Isaiah 42:8
The name of God is God’s declaration of who and what he is. Here, God’s name asserts his solitariness and supremacy. He is Yahweh, the I AM. No one is like him (Isaiah 40:25); he does whatever he wants to (Psalm 115:3; 135:1-6; Ephesians 1:11), which is always what is wise and right. God’s name should transform our questions in the perplexities of life. For example, “the I AM has placed me in this circumstance to learn the surpassing resources of who he is. I feel utter weakness, but he is strength. I feel despair, but he is refreshing hope. I have no answers, but he is wisdom. Lord, in my instability, I will rely on the certainty of who you are.”
While it is true that the patriarchs knew God by the name Yahweh (Genesis 18:32; 28:13), it was not until the time of the Exodus that God revealed or demonstrated the meaning of the name Yahweh to his people (Exodus 6:2-8). The Lord reveals himself more fully in the events of salvation, whether in the old covenant shadows or the fulfillment of the Messiah and his new covenant. By this name (I AM) God reveals himself as the Covenant Lord and Redeemer of his chosen people. He makes himself known as our light and our salvation (Psalm 27:1; cf. Exodus 15:2).
The Lord does not share his glory with anyone. God is independent of everything else. He is Creator, while everything outside of him is created and dependent. God’s great question to Job is enough to silence everyone (Job 38:4). God lets us know his absolute independence in a number of ways; for example, he is independent in his thoughts (Isaiah 55:8; Romans 11:33-34), in his will (Romans 9:19; Ephesians 1:5; Revelation 4:11), and in his counsel (Psalm 33:11). Listen to the words of A. W. Pink. “Such a One is to be revered, worshipped, adored. He is solitary in His majesty, unique in His excellency, peerless in His perfections. He sustains all, but is Himself independent of all. He gives to all, but is enriched by none. Such a God cannot be found out by searching; He can only be known, only as He is revealed to the heart by the Holy Spirit through the Word” (The Attributes of God, p. 4).
God clearly states that he will not share his glory as God with anyone else. He is far above all that people wrongly imagine to be gods (Jeremiah 10:2-10). In this Servant Song, Yahweh exalts his Son with equal glory to himself. What the Father does, the Son does (John 5:19b). In this way, this reinforces a high evaluation of Christ, the Servant of the Lord. The “bread”, to use our illustration again, enhances the flavor and value of the “rest of the sandwich”. Today, let the glory of the Messiah flavor your way of life.
Grace and peace, David