Never underestimate how clever Satan is! Almost everyone seems to think that the third commandment,
“Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.”
strictly refers to cursing out loud. I think that came about because of a legalistic mentality most ‘Christians’ don’t realize they’re enslaved to. You can’t know if you’re walking in the Spirit [Gal 5:16], rather than fulfilling the lust of the flesh, if you’re faith is not of Christ. Satan is content to have believers believing¹ they are living in the will of God because they choose to live by the Bible. It’s not much unlike people who think they love someone, but in reality, they don’t. How can you know what is genuine if all you’ve ever experienced is a counterfeit?
It’s no wonder Jesus said,
“Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.”
Yes, good things are good. But, if the good thing prevents what’s best from ever being, then how good is that? It is good to not curse, but if that’s all one thinks the third commandment means, then its best message is left unknown. When the complete meaning is unknown, it’s available for abuse by malignant spirits.
How does one take a name in vain? I’ll use marriage as an example. Traditionally, a woman inherits her husband’s surname when she marries him. In my case, I took on the name Schoonmaker. If I was to even think of lusting after another man, I would then be adulterating my husband’s name. Marriage vows mean nothing when they are taken in vain. Anything or anyone can be given no meaning when taken in vain.
This is why Agur prayed [Pr 30:8-9],
“Remove far from me vanity and lies: give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with food convenient for me: Lest I be full, and deny thee, and say, Who is the LORD? or lest I be poor, and steal, and take the name of my God in vain.”
Agur feared God’s proclamation of the LORD not holding him guiltless if he was to take God’s name in vain. He knew there was nothing he could to do save himself and that he was at the mercy of God to provide salvation for him through Christ’s death on the cross.
Stealing and adultery are not the only sins usable for taking the name of God in vain. Harboring hatred, jealousy, envy, greed, or anything sinful will work. God knows we will never live perfect lives while in our earthly bodies, but He does tell us to sin no more. What’s meant by that is that we are not to practice any sin. Until we receive a new nature by having our soul resurrected by the gift of Christ’s faith at God’s mercy, we cannot know what it is like to walk in the Spirit. Satan is intelligent enough to have people think they’re walking in the Spirit, when in reality, they are fulfilling the lust of the flesh. Did God ever say that mankind could not be fulfilling the lust of the flesh when he is being ‘good’ by donating money, praying, making soup for a sick neighbor (or not lying, stealing, cheating), etc.? No, He did not. All and/or anything done in the flesh is filthy in God’s eyes because it is not done by faith. This is something no one can understand or see until God opens up his eyes enabling him to comprehend how easy it is to deceive himself.
Christianity now has earned a bad reputation because of the widespread deception of what the gospel has come to mean. Society has become grossly twisted when it’s considered rude (socially incorrect) to call someone’s bluff, especially these days when people are more deceived and deceptive than ever before! So, we’re supposed to believe what someone says in order to not risk offending him? We’re supposed to hide our thoughts even if to do so means promoting hypocritical behavior? Then people wonder why going to church doesn’t mean much to non-believers of the bible?
Why won’t people see that you can’t have life both ways? You can’t live to please society and to please God. Offend one or offend the other. Personally, I don’t see the wisdom behind embracing worldly relationships over developing an eternal one with our creator. There can’t be anything more foolish than to not bother oneself about giving an account to God one day.
What could be more shameful than to spit on the sacrifice God has made for mankind by taking His name in vain?! Jesus gave 100% of himself to God for us so that we could have the joy of giving 100% of ourselves to Him in the Spirit of genuine love. Nothing else and/or no one else is worth giving a higher priority to than the only One who is able to love us perfectly.
¹“Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble.” — James 2:19
