September 12 2002
Joe Bedy
Central Christian Church
St Petersburg, Fl
What¡¦s in a name? Is a last name of Smith, Cook, Heckathorne, Bedy or Percival significant?
I believe there was a time in days past when a good name was essential. It was considered a high achievement to maintain the integrity of a good name.
Judge Harry Fogle used to teach me that a good name and integrity were two things that could never be taken away from me. That a good name was available to rich people or even poor people like me. If I had a good name and was a person of integrity, I was rich.
A name reflects who we are, in antiquity the character of a person was expressed by his name.
We used to name our children in ways that would express the character of the family and the hopes and aspirations we had for the child.
I tell my children we are Christians and we are Bedy¡¦s those names govern how we behave.
When I got an unfavorable report from Beth Oliver about one of my sons behavior on the playground that was extremely inappropriate, I told him in this family we are Christians and we are Bedy¡¦s and we do not act the way the world acts. If you are going to live in this house then you will live as a Christian first and then as a Bedy as we all try together to live as Christ. Oh I am not saying I expect my family to be perfect, those expectations disappeared a long time ago. But I am saying we will all hold each other accountable to hold up the name of Christ and live appropriately.
You see when you boil it all down it¡¦s not just the Bedy name that matters, but it¡¦s the Bedy name as it is connected to the name of Christ that really matters.
It is impossible for us to separate a person¡¦s name from their character. If you don¡¦t believe me try it for yourselves just now as I mention some names and pay attention to what your mind does.
Ready? (Mother Theresa, Billy Graham, Abraham Lincoln)
OK what are you thinking?
Now try it again. (Ted Bundy, John Wayne Gaci, Charles Manson)
Or. (Bill Clinton. Richard Nixon and John Kennedy)
I think you get the picture and you see what a name can suggest? To me these groups of names ranged from selflessness, and the depravity of the human spirit to selfishness.
The name conjures up an image and so God says about his name: Exo 20:7 You shall not make wrongful use of the name of the LORD your God, for the LORD will not acquit anyone who misuses his name.
Some translations do not take His name in vain. o
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From the same as H7722 in the sense of desolating; evil (as destructive),
literally (ruin) or morally (especially guile); figuratively idolatry (as false,
subjectively), uselessness (as deceptive, objectively; also adverbially in vain):¡X
false (-ly), lie, lying, vain, vanity.
Most people interpret this commandment to mean that we shall not swear saying ¡§Jesus Christ¡¨ or ¡§gosh darn it¡¨ or any other vulgar statement and that is certainly true. Even last Wednesday and Sunday in the memorial services for 9/11 I heard people in the video say ¡§Oh my god¡¨ they are not alluding to God or even beginning a prayer to God-it is just a statement they make.
However, when the 3rd commandment says, ¡§You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God in vain¡K¡¨ it is NOT speaking about unbelievers who use God¡¦s name in cursing, it is speaking about God¡¦s people failing to represent His name correctly by their lifestyle!
So what God is literally saying to His children as I say to my children is do not ruin my good name.
Although this commandment was written to Israel it is also written to us as Christians and when we take on the name of Christ, than we better act like Christians, we better live like Christ, because when we don¡¦t we have ruined His good name.
If we go to church and call ourselves Christians and then do not live like Christians that sin will not go unpunished.
When we live like heathens we destroy our witness and we hear it said, ¡§well if he or she is a Christian-well then I don¡¦t want to be a Christian-if that is how they act.¡¨
If we suffer let us be people who suffer for doing good, for doing what is right in the eyes of the Lord. If we suffer for Christ He gives us His name ¡§Faithful Witness.¡¨
Taking the Lord¡¦s name in vain is more than just cussing when we hit a bad golf shot or smash our thumb with the hammer.
Now please understand me I am not saying that is acceptable to cuss or make God¡¦s last name damn.
But what this passage really means is we better not do anything to cast a bad reflection on the name of God.
If we do ¡§we will not go unpunished.¡¨ We will not be acquitted we will not get off the hook.
I found this verse in Prov 22:1 A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches, and favor is better than silver or gold.
The story is told of Alexander the Great.
That a young soldier was brought to him to be punished and Alexander asked ¡§what is your name son?¡¨
¡§Alexander¡¨ the soldier replied.
Alexander seemed please that the parents had honored him by the naming of their son. The other soldiers and officers seemed to relax, but then Alexander asked the officers ¡§what is he guilty of?¡¨ ¡§Cowardice!¡¨ came the response. Alexander grimaced and the officers tightened back up as he spoke these words, ¡§change your behavior or change your name.¡¨
You see we are not to take in vain, we are not to destroy for the world the disclosure of who God is, by what we say, do or maybe even think.
Ruin has this meaning of falsity about it. In other words if we claim to be a follower of the way, the Christ that leads to salvation and eternal life and live another way contrary to His teachings, we empty God¡¦s name of its meaning and we use the name in vain.
