Have you ever wondered what it would be like to stand before God and see Him?
The Apostle John saw the Lord, high and lifted up. John says, he fell at His feet as one dead… John saw the majesty, glory, awesome power and fearfulness of the LORD . John had nothing to say. He fell down at God’s feet as if he was a dead person.
Job, believed God and suffered greatly as God allowed it. Job speaks to God, but he tells us, that he put his and over his mouth… Job had nothing to say…
What we say to God is important, and our understanding of Him, is crucial. Some day it will be our turn to stand before Him. Will we make excuses? Will we try to make ourselves out to be better than we are?
Our third commandment is about speaking about God.
“You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for he will not hold us guiltless if we misuse his name.”
We all have been given names. Our parents gave us our names usually for a reason.
Micah means, “like unto Jehovah…”
Constance means, “Strength and faithful…”
We like it when people remember our names, say our names properly, and spell them accurately.
If our names are important, then how much more important is God’s name.
God’s name has supreme importance.
His name is eternal and unchangeable (immutable) His name is to be reverenced and spoken with ultimate respect.
- What’s wrong with swearing?
Swearing is everywhere. When we hear God’s name in public – TV, films, school, etc it is not respectful of God.
When we use God’s name as a swear word, it is not respectful.
If I say O G… I dropped it..! I am actually blaming God for my mistake..! A lot of swearing is this.
For G.. sake..! Do it or I will blame God..! OMG… this is calling on God, but I don’t mean it. I am using God’s name for effect to get a response from other people and to add weight to what I am saying…
This is called Blasphemy… Blasphemy is using God’s name in a low way… Speaking about God as if he is just an object or ordinary person.
At the bottom of this sinfulness is my attitude to God. I really don’t care about Him, nor do I respect Him and His authority.
If I really understood who God is, I would be very careful and very worried about speaking about Him in a reverent way.
- We talk about God to back up our promises, and then not keeping them.
I promise I will share my snack with you – God be my witness… God is the highest authority and so I use His name to back up what I say…!
We don’t keep our promise – we have used God’s name falsely.
Even if I do keep the promise, should I be using God’s name to back up what I say?
God’s name is greater than me, and using it to give weight to what I say I am going to do, is called profane. Unholy, ungodly…
I am going to get you a birthday present… Your friend doesn’t believe you, so you say a back up… “I promise to God…” This is blasphemy, using God’s name to back up something trivial…
- When we talk about God to anyone, it must be with fear and reverence. God is almighty. He holds our lives in his hands, and he owns everything and everybody. He made everything that exists and all power is His.
God has always been and always will be… No beginning or ending, unlike us. We are just a vapour, like the steam that comes out of the spout of the kettle when it boils. It only lasts for a moment.
We must remember who He is and that He is a kind and loving God – completely GOOD… All reverence belongs to Him.
We should not be making jokes about God, or spiritual things, like people who have no knowledge of God. Foolish people make jokes about Jesus and draw foolish pictures about God.
- I call myself a Christian and people know I am Gods’ child, yet I do not live and speak as I aught.
I do not show respect for God in front of others, because I want to fit in with their bad talk.
I am taking the name of JESUS and disrespecting His name, because ~~I don’t honour Him by what I say and do.
I am taking the name “Christian” in vain…. I am disrespecting God by what I do.
So we see it is quite complicated the idea of taking God’s name in a disrespectful way….
There was a super powerful king in OT times Sennacarib… He had no respect for God or for God’s people, of King Hezekiah. Sennacarib surrounded Gods’ people in Jerusalem and his magnificent army of 185,000 soldiers. His intention was to cower God’s people into submission and kill them all and bring down God’s name before all peoples and of course to exhalt his own name..! No one will forget Sennacharib… God completely humbled him. In one night, the angel of the Lord killed every single one of them.
To lift ourselves above God is foolish and He will not give His own glory to anyone else. How we live our lives should bring glory to God and people should see what God is like by looking at us.
- So we see, God’s name is supreme.
- He will not give His glory to anyone else.
- How I speak God’s name is really important.
- God is King over all and not my convenience.
- I need to respect God and honour His name with reverence and respect.
I hope you can see that what we think of God is crucial. I will not please Him or know Him, unless I have come to the point where I have given Him my whole life and trusted Him to forgive me and save me.
When I reach that point of FAITH, I will understand who God is and what it means to reverence Him.
I enter a new relationship with Him and I now walk my life with JESUS and the Holy Spirit lives in me.
I am ALIVE TO GOD…. therefore I can understand who exactly he is.
This law isn’t just something we have to look out for and try not to do. It is a way of thinking about GOD that changes my whole life.
Lettsom Inn 