Human Response 147: Receive the Name with Purpose

Exodus 20:7 Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain; for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh the name in vain.

The word for ”take” can be translated receive. We receive the name of the Lord upon us when we are baptized ”in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit [Matthew 28:19].” We receive the name of the Lord upon us when we hear the Aaronic benediction, ”the Lord bless…the Lord make…the Lord lift….” “So shall they put my name upon the people of Israel, and I will bless them [Numbers 6:27].” We receive the name of the Lord upon us when we come to believe in Jesus [John 1:12].

Now that we have received the name, we respond by bearing and wearing it into our daily life in a manner befitting the God who is in us. We take the name with us wherever we go, as we pray, ”May your name be holy among us.” We use the name for a purpose when we pray, praise, and give thanks. We do not receive the name in vain by speaking it in frivolous matters, in surprise, in anger, or in hateful speech.

The Name is holy and precious to God, and it is holy and dear to us; it is always on us, in us, and near to us. We respond to His constant presence by living up to the holy name we have received, speaking it only in positive and worshipful ways.