Earlier this summer, my wife, Betsy, and I had the opportunity to travel to Israel for a second time with the faculty and staff of Holland Christian Schools under the guidance of Ray Vander Laan—who we affectionately all know as RVL. The trip involves learning with our feet by trekking through the southern deserts of Israel, the region of Galilee, and finally Jerusalem—all the while building our understanding of the “big story” of the Bible: God’s efforts to bring his Shalom to the Chaos of this world and inviting us to be his human partners in doing so.
One of our early days on the trip was spent climbing Mt. Timna in the Sinai Desert, where RVL taught us about the Lord’s covenant with his people after he brought them out of Egypt. On the way up, we stopped to reflect on Moses’ encounter with God at the burning bush. After God commanded him to bring the Israelites out of Egypt, Moses asked, “Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ Then what shall I tell them?”
God’s reply is famous to our ears: “I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I AM has sent me to you.’”
I have several titles that could be ascribed to me: Superintendent, Husband, or Father to name a few. But my name is “Dan.” In the same way, we have titles for God like Lord, King, or Father; but it’s his actual first name (I AM WHO I AM) that he tells Moses, and in Hebrew it’s captured in a breathy series of consonants: JHWH.
In the ancient Near East, your name was your identity. It carried your reputation and said something to everyone about who you were and what they could expect from you as a person. The Hebrew people so revere the first name of God that they won’t utter it. They simply call it “The Name,” or Hashem in Hebrew.
Fast forward to the giving of the Ten Commandments. In most of our English translations, the third commandment states that we should never take the name of the Lord in vain. Usually, we interpret that as a call to avoid swearing or using the words “God” or “Jesus” too casually. While those aren’t bad ideas, they don’t capture the full impact of God’s command for his people.
Jesus gave his disciples the Lord’s prayer, and early on in those words, we hear “Hallowed be your name.” This is closer to the meaning of the third commandment. The Lord desires us to fill his name—his Hashem—with meaning . . . not just by what we say, but by every single choice we make and every action we live out. After all, we are his representatives and his image bearers.
In Hebrew, the term for pouring meaning into God’s name is Kiddush Hashem (ki-DOOSH ha-SHEM). This perspective focuses on what we are doing to make God look good to those we encounter—to make them ask, “What king do you serve, and how can I join you?”
As the Holland Christian administrative team reviewed our school policies this summer, we saw this concept as a powerful framing for the guidelines we have and the perspective we desire from ourselves, our students, and our school families. In every interaction, choice, and relationship, we have an opportunity to either add meaning to the very name of God or to show the world that he’s a phony. With that mindset, we shift our thinking from “How far can I go and still be ‘in bounds’?” to “How can I speak or dress or interact with others in a way that will show people what God is all about?”
It’s our hope that as you approach the school year ahead with your children, you’ll have an opportunity to talk about these ideas with them and use them as a framework as well.
And may we all Kiddush Hashem this year!
