WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:03.100 We hope that you enjoy this teaching from Christchurch. 00:00:03.100 --> 00:00:13.300 This material is copyrighted and no unauthorized duplication, redistribution, or any other use of any part is permitted without prior consent from Christchurch. 00:00:13.300 --> 00:00:20.500 Please consider donating to this work in the San Francisco Bay Area online at Christchurcheastbay.org. 00:00:26.580 --> 00:00:27.679 Good morning. 00:00:27.679 --> 00:00:34.640 I'm Samantha Pipkin and I'm part of the Christchurch Youth Group and the Sunday Evening Community Group for Families. 00:00:35.140 --> 00:00:42.039 Today's scripture reading is from the book of Exodus chapter 20 verse 1 to 7 as printed in the liturgy. 00:00:42.480 --> 00:00:44.000 A reading from the book of Exodus. 00:00:44.600 --> 00:00:46.179 And God spoke all these words. 00:00:46.640 --> 00:00:50.760 I am the Lord your God who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. 00:00:51.239 --> 00:00:53.120 You shall have no other gods before me. 00:00:53.119 --> 00:01:00.399 You shall not make yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. 00:01:01.280 --> 00:01:04.259 You shall not bow down to them or worship them. 00:01:04.459 --> 00:01:13.079 For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children of the sins of the parents to the third and fourth generation. 00:01:13.079 --> 00:01:18.480 Of those who hate me and showing love to a thousand generations. 00:01:18.900 --> 00:01:21.799 Of those who love me and keep my commandments. 00:01:22.039 --> 00:01:24.659 You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God. 00:01:25.000 --> 00:01:29.140 For the Lord will hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name. 00:01:29.479 --> 00:01:31.219 The grass withers and the flowers fall. 00:01:31.900 --> 00:01:34.200 But the word of our God stands forever. 00:01:34.200 --> 00:01:38.420 Thank you, Samantha, for that scripture reading. 00:01:39.060 --> 00:01:39.540 Good morning. 00:01:39.620 --> 00:01:40.280 My name is Jonathan. 00:01:40.460 --> 00:01:41.540 I'm one of the pastors here. 00:01:42.159 --> 00:01:46.359 And we're continuing today in this sermon series on the Ten Commandments. 00:01:46.359 --> 00:01:52.500 And I would say a driving question of this series is, you know, what is the good life? 00:01:53.560 --> 00:01:57.400 What's the life that's full of blessing? 00:01:58.680 --> 00:02:00.600 What is the life of flourishing? 00:02:00.719 --> 00:02:01.840 What's the life of fruitfulness? 00:02:01.840 --> 00:02:08.860 If you open the prayer book of the Bible, the hymnal right at the heart of the Bible is the Psalms. 00:02:09.480 --> 00:02:18.699 And the very first Psalm describes this tree that is deeply rooted and that's firmly planted by this ever-flowing stream. 00:02:18.800 --> 00:02:26.759 This unceasing source of life and vitality so that its leaves do not wither in the heat and the drought. 00:02:27.360 --> 00:02:28.680 It's always green. 00:02:28.800 --> 00:02:30.140 It never fails to bear fruit. 00:02:30.139 --> 00:02:32.519 And what's the secret of that tree? 00:02:33.139 --> 00:02:38.599 What's the secret of becoming like that tree that's just bursting with life and blessing? 00:02:38.739 --> 00:02:40.859 That's just flourishing and fruitful? 00:02:41.879 --> 00:02:48.199 And Psalm 1 says that such a person is one who delights in what? 00:02:48.719 --> 00:02:49.979 In the law of the Lord. 00:02:49.979 --> 00:02:55.500 And this person meditates on God's law day and night. 00:02:56.439 --> 00:03:03.560 If you keep sort of working through those prayers and those songs at the heart of the Bible, you come to Psalm 19. 00:03:04.620 --> 00:03:06.979 And Psalm 19 describes an attitude. 