Worthless Words

“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.” (Ex. 20:7)

I work at a small Classical Christian School and there is a weekly chapel hour to refocus our motivations and also to increase our love for God. This year we are taking a journey through the Ten Commandments. It has been a good study not just for the students, many of whom are learning them for the first time, but also for myself as a teacher who has heard them my entire life. I am thankful for those who have put time and effort into studying and preparing lessons each week.

This past chapel hour was focused on the Third Commandment: “You shall not take the name of the Lord in vain.”
(Ex. 20:7)

This commandment immediately brings up the idea of common colloquial versions of taking the Lord’s name in vain. Many of us have been around someone who is known for having a mouth that could use a good bar of soap taken to it. However, this commandment means more than just using what we would consider “bad words.”

Names have such a significance in the Scriptures that we in America or anywhere in the 21st century do not fully appreciate. Children were not given names because they flowed nicely, or it was their parent’s favorite name. Rather, names were given because they reflected the child’s character. For instance, Jacob meant was “deceiver” and therefore his name was very appropriate while his red-haired brother was named “Esau” which meant red-haired one.

However, we reach the height of names in the book of Exodus where God reveals Himself to Moses at the burning bush and tells him that “I AM” is the one who is in charge. This name “I AM” or “YHWH” is God’s personal name and reveals that He is the self-existent one. A few chapters later, Moses received this important command to not use God’s sacred name for anything that would be considered “vain.”

The word “vain” carries with it the idea of something that is worthless or futile. To attach God’s name to anything that would not be worthwhile is to show such disrespect to Him and in a way, show disregard to the reality of His holy position.

I will admit that I know few growing Christians who senselessly use God’s name irreverently. If they would, they almost always immediately repent and admit their outburst was wrong. However, there is a much broader implication to this command, and it is brought up by our Lord Jesus in the book of Matthew. He is chastising the Pharisees for presenting themselves one way while their words and hearts revealed something else. Jesus declared, “How can you speak good, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. The good person out of his good treasure brings forth good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure brings forth evil. I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.”

This is not a direct reference to the 3rd commandment, but that idea of “idle words” is present in both. I read that the average persona speaks about 30-50 thousand words a day. How many of those words would the Lord consider “idle words?” How many would He be proud of and view them as being of eternal value?

This week think intentionally about the words you say and remember that your words (as much as your actions) reflect the name of the one who saved you.  

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