In Acts 2:21, we read that “whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”
However, this verse raises several important questions.
- “If we are to call upon the name of “the Lord,” that would require “the Lord” to have a name; the Lord’s name could not be “the Lord.”
- “And how can we call upon the name of the Lord and be Saved if there are two Lords?”
- “Where in His Holy Scriptures does Yahweh permit the scribes to replace His Glorious name with an earthly title used to address men?”
Due to a multitude of false translations, there is tremendous confusion about God’s plan for Salvation.
A Child asks, “What is the name of the Lord?”
Rebecca asks her youth Bible study leader, Harold, a logical question after reading Romans 10:13.
“What is the name of the Lord I am supposed to call upon so that I might be Saved”?
Harold quickly replies, “The Lord Jesus is his name; call upon the name of the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved.”
Rebecca reads Romans 10:9, and then asks the question, “So, if I confess that Jesus is the Lord and believe God raised him up, I will be saved, right?”
Answering with a simple “yes,” he does not anticipate the next two verses and her thought-provoking remark with regards to Jude 1:4.
In John 10:18, our Lord stated, “I have the power to lay it down, and I have the power to take it again.” Then, in John 2:19, He said, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.”
“This is very confusing. If the Lord raised Himself from the grave, then what is written in Romans 10:9 would be a contradiction, right?”
“And since Thomas called Jesus God in John 20:28, how could God raise him up?”
“I also read in Jude 1:4 that there is only one Lord God. Do I need to call upon His name as well as the name of the Lord Jesus?”
As Harold searches for appropriate responses and tries to gather his thoughts, Rebecca reads several more verses in quick succession.
Romans 14:10-11 says, “We shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ,” because it is written, “As I live,” declares the Lord, “every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God.”
And then in Isaiah 45:22-23, God says, “Look unto me and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth; for I am God, and there is none else. I have sworn by myself, the word is gone out of my mouth in righteousness, and shall not return, that unto me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall confess.”
“How can I acknowledge the Lord God if I do not know his name”? Rebecca asks, with a puzzled look on her face.
“Regarding the Trinity, we were taught that Jesus is also God. And in Philippians 2:9-10 it says, “God exalted Jesus to the highest place and gave him a name above all others, to which every knee shall bow.”
Doesn’t that imply that kneeling before the Lord Jesus and the Lord God would be to kneel before two Gods?”
Still pondering how there can be two Lords and why only one Lord is named—a question he had never really considered—he is unsure how best to proceed; meanwhile, her inquiries continue.
“How can the Lord Jesus also be my Savior, if the Lord God in Isaiah 45:21 says he is the only Savior, and there is no other God?”
Harold replays the words from Jude 1:4 in his mind, “The only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ.” He also contemplates the passage from Isaiah 42:8 that states, “I Am the Lord, that is my name and realizes that “the Lord” could not possibly be the Father’s name.
In his notebook, he finds himself circling the word “Trinity.” The inability to actually rationalize this concept has become unsettling, and with Rebecca’s final question, that uncertainty will only grow stronger.
“Is that why the Lord God does not have a name like the Lord Jesus does, because only Jesus is exalted in the New Testament?” she asks.
The clock strikes seven, and Harold dismisses the class, relieved that it’s over for now. He tries to put on a smile but is visibly shaken and does his best not to show it to Rebecca or the other children.
As witnessed in the scenario above, confusion about the identity of the Savior is all too real, and there are many legitimate questions asked that most people cannot readily answer.
When studying verses such as Romans 10:13, Acts 2:21, and Joel 2:32, it is essential to consider these translations within the context of scriptural uniformity.
The Old and New Testament scriptures must be harmonious and consistent rather than contradictory.
The Lord is not a Name
Romans 10:13 states, “Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”
However, this declaration is inaccurate for so many reasons.
- Two Lords have been written into the New Testament, as seen in Jude 1:4.
- For this reason alone, one cannot simply call upon the name of “the Lord.”
- “Lord” is a title; it is not to be used as if it were a specific name.
The doctrine of the Trinity claims that only the Lord Jesus can save us; however, this teaching is a contradiction.
- For instance, in 1 Timothy 1:1, Paul identifies himself as an apostle of Jesus Christ by the commandment of God our Savior and the Lord Jesus Christ, our hope.
1 Corinthians 8:6 states, “There is but one God, and one Lord Jesus Christ.” Jude 1:25 references that one God, where the declaration is made, “To the only wise God our Savior, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever.”
- In 1 Timothy 2:3-5, and throughout the Old Testament, the One God —whose name does not appear in the New Testament—is called the Savior .
Isaiah 43:11 “I am Yahweh, and besides me, there is no Savior”
The same title of Lord (or Master) that is used to refer to men, as seen in Matthew 18:27, is also used in Acts 2:21 as a substitute for the name of Yahweh.
- Matthew 18:27 states, “Then the lord (G2962) of that servant was moved with compassion, and loosed him, and forgave him the debt.”
- Acts 2:21 declares, “And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord (G2962) shall be saved.”
For further context, consider Matthew 6:9: “Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.”
- How can one pray to the Father without knowing or honoring His sacred name?
- Our Heavenly Father’s name is Yahweh, it is not “the Lord.”
Yahweh Alone is Our Savior | He is not The Lord
Isaiah 42:8 states, “I am the LORD, that is my name, and my glory I will not give to another, neither my praise to graven images.”
Transliteration is the process of converting words from one language into the corresponding characters of another alphabet or language, with the aim of preserving the original sound.
Deception has been penned into Isaiah 42:8. God’s name is Yahweh, it is not “the LORD.”
- Yahweh is the transliteration of the Hebrew name for God into English.
- Furthermore, the translation of this entire verse is nonsensical, particularly the phrases: “I will not give my glory to another” and “neither will I give my praise to graven images.”
When the name of Yahweh is reinstated in Isaiah 42:8 and the verse is properly translated, it reads: “I am Yahweh, that is my name, and my glory shall you not give to another, neither give your praises to graven images.”
- Refer to the cutting-edge study guide entitled ‘The Lord said to my Lord’ for an in-depth analysis of the Lords of the Old and New Testaments.
- Two persons claiming to be God cannot become a singular God; it’s not Biblical, logical, or possible (John 20:28, Acts 3:22, Deut 18:15-19).
- The deception regarding ‘Calling upon the name of the Lord’ has been exposed.
- Those who call upon the name of Yahweh shall be saved when he returns at the end of this age.
- This powerful and hopeful promise should bring us comfort and reassurance.
In closing, it is essential to understand that our Messiah can only be the Savior if He is Yahweh (John 8:58, Isa 45:21).
It is imperative to replace the title of “the Lord” with the name “Yahweh” in Acts 2:21, Romans 10:13, John 2:19, Joel 2:31-22, and Isaiah 43:11, for no one can call upon the name of the Lord.
Therefore, the statements found in Romans 10:9 and Acts 16:31 can no longer represent a valid path to salvation.
The earnest (which is a down payment) unto an inheritance with our Messiah, is that we are sealed with His Spirit of promise.
The fulfillment of this contract is our redemption which is realized when Messiah returns with our Salvation (Eph 1:13-14, Heb 9:28, 1 Peter 1:5).
- Two pieces of defensive armor for believers include the breastplate of faith, and a helmet, which is the hope of our Salvation (1 Thes 5:8, Eph 6:17).
- We cannot hope for something that we claim (albeit falsely) to already possess (Romans 8:23-25).