The third commandment

Introduction

When we look at the ten commandments it is important to bear in mind the context. Israel had already been redeemed before the giving of the law. They were saved by grace.

Given by God 20:1 “And God spoke all these words...”

First four about their relationship with God

The other six about their relationship with other people

All of these commandments are important, given by God himself. So it is very important that we understand them and that we keep them.

When we look at the ten commandments it is important to bear in mind the context in which they were given. Israel had already been redeemed before they were given the law.

They were saved by the grace of God not by their good works.

We cannot be made right with God by keeping these commands, its only by faith in Christ. The more we understand what these commandments mean the more we realise we fall short of God’s standard and the greater we realise we need a Saviour.

This evening we are looking at the third commandment.

This commandment is probably one of the most openly broken commands in our culture today. People break this all the time with out even batting an eye lid.

This commandment can be broken up into two parts. Firstly God gives the Command and secondly God gives Consequence of not keeping it.

The command and the consequence.

Firstly then, The Command.

I. The Command

In the first part of this verse we have the law stated.

God says in v.7;

“You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain.”

There are two simple questions that I want us to ask about this command.

A) What does it mean? B) How is it broken?

A) What does it mean?

Here God is warning the Israelite people that they must not misuse his name in any way.

The phrase ‘take the name’ means to take God’s name upon your lips. It basically means to speak it, and the word vain means to use it in a worthless or an empty way.

The name that God gives in this verse is His covenant name. YHWH, Yahweh, Jehovah. This name was first revealed by God to Moses in .

The command is not restricted that name of God only but also to any name or attribute of God. A few examples could be God, Lord, Jesus, Christ.

In Hebrew culture a persons name was linked to their character or their reputation so to misuse their name was classed as an assault on the person.

Its worth noting that the Jewish people took this command so seriously that at least by the first century AD they refused to pronounce God’s name YHWH just in case they did it carelessly and profaned it and so they substituted it for Adonai which means Lord or Ha Shem which means the name.

So the command simply means that people should not use God’s name in an empty or trivial or disrespectful way, but rather it should be respected. It should be treated with reverence.

That’s what the command means.

How can it be broken?

Many believe that the main meaning intended is that the Israelite people were not to make false oaths in the name of God. They were not to swear using God’s name and then not keep their promise. If they did that then they would be taking the LORD’s name in vain. Of course in the NT Jesus teaches his followers not to swear by God’s name at all. .

But that isn’t the only meaning intended. Another way this command can be broken is by using God’s name in a trivial or disrespectful way when we speak. For example using God’s name as a swear word. Or telling jokes with God’s name in.

app- We see the command broken in this way all the time in our culture today.

Nearly every film that is produced contains blasphemy of some kind. They often use the name of Jesus Christ like it is a swear word.

People break this command in this way regularly. You might be in the supermarket and some drops something and they get angry and shout out Jesus Christ as a swear word to show their anger and contempt at what just happened.

Now that is very serious! when a person does that they are taking the name of Son of God. The King of kings and the Lord of lords, a name that should be loved and honoured and they use it as though it is a dirty word.

It happens all the time.

This has gone to the extreme in our culture today. Many children only know the name of Jesus as a swear word.

Illustration- There was an extreme example of this in Scotland. A Christian worker was taking an RE lesson and was speaking about Jesus and a student put his hand up and asked why he kept on swearing, the man was confused of course, the child explained that Jesus Christ was a swear word. That’s the only way he had ever heard it used.

People use the word ‘God’ in this same way.

This happens all the time on social media. The young people here will be aware of the amount of times OMG is used on social media. That stands for oh my God. Its using the name of God in a blasphemous way.

Another way that even Christians are sometimes guilty of breaking this command is by using the name of God in jokes. That is using God’s name in a trivial way and it shows a lack of respect. Its taking the name of the LORD in vain.

We should not take God’s name upon our lips unless it is in a way that is honouring to him.

App- The question must be put very pointedly this evening. Have you broken this commandment in this way?

Have you take the holy name of God, or the precious name of Jesus Christ and used it as a swear word? or in a joke? In a throw away sentence on social media?

This is serious friends God strictly warns in the second part of this verse, “the LORD will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain.”

3. Another way that this command can be broken is by hypocrisy. By making a profession of God’s name but not living upto that profession.

Paul says in “Let everyone who names the name of the Lord depart from iniquity.”

If you take the name of Christ upon your self by claiming to be a Christian but yet you live a life that is not worthy of the Gospel of Christ. A life of open sin and bring reproach to the cause of Christ. Then you are taking them of God in vain.

Paul touches upon this in ;

“you then who teach others, do you not teach yourself? While you preach against stealing, do you steal? 22 You who say that one must not commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? 23 You who boast in the law dishonor God by breaking the law. 24 For, as it is written, “The name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.”

Paul touches on the same theme in “They profess to know God, but they deny him by their works.”

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The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

This is away that people who claim to be Christians can break this commandment. We must each examine ourselves this evening and make sure that we do not just talk the talk but that we walk the walk.

If people around us know we profess to be Christian but yet we are living in open sin, then we are breaking this commandment.

How can the command be kept?

4. A fourth way this command can be broken is by people who speak evil of God. People who curse God and say evil things about him.

Well the positive application of this verse is that People should honour the name of God.

