The Names of God – Jehovah M’Kaddesh – July 10, 2022 – Pastor Marvin Engle
INTRODUCTION:
In his book, “The Knowledge of The Holy,” A.W. Tozer writes, “WHAT COMES TO OUR MINDS WHEN WE THINK ABOUT GOD IS THE MOST IMPORTANT THING ABOUT US. NO RELIGION HAS EVER BEEN GREATER THAN ITS IDEA OF GOD. WORSHIP IS AS PURE OR AS BASE AS THE WORSHIPPER ENTERTAINS HIGH OR LOW THOUGHTS OF GOD.”
Who is God to you in your mind and mental concept of Him? Man has a strong tendency to pervert his concept of God; to think of God as being “like himself.” The Psalmist is addressing the unsaved, the wicked, when he writes Psalm 50:17, 21 – 17 Seeing thou hatest instruction, and casteth my words behind thee. 21 These things hast thou done, and I kept silence; thou thoughtest that I was altogether such an ONE AS THYSELF: but I will reprove thee…
A low view of God allows man to think lightly of his sins and to ignore future judgment.
The god of man’s invention will always conform to the image of the one who created it, especially morally. When men created idols out of trees, God said, “He maketh it AFTER THE FIGURE OF A MAN…” (Isaiah 44:13). Romans 1:23 says, “they changed the glory of the incorruptible God into AN IMAGE make LIKE UNTO CORRUPTIBLE MAN…” The essence of idolatry is to think thoughts of God that are unworthy of Him. One of the great marks of the Baal idols followed by Israel was their immorality and sensuality. The people created and followed gods who allowed the worst corruptions of morals and lifestyle; that’s why their sinful hearts led them astray from the True and Holy God of Israel and resulted in captivity.
Our present study of the Names of God in the Old Testament is aimed at elevating our concept of God. We have learned much about the nature and character of God as the One who is holy; the One who is righteous in His judgment of sin; the One who loves the sinner, but condemns his sin; and the One who provided salvation by the substitutionary death of His Son on the Cross for us, paying the penalty for every believer.
Today, we will be studying another Jehovah-Title and His name, “Jehovah M’Kaddesh.” The study of Scripture is like opening a family photo album and finding a portrait of our God and Heavenly Father. The name, “Jehovah M’Kaddesh,” is one of the least familiar of the Jehovah-Titles, yet it is one of the most important in His relationship with His people, those who believe in Him and are saved.
This wonderful name of God expresses the character of Jehovah, what He has done for His chosen people and His requirements of His people as a result of His claim on their lives. Jehovah-M”Kaddesh is the One who sanctifies His redeemed people and sets them apart from all others unto Himself. We see this name first in Exodus 31:13 – 13 Speak thou also unto the children of Israel, saying, Verily my sabbaths ye shall keep: for it is a sign between me and you throughout your generations; that ye may know that I AM THE LORD THAT DOTH SANCTIFY YOU. (Jehovah-M’Kaddesh) and again in Leviticus 20:7-8 – 7 Sanctify yourselves therefore, and be ye holy: for I am the Lord your God. 8 And ye shall keep my statutes, and do them: I AM THE LORD WHICH DOTH SANCTIFY YOU. (Jehovah-M’Kaddesh)
THE LORD WHO DOTH SANCTIFY YOU:
The word, M’Kaddesh, comes from the Hebrew word, qadash, which means “TO PRONOUNCE CLEAN, TO DEDICATE, TO CONSECRATE, TO SET APART.” It is the word that is used to speak of a sanctuary – Exodus 25:8 – 8 And let them make me a sanctuary (A HOLY PLACE; A PLACE SET APART); that I may dwell among them. Until this time the people had no special place to worship. God told them to make a sanctuary, a holy place set apart for God where He would come and take up His residence in the midst of the people. They followed instructions and set up the Tabernacle, carried the Ark of God into the Holy of Holies, God then took up His abode there, and it was now a holy place, a sanctuary.
You will remember that at that time God also set apart Aaron and his family to minister in His sanctuary as a set apart family of priests. They were given a right of access to the sanctuary of God. They could go into the Holy Place from which all others were barred. They were set apart for special privileges and special duties. They wore set apart garments, distinct and different than those worn by anyone else. Aaron, as the High Priest, had access into the very presence of God once a year. Exodus 28:2-3 – 2 And thou shalt make HOLY GARMENTS for Aaron thy brother for glory and for beauty. 3 And thou shalt speak unto all that are wise hearted, whom I have filled with the spirit of wisdom, that they may make Aaron’s garments to CONSECRATE (“QADASH”) HIM, that he may minister unto me in the priest’s office.
When God met with Moses at Mt. Sinai, He told Moses He had redeemed them to make them a holy nation, a people set apart for God and a nation that would be His own peculiar treasure as a people and His own personal possession – Exodus 19:5-6 – 5 Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine: 6 And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy (QADASH) nation. A nation different from all others; a nation set apart unto God.
It was for this purpose that God led the nation into the Wilderness. When they came out of Egypt, they were within a few weeks easy march to the land of Canaan. Caravan routes along the edge of the Mediterranean Sea would have taken them directly to the Promised Land. Instead, God turned them into the Wilderness for a whole year to meet with them at Mt. Sinai and impart to them a way of life that would make them different from all others.
This is why God gave them His laws and statutes at Mt. Sinai. They were separated from the heathen by special laws and commandments. God’s intention was to keep them separate from all the evils of other nations. No other nation in the world was like the nation of Israel. No other nation kept the 7th day of the week as separate and distinct from all other days – Exodus 31:13 – Verily my sabbaths ye shall keep: for it is a sign between me and you throughout your generations; that ye may know that I AM THE LORD THAT DOTH SANCTIFY YOU. (Jehovah-M’Kaddesh) The people set aside that day to worship God and walk with God. They closed their shops, stopped all work, and lived like no other people. They were a different people, a people set apart by a Holy God who expected them to be holy.
