Ethics 3rd and 4th Commandments

Honor my Name and Day!

Honor my Name!

Exodus 20:7 (NASB 2020)

7 “You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not leave him unpunished who takes His name in vain.

What does this mean to you?

Lets look at this word “vain”.

What is the meaning of this word?

Webster's defines vain as 1) having no real value or significance; worthless, empty, idle, hollow, etc.; 2) without force or effect; futile, fruitless, unprofitable, unavailing, etc.

Hebrew word is Saw: pronounced “shawv” meaning: worthless, futile, inconsequential, false, emptiness, deceit/deceitful, empty/emptiness, lies, pointless.

Most people when they think of this commandment they only consider it in a cuss word. But it is much more than this.

It is using the name of God in anyway that does not show or give reverence to God.

There are at least three ways this command is commonly disobeyed.

· Profanity: Using the name of God in blasphemy and cursing.

· Frivolity: Using the name of God in a superficial, stupid way.

· Hypocrisy: Claiming the name of God but acting in a way that disgraces Him.

What about breaking a vow/oath/promise when you use the name of God, or Jesus. Jesus states in:

Matthew 5:33–37 (NASB 2020)

33 “Again, you have heard that the ancients were told, ‘You shall not make false vows, but shall fulfill your vows to the Lord.’ 34 But I say to you, take no oath at all, neither by heaven, for it is the throne of God, 35 nor by the earth, for it is the footstool of His feet, nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. 36 Nor shall you take an oath by your head, for you cannot make a single hair white or black. 37 But make sure your statement is, ‘Yes, yes’ or ‘No, no’; anything beyond these is of evil origin.

You may be thinking to yourselves. It is only words. Well yes, it is. But, words do matter, words show who your are. More than that though, God is our creator, he is our Father, he sent his Son to die for us, so that we could have eternal life. He deserves our respect, our reverence, he actually demands this of his followers!

Look at:

Verse 2: “I am the Lord your God!”

Verse 3: “You shall have no other gods before Me.”

Verse 4: “You shall not make for yourself an idol.”

Quote from my Professor Dr. Feddes: Our use of language is especially significant in relation to God. A mouth that uses the name of God lightly reveals a heart that takes God lightly. A mouth that speaks God's name only with reverence, that speaks of holy things with great care and utmost respect, expresses a heart that honors God. Who we are and what we think of God comes through in how we speak.

If you do not think that our words do not matter. You may want listen to what Jesus has to say:

Matthew 12:34–37 (NASB 2020)

34 You offspring of vipers, how can you, being evil, express any good things? For the mouth speaks from that which fills the heart. 35 The good person brings out of his good treasure good things; and the evil person brings out of his evil treasure evil things. 36 But I tell you that for every careless word that people speak, they will give an account of it on the day of judgment. 37 For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.”

Now consider the rest of:

Exodus 20:7 (NASB 2020)

7 “You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not leave him unpunished who takes His name in vain.

Romans 14:10–12 (NASB 2020)

10 But as for you, why do you judge your brother or sister? Or you as well, why do you regard your brother or sister with contempt? For we will all appear before the judgment seat of God. 11 For it is written:

“As I live, says the Lord, to me every knee will bow,

And every tongue will give praise to God.”

12 So then each one of us will give an account of himself to God.

2 Corinthians 5:10 (NASB 2020)

10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive compensation for his deeds done through the body, in accordance with what he has done, whether good or bad.

These verses do show that our words matter as well as our actions. The Lord will not leave him unpunished who takes his name in vain. God does not tell us what this punishment will be. As a Christian it may be logical consequences of your actions (meaning if you do not revere God/his name, how faithful of a servant will you be? Maybe a lack of rewards at the Bema seat?) As an unrepentant sinner your punishment will be in the lake of fire/separation from God for all eternity.

These verses from Romans and 2 Corinthians do not pertain to our salvation as our salvation has been secured by our faith in Jesus and our repentance of sin. We do not stand before Christ to be criticized, condemned or admonished. As a righteous and perfect judge he does require us to give an account of our words and deeds whether good or bad. Then we are given our rewards, our crowns.

Matthew 5:12 (NASB 2020)

12 Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in this same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Luke 6:23 (NASB 2020)

23 Rejoice on that day and jump for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven. For their fathers used to treat the prophets the same way.

Luke 6:35 (NASB 2020)

35 But love your enemies and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High; for He Himself is kind to ungrateful and evil people.