A poster boy for this could be Richard Dawkins.

People should use the names of God reverently.

When Atheists do this they are blaspheming the name of God.

The fact that they claim not to believe in Him is irrelevant they will still be judged according to God’s commandments. If I go speeding down the road outside at 100 mph and get stopped by the police if I genuinely did not know that it was 30 mph do you think they would let me off the hook? Ignorance of the law does not mean immunity.

People should love the name of Jesus Christ.

Do not use God’s name unnecessarily

The first part of this verse states the command.

We must examine ourselves and ask do we break this command?

We must examine ourselves and ask do we break this command?

Do you use the name of Jesus Christ like a swear word?

Do you use God’s name when you are angry?

Have you used God’s name in jokes?

The second part of the verse God tells the Israelite people the consequence for not keeping this command.

II. The Consequence

In the second part of the verse we have the law reinforced with the warning of punishment.

Look with me at the second half of the verse;

“for the LORD will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain.”

Here we have a warning that those who break this commandment will be punished.

Those who break this command God will not hold guiltless.

The phrase ‘not hold guiltless’ means to not let go unpunished. God will not let people off the hook if they break this commandment.

There are only two out of the ten commands that have the punishment fixed to it. This one and the one previous. This shows how serious this command is and how serious God takes it when people misuse his name.

Why does God take blasphemy so serious?

It is because he is the infinitely holy God; Father, Son and Holy Spirit who by very nature is worthy of all our worship and praise. He is the creator of everything.

He is the one who sustains the universe. He is the one who gives us the very breath in our lungs. He is the one who causes it to rain. He is the one who causes the sun to keep shining.

Every thing we have is by the kind mercy of God and yet people have the audacity to take his name and use it like a swear word.

People don’t use the name of Adolf Hitler like that, but yet they use the holy name of the God of love who made them.

That is why God says blasphemers will be punished.

The meaning in this verse could be punishment in this life as well as punishment in the next.

We see an example of this in ;

“Now an Israelite woman’s son, whose father was an Egyptian, went out among the people of Israel. And the Israelite woman’s son and a man of Israel fought in the camp, 11 and the Israelite woman’s son blasphemed the Name, and cursed. Then they brought him to Moses. His mother’s name was Shelomith, the daughter of Dibri, of the tribe of And they put him in custody, till the will of the LORD should be clear to them.

13 Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 14 “Bring out of the camp the one who cursed, and let all who heard him lay their hands on his head, and let all the congregation stone him. 15 And speak to the people of Israel, saying, Whoever curses his God shall bear his sin. 16 Whoever blasphemes the name of the LORD shall surely be put to death. All the congregation shall stone him. The sojourner as well as the native, when he blasphemes the Name, shall be put to death.

For the Israelite people their law condemned blasphemy with the death penalty. Again this shows how serious this sin is in the eyes of God.

Today it is different the punishments are less likely to be in this life, but their will be punishment in the next life for those who break this command and do not repent and turn to Jesus Christ.

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

The Bible tells us “it is appointed for men once to die and after this the judgement.” People will be judged and the punishment for sin is hell.

Sin is breaking God’s commandments in word, thought or deed.

The punishment for sin is hell.

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If you have broken this commandment then you need God’s forgiveness. You need the Lord Jesus Christ who died upon the cross to pay for sin and rose again from the dead victorious.

Conclusion

In this verse we have the third commandment. We have the command- You shall not take the name of the Lord you God in vain. We have the consequence- For the LORD will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain.

In conclusion it must be made clear that a person can not be made acceptable to God by trying there best to keep the commandments. You cannot get to heaven by trying to be good.

The NT tells us the purpose of the law.

God did not give the law so that we can try our best to keep it and be made right with God on the basis of how well we have managed to do so.

The Bible tells us that the law was given in order to show us our sin.

The ten commandments are like a mirror, we compare ourselves against them and we see that we fall short of God’s standard.

But if you look in the mirror and see dirt on your face, you don’t take the mirror off the wall and try to clean your face by rubbing it on the glass.

So when we see that we have broken God’s commandments the solution is not to try harder. The mirror shows you that you need soap. The point of the law is to show us we need a Saviour.

Paul says to the Galatians,

“Therefore the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith”

The purpose of the law, the ten commandments is to show us our need of Jesus Christ in order that we would believe in Him and be saved.

By breaking God’s law we are under a curse. But the Bible says “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree.”

Crossway Bibles.

The New King James Version. (1982). (). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.

Though we have failed to keep God’s commands, for all have sinned and come short of the glory of God, Jesus Christ kept God’s law perfectly.

He then died upon the cross to take the punishment for those who have not kept God’s law but have broken it. God raised Him from the dead three days later to show that he accepted the price Christ had paid on the cross.

The Bible says that if you repent, turn from your sin, and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, ask for his forgiveness, you shall be saved.

Are you guilty of this breaking this commandment?

If you are a Christian, then confess your sin to God. Ask him to forgive you. “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

If you are not a Christian then turn to Christ.

The law condemns you, but Christ will save you.

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

You cannot be made right with God by trying to be a good person, because according to God’s commandments you are not a good person. The Bible says their is non righteous no not one. There is none that do good no not one.

Because of your sin you deserve hell, but if you turn to Jesus Christ God will give you what you do not deserve and that’s heaven.