THE MEANING OF JEHOVAH-M’KADDESH TO BELIEVERS TODAY:
When we turn to the New Testament, it is a significant thing that we find the word, “sanctify,” with the same meaning and the same relationships that we found in the Old Testament. I believe many Christians have missed the full meaning of Jehovah-M’Kaddesh, “the Lord that doth sanctify you,” as it relates to us as N. T. believers. Listen up!
God in our day is setting apart a people unto Himself. He is setting apart a priesthood. He is setting apart a tabernacle. The moment we put our trust in the Lord Jesus Christ and His sacrifice for us at Calvary’s Cross, we are set apart from all the rest of the people in the world. Hebrews 10:10 – 10 By the which will we are sanctified (WE ARE SET APART) through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. 4 times in John 17 Jesus said we do not belong to the world; He prayed in John 17:9 – 9 I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine.
Believers, we are a set apart company; we’ve moved out of the Adam family into the family of God. We’ve become children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. We are set apart, bearing a relationship to God that the rest of the world does not enjoy. We are sanctified; we are set apart; we belong to God and are His people, members of His family. We are His peculiar people – I Peter 2:7, 9-10 – 7 UNTO YOU therefore WHICH BELIEVE he is precious:
9 But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light; 10 Which in time past were not a people, but are now the people of God: which had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy. I Peter 1:15-16 – 15 but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, 16 because it is written, “Be holy, for I am holy.”
God’s fundamental attribute is Holiness. It sets Him apart from all the gods of the heathen in this world. We are expected to live holy lives, separated from the evil of this world and living holy lives as the set apart people belonging to the family of God. Holiness is separation from the world; Holiness is consecration unto God, dedication to living for His glory in all that we do. Holiness is a conformity to the will and character of God.
God expects us to be set apart in our actions, in our habits, in our standards, and in our ethics from all other people of the world! God expect us to be different in our words, in our companionships and in our goals. We should have different ways of living on the Lord’s Day and be faithful in attending worship and in our giving to Him. If God has set you apart to be His peculiar treasure, as Peter is saying, He expects you to live differently from all the rest of the people in the world; to live a life that is set apart from all other people in the world.
Because He is Jehovah-M’Kaddesh, He has set His people apart unto Himself. Question: “ARE YOU LIVING A LIFE THAT IS MORE LIKE THE PEOPLE OF THE WORLD, OR MORE LIKE THE PEOPLE OF GOD SHOULD LIVE?” Are you among those who have been “sanctified by the faith that is in Christ?” (Acts 26:18).
God tells us that we are also are a priesthood (I Peter 2:9). We as Christians are priests of God. We are set apart from all other people. We have the right of access into the presence of God. We can come boldly to God’s throne of grace through the Lord Jesus Christ. We are a priesthood set apart for a special privilege as believers in Christ.
Then we are a sanctuary, a holy tabernacle because God dwells in us by the Holy Spirit. When we became believers, our bodies became set apart places where the Holy Spirit of God has come to dwell. No wonder we read in Romans 12:1-2 – I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye PRESENT YOUR BODIES a living sacrifice, HOLY, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. 2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. in I Corinthians 6:19-20 – 19 What? know ye not that YOUR BODY is the TEMPLE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? 20 For ye are bought with a price: therefore GLORIFY GOD IN YOUR BODY, and in your spirit, which are God’s and in Ephesians 2:22 – 22 In whom ye also are builded together for AN HABITATION OF GOD THROUGH THE SPIRIT.
To be sanctified is to be set apart from sin and the world, but it is much more; it is to be holy and set apart for Divine use in the service of God in this world. The body of a Christian is to be consecrated to the Lord for His use and purpose. It is to be kept pure and clean for Him and available for His purposes in His service – I Thessalonians 4:3-5, 7-8 NKJV – 3 For this is the will of God, your SANCTIFICATION: that you should abstain from sexual immorality; 4 that each of you should know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor, 5 not in passion of lust, like the Gentiles who do not know God; . 7 For God did not call us to uncleanness, but UNTO HOLINESS. 8 Therefore he who rejects this does not reject man, but GOD, WHO HAS ALSO GIVEN US HIS HOLY SPIRIT. QUESTIONS FOR EACH CHRISTIAN: “HOW ARE YOU PRESENTLY SERVING GOD? ARE YOU SERVING HIM AT ALL? WHY HAVE YOU NOT PRESENTED YOURSELF FOR HIS SERVICE?”
Think on this – John 17:17 – “Father, sanctify them through thy truth: thy Word is truth.” Jesus is praying for the Father to set us apart by His Word; make our lives different; make them different in every action of their lives because they are already set apart for Him. The Word of God should change our lives, cleanse our lives; wash us from our sin, and help us walk worthy of His salvation and holy calling on our lives. The closer you walk to God and His Word, the more you will be set apart for His holy use! God also gave us the Holy Spirit that we might be enabled to live holy lives, glorifying Him and pleasing to Him and doing His will. 2 Timothy 2:19, 21 – 19 Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, THE LORD KNOWS THOSE WHO ARE HIS. And, let everyone WHO NAMES TH NAME OF CHRIST DEPART FROM INIQUITY. ………..21 IF A MAN THEREFORE PURGE HIMSELF from these, he shall be a vessel unto honour, SANCTIFIED (SET APART), and USEFUL FOR THE MASTER, and PREPARED FOR EVERY GOOD WORK.