WATCH YOUR WORDS!

Can I pray for you in any way?

Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.

In Christ, Mark

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

"You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses His name." Exodus 20:7

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

The first three of God’s commandments are centered on one very important word: worship.

The first commandment tells us who we should worship, He being God and God alone.

“You shall have no other gods before Me.” Exodus 20:3

The second commandment tells what we aren’t to worship.

“You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in Heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate Me, but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love Me and keep My commandments.” Vv.4-6

And this brings us to the third of The Ten Commandments which deals with how we worship God (or sin against Him) with our words.

"You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses His name." Exodus 20:7

Indeed, in this command, God makes it crystal clear in regard to how we are to speak about Him. Point blank, He demands that we "not misuse” His name. Period.

And yet, I’m afraid too many believers violate this command in the way they live. Here are a few ways that happens.

1. Profanity.

When we curse in the name of God, we misuse His name.

Plain and simple.

Usually, there’s a “d” word that follows God (I’m sure you may have heard it once or twice...or even used it yourself), sometimes as directed to a person or object or just simply said to express some wonder in a thing that has happened. No matter the application, swearing by invoking the name of God is disrespectful and sinful, definitely not holy or of God Himself. Anyways, it’s not like anyone has the authority to command anything, whether damning or otherwise. And frankly, I can imagine He is incensed every time someone does it.

2. Swearing an oath by using His name.

Have you ever heard someone say this:

"I swear to God!"

It’s interesting to me that anyone would use this phrase because it implies that a person wouldn’t believe the person unless they invoked the name of God to back them up. And think about it. How many people have actually went to God and asked His permission to use His name in this way before doing so? It’s rarely done, if ever.

At its core, this is simply just a blatant misuse and abuse of the name of God, and as we see in the Book of Leviticus, chapter 19, it’s a sin against the very Word of God Himself.

"Do not swear falsely by My name and so profane the name of your God. I am the Lord." v.12

These are legitimate words that flow from the very mouth of the Lord Himself, a command which demands that no one should swear falsely in His name.

When God says, “Do not”, He means don’t do it and yet believers today seem to feel they have the liberty to do otherwise.

3. When we teach falsely.

This is a matter of absolute, critical importance because there are many self proclaimed believers in our world who claim to be teachers. Some of them are indeed faithful servants of the Lord who He speaks through to the education and edification of others. But then there are also the false teachers out there, ones who would skillfully twist God’s word or even preach only the parts that might support their agenda, which is really Satan’s agenda when we get right down to it.

Jesus warned His disciples to watch out for false teachers.

“Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves.” Matthew 7:15

The Apostle Paul would follow suit as he helped spread the Gospel and the Christian church outside of Israel.

“For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.” 2 Timothy 4:3-4

Today, the issues still exist as churches support social sins that the Bible speaks against. Still others will only preach and teach prosperity to their congregants, proclaiming a Lord who wants His people to have everything they want without any discussion of the sin that makes mankind an enemy of God and the Hell that awaits anyone who refuses to place their belief in Jesus as Savior.

These false teachers, masquerading as pastors and ministers, do nothing short of dishonoring and discrediting the Lord they claim to represent. They work overtime to get believers to trusting in doctrines that are unbiblical and downright untrue, taking advantage of Christians who refuse to spend enough time in the Bible to see how they are being absolutely deceived.

Friends, when it comes down to it, ministry and discipling others are serious matters that no one can afford to get wrong. Any teacher must allow the Lord, the entirety of His infallible Word, and the power of the Holy Spirit to dictate what they say to others. For it’s the only way that the truth will be known and God will be honored properly.

4. Saying we’re on a mission from God when we aren’t.

Do you remember the classic movie, "The Blues Brothers"?

In the film, there’s a scene where the two musicians, Jake and Elwood, come to the Lord while visiting a church. From that point on, they were determined to put their band back together and raise enough money to save the Catholic children’s home where they had been raised.

After their church epiphany, Jake and Elwood would tell people that they were on a "mission from God" when asked what they were up to but as we see in the movie, they still resorted to sin to try and achieve their purposes.

They, like others today, will seek to invoke God’s name to justify their actions when God really hadn’t had anything to do with them for we know that God isn’t dictating anyone to sin. That’s the work of the devil.

So with all this, and in closing, some questions:

How well are you honoring God with the words you use?

Is He being exalted or insulted by the things you say, especially when you invoke His name?

I know there was a time in my life when I wasn’t in the Lord. I was in the military, knowing all the curse words and when to use them. But when I was born again, everything changed. I truly became a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17) and that included realizing that I was accountable for the words I said.

And so I changed to where, I can’t stand profanity now. I don’t like to hear others curse and that goes for the shows and movies I watch. The Lord gave me an increased sensitivity for honoring Him with the words I use and He can do the same for you if you allow Him to do so.

My prayer today is that you would do just that out of obedience to His third commandment.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.