1 Corinthians 3:14 (NASB 2020)

14 If anyone’s work which he has built on it remains, he will receive a reward.

The Imperishable Crown spoken of in 1 Corinthians 9:24-24 Paul speaks of running a race, not for a perishable crown, but for a imperishable crown.

The Crown of Rejoicing 1 Thessalonians 2:19 “For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing?

The Crown of Righteousness 2 Timothy 4:8 “Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness

The Crown of Glory 1 Peter 5:4 “And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that does not fade away.”

The Crown of Life Revelation 2:10 Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life.

Honor my Day!

Exodus 20:8–11 (NASB 2020)

8 “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. 9 For six days you shall labor and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is a Sabbath of the Lord your God; on it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male slave or your female slave, or your cattle, or your resident who stays with you. 11 For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea and everything that is in them, and He rested on the seventh day; for that reason the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.

What is the meaning of the word “Sabbath”? It means “to rest, to cease work”

Are Christians required to keep the Sabbath? The Bible Project has the best answer to this question: Sabbath is not a commandment we are bound to; it's a promise we're invited to enjoy.

As Christians are we under the old covenant? No, we are not. But remember what Jesus stated in

John 14:15 (NASB 2020)

15 “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.

Matthew 5:17–18 (NASB 2020)

17 “Do not presume that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish, but to fulfill. 18 For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke of a letter shall pass from the Law, until all is accomplished!

Jeremiah 31:33 (NASB 2020)

33 “For this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days,” declares the Lord: “I will put My law within them and write it on their heart; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.

God has not done away with his ethics, he has given us guidelines to live by. He has written the Law on our hearts. God in his infinite power could have created everything in seconds, in minutes, in hours, or in a day. God set the example that we are not to work constantly. That we do need to rest, that we do need time that we can focus on him, on others. This day of rest , it is not a do nothing day (meaning you just sit around and be a couch potato).

Jesus healed a man with a withered hand on the Sabbath in Mark 3: 1-6

A paralyzed man in John 5:1-18

His disciples picked grain on the Sabbath Mark 2: 23

Genesis 2:2–3 (NASB 2020)

2 By the seventh day God completed His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done. 3 Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because on it He rested from all His work which God had created and made.

Now the Pharisee’s were so focused on the Law that they forgot about compassion, about serving others, about shepherding their flock. They forgot about LOVE. They were so concerned about the Law and Works. Faith and Repentance held no value. They read the scriptures, they knew the scriptures but did not know how to apply the scriptures to their life. They were self-righteous.

As Christians, Jesus is our Sabbath, he is our rest. He is the Lord of the Sabbath.

Matthew 11:28–29 (NASB 2020)

“Come to Me, all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

Mark 2:28 (NASB 2020)

So the Son of Man is Lord, even of the Sabbath.”

Mark 2:27 (NASB 2020)

27 Jesus said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath.

Quote from Got Questions: Jesus was restating the principle that the Sabbath rest was instituted to relieve man of his labors, just as He came to relieve us of our attempting to achieve salvation by our works. We no longer rest for only one day, but forever cease our laboring to attain God’s favor. Jesus is our rest from works now, just as He is the door to heaven, where we will rest in Him forever.

Or to put in in plain English:

The Sabbath was meant to serve man

But what I see happening in the church and/or to Christians are the very same things that the Pharisees were doing. They read the scriptures, they know the scriptures, but the application is lacking.

Statements are made:

As a Christian I am not under the law. So people work 7 days a week, or they work 5 days and fill up the other 2 days with sports, video games, hunting, fishing, everything but God. Or they give God 30 minutes on Sunday and then for the rest of the day it is all about self. I am guilty of this.

God wants a relationship with us. But how are we to build that relationship with our creator if we are not willing to (literally) give him the time of day. To receive his rest, to receive his presence. This is not necessarily any particular day of the week, we can rest in Jesus any day of the week, we can worship God any day of the week or every day of the week.

If you know more about your favorite sports team, have the football/baseball, etc schedule memorized each year, your work SOP, when and where to find your weekly TV show, but cannot find the time to spend with the Lord, to rest in Jesus, to serve others, to Love others. Well, you have an issue.

You may want to consult the first and second commandment again. You may want to reconsider your priority’s.

Matthew 6:33 (NASB 2020)

But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be provided to you.

Matthew 6:24 (NASB 2020)

“No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.

Or football, baseball, NASCAR, Your Spouse, Your Career, School, or anything that takes the place of God.

In closing as Christians we are called to Worship God, we are called to fellowship with other Christians, we are called to put God first. To just brush aside the commandments you do not like is a very dangerous decision.

Remember John 14:15 “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.”