Exodus 20:2 “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.
The phrase “I am the Lord your God” is seen in the Bible over 150 times, which tells us it is important and we need to pay attention. It comes from the Hebrew “Anokhi Adonai Elohekha” which precedes the Ten Commandments. The transliteration of each part of this name tells us more about God and His role in our lives. “Anokhi” is the proper name of God, YHWH (Yahweh). “Elohekha” is transliterated as Elohim, which is the normal Biblical Hebrew word for god. And “Adonai” is a Hebrew word that means master. It is interesting to note that Adonai is a plural form, not singular. Used by itself, it appears over 400 times in the Bible. These names are important and should be respected and honored by believers.
This statement made by God to Moses not only established who He is, but served as a reminder that He is also their redeemer and deliverer. He makes it clear that He is THE God of everything, of each of us and all of creation. He alone created the earth and all of its people. And He chose the Israelites as His special people, those He delivered from the oppression and slavery of Egypt. He formally introduces Himself to His chosen people and reminds them that He is the creator and maker of everything as well as the One who brought them out of slavery and gave them a new life.
Why is this important to modern day Christians? We live in an age where we don’t live as slaves and need deliverance, right? Wrong. We become slave to many things – money, work, service, etc. – and we take our eyes from Him. Just as the Hebrew nation needed deliverance so many years ago, we, too, need Him to step in and guide us out of slavery and into freedom. We need to be reminded that He is God, He is our Maker, He created each one of us and everything we have, He alone should be honored and worshipped.
Let Him be the Lord your God, the Maker and Deliverer in your life. Follow Him out of slavery and into freedom.
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