The Lord's Name - Exodus 20:7

INTRO

I grew up with two older brothers and often I would get told to say things I didn’t know what they meant.

On at least one occasion it resulted with soap in my mouth.

Maybe you have had a similar experience growing up.

There was a Farmer who drove his team of mules into town and was very late returning home. “

“What took you so long?” asked his wife.

“Well,” the farmer explained, “on the way I had to pick up the pastor, and from there on, these mules of ours didn’t understand one word I said.”

Perhaps we are over familiar in our culture with these commandments to the point of blowing them off.

A senator a few years ago was fighting for the commandments to be placed in a court house and when asked what all the commandments were could barely make it past listing three.

These commandments, which occur three times in the Old Testament, literally means “ten words.”

Ten words given by God to his people on how to live in the world.

Today we come to the third word, Do not take the Lord’s name in vain in our Ten Word series looking at the Ten Commandments.

As we walk through these commandments we’re not to see the 10 Words as legislation from a cosmic bureaucrat trying to ruin everyone’s fun Rather as wise instructions from a loving father who knows what his kids need to thrive.

Today we come to the third word

If the second word forbids low or careless thoughts about God, the third forbids low or careless words about God.

Like the second commandment, at first glance the third seems an easy one to avoid breaking: just don’t swear, right?

Don’t cuss...

Or even more generously understood (for those who indulge in the occasional choice term when they stub a toe or are cut off in traffic), just don’t swear using the name of God.

Simple. On to the fourth commandment.

But as we have seen with the first two words, the third points us beyond bare-minimum obedience to abundant life.

If all that was at stake was literal name usage, we could check off compliance with the third word by applying minor self-control.

But names in the Bible do more than just identify an individual.

Therein lies the key to the deeper obedience of the third word.

God cares about his name.

This commandment has much to teach us. It is maybe the most misunderstood and misapplied of the 10.

It’s not just cussing.

It’s actually one of the most broken of the 10.

Here is our big idea:

Big Idea: Honor the name of the Lord

We are going to break down each of these commandments, these ten words in the same way

- What does this command reveal about God?

- What does this command reveal about us?

- How does it point us to Jesus?

- How does it show us the path of life?

So let’s start with first,

I. What does this command reveal about God?

Name’s today are more in line with what sounds good or unique then holding deep meaning.

Right Jessica....I am gonna get in trouble.

Jessica is a beautiful name it means God beholds....now you know why we have so many here at Coram Deo where we seek to live before his face.

I think many of us know that we do this with names.

When naming our son Hannah and I went back and forth.

There’s a basketball player named ShaqKobe he was named after his Dad’s favorite basketball player, and Kobe was named after a japanese steakhouse.

Now in this day when the command was given a person’s name wasn’t just to differentiate / Conveyed circumstances, character, reputation

A name carried a sense of the person’s character, whether good or bad. Jacob’s name literally means “he grasps the heel,” but as his story develops, his name becomes synonymous with the idea of deceit and grasping for control.

In 1 Samuel we meet Nabal, whose name means “perverse fool,” and he is indeed just that in his dealings with David and Abigail.

Joshua’s name means “Yahweh is salvation,” and it represents his character and purpose well. It is the root of the name Jesus.

So when God reveals his personal covenant name he is speaking to his character.

He says I am who I am, Yahweh.

He reveals who he is.

His name is used over 7000 times in the OT.

It was treated with such reverence that Jews were fearful to say or even write it.

When God reveals his name he is saying I am self-existent

I am the fire w/o fuel / I am transcendent & I am immanent

God’s nature & character is wrapped up in name /

Ex. 34:6 “The Lord passed before him and proclaimed, “The Lord, the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness,”

This became a confession of the people of God

Gracious & merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love that is Who God is

Many other ‘names’ in OT give glimpses of character:

The Lord who provides (Gen. 22)

The Lord who sanctifies(Ex.31)

TheLord our righteousness(Jer.23)

The Lord our shepherd(Ps.23)

TheLord our deliverer(Ps.18)

The Lord our peace(Judges6)

The Lord who heals(Ex.15)

The Lord our savior(Is.49)

God takes his name seriously

It says he will not hold guiltless him who takes his name in vain

What does vain mean?

Empty, hollow, careless, worthless, meaningless

We all desire a good name & a good reputation / Why ancestry so popular right now

Want to know history of names / Pride/shame associated w/name based on others

Older siblings?

Those Glosson boys... / If you have kids, want name to be honored (I am proud of you, turn yourself in)

Ezekiel 39:25 ““Therefore thus says the Lord God: Now I will restore the fortunes of Jacob and have mercy on the whole house of Israel, and I will be jealous for my holy name.”