00:03:07.739 --> 00:03:14.579 It describes the attitude of this person that's flourishing and that's fruitful and rooted by this living water. 00:03:14.580 --> 00:03:17.080 And here's the attitude in Psalm 19. 00:03:17.080 --> 00:03:17.600 It says, 00:03:17.599 --> 00:03:21.139 The law of the Lord is perfect, refreshing the soul. 00:03:21.599 --> 00:03:24.939 The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy, making wise the simple. 00:03:25.560 --> 00:03:28.879 The precepts of the Lord are right, giving joy to the heart. 00:03:29.419 --> 00:03:32.519 The commands of the Lord are radiant, giving light to the eyes. 00:03:33.240 --> 00:03:35.639 The fear of the Lord is pure, enduring forever. 00:03:35.780 --> 00:03:39.879 The decrees of the Lord are firm and all of them are righteous. 00:03:40.019 --> 00:03:43.500 They are more precious than gold, than much pure gold. 00:03:43.500 --> 00:03:47.099 They are sweeter than honey, than honey from the honeycomb. 00:03:47.819 --> 00:03:55.560 And I think it's important to begin there because what we're talking about is really the opposite of modern secular culture. 00:03:56.520 --> 00:04:07.920 Modern secular culture operates according to various stories and myths about things like identity and freedom and morality and happiness. 00:04:07.919 --> 00:04:15.859 That say, you know, the way to flourishing, the way to fruitfulness is for me to be true to myself. 00:04:16.699 --> 00:04:20.699 And what I have to do is construct what's right and wrong for me. 00:04:20.699 --> 00:04:25.539 And then I've got to do what it is that makes me happy no matter what. 00:04:25.599 --> 00:04:30.199 I can't let anybody get in the way of me being happy. 00:04:30.199 --> 00:04:50.120 And Psalm 19 says, no, the way to have my soul refreshed, the way to become wise, the way to have my heart filled with joy and for my eyes to be filled with light is for me to meditate on something other than myself. 00:04:51.240 --> 00:04:57.500 It's to meditate on and to trust in and to live by the law of the Lord. 00:04:57.500 --> 00:05:02.839 That, the psalmist says, is worth more than piles of pure gold. 00:05:02.959 --> 00:05:07.839 It's worth, it's more pleasurable than jar after jar of the finest honey. 00:05:08.819 --> 00:05:21.759 And so I hope that as we kind of move through this series, we can address some of these cultural stories, these cultural myths that say the way to be refreshed is to live for myself. 00:05:21.759 --> 00:05:38.539 And what we want to do is encourage you and foster an attitude like the Psalms and say, no, you know, God's life-giving law, his freedom-protecting law, that is, you know, summarized in the Ten Commandments, that's our delight. 00:05:38.540 --> 00:05:42.840 That is the focus of our meditation. 00:05:43.700 --> 00:05:46.240 And so we're just, we're in this extended meditation. 00:05:46.879 --> 00:05:51.520 And we've now worked our way through the first commandment and the second commandment. 00:05:51.600 --> 00:05:57.420 And now today we come to the third commandment, which, you know, is much deeper than it appears on the surface of things. 00:05:57.780 --> 00:06:04.960 And what I want you to do, we didn't print this, but I want you to take your pew Bible, if you have one close to you or in front of you. 00:06:04.959 --> 00:06:11.079 And we're going to turn in a moment to Exodus chapter 34. 00:06:12.060 --> 00:06:16.899 So second book of the Bible, the book of Exodus chapter 34. 00:06:17.299 --> 00:06:20.120 And you can just hold your finger there and keep it open. 00:06:20.740 --> 00:06:28.339 And what I want to sort of walk you through over the next little bit, it's just, we want to talk about the glorious name, the glorious name. 00:06:28.859 --> 00:06:31.139 And then we want to talk about misusing the name. 00:06:31.659 --> 00:06:33.359 And we want to talk about praising the name. 00:06:33.360 --> 00:06:36.520 But we want to begin here with the glorious name. 00:06:37.800 --> 00:06:42.180 We started this sermon series in Exodus chapter 3 at the burning bush. 00:06:42.280 --> 00:06:45.900 God calls Moses and he says to Moses, I am the God of your fathers. 