The Theology of Popeye

Imagine Popeye, go ahead close your eyes imagine the skinny biceps and the abnormally large forearms. Now Popeye's arch enemy, his exact opposite is Bluto. Bluto draws his identity from the things that he's done, or the

things that he has. Popeye on the other hand has a higher calling. In fact one of his most famous sayings is "I yam what I yam." Now that's deep, I wonder if they got that idea from somewhere. "I yam what I yam" is especially interesting when we see how God reveals himself to Moses.

Exodus 3:1-15

Interesting observations:

• Moses went further into the wilderness than he had ever gone before
• God knows Moses' name first
• The ground was holy (When did it become holy? Give me your thoughts)
• Moses did not know God's name

God reveals his name as YHWH, which in most translations comes to I am that I am. Well that clears it up some. There is so much debate about what this name means, it's awesome. I love that no one can seem to quite put their finger on it. I mean who can truly knows God for who he really is, who knows his name? Mystery......that's the only word that I can find to describe it.

In Matthew 14:27 most translations read: "fear not it is I" when it really says, "fear not I AM." That's powerful. Jesus, in not so subtle terms was saying I am God, I am YHWH. If you read John 8:12-59 you can see how this got Jesus into some hot water. It's simply fascinating.

God's name is ancient and sacred. It's a mystery that we are all fully wrapped up in. That's why it kills me, absolutely kills me when I hear someone misuse his name. When someone swears and they throw in a "Jesus Christ" or "Oh my God" it makes me cringe. Swearing by His name is essentially claiming authority over YHWH. Not that they're is anything mystical about His name, but when you do that you show your ignorance of your roots, and what it means to know God's name.

Lets remember that we are dependent on His revelation to understand Him.

Some articles if your interested:

Popeye

Some deep reading