Exodus 20 – 7 – You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses His name.”
As most of you know, God has blessed me with three wonderful children: my 16-year-old son, DANIEL, my 11-year-old daughter, SARAH, and my nine-year-old daughter, BECCA. And, like all fathers, I will never forget those three days in my life when Sue and I learned that each of these little ones was on the way. Those were special days almost as special as the days on which they actually arrived. I remember that in the nine months between those two days-Sue and I worked very hard preparing for the arrival of our child. We brushed up on our lamaze class techniques. I familiarized myself with the various stages of labor and delivery. We decorated a special room for them and equipped it with furniture customized for infants: a crib, a changing table, a diaper pail, etc. We secured all that bulky but necessary equipment: a car seat, a diaper bag, a stroller, a high chair, etc. We purchased sheets and diapers and baby rattles and pacifiers. Like all new parents, we did a great deal to prepare for the birth of our children.
But you know the task that we began first….the task that took the longest….the task that we focused on the most was: thinking of a name. We consulted name books and spent hours “trying out” each potential name making sure it sounded good in front of “ADAMS.” I remember thinking that the name had to have the right rhythm. For some reason, it didn’t feel right to have three syllables in the first name and three in the second or one syllable in both names. Like a tiny poem, my child’s name had to have the perfect rhythm. We researched the meanings of various names. I remember writing them on paper to see how they looked. Like most parents, Sue and I went to all this trouble because our children of course would not be just any children and so they could not have just any name. It had to be a special name…a name that not only sounded right but stood for something. We chose names with meanings that expressed our hopes for these precious children. Suffice it to say that, like many expectant parents, we worked very hard to choose the perfect name for each of our children. And for hundreds of years all loving parents have felt the same way about naming their children.
It’s interesting to me that, just as there are trends in clothing styles, there are also trends when it comes to children’s names. My mom was a 2nd grade teacher for 30 years and she used to comment on the way certain names would come and go in cycles. There would be years when say, “Travis” would be a popular name and other years when “Lisa” was very common. These days I hardly ever hear anybody named “Horace” or “Blanch” or “Myrtle.” Those names are no longer in vogue. My Grandmother Williams’ name was “Etoile” and my Grandmother Adams’ name was “Ora Belle.” and they are the only people I have ever heard who had those names. The days when they were popular are also apparently long gone.
Sometimes parents don’t take the responsibility of naming their children seriously enough and give names to their kids that become a real burden for them to bear. Like the former Governor of Texas, Jim HOGG, who gave his two daughters the names “IMA” and “URA.” Or like my cousin who’s last name is “Wood” and who saddled his two daughters with the names, “Natalie” and “Holly.”
But fortunately most parents don’t follow the examples of Governor Hogg or my cousin and use the task of naming their children as an opportunity to make a joke. Most parents take the task seriously because they realize that a person’s name is important. You carry it with you all your life and it becomes a summary of who you are. Whenever we hear a familiar name like, “Jacqueline Kennedy” or “Martin Luther King, Jr.” or “Saddam Hussein,” or “Michael Jordan,” our minds are flooded with different thoughts-and even emotions because names represent something to us about certain individuals, who they are, what they’ve done, how they’ve lived. In our minds these names are a synopsis of these people’s lives and accomplishments. This is why parents don’t name their kids “CAIN” or “JUDAS” or “ADOLPH” because we associate those names with the evil actions of certain individuals.
So, naming a person is something that most people do not take lightly in our culture.
Well in the culture of Moses and the people of Israel names had even greater significance. In those days a name was much more than a way to distinguish one person from another — much more than an identifying label. It reflected the ESSENCE of a person. It was similar to the way WE look at a “nickname” like “shorty” or “red” or “egghead.” To these people, names reflected some unique aspect of a person’s nature. For example, “JACOB” means “supplanter.” And that is a perfect description of JACOB….He WAS a supplanter. Do you remember when he stole his older brother Esau’s birthright-and then later tricked his father into giving him Esau’s blessing? You see, in these ancient times a person’s name was special because it reflected something unique about the person. But it was much more than that. In those days, names were also important because a person was felt to actually have been present in the name…in a manner in which he would not have been present apart from the name. The name WAS the person, so to speak. Because of this often there was some hesitation in telling another person your name…as if in doing so you were in some way giving that person special control over you. In Judges 13:18, the angel of the Lord said to Manoah, Samson’s father, “Why do you ask my name, seeing it is wonderful?” You see, in those days, to know a person’s name was thought to give you power over that person. It implied authority or control. Perhaps this is why Adam was given the task of NAMING the animals in the Garden of Eden. Such an action demonstrated his role as sovereign.