God is jealous for his holy name, He Wants his name to be honored, revered

To take God’s name in vain denigrates and diminishes His glory.

We see that the name of God is holy, so let’s see second

II. What does this command reveal about us?

What kind of people need to be commanded not to take God’s name in vain?

People who are prone to trivialize the name of God.

Listening to my good friend Bryan Robbin he said we are prone to break this command by treating the name of God flippantly, falsely, and foolishly.

FLIPPANTLY

God’s name is glorious = weighty, significant, worthy of honor & admiration

When we use God’s name flippantly, we are making light, treating it as insignificant

- Profanity – making light of name /

- Now I think most of us don’t do that but we do treat the name of God in Silly ways - TGIF, PTL, OMG, Ermagherd

- Christian T-Shirts – examples

Now listen I get that these are comical.

I’m not trying to crack down on wardrobes here but rather I am saying that often we have been careless with the name of God.

Maybe it’s not T-Shirts.

Here this from Kevin Deyoung

We’ve probably heard prayers made in this way: “Dear God, we just come to you, God. Lord, you’re so awesome. Father, you died on the cross, Lord, and we just can’t help but love and praise you for filling our hearts, Holy Spirit.” Not only do prayers like this make a mess of the Trinity; they use the Lord’s name as if it were little more than a breath or a comma. We ought to be more careful. _Kevin Deyoung

Perhaps we use God’s name like a comma in our prayers…

We have a loss of reverence.

FALSELY

There are a number of ways in which God’s name is used falsely

Jer. 29:8-9 – God’s ppl in exile /

Some prophets claiming God’s coming soon, so hold tight

Prophets were suppose to speak God’s words to God’s ppl /

They are speaking lies in my name / I didn’t tell them to say that, they’re making stuff up o Still happen today? /

All the time / Televangelist – God told be to believe for a new jet

Harold Camping – World will end May 21, 2011 / I mean October 21, 2011

1 John 4:1

1 John 4:1 (ESV)

Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world.

Don’t believe every spirit, but test the spirits b/c false prophets...

Now sometimes more subtle /

Now I may get some emails about this but here we go.

Jesus Calling - perhaps massively popular devotional book.

In this book the author says God gave me some words and I want to share them with you.

She puts her words in first person as Jesus speaking directly to you.

It reads as “I want you to know. “I see you”

Now this is very subtle.

Because she says in the introduction that God’s word is the inerrant word and that God speaks through the Bible but she says, “i just wanted more than that”

In this book she is taking her thoughts and calling them the words of Jesus and giving them to us.

Now maybe you think I am being harsh, it’s a book that has helped a lot of people.

The issue is that she is claiming that these are God’s very words to you and they are not.

We have to be discerning Coram Deo

We have to be like the Bereans

Bereans - Acts 17:11

Acts 17:11 (ESV)

Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.

Do the same thing with my words, Go to the word of God and measure the words

Sometimes even more subtle /

We say things, The Lord told me OR the Lord told me to tell you.

Now I do believe the Lord can & does speak / But we must be careful / Could be wrong

Perhaps we should show more reverence (I believe this is from God, I sense God may be and does this line up with the scriptures)

So flippantly, falsely, and foolishly

Foolishly

When we come to Jesus, trusting in his life, death, resurrection, we take on his name o If our character isn’t in keeping with our confession, we’re taking Lord’s name in vain

To take in this command means to bear or to carry.

This means that you friend bear the name of Christ.

So how do we break this command foolishly?

Breaking promises / Matt. 5:33-53

Jesus says Do not make an oath /

Not just formal, hand on bible

An Oath is a vow, a promise /

When we give our word, we do so as representives of Jesus • If we have no intention of keeping, or if we over-promise & under-deliver we’re carrying his name in vain

James, Jesus’ brother: “Let your ‘yes’ be ‘yes.’ Let your ‘no’ be ‘no.’ /

Do we honor the name of Jesus with our life?

Do not take the name of Jesus (Christian) and contradict it with your life.

Do you see how often we have broken this commandment...making vain the name of God with a life that dishonors him.

III. How Does This Commandment Point to Jesus?

We have been given God’s personal covenant name and that name means something.

