Dakota Community Church
July 20, 2014
Name Above All Names
Summer Series at Dakota: The 10 Commandments
Exodus 20:7
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.
Introduction: Is it Right to Teach Law to Christians?
Is it right to be focusing on the law if it constantly reminds us of our sinfulness.
Shouldn't we be focused on our worthiness as new creations?
How can I soar like an eagle if I’m constantly surrounded by all this turkey talk?
Shouldn't I be like Joyce Meyers who claims she is not a sinner? After all I was once just a sinner saved by grace but now I’m the righteousness of God in Christ!
Aren't we supposed to think on positive things?
Philippians 4:8
Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honourable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.
Is it true that you are without sin? Is lying about that in any way excellent or commendable?
This passage is nothing about positive thinking foolishness; it is about sound gospel teaching.
You are the righteousness of God in Christ but you are also still only a sinner saved by grace.
"Simul Iustus et Peccator”
We are now simultaneously justified and sinner. Not a little of each or 50/50, 100% both; God sees you as his righteous child in Christ because of Christ’s righteousness imputed to you and at the same time you wrestle with sin as long as you are in this body as a result of the fall.
As soon as you deny the reality of your sinfulness you begin to drift from relying upon Christ.
Jeremiah 16:6-12
Both great and small shall die in this land. They shall not be buried, and no one shall lament for them or cut himself or make himself bald for them. 7 No one shall break bread for the mourner, to comfort him for the dead, nor shall anyone give him the cup of consolation to drink for his father or his mother. 8 You shall not go into the house of feasting to sit with them, to eat and drink. 9 For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I will silence in this place, before your eyes and in your days, the voice of mirth and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride.
10 “And when you tell this people all these words, and they say to you, ‘Why has the Lord pronounced all this great evil against us? What is our iniquity? What is the sin that we have committed against the Lord our God? ’ 11 then you shall say to them: ‘Because your fathers have forsaken me, declares the Lord, and have gone after other gods and have served and worshiped them, and have forsaken me and have not kept my law, 12 and because you have done worse than your fathers, for behold, every one of you follows his stubborn, evil will, refusing to listen to me.
Notice that God’s people are unaware of their guilt, they see no reason for the coming judgement, they cannot understand why anything bad would happen to them and so they trust (and support) the lying prophets while rejecting Jeremiah who actually speaks the Word of God.
One of the most serious indications that a people have wandered far from God is that they no longer see themselves as guilty before His perfect Holiness.
If I see myself as mostly good, I can happily occupy myself with minor behavioural tweaking and self improvement projects only in light of the reality of God’s holiness and His demand for perfect holiness from me do I spend my days clinging to the cross with eyes fixed upon Christ and his work on my behalf.
What does it mean then to take the name of the LORD in vain?
Many believe that taking the Lord’s name in vain refers to using it as a curse word, however, there is much more to it than that.
To understand the severity of taking the Lord’s name in vain, we must first see the Lord’s name from His perspective.
God’s nature and His attributes, the totality of His being, and especially His glory are reflected in His name.
Psalm 8:1
O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory above the heavens.
Psalm 111:9
He sent redemption to his people; he has commanded his covenant forever.
Holy and awesome is his name!
Matthew 6:9-10
Pray then like this: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name . Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
Clearly a holy reverence for God and His name should be foremost in our prayers.
If God’s name is no longer “hallowed” in our society it can only be because it has first ceased to be hallowed amoung us.
If the church portrays God as a doddering old man who is incapable of getting anything done without human involvement, if we say that He is a benign “gentleman” who would never violate human will; then we are the potters and He is the clay.
Hebrews 1:1-4
Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, 2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. 3 He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, 4 having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs .
Because of the greatness of the name of God, any use of God’s name that brings dishonour on Him or on His character is taking His name in vain.
Three common violations:
1. Blaspheming the Name
First the way we all know and think when the third commandment is mentioned.
To blaspheme is to speak with contempt about God or to be defiantly irreverent.
According to Black's Law Dictionary, blasphemy is “the written or oral reproach of God, His name, attributes, or religion.”
This is similar to slander, which is “malicious oral lies that harm a reputation,” and libel, which is “slander through writing or another type of recording or transmission.”
Blasphemy then is slander and libel directed at God.
Leviticus 24:10-16
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 Dan. 12 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.
2. Misappropriating the Name
Jesus has given the use of His name, we are to pray to the Father in Jesus’ name.
We need to use the name without failing to reverence it.
We take the name in vain when we use it as a blank cheque for our own decisions and activities.
God told me… fill in the blank; He almost never has.
We take the name in vain when we use it to support heresy and error.
Jesus does not perform miracles based on donations sent to ministries using HIS name
3. Denying the Name
The Name as revealed in scripture: Provider, Healer, Righteousness…
Hypocrisy:
“It is a sad thing to be Christians at supper, heathens in our shops, and devils in our closets.” Stephen Charnock
The Gospel
Repent and leave washed and forgiven, secure in the perfect righteousness of Christ.
Jesus never took the Name of the LORD in vain.
You are saved based on His performance, not your own.
PowerPoint available (Free of charge) on request dcormie@mts.net
Follow Dan on twitter: @DanCormie