00:06:46.080 --> 00:06:49.020 I'm the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. 00:06:49.720 --> 00:06:57.259 And when he says, I am God, he's using that word from the very first page of the Bible, the very first book in Genesis. 00:06:57.420 --> 00:06:59.379 In the beginning was God. 00:06:59.980 --> 00:07:01.660 In the beginning was Elohim. 00:07:01.660 --> 00:07:19.260 And that name Elohim means that he is the majestic and mighty and absolute and transcendent maker of heaven and earth and the all-powerful creator of the cosmos. 00:07:19.260 --> 00:07:20.940 That's his name, Elohim. 00:07:20.939 --> 00:07:30.379 And when Elohim comes to the burning bush and he says, I am the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. 00:07:31.100 --> 00:07:35.100 And he says, Moses, I'm sending you to Egypt. 00:07:35.600 --> 00:07:42.360 Moses says, well, you know, when they ask me who sent me, what name should I give them? 00:07:42.360 --> 00:07:46.000 And do you remember God's answer in Exodus 3? 00:07:46.120 --> 00:07:49.040 It's one of the most important verses in the whole Bible. 00:07:49.139 --> 00:07:53.480 He says, my name is, I am who I am. 00:07:53.819 --> 00:07:57.340 Which in Hebrew is Yahweh or the Lord. 00:07:57.980 --> 00:08:00.460 My name is, I am who I am. 00:08:00.639 --> 00:08:04.439 And when you say that in Hebrew, it sounds like I am here. 00:08:04.439 --> 00:08:07.600 And I am with you. 00:08:08.019 --> 00:08:09.939 And I am for you. 00:08:10.180 --> 00:08:14.060 And I want you to tell them that I am coming down to rescue them. 00:08:14.139 --> 00:08:16.219 I'm coming to liberate them. 00:08:16.300 --> 00:08:19.819 I'm coming to bring you out of this land of slavery. 00:08:19.959 --> 00:08:24.939 Tell them Elohim, the creator God, and Yahweh, the redeemer God, is coming for them. 00:08:24.939 --> 00:08:35.039 And what's really cool is that over the course of this book, God unpacks the meaning of that name. 00:08:35.220 --> 00:08:37.299 And that's what brings us to Exodus 34. 00:08:38.220 --> 00:08:41.440 Last week we talked about the golden calf tragedy. 00:08:41.679 --> 00:08:44.600 It's sort of this debacle at Mount Sinai. 00:08:45.159 --> 00:08:49.340 And Moses is up on the mountain there and he's praying on behalf of God's people. 00:08:49.820 --> 00:08:53.740 And he says, God, show me and show us your glory. 00:08:53.740 --> 00:09:01.360 And then in Exodus 34, verses 6 to 7, we come to the very center point of the Torah. 00:09:01.480 --> 00:09:05.440 This is the high point of the first five books of the Bible. 00:09:05.480 --> 00:09:11.440 The most precious books of the Bible for Jewish people is right here in verses 6 and 7. 00:09:11.560 --> 00:09:19.580 God says to Moses, I'm going to proclaim to you and to all of Israel the glory of my name. 00:09:19.680 --> 00:09:20.580 And then what does he say? 00:09:20.580 --> 00:09:21.820 He says in verse 6, 00:09:22.320 --> 00:09:32.520 I am the Lord, the Lord, compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, 00:09:33.080 --> 00:09:38.600 maintaining love to thousands, forgiving wickedness, rebellion, and sin. 00:09:38.960 --> 00:09:44.400 Yet I do not leave the guilty unpunished, but I punish the children for the sins of the parents 00:09:44.399 --> 00:09:47.279 to the third and fourth generation. 