Misusing God's Name

Let me tell you about a Christian called Dave, who is a friend of a friend. Dave was leading a group for people just looking into Christianity. And after a while, one of his group said, ‘My problem with Christianity is that all the Christians I know are hypocrites. How do I know you’re any different?’ Well, what would you have said? What Dave said was, ‘Watch me.’ And this other guy said, ‘How do you mean?’ And Dave said, ‘Well, follow me round for a day. Spend time with me. In fact, move in with me for a week, if you like, and see how I live. You can read my mail, see what I watch on TV, see how I treat my friends. Watch me.’ And the guy actually took him up on his offer. He did move in. He stayed months rather than weeks. And he ultimately became a Christian.

What’s striking about that story is that Dave knew he had nothing to hide. He knew he wasn’t perfect - which isn’t possible this side of the new creation. But he knew it would be transparent that he was trying to live for the Lord Jesus. And I guess every Christian here wants to have that sort of transparency and to avoid its opposite of hypocrisy. And that’s why God gave us this morning’s Bible passage.

So would you turn in the Bibles to Exodus 20. We’re in a series looking at the moment when God gave his Old Testament (OT) people his law - his will for their lives. The Bible’s story so far has been: first, creation (Genesis 1-2). Then, sin – our refusal to live for God as our rightful King (Genesis 3). Then, promise – God’s promise to bring us back into relationship with him - ultimately through the Lord Jesus (Genesis 12.1-3). Then in Exodus 20 comes the giving of the law. And looking back on that, the apostle Paul wrote this in the New Testament (NT):

What, then, was the purpose of the law? It was added because of transgressions... (Galatians 3.19)

Ie, because of the problem of sin. And Paul explains that the law was given not to solve the problem of sin, but to show it up. It’s like those tablets that show up plaque on your teeth. I remember at junior school, the local dentist did a lesson on brushing your teeth and he gave us each a tablet to dissolve in water and when you rinsed your mouth with it, it showed up the plaque bright pink. It didn’t remove it – you need a toothbrush for that. It just showed it up. And in his plan of salvation, God meant his law to play the same role with sin. He never meant the law to remove sin – you need Jesus for that. He meant the law to show up sin, so that we reach the point of realising that we don’t just need to try harder; but to turn to Jesus

So, to revise what we’ve seen in this series so far, let’s read from Exodus 20.1:

1 And God spoke all these words: 2 “I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.” (vv1-2)

Now, there are basically three ways to sin – ie, to fail to live for God. The first is to live for a ‘god’ other than the one, true God. So, eg, I know someone who for a while said he was a Christian, then moved in with a girlfriend and finally disclaimed any faith in Jesus. I remember him saying, ‘Sarah is my god, now.’ (Not her real name). And the 1st commandment (which we’ve looked at) is designed to show up that type of sin. Look at v3:

3 “You shall have no other gods before me.” (v3)

But then the second way to sin is to live for a distorted idea of God. This is where we bring God down to our level to make living for him undemanding. Eg, some people say, ‘I like to think that God will save everyone in the end – whatever they’ve believed and done.’ Well, that distorted idea of God spares you the demand of sharing the gospel with others. But the 2nd commandment (which we’ve also looked at) is designed to show up that type of sin. Look at v4:

4 “You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below…” (v4)

Ie, God is saying, ‘Don’t make a distorted idea of me that’s easier to live for; live for the real me.’

But then the third way to sin is simply to lead a double life. This time, we don’t bring God down to our level. We say that God is the rightful Lord of every area of our lives, that he’s holy and that we agree with his holy standards for living. But what we do is a different matter. We live a double life. And the 3rd commandment is designed to show up that kind of sin. Look at v7:

7 “You shall not misuse the name of the LORD your God, for the LORD will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.” (v7)

Now, a more literal translation of that verse from a different Bible version is this:

“You shall not take [that means, take onto your lips] the name of the LORD your God in vain [ie, in a way that’s empty, false, doesn’t correspond to reality] for the LORD will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain.” (ESV)

And that translation is what I’m going to speak from.


Firstly, THE COMMAND OF THE 3RD COMMANDMENT

And the command of the 3rd commandment is this:

“You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain…” (v7)

So this is talking about any time we’re speaking to God or about God or making promises in God’s name. And where it says ‘in vain’, it’s like when we use that word today. Eg, when someone thinks they’re really wonderful and a cut above the rest, that’s vain. By which we mean there’s a gap between what they think they are and reality. And this third commandment is about the gap between what we say to God or about God or in God’s name, and the reality in our lives. If you go to London and hop on the underground, there’s one station where the trains stop with quite a gap to the platform. And as you get off, there’s an announcement over the loudspeakers: ‘Mind the gap. Mind the gap. Mind the gap.’ And that’s what the third commandment is saying: mind the gap between what we profess and what we practice - the hypocrisy gap.