Don¡¦t be fooled into believing that the blood of Christ will cover our hypocrisy!
So if we are living a lie, being Christian in name only, and acting otherwise, God is not our daddy, the Devil is. If we leave this world before we repent the sin of this lifestyle will not go unpunished.
Give some youth group examples>
Kids who came with evil in their hearts calling themselves Christians, but looking for someone to do evil with.
This is why church discipline is so important, a sinful lifestyle by a Christian does great damage to the witness of Jesus Christ and to the church.
If we claim Christ we must live Christ, if we don¡¦t walk the talk we are destroying the name of God, making it meaningless.
When we find children who act out sexually way in advance of when they should have any knowledge of that type of behavior, the experts look first at the parents and usually they have been sexually abused by someone in the family or somebody so close to the family they essentially are a part of the family.
That is what God is saying, if you lead a sinful life and say you are part of my family those watching you will look to me and you will make my name empty.
God is saying you have poured my character out on the ground and ruined my name when you use my name and live like the Devil. You use my name in vain>
God¡¦s name is to bring hope, deliverance, and freedom from sin and healing to others.
When we live other than Godly lives, God¡¦s name becomes used scornfully and in contempt, He is profaned and denigrated. When we do it we deny the power of God¡¦s name.
God tells us do not swear in His name, which means don¡¦t make an oath to do something and then not do it. Don¡¦t say as God is my witness you have my word.
If your name is Christian let your word be your word your ¡§no¡¨ no and your ¡§yes¡¨ yes. Every promise we make is made in the presence of God; we don¡¦t need to drag Him into it by using His name as a guarantee. As Christians we are to be truthful, conscientious people who do what we say we will do. People who keep our word. Just do it! Do what we say we are going to do.
When we do God will receive the glory and honor, when we don¡¦t we empty His name, spill it on the ground and ruin it.
Jesus tells us God¡¦s name is holy, it is hallowed which means it is a separate name above all other names, different than any other name, there is no name like God¡¦s. His name is in a position which is absolutely unique and we better treat it with the honor, holiness and respect He and His name deserve. His name is Higher than any other name!
We who know His name, put our trust in Him. We know His nature, we know His character, and we do not boast in what we have we boast in what the Lord has done.
He has freed us from the bondage and captivity of a sin soaked life. He has sent a snowstorm to cover the trail of our crimson past and made us whiter than snow. He has removed our sin and hidden it in the deepest sea. Punished His own son, that we might be free to accept His gift of eternal life.
When we know God, we know His name is sacred, it is holy, it is special beyond belief and when it is used wrongly we hurt, because we know who God is and what He has done for us.
If we are totally honest, I think that all of us have destroyed the family name at one time or another, we have gone off in possession of our inheritance, but denying Him and making selfish decisions that dishonor what He has done for us.
And yet He is with us not taking His name from us or removing us from our position as His child, but He waits patiently for us to repent and come home.
Christians we wear His name, we need to understand our responsibility to uphold it in all we say and all we do.
All transactions are done in the sight of the Lord.
When my son was caught on the playground doing what he had done I told Cathi ask him what he did on the playground today.
He said, ¡§I am too ashamed and embarrassed to tell you Miss Cathi what I did.¡¨
Her response was godly and full of wisdom, ¡§if you are so ashamed that you cannot tell me about it, then you should be ashamed enough not to do it.¡¨ We need to think about the shame we will bring to our father way before we do the deed. But if we choose to do the crime we better believe we are going to do the time.¡¨ It will not go unpunished. Let¡¦s not take His name as our name and then live worldly lives, if you want to live a worldly life it would be better not to call your self a Christian.
The number one cause of divorce in America is marriage and according to Karl Rahner the number one cause of atheism is Christians. Those who proclaim God with their mouths and deny Him with their lifestyles is what an unbelieving world finds simply unbelievable. -- Karl Rahner, quoted in the Wittenburg Door (June/July l988). Christianity Today, Vol. 34, no. 8.
Remember this it is not the unbeliever who breaks the 3rd commandment by cursing it is Christians when we are his ambassadors and represent his name improperly.
Suffer for doing what is right and rest assured you will never ruin the name of God-if you do.
Bring no shame to your Father¡¦s name, because a cloud of witnesses surrounds us.
Think about your name as it is connected to His name.
He is Yahweh, Jehovah, Elohim, Immanuel, Jesus, The Lord of righteousness, peace. He is the almighty one and only He is awesome. He is wonderful, counselor, ruler of all things great and small.
Judge Fogle was right it is better to have a good name than silver or gold.
God¡¦s good name is available to the rich and the poor and if you wear it right it can never be taken away from you.
I challenge you to give me any name better than the name of Christ!
Bibliography
Stroman, John A. Whats In a Name?
Marquardt, Dennis Whats In a Name?