00:09:47.279 --> 00:09:51.480 Moses, you asked me to show you the glory of my name. 00:09:51.659 --> 00:09:53.159 That is my name. 00:09:54.679 --> 00:09:56.519 Did you know that's God's name? 00:09:58.659 --> 00:10:01.179 It's an incredible name. 00:10:01.439 --> 00:10:09.179 And if you don't know what portion of the Bible to, you know, focus on, meditate on, even memorize, 00:10:09.179 --> 00:10:12.839 I would just start you there in those first two, in those two verses. 00:10:13.959 --> 00:10:16.459 And you know what Moses did when he heard that name? 00:10:17.559 --> 00:10:22.620 If you look there, it says the moment he heard the full content, the full meaning of the Lord's name, 00:10:22.659 --> 00:10:25.899 it says Moses bowed down to the ground at once. 00:10:26.079 --> 00:10:27.000 And what did he do? 00:10:27.459 --> 00:10:28.359 He worshiped. 00:10:29.099 --> 00:10:29.879 He worshiped. 00:10:29.879 --> 00:10:38.820 God's self-revelation, his exposition of his own name, says to us, this is my core identity. 00:10:39.000 --> 00:10:41.100 This is my fundamental essence. 00:10:41.259 --> 00:10:44.820 This is the nature and the character of who I am. 00:10:44.919 --> 00:10:47.059 These are my attributes. 00:10:47.059 --> 00:10:55.359 And in giving us this name, he shows us his desire to be accessible to us. 00:10:55.419 --> 00:11:01.500 He shows us that, you know, I'm giving you my name because I want to be in a personal relationship with you, 00:11:01.639 --> 00:11:07.500 a relationship of intimacy and trust and communication and closeness. 00:11:09.859 --> 00:11:14.019 Exodus 34 is frequently quoted throughout the rest of the scriptures 00:11:14.019 --> 00:11:20.019 and really sets the pattern for Israel's relationship to God. 00:11:20.759 --> 00:11:28.539 Many of the psalms that are prayed are based on these verses that say God is compassionate and gracious. 00:11:29.740 --> 00:11:36.379 The priority in his name is given to God's most magnanimous qualities, 00:11:36.379 --> 00:11:39.939 that he has a compassionate heart for you, 00:11:39.940 --> 00:11:45.660 that he graciously favors you as he deals with you. 00:11:46.520 --> 00:11:51.860 And then it says that he's slow to anger, meaning he's incredibly patient with you, 00:11:51.920 --> 00:11:56.740 that he's forbearing and he's long-suffering with you. 00:11:57.720 --> 00:12:01.280 And then it says he's abounding in love and faithfulness, 00:12:01.279 --> 00:12:05.919 which means that of all the people that you could ever have a relationship with, 00:12:06.139 --> 00:12:08.480 he is more committed to you, 00:12:08.919 --> 00:12:10.120 more loyal to you, 00:12:10.220 --> 00:12:11.059 more trustworthy, 00:12:11.339 --> 00:12:12.139 more reliable, 00:12:12.339 --> 00:12:13.039 more dependable. 00:12:13.120 --> 00:12:16.120 He's somebody that you can count on. 00:12:17.639 --> 00:12:20.360 And then it says maintaining love to thousands, 00:12:21.159 --> 00:12:22.459 forgiving wickedness, 00:12:22.639 --> 00:12:23.000 rebellion, 00:12:23.000 --> 00:12:24.019 and sin. 00:12:24.019 --> 00:12:30.879 And that means that he extends his undeserved mercy to us continuously, 00:12:31.559 --> 00:12:33.220 pardoning our offenses, 00:12:33.559 --> 00:12:36.860 canceling our moral and spiritual debts. 00:12:37.439 --> 00:12:40.079 And here's the kicker of his name. 00:12:40.500 --> 00:12:41.000 It says, 00:12:41.199 --> 00:12:43.679 yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished. 00:12:43.679 --> 00:12:50.259 He punishes the children and their children for the sins of the parents of the third and fourth generation. 00:12:50.259 --> 00:12:54.960 And what that means is that the name of God contains a paradox. 00:12:56.439 --> 00:13:05.620 It's a mystery and it's a paradox right in the heart of God's name that he is both forgiving and he's punishing. 00:13:07.779 --> 00:13:08.179 Right? 00:13:08.259 --> 00:13:11.779 He's too just to let anyone off the hook. 00:13:12.460 --> 00:13:16.460 But he's too merciful to let anyone perish. 