El Elyon - The Lord Most High
We’re in the middle of our Christmas message series called His Name Is. And we’re looking at the different names of God that are found throughout the Bible. Particularly, in the New Testament book of John, what we find is an emphasis on the deity of Jesus. John makes it clear that Jesus is the Lord of lords and the King of kings; that Jesus is God in the flesh.
In the first few verses of John chapter 1, he says…
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 All things were created through him, and apart from him not one thing was created that has been created.
So, John calls Jesus the Word, which comes from the Greek word logos, which means the expression or declaration of a thought. So, when John refers to Jesus as logos, he’s saying that Jesus is the expression of God in the flesh. He’s making it clear to us that Jesus was not just a representation of God; he was the manifestation of God; that Jesus is God in human form. When we look at the Christmas story, and we think in terms of the nativity, seeing baby Jesus in a manger, we tend to think in a very human perspective of who Jesus was. But John wants to make it clear that this baby in the manger is God.
Now, the name we’re looking at this morning comes from the Old Testament, but it also describes Jesus. The name is El Elyon, which simply means the Lord Most High. It’s used 28 times in the Old Testament, and it’s meant to communicate the greatness and majesty of God…
That there’s no one higher.
There’s no one greater.
He’s the strongest of the strong.
He’s the greatest of the great.
He’s the wisest of the wise.
He’s the mightiest of the mighty.
He’s the first and the last.
And he’s the beginning and the end.
And that’s who Jesus is. Jesus is the Lord Most High, and there’s no one like Jesus. One of the guys in our sermon club a few weeks ago said, “When we confine Jesus to the crib, we also rob him of his glory.” So, as we look at the name El Elyon, I want to read a few Scriptures from the Old Testament to kind of paint a picture of what the Lord Most High looks like.
The prophet Daniel declared in chapter 2…
20 …May the name of God be praised forever and ever, for wisdom and power belong to him. 21 He changes the times and seasons; he removes kings and establishes kings. He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to those who have understanding. 22 He reveals the deep and hidden things; he knows what is in the darkness, and light dwells with him.
God is El Elyon, the Lord Most High.
In Isaiah 46, God says of himself…
9 “Remember what happened long ago, for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and no one is like me. 10 I declare the end from the beginning, and from long ago what is not yet done, saying: my plan will take place, and I will do all my will.”
He is El Elyon, the Lord Most High.
A few chapters earlier, in chapter 40, the prophet Isaiah uses measurements to help us understand the greatness and magnitude of God.
In verse 12, he asks…
12 Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand…?
If I tried to measure water in the hollow of my hand, I might get a tablespoon or two. Yet, we know that about 2/3 of the earth’s surface is covered in water, and in certain places it can be almost 7 miles deep. Here, Isaiah says, “This is how great God is. Pour some water into his hand…Pacific Ocean. Pour a little more water into his hand…Atlantic Ocean. That’s the greatness of God. That’s the Lord Most High.”
In the same verse, Isaiah then asks…
12 Who has…marked off the heavens with the span of his hand?
The span of my hand, from the tip of my pinky to the tip of my thumb, is about nine inches. The closest star to us other than the sun is about 4-1/2 light-years away. And God’s like, “Let me measure that off with the span of my hand.”
This is the Lord Most High.