Dear Sisters In The Lord:
Don’t you agree that we have become such a casual society? All we have to do is watch TV to see the extent of our
casualness. We lack respect and reverence for others. Our children call adults by their first names as if we are all their
peers. There’s no more Mr. or Mrs. used and mainly because my generation doesn’t want to be called that as it makes us feel old. I once heard a mother say “don’t call me Mrs. as it makes me feel like my mother!”. How silly! We call our
President by his last name. Rarely do we hear Mr. President or President Trump. Even children are saying it too. We call police cops and adultery “affairs”. Just to mention a few. So casual, so flippant. But the worst is how we refer to God. We call Him “the man upstairs”, “he’s my homeboy”, “the big G”, or “the guy in the sky”. Just to type those words bring chills to me! We have raised and allowed a generation to treat our Holy Holy God so casually.
But God doesn’t accept our casualness when it comes to His name. In the 3rd Commandment He adamantly tells us not to take His name in vain. The word vain has much more meaning than using it in a profane way. It means honoring God’s name according to His true value. How do you praise Him, thank Him, pray to Him?
The Hebrew word for vain used in Exodus 20:7 means evil, empty or false. Therefore to take the Lord’s name in vain means totreat His name in an empty, thoughtless manner. It means to consider His name as nothing, no value. To use God’s name in vain is not only to use it in profanity or to mock but to treat Him as nothing, worthless. Using casual remarks like “oh Lord, dear Lord, or Jesus Christ, when we’re excited or frustrated is using His name in vain. We hear these a great deal in our world today and according to God we have broken the 3rd Commandment and God says He will not leave us unpunished. Yikes!!
It is time to take seriously our devotion and obedience to our God. God takes seriously His relationship with us and we need to step it up and remember who He is and what He requires of the people He loves.
We are entering a new season, Fall. Let us take this new season to develop new habits. Let’s get rid of the casual way we think and speak of our God. Remember who He says He is. Remember all the names He is called in the Bible. Speak of Him with holiness, honor, reverence and praise. Remind others of His holiness. He is our God and there is none like Him.
HE is our God!
Sharon