Description
Explore the names of God to grow in faith and get to know Him better.
Take an insightful journey into deeper relationship with God through the biblical names of God. Beginning in Babel and ending with a burning Babylon, The Name Quest builds faith and encourages spiritual growth.
The names of God are like a rainbow—each name expresses part of the spectrum of the character and attributes of God. God is a personality with a multifaceted character too integrated and dynamic to compartmentalize. God’s names are best examined in clusters, around common themes. So that is how the chapters are organized.
Along the way, the author tenderly answers tough questions:
Which of the Hebrew names of God is His personal name—Yahweh or Jehovah?
What does it mean to pray in Jesus’ name?
How can we relate to the Holy God and the Judge?
Why is a God of love called the “Jealous God”?
What does it mean to call Jesus the Messiah?
The Name Quest mentions all the names of God in the Bible while explaining their significance in ordinary language. The author weaves together fifteen years of Bible study research with plentiful illustrations and humorous anecdotes. These include lessons learned as a pastor on a Caribbean island. A visit to a Welsh hill farm introduces a chapter about the Good Shepherd. The story of a Hungarian political prisoner illustrates the meaning of Immanuel (or is it Emmanuel?) A rescue from the slopes of an active volcano helps explain salvation and the meaning of Jesus’ Hebrew name, Yeshua. Even the clever advertisement on a packet of potato chips offers a lesson about how to grow in faith in God.
Unlike chasing rainbows, the spiritual journey has an end. The Name Quest is a road map for every Christian’s spiritual journey and it points to the destination—being formed into the image of Jesus Christ.
Start exploring!
John Avery –
By Unfallen on September 25, 2014
Avery’s book is deliberate, expansive, and attentive to the text. And though this is well-trod ground, Avery does what all worthwhile authors must do: focus the Biblical witness through his own lens. Of a more academic cast than the sketchy offerings of much of popular Christian books, The Name Quest will reward a careful, thoughtful reading. Avery trusts the testimony of Scripture, and this is the book’s great strength.
By Lillian Ammann (Lillie) on August 31, 2014
I have gone through two Bible studies on the names and titles of God, so quite a bit of the material was familiar to me. However, this book was more extensive than the studies I’ve experienced, so I learned the meanings of additional names and titles I hadn’t studied before. The book was organized differently, which also gave me a different perspective.
By Mary Anne Benedetto on September 12, 2014
The Name Quest is a spiritually powerful, well-written book that is filled with snippets of information based on Scripture, but also a great deal more. By including personal experiences and sketches of examples demonstrated in the Bible, John Avery grabs a shovel and digs us deeper into the Word.
This book is not merely about the various names by which God is known, but page after page of instances and illustrations of God’s love for us, His desire to be in relationship with us, His provisions for us and His quest to guide us along a path that will be amazing if we only choose His way rather than bumbling along on our own.
I especially appreciated the author’s comparison of a life of faith to being bombarded with confusing options on a quiz show. “Every challenge to our faith is an opportunity to ‘open the box’ for God to work and thus build faith, which is our spiritual capital. Or we can settle for life as usual, and plateau. However, true faith contains no element of chance, and we have nothing of value to lose.”
The Name Quest is an excellent resource for anyone who wants to know more about God, even for the knowledgeable Bible scholar, containing something for everyone who seeks God and strives to mature in faith.
By J.P. Davis on September 19, 2014
The Name Quest by author John Avery explores the Names of God guiding the reader to grow in faith and get to know Him better.
In his introduction the author stated: “This book is about God’s names. More importantly, it’s about God branding His character into our lives—the character to which His names point. As we spend time getting to know God, we grow more like Him. Understanding His names helps us understand His nature.” The Name Quest is full of Scriptures to help the reader better understand the Bible.
The research weaved together fifteen years of Bible study and includes many illustrations and side bars. Most of the chapters are full of anecdotes in ordinary language used to embellish the point and explain their significance. Mr. Avery had a passion for writing this book and it shows through his voice and personality in each chapter. The Name Quest could be improved with a larger font making the print easier to read.
The endnotes, resources, epilogue and index of the names of God with websites are noteworthy. You may purchase this book at Amazon.com. The publisher has provided me with a complimentary copy of The Name Quest through BookCrash.com