Remember — God gave mankind that sovereignty in Genesis 1:26 when He said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; .and let them RULE over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”
So NAMES were very, very special things to these people who first received these ten… ….tenDER commandments……and-of all names-the most special…the most revered…was the name of God. You’ll remember that when God called the people of Israel out of Egypt, He revealed His name to Moses. Moses had asked how he should reply when people asked by Who’s authority he came, and in Exodus 3:13-14 God said “…thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, I AM has sent Me to you.” In this act of revealing His name, God revealed Himself…..You see, God’s name had a very special significance. It WAS God in a sense.God’s NAME was the same as His PRESENCE….at the very heart of Israelite worship was the phrase, “Call on the NAME [or the presence] of the Lord.” Deuteronomy 12:5 says, “You shall seek the Lord at the place which the Lord your God shall choose…to establish His NAME there for His dwelling.” And God’s name not only signified His presence. It also represented His action. Psalm 43:1 says, “The Lord SAVES by His name.” Psalm 20:1 says, “Men find PROTECTION in His Name.”
Proverbs 18:10 says that “His Name is a TOWER OF REFUGE.”
Now scripture records that God gave several different names to describe different aspects of His character such as,“ELOHIM” which means “the faithful one” or “Adonai” which means, “The Mighty One.” But the name which best describes God-and the name which the ancient Jews considered as the most Holy name of God-was the name we translate as, “JEHOVAH” or “Yahweh.” The meaning behind this name characterizes God as THE eternal, all-knowing, self-existing One Who has forever been and Who will forever be. It was a name considered to be so Holy that no Jew was ever permitted to speak it audibly.
You know….originally the Hebrew scriptures were written with no vowels….only consonants. This kind of Hebrew is called “unpointed Hebrew” Well, after a while the leaders…the educated Hebrews…became afraid that people would forget how to read the scriptures if the vowels were not present.
So they added them but they did not move the original consonants. They felt that to do so would be sacrilegious.
So, instead they used combinations of dots and comma-like markings called “jots and tittles” and inserted them AROUND the original consonants. Hebrew that has these jots and tittles is called “pointed Hebrew.” But when they were inserting these commas and dots around the consonants that made up the Old Testament and in the process came to the four consonants for this, the true name of God, “YHWH” to you ane me, they felt His name was too holy to disturb in any way. They revered it so highly that they did not insert vowels there. Eventually the Jews did not attempt to even pronounce the name “Yahweh” lest they profane it.
When Yahweh appeared in a passage, the reader would instead say, “Lord” This is the reason why “LORD” in all caps appears in some English translations of the Old Testament like the New American Standard Translation. As a result of all this, today no one knows how this word-this name for God-should be accurately pronounced. This was forgotten long ago. And, since no one knows which vowels were used in YHWH, Jewish scholars use the vowel sounds in the word “ADONA”. When you do this the divine name is written “Yahovah” or “Jehovah.”
Here’s another bit of trivia to help you see how highly God’s name was revered in those days. In ancient Bible times, it was not even permitted to write the name of God in ink unless you were one of the scribes who were constantly re-copying the scriptures. And when a scribe would come to that word, he would rise and bathe himself. Then, he would put on clothes that had never been worn. And then he would go and get a quill which had never had a drop of ink on it. Only then would he write God’s name and-after he had finished-he would discard that quill which would never be used again, and he would throw away those clothes which could never be worn again. That is how deeply the name of God was revered in the ancient Hebrew world.
How different it is our culture….our world!!!! These days God’s name is constantly used flippantly to express anger or surprise or even to advertise kosher hot dogs that supposedly conform to the standards of a “higher” authority. You can hardly watch a movie, or pick up a novel, or even listen to the radio without hearing God’s name used in a casual, irreverent way.
I’ve seen a guaranteed overnight delivery company that has taken GOD’s name as an acronym and plastered it all over their trucks. We no longer revere the Name of God….we constantly “misuse His name!” In a recent poll 60% of Americans say they have taken the Lord’s name in vain but I think it would be more like 100%. We have all done it.