So this applies, for a start, to what we say to God. Listen to these words of the Lord Jesus from the New Testament (NT). This is Jesus speaking to the Pharisees and teachers of the law, who professed commitment to God. But it says:

[Jesus] replied, ‘Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you hypocrites; as it is written: “These people honour me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.”’ (Mark 7.6-7)

So think of when we’re speaking to the Lord in prayer - eg, confessing our sins. We need to mind the gap between just saying we’re sorry, and saying we’re sorry and wanting to change. That’s why the confession prayer we use is so helpful because it faces us with whether we really mean what we’re saying, We prayed earlier, ‘We are truly sorry and repent of all our sins [ie, ‘We don’t just want to be forgiven and then live the same old way; we want to change.’]. Or did you take the name of the Lord in vain when you said that earlier? When we pray, we need to ask, ‘Am I going to live in line with what I’m saying?’ If I’m praying sorry for sin, am I going to live to avoid sin? If I’m praying for someone to become a Christian, am I going to live to witness to them? And so on.

But then think of when we’re speaking to the Lord in congregational worship. Just turn back to the song on the service sheet, ‘Purify my heart’. Just look at the chorus:

Refiner's fire, my heart's one desireIs to be holy, set apart for you Lord.I choose to be holy,Set apart for you my Master,Ready to do your will.

And as we sing that sort of thing, we need to ask, ‘Have I been living this last week? Eg, was it holy to watch that TV program? And am I going to live this next week? Eg, am I ready to apologise to that person I know I need to?’ Or did you take the name of the Lord in vain when you sung that earlier?

But this commandment also applies to what we say about God. Eg, it applies to any Bible-teaching role we may have. It applies to what I’m doing now. It applies to what you’re doing when you lead your Home Group or Focus group or Christianity Explored group or one of the many other small groups, or when you teach in our youth work, or whatever. And again it simply says: mind the gap between teaching and doing. The question is: if someone on the receiving end of your ministry said, ‘How do I know you’re not a hypocrite?’ then like that guy Dave, whom I mentioned at the start, could you say, ‘Watch me’? Not that any of us can be perfect this side of the new creation. But are we transparently trying to live for the Lord Jesus and change more in all the areas where we need to change? Did you take the name of the Lord in vain the last time you ministered God’s Word to others?

But it applies to all of us when we sit under sermons and in Bible studies and say things like, ‘I was really challenged by that on how I use my money.’ That’s good as far as it goes. But the question is: will you live that out in any way? Did you take the name of the Lord in vain last time you spoke in a Bible study? Or approved of a sermon? And one reason I always encourage taking notes in sermons is the concern that the Bible is not just explained and agreed with, but acted on. And speaking for myself, I find that hard enough even having written down what most struck me, so that I’ve got them to remember and to pray over and try to act on.

So, we need to mind the gap between what we’re saying about God and what our lives are really like. We also need to mind the gap between what we’re saying about God and what God is really like. Eg, when things are going badly, it’s tempting to say things like, ‘God is so unfair,’ or ‘God doesn’t care.’ But that isn’t true: there’s a gap between what we’re saying about God and what he’s really like – which is also taking his name in vain. That’s also what’s happening when ‘God’ and ‘Christ’ and ‘Jesus’ are used as swear words. I think it’s also what’s happening when we talk flippantly about God – eg, about ‘the Man Upstairs’. I think that’s unacceptable.

Then, the third commandment also applies to what we promise before God. OT Israel had much more of a culture of making formal promises in the Lord’s name. Let me just mention the most obvious example for us, so that if you’re already married, you’re reminded of the promise you’re living under; and if you’re not, you’re reminded what’s involved. This is what’s said to you in the marriage service:

The vows you are about to take are to be made in the name of God, who is judge of all and who knows the secrets of our hearts…

Which brings us to my second heading,


Second, THE PROMISE OF THE 3RD COMMANDMENT

Look back to Exodus 20.7:

“You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain [that’s the command], for the LORD will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain [and that’s the promise].” (v7)

The promise of the 3rd commandment is that God will ultimately hold me, and hold you, accountable for what we’ve said – to him, about him, before him. And that will happen when the Lord Jesus comes again as Judge. And I’ve put next on the outline two NT references to remind us of that. First, the Lord Jesus speaking:

“But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgement for every careless word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.” [Ie, Jesus will judge the reality of our profession of faith by whether or not we practised what we professed]. (Matthew 12.36-37)

Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account. (Hebrews 4.13)
So the promise of the 3rd commandment is that we will meet the Lord Jesus as our Judge - as well as our Saviour, if we’re trusting in him. And that’s meant to help us with the command. Look at it again:

“You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for [ie, here’s a motivation for keeping that command] the LORD will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain.” (v7)