00:13:16.460 --> 00:13:21.500 And notice that in right there within his name, 00:13:22.200 --> 00:13:22.780 there's not a, 00:13:22.840 --> 00:13:28.360 it's not like a balanced scale between the justice of God and the mercy of God. 00:13:28.660 --> 00:13:29.040 Rather, 00:13:29.160 --> 00:13:32.440 it says he extends his mercy to thousands, 00:13:32.980 --> 00:13:36.320 but he limits his justice to four. 00:13:37.480 --> 00:13:37.740 Look, 00:13:37.740 --> 00:13:38.060 look at, 00:13:38.120 --> 00:13:38.740 look at his name. 00:13:39.800 --> 00:13:45.320 It says that there's loving kindness to a thousand generations on the one hand, 00:13:45.320 --> 00:13:52.940 and yet there is just punishment to three or four generations on the other hand. 00:13:53.960 --> 00:13:56.060 That's a significant imbalance. 00:13:57.540 --> 00:14:03.360 That's a huge disparity between thousands and four. 00:14:03.360 --> 00:14:08.419 And one scholar commenting on this text, 00:14:08.480 --> 00:14:08.840 he says, 00:14:09.399 --> 00:14:16.720 God's wrath can only be discussed in glaring a symmetry to his love. 00:14:18.000 --> 00:14:21.080 Or as Jesus' brother James put it in James chapter two, 00:14:21.220 --> 00:14:24.139 mercy triumphs over judgment. 00:14:25.419 --> 00:14:26.600 And so I ask you, 00:14:26.700 --> 00:14:29.180 do you know the name of God? 00:14:29.179 --> 00:14:30.759 And does, 00:14:30.899 --> 00:14:32.739 what does his name mean to you? 00:14:32.799 --> 00:14:40.339 Have you opened your heart to the infinite and undeserved mercy at the heart of his name? 00:14:40.439 --> 00:14:40.839 Have you, 00:14:41.159 --> 00:14:50.419 have you experienced the unstinting loving kindness that God has for you? 00:14:50.419 --> 00:14:53.539 To know his name, 00:14:54.240 --> 00:14:59.039 to be the people who are the bearers of that name, 00:14:59.139 --> 00:15:00.360 of his self-revelation, 00:15:00.479 --> 00:15:04.179 to be in a covenant relationship with this God, 00:15:04.259 --> 00:15:09.159 whose name encapsulates and summarizes these attributes, 00:15:09.479 --> 00:15:12.879 is the most precious thing in the world. 00:15:12.879 --> 00:15:19.620 It's better than anything else you could ever imagine having or doing or experiencing. 00:15:20.939 --> 00:15:21.840 And for Israel, 00:15:21.919 --> 00:15:22.240 they'd say, 00:15:22.320 --> 00:15:22.519 you know, 00:15:22.659 --> 00:15:22.860 who, 00:15:22.939 --> 00:15:23.740 who in the, 00:15:23.820 --> 00:15:27.139 who in their right mind would neglect this name? 00:15:27.139 --> 00:15:30.439 Or who would ever think to drag this name through, 00:15:30.639 --> 00:15:31.480 through the mud? 00:15:32.580 --> 00:15:34.399 And here's what's fascinating to me. 00:15:34.500 --> 00:15:37.019 After Mount Sinai, 00:15:37.100 --> 00:15:40.059 after God gives the 10 commandments here, 00:15:40.059 --> 00:15:44.959 do you know what the final 15 chapters of the book of Exodus is all about? 00:15:45.099 --> 00:15:49.500 Exodus chapter 25 through chapter 40, 00:15:49.979 --> 00:15:53.959 God is showing his people how to construct this tabernacle 00:15:53.959 --> 00:16:02.839 where the name of God and the glory of God is to dwell right there at the very center of the Israelite camp. 00:16:03.859 --> 00:16:05.219 And in that tabernacle, 00:16:05.419 --> 00:16:05.500 there, 00:16:05.579 --> 00:16:06.799 there are no other gods, 00:16:06.859 --> 00:16:08.500 which is commandment number one, 00:16:08.759 --> 00:16:09.739 no other gods before me. 00:16:09.740 --> 00:16:10.779 In that tabernacle, 00:16:10.879 --> 00:16:14.039 there are no images of the one true living God. 00:16:14.100 --> 00:16:15.100 That's commandment number two. 00:16:15.299 --> 00:16:17.000 But in the heart of that tabernacle, 00:16:17.120 --> 00:16:18.919 in the holy of holies, 00:16:19.000 --> 00:16:19.259 there's, 00:16:19.360 --> 00:16:20.740 there's the ark of the covenant. 