Even Christians are guilty of breaking this third commandment…you see the word, “VAIN” literally means “empty.” So when we pray meaningless or casual prayers in which we say things we make empty promises or simply repeat prayers by rote memory. When we pray “empty” prayers like this we are taking the Lord’s name in vain. You know Jesus cautioned us against “vain repetitions” or saying things over and over without conviction. I had a friend in our seminary church who would say, “PRAISE THE LORD” at the beginning and end of every sentence. And I know he didn’t mean to praise the Lord really. He was just casually throwing around that popular Christianese phrase…but by doing so he was disobeying this law. Do you remember that prominent evangelist a couple years ago who publicly stated that God would take his life if a specified amount of donations did not come forth from the audience? Well, it seems to me that using God’s name in that way — to swell the coffers of his ministry — is breaking this commandment.
When you and I sing “ALL to Jesus I surrender” but don’t really surrender anything, or “Wherever He Leads I’ll Go” and then ignore the needs of people around us. Whenever we worship in this EMPTY way, we are disobeying this law.
So when you think about it, perhaps the greatest sinning with the name of God is not done in barrooms where His holy name is interspersed with sewer talk, but in churches where the words of songs, prayers, and even sermons are not really meant.
Well since you and I live in this society where profaning God’s name…using it in a vain way…is such a popular practice. And since we as believers even have trouble showing God’s name the proper respect.
Well, it would seem to me to be very important for us to study…to consider…all the aspects of this particular law.
So, this morning let’s ask God to correct our thinking. As Paul puts it, let’s ask God to renew our minds when it comes to the way we use His name, so that we conform not to the world around us but to this teaching in His word. And I think that renewal must begin with the realization….
1. …that GOD is very serious about the sin of profaning His name.
He cares how we use His name. The word “profane” means “debasing or defiling that which is holy or worthy of reverence.” So to “profane” something is to take something that is perfect and holy and yank it down in the mud to our level. When I profane something, I try to reduce it to being nothing more than I am. It seems that many individuals in our culture actually enjoy this practice. Look at the tabloids and gossip magazines and what they try to do to celebrities and you’ll see what I mean. Ron Mehl writes, “The public seems to have an insatiable appetite for anything that would drag famous athletes or performers, presidents, princess, preachers and high officials down to the lowest level.” When we do this we can say, “They are no better than me. I am as good as they are.” And by cursing….by using God’s name in a profane way…this is what we are doing. We are taking God, who is holy and attempting to reduce Him to someone just like us. We are destroying the concept of a lofty God above us. You know if we followed that way of thinking to its logical conclusion there would truly be “nothing sacred” in the universe.
Everything-even God-would be as sinful and fallen as we are. For profaning God’s name is nothing less than a denial of His holiness and majesty and power. Whether we realize it or not, it’s an attempt to pull Him down and make Him equal with us…which you may remember, is the same sin that got Satan kicked out of heaven. Referring to Satan, Isaiah 14:12 says, “How you have fallen from heaven, oh morning star. You have been cast down to the earth for you said in your heart, ‘I will ascent to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God…I will make myself like the Most High.’ but you are brought down to the grave, to the depths of the pit.”
So profaning the name of God….taking the name of God in vain….is serious business.
You know often we don’t think breaking this particular law is that big of a deal. After all it is just a word…a name…But you see this isn’t just a word…this isn’t just another name. There IS special power in this name! The Bible says that demons screamed and writhed and tore themselves from their hosts at the mention of this name. In the authority of this name the eyes of the blind were opened and withered legs were made strong and even the DEAD CAME OUT OF THEIR GRAVES! At the name of Jesus alcoholics have been made sober. Harlots have been made pure. At the name of Jesus atheists have been made believers. Addicts have been set free. Eternal life is found in this NAME. Acts 4:12 says, “Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other NAME under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” John 20:31 says, “but these things are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God and that believing you may have life IN HIS NAME.”
Remember Philippians 2 says that His is a “name that is above EVERY name…!!!” So of course we would never use this name in a flippant or casual or irreverent way. In Matthew 12:36-37 Jesus warned, “But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgement for every careless word they have spoken….your words now reflect your fate then: either you will be justified by them or you will be condemned.” So, understand — when we disobey this command there are negative consequences, just as there are when we disobey any of the other nine commands. Remember, the last part of this command states, “…the Lord will not leave unpunished who takes His name in vain.” When I think of someone being punished for taking the Lord’s name in vain I think of the incident in Acts 5:1-10 . You may remember that Barnabas and some of the other Christians in the early church were filled with faith and grace and the Spirit of the Lord and their lives were dedicated to God, so that their possessions meant nothing to them unless they could use them for the glory of God.
Barnabas sold some land and gave the money to the church. And Ananias and Sapphira thought they could get the same kind of prestige and assume the same places of leadership in the church if they gave as much money as Barnabas did.
