Name Above All Names--King of kings

artwork by Krista Hamrick

Krista Hamrick’s beautiful original art print, Name Above All Names Alphabet, has so inspired me. Each of the 26 individual Names she has identified are so special, as Krista has intricately painted, almost like stained glass windows, each one with its Scripture reference. Krista said, “This is probably the painting that I have most enjoyed researching, designing, redesigning and painting. Beth Willis Miller has expanded upon each name with devotional word studies. By knowing, believing and trusting who God says He is, we can be confident in who He has created us to be.” I so agree with Krista!

 

My heart has been drawn to do a word study for each of the names included in her art print. Krista and I felt led to publish our Name Above All Names Devotional: Focusing on 26 Alphabetical Names of Christ …available now on Amazon as a softcover book and as a Kindle book at this link.


Combining the beauty of Krista's artistic excellence with these word study devotionals is perfect for individual quiet reflection or small group Bible studies focusing on the Name Above All Names—Jesus Christ—and His attributes and characteristics.

Review by Michele Morin: “The infinite variety in nature, the curious complexity of human behavior, the synchronicity of multiple systems in our own anatomy — and in the solar system — all point, through general revelation, to the nature of God: multi-faceted, magnificent, and yet mysterious. Special revelation in Scripture picks up where creation leaves off, and Beth Willis Miller has teamed up with artist Krista Hamrick to focus on twenty-six pieces of evidence in Name Above All Names Devotional: Focusing on 26 Alphabetical Names of Christ. The result is an alphabetical collection that resembles a twenty-six sided gem, each facet reflecting a slightly different hue of the nature of God the Son. From Alpha and Omega to King of Zion, each devotional highlights the Scriptural basis for the name in multiple translations and then provides commentary on the verses. Beth applies the truth and then invites her readers to join her in a prayer that turns the truth into a paean of praise. No mere academic exercise, the point of Name Above All Names Devotional is threefold:


Look up – Meditate on the name and what it reveals about the character of God.

Look in – I am propelled to ask galvanizing questions about my discoveries: “Because God is ___________________, I should therefore _______________.”

Look out – Let the nature of God impact on every relationship, for your good, and for His glory.

With full-color art work and space for notes, Name Above All Names Devotional is a treasure for devotional reading, a resource for serious study, and a thoughtful and inspiring gift for loved ones.” (review by Michele Morin)

No matter how many times I hear this anointed recording of That’s My King, tears flow at the precious description of my Jesus by Pastor S. M. Lockridge...while studying Revelation 19:16…

NASB: And on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written, “KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.”

Amplified: And on His robe and on His thigh He has a name inscribed, “KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.”

J.B Phillips: Written upon his cloak and upon his thigh is the name, KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.

The Message: On his robe and thigh is written, King of kings, Lord of lords.

Young’s Literal: and he hath upon the garment and upon his thigh the name written, `King of kings, and Lord of lords.'Pastor Thomas L. Constable writes: “The robe is a symbol of majesty, and the thigh suggests power. Evidently the name appeared on the part of Christ's robe that covered His thigh, which would be most conspicuous. The title "King of kings" is one that Persian and later rulers of empires ascribed to themselves but only the Messiah qualifies for it in its true sense. People living on earth at the time of the Second Coming will see Jesus Christ return. What a contrast this coming is with the Lord Jesus' first coming: as a baby, in humility and obscurity, riding a donkey into Jerusalem rather than a horse, coming to die rather than to reign.”

Pastor Arno Gaebelein has written: “And He had a name written, that no man knew but Himself.” And again it is written, “His Name is called the Word of God.” And on His vesture and on His thigh there is a name written, “King of Kings and Lord of Lords.” The unknown Name is the name of His essential deity. No human name can express what He is in Himself, “No man knoweth the Son but the Father.” His Name “the Word of God” refers us to the Gospel of John. As the Word He is the express image of God, that is, He makes God visible. He is the expression of God in His character, His thoughts and counsels. And the third name mentioned, “King of Kings and Lord of Lords,” expresses what He is in relation to the earth.”

Pastor Tony Garland writes: “King of kings is basileus basileōn. Lord of lords is kyrios kyriōn. Each phrase involves two words which have the same lexeme in a relationship indicating the supreme member: the supreme King among kings, the supreme Lord among lords…All of these various heads and horns had contested for the position which alone belongs to Christ, the King of kings. Christ will obtain the kingdom, but it will be achieved according to the will of the Father.”

Pastor J. Ramsey Michaels wrote: “Here many crowns on a single head suggest many spheres of sovereignty under a single Lord, anticipating the inscription KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS finally made explicit at the end of the account. This inscription is a traditional formula that is to be understood quite literally. The rider on the white horse is about to be seen precisely as a King victorious over all other kings, and as supreme Lord, victorious over "generals and mighty men" and their armies.”

Pastor S. Lewis Johnson has said: “John concludes this section with another name in the sixteenth verse, “And on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written, ‘King of Kings and Lord of Lords’.” That’s a word directed first of all to Domitian who liked to parade in the 1st Century in Rome as “God the Lord”. He had himself proclaimed Emporator twenty-two times. When he rode in past the peoples, the poets cried out, “Prīnceps prīncepum summa ducis,” the prince of the princes and the highest of the leaders. In other words, Domitian was an antecedent of Ceauşescu and Hitler and all of the rest of these communist puppets who like to have themselves exalted constantly before the people with their pictures everywhere and everybody bowing to them as sovereigns of their little empires.”

Much of the book of Revelation is puzzling and beyond our understanding; it pictures something that we will experience only in the hereafter. Now we comprehend only snippets of the great panorama of the end of time. As the heavenly company gathers, the twenty-four elders fall down before God, lay their crowns before him, and unite in praise: “You are worthy! You created everything.” Just as the twenty-four elders lay down their crowns, we are to lay down our best efforts, our victories, giftings and ministries, and bow in worship. We have nothing that we haven’t received from God.

Corrie ten Boom said that after she spoke, people often showered her with accolades and compliments. But when she got back to her room, she would bow before the Lord and—just like a bouquet—offer to him every word of praise she had received. Someday every knee will bow, and we will join the elders and the company of heaven to worship the King of kings, but in the meantime, we can still worship the creator and sustainer of the universe, who is worthy to receive all glory and honor and power.

Lord Jesus, our mighty King of kings,  thank You for the pictures in Revelation of Your glory being celebrated in heaven. You are worthy! It is for You and because of You that all things exist. Give us glimpses of how infinite, limitless, and majestic You are so that Your glory is our focus. Draw us into worship. I lay my crowns before You, Lord—all that I’ve done or accomplished, all that I am, I give to You. In Your mighty Name Above All Names—King of kings, we pray, amen.

Look Up—meditate on Revelation 19:16

Look In—as you meditate on Revelation 19:16 pray to see how you might apply it to your life.

Look Out—as you meditate on Revelation 19:16 pray to see how you might apply it to your relationships with others.

Name Above All Names Devotional: Focusing on 26 Alphabetical Names of Christ

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