00:16:20.899 --> 00:16:22.340 And within that ark of the covenant, 00:16:22.480 --> 00:16:23.580 there are these 10 commandments. 00:16:23.740 --> 00:16:25.399 And what's written all over the 10 commandments? 00:16:25.840 --> 00:16:26.879 I am the Lord, 00:16:27.019 --> 00:16:27.860 your God. 00:16:27.980 --> 00:16:29.060 I am Yahweh, 00:16:29.200 --> 00:16:29.720 your God. 00:16:29.779 --> 00:16:31.039 I am Yahweh, 00:16:31.340 --> 00:16:32.019 Elohim. 00:16:32.019 --> 00:16:36.319 And that is to be right at the heart. 00:16:36.320 --> 00:16:44.720 And right at the center of the life and the worship and the reality of the people of God. 00:16:44.720 --> 00:16:52.340 Even as God's transitioning his people from this wilderness tabernacle to a more permanent temple in Jerusalem, 00:16:52.460 --> 00:16:54.279 God says in Deuteronomy 12, 00:16:54.399 --> 00:16:55.080 first Kings eight, 00:16:55.139 --> 00:16:55.440 he says, 00:16:55.440 --> 00:17:02.600 I'm going to cause my holy name to dwell in my holy temple at the heart of my holy people. 00:17:04.360 --> 00:17:06.779 That's what holds the whole Bible together. 00:17:07.160 --> 00:17:07.940 The whole Old Testament. 00:17:08.120 --> 00:17:09.460 It's about the name of God. 00:17:09.460 --> 00:17:18.579 And Jesus has the audacity to come along and to take that divine name upon himself. 00:17:18.579 --> 00:17:20.840 He says in the gospel of John chapter eight, 00:17:21.500 --> 00:17:22.039 he says, 00:17:22.160 --> 00:17:22.360 truly, 00:17:22.519 --> 00:17:22.700 truly, 00:17:22.799 --> 00:17:25.680 I tell you before Abraham was, 00:17:26.079 --> 00:17:27.600 I am. 00:17:28.880 --> 00:17:31.120 And then in John chapter 13, 00:17:31.299 --> 00:17:31.880 Jesus says, 00:17:32.200 --> 00:17:33.460 you call me Lord. 00:17:33.740 --> 00:17:36.059 You call me the name that God gave you. 00:17:36.059 --> 00:17:36.860 You call me Lord. 00:17:36.860 --> 00:17:37.559 And he says, 00:17:37.799 --> 00:17:38.700 and rightly so, 00:17:38.700 --> 00:17:40.880 for that is what I am. 00:17:42.080 --> 00:17:43.380 And then in John 17, 00:17:43.480 --> 00:17:44.259 he prays, 00:17:44.600 --> 00:17:45.360 holy father, 00:17:45.759 --> 00:17:47.779 protect them by the power of your name, 00:17:47.840 --> 00:17:49.680 the name that you gave to me. 00:17:51.319 --> 00:17:53.319 At the name of Jesus in the gospels, 00:17:53.420 --> 00:17:54.200 at his name, 00:17:54.299 --> 00:17:55.200 diseases are healed. 00:17:56.259 --> 00:17:57.019 Sins are forgiven. 00:17:58.100 --> 00:17:59.319 Prayers are answered. 00:18:00.039 --> 00:18:01.160 Demons flee. 00:18:01.480 --> 00:18:02.480 Lives are transformed. 00:18:02.680 --> 00:18:06.440 The world is turned upside down by his name. 00:18:07.440 --> 00:18:08.820 And at the very end of the gospels, 00:18:08.960 --> 00:18:09.279 Jesus, 00:18:09.660 --> 00:18:10.700 the resurrected Jesus, 00:18:11.039 --> 00:18:12.580 sends his disciples out. 00:18:13.059 --> 00:18:15.519 And he sends them out with God's full name. 00:18:15.580 --> 00:18:15.820 He says, 00:18:15.900 --> 00:18:19.740 I want you to go out and make disciples and baptize them in the name of what? 00:18:20.000 --> 00:18:20.820 The father, 00:18:20.940 --> 00:18:21.420 the son, 00:18:21.759 --> 00:18:22.799 and the Holy Spirit. 00:18:22.900 --> 00:18:26.480 That's the glorious name of our triune God. 00:18:26.480 --> 00:18:34.220 And we have an even greater privilege than Moses had on the mountain in Exodus 34. 00:18:35.140 --> 00:18:41.900 Because we get to call on the name of the Lord and use the fullest revelation of his name. 00:18:42.000 --> 00:18:42.500 Father, 00:18:43.220 --> 00:18:43.519 son, 00:18:44.519 --> 00:18:45.039 Holy Spirit. 