What makes us prone to hypocrisy – to professing one thing and practising another – is that other people are relatively easy to fool. It’s relatively easy for me to fool you and you to fool me. It’s relatively easy to talk a good Christian life but live something different; relatively easy to keep our ‘secret’ sins and compromises secret from one another. But what the promise of the 3rd commandment does is to bring us back in touch with reality. It reminds us that the Lord Jesus does see everything; that we can’t fool him; that there are no secrets from him. And that one day we’ll see him and realise fully that he’s seen everything we’ve ever thought, said or done – which will be the biggest reality check ever. And one of the roles of the Holy Spirit is to make us aware of the Lord Jesus’ presence now, even before we can see him. The Holy Spirit’s role is to give us that ‘sixth sense’ that the Lord Jesus is with us now, and that he sees everything we think, say, do, watch, read. So that we neither think we can fool him - nor want to.

By way of illustrating that, if you’re married, just think of when your husband or wife is away, and the things you can therefore do that you couldn’t if they were there. Maybe you indulge the luxury of leaving the top off the toothpaste, or not washing out the bath, or whatever it is. Because they’re away and can’t see. Well, the promise of the 3rd commandment is saying: don’t treat the Lord Jesus like that. Because although in one sense he’s away, in another he’s with us by his Spirit. And he sees everything.


Third, THE INTENTION OF THE 3RD COMMANDMENT

I wonder what the 3rd commandment has done to you this morning? What it’s left you thinking or feeling? If I had to sum it up in a word, it’s left me feeling a hypocrite. It’s put its finger right in the gap between what I say - to and about and before God - and the reality of my life. And if you’ve been dealing honestly with this part of God’s Word, you’ll feel the same. And that’s exactly God’s intention. Look on the outline to the next verse I’ve put down under my third heading. It’s just a line from Paul’s letter to the Romans and it simply says:

…through the law, we become conscious of sin. (Romans 3.20)

So that’s God’s first intention for this commandment: to make us conscious of sin. It’s like we saw at the start, God didn’t give his law to solve the problem of sin, but to show it up. And it still does that today.

So it may be you’re not yet a Christian; you’re still just finding out about Jesus. And you’re having the experience I had on the way to turning to Jesus. I discovered in the spotlight of God’s Word that my life wasn’t as good as I’d kidded myself. And when I tried to turn over a new leaf and change that, I found I couldn’t. ‘Through the law, we become conscious of sin.’ And that experience doesn’t stop once you’ve become a Christian. For those of us who are already Christians, we become more, not less, conscious of sin, as time goes by. Ask the oldest believers here and they’ll tell you.

And God’s intention in that is not to lead us to despair. Nor is it to lead us simply to try harder – as if by ourselves we could change ourselves. It would be a total disaster if anyone went away from this sermon simply saying, ‘I must try harder.’ No, God’s intention in this is to lead us not to despair nor to try harder, but to lead us to Christ. Look at that last verse on the outline:

The law was put in charge to lead us to Christ… (Galatians 3.24)

So, the law makes us conscious of sin. And then it’s as if the law says, ‘Look, I can’t do any more for you. You now need Jesus. You need to go to him, whether it’s for the first time or the hundred thousandth time, and ask his forgiveness for all the sins I’ve made you conscious of, and for which he died so he can forgive you.’ And then it’s as if the law adds, ‘You also need Jesus to change you. I can only show you what needs to change. You need to ask Jesus not just to forgive your past sin, but to work in you by his Spirit, to change you where you can’t change yourself.’ So, eg, if I find I’m impatient (which I am by nature), the first thing to do is not to try harder to be patient (which I’m not, by fallen nature – it’s like a lion trying to be a lamb) but to pray that the Lord Jesus will change me. And then to step out and deal with that patience-demanding person, trying to live in line with that prayer, trusting that he’ll answer it.

That’s the intention of the 3rd commandment – to show me my sin and to lead me to Jesus.


We began with that guy in Dave’s group saying, ‘My problem is that all the Christians I know are hypocrites.’ And he’s right. If you define a hypocrite as someone who falls short in practice of what he or she professes, then we’re all hypocrites. And the question is: what do we do about that gap between what we profess and what we practice?

And there are really only two options. Option one is to pretend the gap isn’t there and lead a deceitfully double life. But the 3rd commandment says: don’t do that, because even if you can fool everyone else, you can’t fool the Lord Jesus.

The only other option, option two, is faith in the Lord Jesus. Which means trusting on a daily basis his forgiveness of that gap between what we aim to be and what we are. It means co-operating with the work of his Spirit in narrowing that gap on a daily basis. But remember, the gap will never be closed this side of the new creation. So it also means looking forward to the day when, for the first time in your life, you will be free of hypocrisy, when you will be able to say, hand on heart, ‘I am not a hypocrite in any way’ – namely, the day he raises you from the dead. Until that day, you don’t have the option of not being a hypocrite. You only have the option of which kind of hypocrite you’ll be.