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| 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)
Listening to the anointed Matt Maher hymn, Deliverer, while studying Colossians 1:13...
NASB: For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son,
Amplified: [The Father] has delivered and drawn us to Himself out of the control and the dominion of darkness and has transferred us into the kingdom of the Son of His love.
Lightfoot:
Yes, by a strong arm he rescued us from the lawless tyranny of darkness, removed
us from the land of our bondage, and settled us as free citizens in our new and
glorious home, where his Son, the offspring and the representative of his love,
is King;
NLT: For he has rescued us from the one who rules in the kingdom of darkness, and he has brought us into the Kingdom of his dear Son.
Phillips:
For we must never forget that he rescued us from the power of darkness, and
re-established us in the kingdom of his beloved Son, that is, in the kingdom of
light.
Weymouth: It is God who has delivered us out of the
dominion of darkness, and has transferred us into the Kingdom of His
dearly-loved Son,
Wuest: who delivered us out of the tyrannical rule
of the darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in
whom we are having our liberation, procured by the payment of ransom.
Young's
Literal: who did rescue us out of the
authority of the darkness, and did translate us into the reign of the Son of
His love,
Delivered is the Greek word, rhuomai which means to draw or snatch to oneself and invariably refers to a snatching from danger, evil or an enemy. This basic idea is that of bringing someone out of severe and acute danger, and so to save, rescue, deliver, preserve. Rhuomai emphasizes greatness of peril from which deliverance is given by a mighty act of power. In the NewTestament rhuomai is always associated with God as the Deliverer and with a person as the object of His deliverance.
Delivered is the Greek word, rhuomai which means to draw or snatch to oneself and invariably refers to a snatching from danger, evil or an enemy. This basic idea is that of bringing someone out of severe and acute danger, and so to save, rescue, deliver, preserve. Rhuomai emphasizes greatness of peril from which deliverance is given by a mighty act of power. In the NewTestament rhuomai is always associated with God as the Deliverer and with a person as the object of His deliverance.
Rhuomai
means to rescue, deliver, as when we first became believers and the
Lord...delivered (rhuomai) us from the
domain of darkness and transferred (removed us from. one place to another,
causing a change in someone's official position) us to the kingdom (denoting
sovereignty, royal power, dominion) of His beloved Son. Since rhuomai means to draw to oneself, here
we see the great picture that God drew us out of Satan’s kingdom to Himself.
That event was the new birth. We are not gradually, progressively delivered
from Satan’s power. When we placed our faith in Christ, we were instantly
delivered.
A great
example is wading in a rushing river and suddenly being caught in the current
utterly helpless. As you cry out someone hears you and holds out their hand as
you go rushing by. As you lie there beside the river, safe in the presence of
the one who pulled you out, you still are in the presence of the dangerous
rushing current...you can hear it...you can see it...but you've been delivered
from danger you are now safe. How foolish to walk right back into that current
and let it sweep you away!
Jesus,
when asked by his disciples how they should pray, gave as part of his answer
that they should ask...”And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver (rhuomai - in the form of a command) us
from evil.”
Rhuomai is in the present tense indicating
that is our Savior continually delivers us. The
middle voice is reflexive ("He Himself rescues us") and emphasize
His personal involvement in the rescue. He initiates and participates in the
carrying out of the rescue.
Rhuomai is in the aorist tense (past completed
act) and the middle voice which conveys the great truth that God initiated the
"rescue operation" and participated in the carrying out of the operation! One could paraphrase this verse as "God
Himself rescued us" or the Amplified Version's "[The Father] has delivered
and drawn us to Himself.” This deliverance points to the moment of salvation
for every believer—He "rescued" us from sin and death when He died in
our place, and that "credit" was placed on our account the moment we first
believed this Good News. The truth to depraved men and women is that we did not
(and could not) rescue ourselves from the jaws of eternal destruction. God did
only what He could do…truly all is grace.
Wing-walker
Lee Oman slipped from his perch underneath a Waco biplane and dangled from a
safety line 1500 feet over the Hillsboro, Oregon, airport during an air show.
At first, everyone in the crowd of 40,000 thought the fall was part of Oman’s
daring midair act. But after the plane had circled the airport for 20 minutes,
it was obvious something had gone wrong. Oman had fallen and didn’t have the
strength to pull himself back up. When they saw what was happening, several men
jumped into a pickup truck and sped onto the runway. The pilot of the biplane
saw the truck and realized what the would-be rescuers had in mind. He gently
lowered his dangling human cargo over the vehicle until Oman was within reach.
While one man grabbed Oman and pulled him into the truck bed, another cut the
wing-walker’s nylon safety harness. Oman was free of the plane’s deadly
grasp.
Captain
Scott O’Grady knows better than most what rescue means. In June 1995 his plane
was shot down over Bosnia. The Air Force pilot survived on insects, plants, and
rain water and was only able to use his radio transmitter late at night. On the
sixth night of his ordeal, his faint radio signal was picked up by another U.S.
pilot. A daring rescue mission eventually brought the helpless pilot to safety.
As amazing as this rescue was, every believer has experienced one even more
miraculous.
We
humans just naturally tend to be self-absorbed, so it is easy to get things all
turned around and think that the Christian life is all about me—all about my
disciplines and my effort, all about my problems and what I can do to solve
them. But this scripture is one that pulls us back to the center, back to
the truth: it’s all about what God has done--Christ's finished work on the cross--our Deliverer!
Heavenly Father, my Deliverer, I don’t know what is going to happen in the next twenty-four hours, but
I know that You will give me the strength I need to handle it and to deal with
whatever challenges I may face. I bless You, Lord! Give me Your peace as I look
to You for everything I need. I rejoice in my relationship
with You, Father—all because of what Jesus Christ has done for me. Having an
intimate relationship with Jesus, the friend of sinners, allows me to have an
eternal perspective about everything else that happens to me today. I praise
You for the joy such a friendship brings.In Jesus’ mighty Name Above All Names—Deliverer we pray, amen.
No prayer is too hard for him to answer, no need too great for him to supply, no passion too strong for him to subdue; no temptation too powerful for him to deliver from, no misery too deep for him to relieve. Arthur Pink (1889–1952)
Look Up—meditate on Colossians 1:13
Look In—as you meditate on Colossians 1:13 pray to see how you might apply it to your life.
Look Out—as you meditate on Colossians 1:13 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
Weekly LinkUps…
No prayer is too hard for him to answer, no need too great for him to supply, no passion too strong for him to subdue; no temptation too powerful for him to deliver from, no misery too deep for him to relieve. Arthur Pink (1889–1952)
Look Up—meditate on Colossians 1:13
Look In—as you meditate on Colossians 1:13 pray to see how you might apply it to your life.
Look Out—as you meditate on Colossians 1:13 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
Weekly LinkUps…
