HALLOWED BE THY NAME

Time with Jesus - Thursday, 11 October 2012

Hi all,

Jesus model prayer (the Lord’s Prayer) continues; ⁹ Pray then like this: "Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Matthew 6:9 ESV Our meditation today looks at the word “hallowed” Some of it is a bit tongue in cheek. Also, thanks to Strong’s numbers, we have a Greek lesson! You may not need it, but I do.

Blessings,

Jim & Phyllida Strickland

Matt 10:8 Freely you received, Freely give		Time with Jesus – Thursday, 11 October 2012			Matt 10:8 Freely you received, Freely give
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INTRODUCTION			DAILY LIGHT EVENING SCRIPTURES	HALLOWED BE THY NAME
What sort of world do we live in? I suppose it’s a world where men and women seek the limelight. People want to be “in the news-papers”, preferably complete with the very latest photograph in glorious colour. People want to be bigger and better than everyone else. Fame rather than notoriety; but if being notorious is the only way, so be it! People want to be “world champion”. To be second or even third is not where it’s at. I mentioned a couple of weeks ago the tears and look of utter desolation on the faces of those who didn’t win gold in the Olympic Games. No one wants to be second best. Third best is akin to failure! Many of us are sports crazy. We follow our favourite team with a passion that is incredible. People attend sporting events to cheer on their team. In South Africa, it tends to be soccer, cricket and rugby. We are told that the places where these sporting events take place are hallowed ground. Places like “Loftus, Kingsmead, St Georges Park, the FNB Stadium and Wanderers. Here the fans bow down and swear allegiance to their own special high priests. Men like the Late Danie Craven, Graham Smith and Gordon Igesund and others of their ilk! It’s very straight forward. Pay your money and take your seat. Alternatively watch the game on TV. In RSA we have something like six dedicated sports channels. Even in HD! We are told, Football (soccer) is a gentleman's game played by hooligans, and rugby is a hooligans' game played by gentlemen. Of course it could be the other way round if you prefer. According to an American gentleman visiting England who attended a cricket match, “Cricket is a sport invented by God and played by Englishmen who, not being a very spiritual people, needed something to give them a concept of eternity!” What amazes me is the reaction of sports fans to what is happening on the field of play. The crowd roars, chants, waves arms – they would do the same with legs if they could – screams, cries and displays huge emotion. It’s all about who does what with a round or oblong ball. There are rules to these games which, according to the crowd, umpires and referees do not understand. Where they do, the rules are always interpreted in favour of the other team. The team wins by scoring the most goals, tries or runs. Today they even use TV cameras to prove that a goal, try or a run is right. Woe betide anyone who seeks to interfere with the event. Police are sometimes called upon to attend. They are there not to watch the game, but to watch the people watching the game. It’s ludicrous! Personally, if you like this peculiar brand of insanity please be my guest. However, if and when I start to get excited about Jesus Christ, His Father and His Spirit, kindly keep your comments about my mental state to yourself. I love to roar, chant, wave arms and legs, scream, cry and display emotion about the only One Who really matters. I may even get so excited that my language changes into an incomprehensible babble. I sometimes get so excited I didn’t know what I am saying myself. Note that the one I’m supporting never changes. He always wins. This Divine team of Father, Son and Holy Spirit have always been and will always be the very top of their league. According to the Son, the Father is to be “hallowed”. For me this applies to the entire team. They made the world; they made the rules and they made me and you. I think I’ll keep on hallowing the three of them. Whom you decide to hallow is up to you! Jim & Phyllida Strickland			9 Pray then like this: "Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Matthew 6:9 ESV 14 Don't worship any other god. GOD--his name is The-Jealous-One--is a jealous God. Exodus 34:14 MSG 11 "Who is like You among the gods, O LORD--glorious in holiness, awesome in splendour, performing great wonders? Exodus 15:11 NLT 8 And the four living creatures, each of them with six wings, are full of eyes all around and within, and day and night they never cease to say, "Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!" Revelation 4:8 ESV 29 Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name; bring an offering and come before him. Worship the LORD in the splendour of his holiness. 1 Chronicles 16:29 TNIV 1 In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and the train of his robe filled the temple. 2 Above him stood the seraphim. Each had six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. 3 And one called to another and said: "Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory 5 And I said: "Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!" Isaiah 6:1-3 & 5 ESV 5 I had only heard about You before, but now I have seen You with my own eyes. 6 I take back everything I said, and I sit in dust and ashes to show my repentance." Job 42:5-6 NLT 7 But if we live in the light in the same way that God is in the light, we have a relationship with each other. And the blood of his Son Jesus cleanses us from every sin. 1 John 1:7 GW 10 For our earthly fathers disciplined us for a few years, doing the best they knew how. But God's discipline is always good for us, so that we might share in His holiness. Hebrews 12:10 NLT 19 And so, dear brothers and sisters, we can boldly enter heaven's Most Holy Place because of the blood of Jesus22 let us go right into the presence of God with sincere hearts fully trusting Him. For our guilty consciences have been sprinkled with Christ's blood to make us clean; our bodies have been washed with pure water. Hebrews 10:19 & 22 NLT	Jesus prayed, “Our Father, Hallowed be Thy Name”, But what is meant by “hallowed” Is it some freaky claim, So we can’t understand it? That’s certainly untrue. So what is it that “Hallowed” means to folk like me and you? The word is hag-ee-ad'-zo. That’s what it is in Greek. Which doesn’t really help us, unless we go and seek, An accurate translation. It means to consecrate; To purify or sanctify or seek to venerate A person who is Holy. In this case, God Most High. He’s Holiness personified above the Earth and sky. He tells us He is jealous. He will not tolerate, Our worshiping anther god. It’s something which He hates. There isn’t any other god. But even so, we find, That we have dug some rubbish, from the darkness of the mind! The Lord alone is Holy. The Lord is quite unique. There’s no one in creation, that anyone can seek, To compare with our Maker. No creature can compare, With His Great Awesome Splendour. There’s no one anywhere, To challenge His authority. He’s God and He’s alone! No man, no fish, no animal, no bird no piece of stone, Can ever represent Him. He is the Great “I AM!” If you think there’s another way – my friend you’re in a jam. All creation worships Him. The angels bow their knee. The seraphim adore! There’s just humanity, Who think that they know better and raise up foreign gods. They do not see their stubbornness, is putting them at odds, With Father, Son and Spirit. They don’t see they are fools. They will have to bend the knee and say “The Lord God Rules”. His Holiness and splendour are hard to comprehend. His qualities are infinite. Indeed, there have no end. He’s bigger than the universe and smaller than a dot. The temperature’s irrelevant. He’s never cold or hot. The darkness can’t enfold Him, for He’s the source of Light. He’s like a hundred million suns which must eclipse the night. No man’s ever seen His face; to do so would bring death. His purity and holiness, would steal away their breath. Isaiah had a tiny glimpse. He stated, “Woe is me!” My eyes have seen the LORD of hosts in all His purity. That’s what is meant by “Hallowed” Don’t think that it is trite, It’s not just an expression to say He’s burning bright. It emphasises holiness, His purity and power. He’s more than just a bulwark; some high and mighty tower. He is the great Creator of our whole paradigm. The One Who truly Loves us and tells us, “You are mine!” Jim Strickland – Written 11th October 2012