“You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain.” (Exodus 20:7)

Unlike our culture’s ability to uphold the natural and external meaning of the first commandment, using the Lord’s names unthinkingly and disrespectfully is everywhere around us. This influence makes it more difficult to teach our own children the importance of this commandment. But following the commandments naturally and externally is the first step in following them internally and spiritually; unless we are conscious of and thinking about the Lord in our lives, we cannot begin to behave in ways that are genuine worship of the Lord. And that is the goal of this commandment.

It is vital that we use and understand the names of the Lord because it is an important way that the Lord becomes Human to us. Everyone has a name that is used to talk with them, and it is no different with the Lord. Taking His name, in the most internal meaning, is to acknowledge that the Lord is Human and that everything comes from Him, that He is a person we can talk with and relate to through His Word. Blaspheming the Lord’s name, His Word or holy things cannot be forgiven, not because the Lord is especially angry, but because disregarding these things removes the only means by which we can learn of and accept the Lord’s forgiveness. When we take the name of the Lord in vain, whether externally or internally, we are destroying the connection between the Lord and ourselves and making genuine worship impossible.

To see that this is true, read Exodus 20:7; Matthew 12:31-32; and True Christian Religion 299.

This is a synopsis of the second sermon in our ten week Journey to Rise Above It at Pittsburgh New Church. If you missed it, you might want to start with our first sermon, “How to Worship the Lord Only”. You can listen to the full audio message by clicking here.

Stay tuned, the full text version coming soon…

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