00:18:45.039 --> 00:18:48.159 It is a glorious name. 00:18:49.000 --> 00:18:50.200 It's a glorious name. 00:18:50.359 --> 00:18:55.920 And we really can't talk about the misuse of the name until we understand how wonderful it is. 00:18:57.019 --> 00:19:01.599 So now that we've know what the name is and know what the name means, 00:19:01.599 --> 00:19:07.399 I want to begin to explore the way that God's name is often misused. 00:19:07.939 --> 00:19:08.079 Right? 00:19:08.119 --> 00:19:10.959 Now that we understand its beauty and its glory, 00:19:11.759 --> 00:19:15.419 I want to talk about how it can be used well and used poorly. 00:19:15.519 --> 00:19:16.759 How it can be used to honor God. 00:19:16.839 --> 00:19:18.939 How it can be used to dishonor God. 00:19:18.939 --> 00:19:24.699 And it's really be easy to focus on kind of the world out there and how other people are using the name. 00:19:24.700 --> 00:19:29.700 But I want to do the harder thing and just focus on the church in here and how we use the name. 00:19:30.819 --> 00:19:32.779 And my goal here is to, 00:19:33.319 --> 00:19:34.539 in this whole series really, 00:19:34.660 --> 00:19:36.539 is to deepen our repentance. 00:19:37.799 --> 00:19:41.880 And it's to increase our sense of our need for a savior. 00:19:42.840 --> 00:19:51.100 And it is also to enlarge our view of what holiness and obedience in the Christian life actually means. 00:19:51.099 --> 00:19:54.699 And so I want to start with the most obvious thing. 00:19:55.059 --> 00:19:55.199 Okay? 00:19:56.079 --> 00:19:58.679 The Hebrew word kavod, 00:19:59.519 --> 00:20:01.559 which we translate glory, 00:20:02.419 --> 00:20:05.419 that word kavod means something weighty, 00:20:06.119 --> 00:20:07.519 something heavy, 00:20:08.399 --> 00:20:13.599 something of substance and worth. 00:20:13.799 --> 00:20:15.779 And if something is kavod, 00:20:15.779 --> 00:20:16.339 you know, 00:20:16.539 --> 00:20:17.859 you speak about that, 00:20:17.940 --> 00:20:22.859 that thing or that person with a sobriety and a seriousness, 00:20:23.180 --> 00:20:23.319 you, 00:20:23.480 --> 00:20:26.240 you speak about it with reverence and with awe. 00:20:27.299 --> 00:20:30.279 And one of the older translation of this third commandment says, 00:20:30.420 --> 00:20:32.759 you shall not take the Lord's name in vain. 00:20:32.940 --> 00:20:36.019 And vanity is the opposite of kavod. 00:20:36.160 --> 00:20:37.039 Kavod is heavy. 00:20:37.559 --> 00:20:38.480 Vanity is light. 00:20:39.859 --> 00:20:40.379 To, 00:20:40.480 --> 00:20:42.099 to take something in vain is to, 00:20:42.180 --> 00:20:42.359 is, 00:20:42.440 --> 00:20:43.779 it's to give it insubstantiality. 00:20:43.779 --> 00:20:47.259 It's to cause it to be empty, 00:20:47.579 --> 00:20:48.960 cause it to be worthless. 00:20:49.519 --> 00:20:50.720 And what this command says is, 00:20:51.000 --> 00:20:54.440 you're not to treat something weighty as if it's light. 00:20:56.160 --> 00:21:00.700 You're to receive and to employ God's name with humility, 00:21:01.500 --> 00:21:01.680 with, 00:21:01.680 --> 00:21:02.440 with sincerity, 00:21:02.700 --> 00:21:03.339 with reverence, 00:21:03.420 --> 00:21:04.160 with seriousness. 00:21:04.599 --> 00:21:08.359 You're to use it with gravitas and with honor. 00:21:08.359 --> 00:21:10.459 And in a worthy manner, 00:21:10.559 --> 00:21:16.019 you're to lift it up in ways that are appropriate to the character that we just described. 00:21:17.240 --> 00:21:18.799 And so perhaps some of us have become, 00:21:18.939 --> 00:21:19.719 you know, 00:21:19.819 --> 00:21:20.479 too lax, 00:21:21.479 --> 00:21:21.679 right? 00:21:21.740 --> 00:21:21.879 We, 00:21:21.879 --> 00:21:22.879 we send in the text, 00:21:23.000 --> 00:21:23.319 OMG. 00:21:24.599 --> 00:21:25.379 And we say, 00:21:25.459 --> 00:21:26.159 oh my God, 00:21:26.799 --> 00:21:27.419 oh Lord, 00:21:27.599 --> 00:21:27.979 Jesus. 