Speaking God’s Name
Hi, I’m Joni Eareckson Tada with a commandment that we are all familiar with: “Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain.” You know, when you hear that, most people think of coarse blasphemy, like when bad guys start cursing? But it’s more subtle than that.
Recently, I overheard a Christian friend say under her breath, “God, I can’t believe what my husband did!” I had to quietly pull her aside and say, “Now, I know you love the Lord and would never want to disparage Him, but when you loosely throw around the word ‘God,’ it is disparaging.” Yep, I know there are Christians who say it as though it did not mean the God of the Bible. But the truth is, there is only one God. And Psalm 139 says, “Your adversaries [O Lord] misuse Your name.”
Oh, friend, look, no Christian wants to be an adversary of God. So starting now, train yourself to use God’s name carefully and worshipfully. And start today.
© Joni and Friends