Sermon Tone Analysis

*opening Prayer*

The third commandment deals with God’s name, his character, His office, His position as the great sovereign Ruler of the universe.

in biblical terms, personal names have a meaning, for the usually describe some aspect of the person’s character.

So it was with God’s name.

The bible reveals Him under different names, each given with a purpose: to set forth some distant virtue or characteristic of His nature.

To bring this particular point to light for a better understanding, I will do a quick review of a part of my Prophecy Series concerning the name of God.

The significance of the name of God given in this verse, I AM THAT I AM, constitutes the idea that the “ I AM “ in Exodus 3 reveals God as the Being who is absolutely self-existent, and who, in Himself, possesses essential life and permanent existance.

To the Hebrew, to be does not just mean to exist, but to be active, to express one’s self in active being.

God is the One who acts.

The imperfect tense of the verb becomes clear.

God’s manifestation to Israel is yet future at the time of the burning bush incident.

The “ I AM “ or “ I WILL BE “ is God’s promise that He will redeem the children of Israel.

The people wanted to be reassured that this God would meet them in their time of need, proving His character and promises.

There are three primary names of God:

Elohim ( which means God)

Jehovah or Yahweh ( usually printed as Lord in the King James Version)

Adonai ( which means Lord)

Each of these names emphasizes a different aspect of the nature of God.

The name Elohim occurs thirty one times in Genesis 1, where it emphasizes His strength and creative power.

The name Yahweh is most often used to express God’s self-existance, particularly in relation to humanity.

Adonai means “ Master” and underscores the authority of God.

In this next verse, God will also identify Himself using the term “ YHWH “, a Hebrew word which was considered so holy that it was not spoken aloud.

This appears in most English translations of the Bible using small capitol letters; “ The LORD “.

It is also transliterated as “ Yahweh “ or “ Jehovah “.

Since the word “ e’heyah “ is related to the word “ YHWH “, this is probably a deliberate play on words.

Using the word “ YHWH “ invokes the concept of “ I AM “.

Now that i have brushed everyone up with that knowledge , let’s continue to examine this commandment.

In this commandment, the Hebrews word rendered “ guiltless “ may also be translated “ clean “.

A person is clean or unclean according to how he uses the name of God, whether in truth or in vanity.

A person who continually talks about God but denies Him in his daily life is unclean; he is guilty of breaking the law of God, a sinner.

If we use God’s name in a way that denies the true meaning and character of God, we break the third commandment.

As we can easily see, God is greatly concerned about how we use His name.

This commandment requires serious reflection.

Like the second commandment, it includes a warning that God will not hold us guiltless.

It seems that sometimes God deliberately understates things for subtle emphasis and to ultimately magnify the meaning.

To understand this commandment better, we need to explain four words:

Take, throughout the Old Testament, is translated into English from seventy-four different Hebrew words.

This one means “to lift up”, “ bear “, “carry “, “ use “, and “appropriate “.

Vain, has the sense of “ desolating “; “ that which lacks reality, purpose, value, or truth “.

It may also be translated “ lying “, “ false “, “ worthless “, “ profane “, “ foolish “, “ reproachful “, “ curse “, “ blaspheme “, or “ useless “.

Guiltless, means “ free “, “ clear “, “ innocent “, “ clean “, “ blameless “, and/or “ unpunished “.

Name, means “ a mark or sign standing out “; “ a word by which a person, place, or thing is distinctively known “.

It’s Hebrew root denotes “ high “, “ elevated “, “ a monument “.

It indicates majesty or excellence.

A name identifies, signifies, and specifies.

The commandment has nothing to do with the proper pronunciation of God’s name, which no one knows anyways since it was lost in antiquity.

It has nothing to do with superstition or magical uses of a name.

Its application is far broader

The third commandment regulates the quality of our worship.

It involves glorifying God in every aspect of life.

Most people regard the third commandment very lightly.

The Jews, however, have a saying: “ When God gave the third commandment, the whole world trembled.”

They even warned witnesses at a trial with this statement.

Why do you ask?

The Jews believe that because it reads, “ the Lord will not hold him guiltless, “ there is no forgiveness for transgressing it.

If it is this important, perhaps we should pay closer attention to it.

God asks two questions in these verses:

Obviously, the second commandment expressly forbids making any representation of Him.

God is unique; nothing can compare with Him.

We are without a point of contact or physical reference to make any comparison.

This ought to show us the absolute folly of making images.

On its face, every image is a lie.

But should we not try to understand, to learn, what God is like?

God does not want us to be concerned with what He looks like because it emphasizes the wrong area.

He supplies us with enough information to know that He generally looks like a man.

To Him, that is enough!

But He does want us to know what He is.

He wants us to know Him.

The entire Bible reveals His mind, character, attributes, offices, power, will, promises, plan, and relationship with us.

The third commandment concerns this kind of knowledge and how well we apply it in our lives.

In our culture, one’s name means little, most often merely as a way of identifying and distinguishing people.

We can glimpse how significant it was to people in biblical times when we realize that we link reputation or prestige to a person”s name.

We use phrases like “ He ruined the family name “ or “ his name is mud “ to express that someone is of low repute or character.

An individual’s name meant far more than that in ancient times.

Then, a person and his or her name were bound together, the name representing the person’s essence.

In the Old Testament, certain persons’ names defined them.

For example, Jacob means “ heel-catcher “, characterizing his underhanded, deceptive nature, but God renames him Israel, “ one who prevails with God “, after his conversion.

Christ Himself is named Jesus, “ Savior”.

God’s names likewise identify His character traits: He is Eternal, Creator, Almighty, our Banner, our Healer, our Sanctifier, our Peace, our Righteousness, our Shepard, our Master, etc.

Thus , the request in Matthew 6:9

and God’s command in the third commandment means more than just how we use or pronounce God’s names.

It implies that we revere what God’s names stand for.

He desires that we regard His names and thus Him and His character reverently, taking the pursuit of Him and His way of life seriously as a matter of profound aspiration.

The third commandment is certainly against common swearing, including using euphemisms so common in society.

many commonly used are “ gee “, “ gosh “, “ golly “, “ got all muddy “, “ cheese and rice “, “ Jimmy Cricket “ and “ doggone “ to substitute for more offensive words some carelessly spew forth.

This commandment also covers the light and disrespectful use of any of God’s attributes or character.

It is this commandment more than any other that shows how much God should be a part of our every word , deed, and attitude.

It shows that the test of our spiritual cleanliness how we use the name of God , whether in truth or vanity.

It indicates that a man is better off being sincerely wrong than to be a professing Christian and deny His name by the conduct of his life.

It pays dividends in insight and understanding to take notice of biblical names.

In biblical thought, a name is not merely a label of indentification but also an expression of the bearers essential nature.

As I explained earlier, it includes its bearers reputation, character, and distinctiveness from others.

For example, in all probability, Adam named the beasts based on his observations of the distinctiveness of their natures.

Similarly, to know the name of God is to know God as He has revealed Himself, that is, to know some of His nature.

This same thought is true of many biblical characters, providing insight into understanding them within the events recorded about them.

To illustrate, Jacob supplants his brother Esau twice.

A supplanter is one who by skill, decent, or force takes the place of another.

When this happens the second time, this is Esau’s response:

Regarding the birthright and blessing, Jacob takes Esau’s place using his supplanting nature.

Another clear example occurs when Abigail pleads with David for Nabal’s life: