answer to the problems that we face in life. Among them:

• Eloheim – the Creator God,
• Jehovah – the relational God who desires to be in relationship with all men,
• Jehovah Jirah – the One Who provides,
• Jehovah-Shalom, the Lord is Peace,
• Jehovah Tsidkenu – the Lord our Righteousness,
• Jehovah Rapha – the Lord Who heals

So, which one would be God’s favorite name? Probably none of these. As important as each one is in helping us know who God is and how He helps us face the difficulties of life, there is a name that probably stands out above all the rest to God HImself. Jesus gives us a clue to that name in Mark 14:36: The Complete Jewish Bible says, 36 “Abba!” (that is, “Dear Father!”) “All things are possible for you. Take this cup away from me! Still, not what I want, but what you want.” In Jesus’ greatest moment of torment, the name he cried out to was not Eloheim or Jehovah Shalom, or any other of the names of God listed above. He cried out to “Abba” an Aramaic word used by Jewish children for their fathers. Translated into today’s vernacular it means “Daddy.” In Jesus’ greatest time of need He called out to the One He knew as “Daddy.”

Religion has a difficult time with the term “Daddy.” Somehow it feels that it is disrespectful to use the term “Daddy” and God together; as though, the term brings God down to our level. Wasn’t that the whole point of the Cross? God loved us so much that He became one of us, so we could become one with Him. The point of the Cross was to restore intimacy – childlike affection and dependence – between God and His beloved creation.

Others are even more adamant in avoiding the use of the term, “Daddy.” They say it reduces God to what the world calls a “Sugar Daddy.” Nothing could be further from the truth. While a Sugar Daddy gives only with the intention of receiving something back, God is not giving to get something in return. Like any loving parent, He gives things to His children because a huge part of parenting involves giving. God is the ultimate parent! Someone said, “You can give and not love, but you can’t love and not give.” John 3 :16 says, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only Begotten Son,” and, He has never stopped giving and never will!

If someone asked why Jesus came to the earth, a believer would be quick to reply, “to save us from our sins,” and that would be correct. But in doing so, Jesus had to do something else first. He had to reveal God as a “father” to all men. Until Jesus came, people knew God in many ways, but they didn’t know Him as a father. It was “Abba Father” (see scripture above) that Jesus came to reveal. Jesus did just that, and today, nothing honors God more than when we come to Him and call out, “Daddy!”

6/19