He takes it seriously

John 8 There is a serious interaction between Jesus and the Jewish People

John 8:48–59 (ESV)

The Jews answered him, “Are we not right in saying that you are a Samaritan and have a demon?” Jesus answered, “I do not have a demon, but I honor my Father, and you dishonor me. Yet I do not seek my own glory; there is One who seeks it, and he is the judge. Truly, truly, I say to you, if anyone keeps my word, he will never see death.” The Jews said to him, “Now we know that you have a demon! Abraham died, as did the prophets, yet you say, ‘If anyone keeps my word, he will never taste death.’ Are you greater than our father Abraham, who died? And the prophets died! Who do you make yourself out to be?” Jesus answered, “If I glorify myself, my glory is nothing. It is my Father who glorifies me, of whom you say, ‘He is our God.’ But you have not known him. I know him. If I were to say that I do not know him, I would be a liar like you, but I do know him and I keep his word. Your father Abraham rejoiced that he would see my day. He saw it and was glad.” So the Jews said to him, “You are not yet fifty years old, and have you seen Abraham?” Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.” So they picked up stones to throw at him, but Jesus hid himself and went out of the temple.

They knew exactly what Jesus was saying.

They pick up stones because in their mind he was committing blasphemy.

When we have not carried the name of God as we should, Jesus always honors his name.

Jesus fulfills the names of God

Jesus is the Lord who provides/When fullness of time had come, God sent his son

Jesus is the Lord who sanctifies/He has sanctified us by offering himself once for all

Jesus is the Lord our righteousness/He fulfilled righteous req./2Cor.5:21

Jesus is the Lord our shepherd/He is the good shepherd who lays down life...

Jesus is the Lord our deliverer/Jesus delivered us from the domain of darkness

Jesus is the Lord our peace/He has made peace by the blood of his cross

Jesus is the Lord who heals/By His stripes we are healed

Jesus is the Lord our savior/Father sent his son to be the savior of the world

Coram Deo Jesus was perfect in every way. He is the one who offers us hope.

He was crucified with our name (blasphemer) so that we could be called by his name (righteous)

We are guiltless because Christ was found guilty in our place.

There’s no other NAME under heave by which can be saved.

There is coming a day coming when every knee will bow and every tongue confess the name.

Oh Praise the Name.

So let’s see finall

IV. What Does This Command Reveal About the Path of Life?

Both Neg. & Pos. side of command /

Negative – Don’t take name in vain

Positive – Take God’s name thoughtfully, reverently, worshipfully

Matt. 6:9 - When Jesus teaches us to pray, he says, Hallowed be your name

Not only did Jesus die to forgive us for our blasphemy & irreverence

Jesus’ gave us the Holy Spirit to dwell within us & to help us honor the name of God

The Spirit heals us of taking name flippantly / Treating with due weight & significance

The Spirit heals us of taking name falsely / Becoming people who speak truthfully & accurately

The Spirit heals us of taking name foolishly / Growing our character / Wisdom / Fruit

Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control

Obeying this commandment by the power of the Holy Spirit Makes us a counter cultural community when we hold God’s name in reverence, are careful with words, learn to keep our word, and have supernatural love, patience, wisdom, etc.

Dr. Joseph Hartounian(HAR-Tun-IAN), a Seminary professor , came to America from Armenia.

One day a well-meaning friend said to him, “Your name is difficult to pronounce and difficult to spell–it could hurt your professional career.

Why don’t you change your name to Harwood or Harwell or something like that?”

Dr. Hartounian asked, “What do those names mean?”

His friend said, “Well, nothing.

They’re just easier to remember.” Dr. Hartounian said, “In Armenia, when my grandfather was baptized, they named him Hartounian which means ‘Resurrection.’

I am Joseph Hartounian and I will be a son of Resurrection all my days.”

Revelation 2 says that we will be given a new name.

Honoring the third word means honoring the name of Jesus who makes all things new.

Hear this from Revelation 15:4

Revelation 15:4 (ESV)

Who will not fear, O Lord,

and glorify your name?

For you alone are holy.

All nations will come

and worship you,

for your righteous acts have been revealed.”

We don’t need to wait until that day to respond with an expansive obedience to the third word.

Indeed, we dare not, for much is at stake.

It 's not enough to simply refrain from profaning. From not cussing

We must endeavor to hallow. To raise his name as holy

When we pray as we were taught, “Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name,” we repeat with the church universal and historic that the kingdom comes when its citizens confess the supremacy of their God.

When God’s name is hallowed on our lips and in our living, we rightly reflect him to a profane world.

We shine like stars amid a crooked generation, and who knows who will be drawn to that light?

There is salvation by no other name.

Coram Deo, Live as those who are marked by it.

Let every other name be forgotten and His endure.

Let every other name sink into darkness and this one shine forth like the noonday sun.

1. What does God’s name mean to me? 2. Where am I prone to misuse or trivialize God's name? 3. How does Jesus' name bring healing and forgiveness to my misuse of God's name?

4. Where do I need the Spirit's help to honor the name of the Lord?