So they sold their property and told everyone they were giving all the proceeds to the church but they actually kept back part of the money and Acts 5 records that they suffered horrible consequences for profaning the name of God in this way. They were both stricken dead on the spot.
So there are painful consequences to using God’s name in a profane or flippant way. We will reap what we sow in this area. And God loved us enough to give us this law so as to protect us from this kind of “harvest” in life.
So we must understand that God is serious about the way we use His name. It is not just another name and another thing we should note on this subject is that abusing His name is not just a mouth problem…
2. …because Scripture always links what comes out of our mouths with what is in our hearts!
Jesus said this frequently. In Matthew 12:34 He exclaims, “You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good, for out of the overflow of THE HEART the mouth speaks.” In Matthew 15:18 He says, “But the things that come out of the mouth come from THE HEART, and these make man ‘unclean.” Luke 6:45 records Jesus as saying, “The good man brings good things out of the good stored up IN HIS HEART, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For out of the overflow of HIS HEART his mouth speaks.” So this is a law that we must heed because if we disobey it…if we profane God’s name. It indicates that we have a heart problem. Profaning God’s name is as much an issue of the heart as it is the lips.
So you can’t really say things like, “Well, she has a vile mouth but a good heart.” or “He’s got a problem with bad language but he really does have a heart of gold.”
No — because according to God’s word the way an individual speaks is a very accurate barometer of his heart….his inner self. James 3:8-12 says, “But no man can tame the tongue. It is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless our God and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in the image of God. Out of the same mouth proceed blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be. Does a spring send forth fresh water and bitter from the same opening? My brothers, can a fig tree, bear olives or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water.” When bitter, hurtful, or profane words come out of our mouths it is a sign that something is terribly wrong deep inside! So if words that profane God come out of our mouths, it should be a wake-up call for us! We should see this as an alarm reminding us that we need to get on our knees before our Holy God and ask Him to help us examine our hearts. And then, we should understand one other thing if we want to renew our minds on this issue. We don’t just disobey this command in the way we speak…
3. We also often disobey it in the way we live.
You know my dad grew up on a farm, deep in the back woods of Mississippi. And, like many of his friends, when World War II broke out, he enlisted in the navy. He told me that when the day came for him to report to boot camp, his dad-my grandad-took him into the town of Eupora to meet the bus. And as dad was stepping up into the bus, my grandad took his arm and turned him so they could see each other face-to-face and he said, “Charles, you remember who’s son you are!” And I think he did this to say, “You are going out into the world now….and you represent me…you are a son of Walter Adams. Live in a way that shows you respect that privilege.” And you know, in giving us this law our heavenly father was in essence asking the same thing of you and of me. We are His children. As believers we bear the name of His Son. We are CHRISTIANS which means, “LITTLE CHRIST” so the way we live reflects on Him. We must never forget Who’s sons we are…Who’s daughters we are. For when we live our lives in an ungodly way or an irreverent way, we profane the name of our Heavenly Father. Billy Graham once said, “We take the name of God in vain when we accept it and allow ourselves to be called Christians but do not live godly lives.” The Apostle Paul said, “Everyone who confesses the NAME of the Lord must turn from wickedness.” and in I Thessalonians 2:12 he writes that we should “walk in a manner worthy of the God Who calls us into His own kingdom and glory.” It is just as profane to let the name of JESUS CHRIST be placed upon us and live unworthy lives as it is for us to speak it loosely on the street in a profane way.
So God’s name isn’t just another name and when we abuse or misuse it in the way that we speak or in the way that we live. It is an indication that something is very wrong with our thinking. This morning after this renewing your mind about this commandment, what do you think? Maybe you feel like the prophet Isaiah who, when he stood before God, suddenly realized that not only were his lips unclean but that he lived among a people of unclean lips. Maybe this study has helped open your eyes to see that you have indeed used your mouth to misuse this name that is above every name. When Isaiah came to this realization an angel flew from God’s throne with a hot coal and with it he touched-cleansed-Isaiah’s lips.
Maybe this morning you need to ask God to touch your lips and make them clean. Or maybe you’re here and through this worship service you have come to begin to realize Who God is and how much you need Him in your life. You realize how lost you are in life….well if this is true then hear these words from Romans 10:13 “Everyone who calls on the NAME of the Lord will be saved. If you do this God will become much more than a NAME to you for through Jesus we come to know God personally. You may be a Christian…and enjoy a personal relationship with God and you feel this morning that God is calling you to serve here in this church in His Name.
If that is true we invite you to move your letter and join this church. As we sing this final hymn, I invite you to leave your seat and walk forward and share any decision you have with me or Steve.