00:21:27.980 --> 00:21:28.220 Jesus. 00:21:29.380 --> 00:21:30.860 And when you do that, 00:21:31.420 --> 00:21:35.059 you're doing something that's not befitting with the, 00:21:35.059 --> 00:21:38.940 the level of the majesty of this name. 00:21:40.019 --> 00:21:41.339 Psalm chapter eight says, 00:21:41.460 --> 00:21:42.000 oh Lord, 00:21:42.039 --> 00:21:42.660 our Lord, 00:21:42.839 --> 00:21:43.880 how excellent. 00:21:44.680 --> 00:21:48.480 And how majestic is your name in all the earth. 00:21:48.579 --> 00:21:48.660 And, 00:21:48.660 --> 00:21:52.400 and godly people who fear and respect this name, 00:21:52.980 --> 00:21:53.279 you know, 00:21:53.279 --> 00:21:53.539 they, 00:21:53.539 --> 00:22:05.339 they sigh deeply when they hear it used lightly because it's violating reverence for the weightiness and the sacredness and the holiness of the name of God. 00:22:05.399 --> 00:22:05.720 But that, 00:22:06.019 --> 00:22:08.420 I'm just starting there because that's surface level stuff. 00:22:08.420 --> 00:22:10.720 And that's really like the easiest thing. 00:22:10.819 --> 00:22:12.500 But I want to go a lot deeper than that. 00:22:13.779 --> 00:22:15.119 The Hebrew says, 00:22:16.279 --> 00:22:19.139 you will not carry the name of the Lord, 00:22:19.220 --> 00:22:20.420 your God in vain. 00:22:20.859 --> 00:22:22.059 You won't carry it in vain. 00:22:22.059 --> 00:22:25.059 Now when the high priest would go into the tabernacle, 00:22:25.899 --> 00:22:32.500 he would carry the names of the 12 tribes of Israel on a breastplate over his heart. 00:22:32.639 --> 00:22:35.519 He was carrying their names on his heart. 00:22:36.279 --> 00:22:40.480 And those names had been attached to his person. 00:22:41.799 --> 00:22:43.200 In a similar way, 00:22:43.299 --> 00:22:50.440 God has done an extremely risky thing by attaching his holy name to you and to us. 00:22:50.440 --> 00:22:56.360 So that we carry his name wherever we go and whatever we do. 00:22:56.460 --> 00:22:59.980 God has attached his name to you for a purpose. 00:22:59.980 --> 00:23:04.400 To represent him like the high priest was representing the people. 00:23:04.519 --> 00:23:07.840 You're to carry the name of the Lord faithfully. 00:23:08.059 --> 00:23:14.160 You're to represent his character and his story with your whole life and your whole being. 00:23:14.160 --> 00:23:17.019 And understanding it that way, 00:23:17.019 --> 00:23:17.980 the question is, 00:23:18.259 --> 00:23:21.279 do you say his name with your lips, 00:23:21.580 --> 00:23:24.200 but your life says something totally different 00:23:24.200 --> 00:23:29.040 that contradicts or confuses his name for other people? 00:23:29.920 --> 00:23:30.980 I was reading yesterday, 00:23:31.080 --> 00:23:37.040 my regular scripture reading plan took me through Ezekiel chapter 36 yesterday. 00:23:37.039 --> 00:23:40.200 The prophet Ezekiel says this in Ezekiel 36. 00:23:41.059 --> 00:23:44.899 The people of Israel defiled their land by their conduct and their actions. 00:23:45.059 --> 00:23:47.480 They profaned my holy name. 00:23:47.940 --> 00:23:48.119 See, 00:23:48.180 --> 00:23:49.259 they profaned their name, 00:23:49.779 --> 00:23:52.220 his name by their conduct and by their actions. 00:23:52.960 --> 00:23:55.619 We can carry God's holy name with our lips, 00:23:55.639 --> 00:23:59.799 but we can damage his reputation with our lives. 00:23:59.799 --> 00:24:03.619 And so the apostle Paul in Romans 2, 00:24:04.279 --> 00:24:05.799 he quotes the prophet Isaiah. 00:24:05.960 --> 00:24:06.119 He says, 00:24:06.339 --> 00:24:06.779 as it is written, 00:24:06.879 --> 00:24:10.480 the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you. 00:24:11.759 --> 00:24:13.579 If you identify as a Christian, 00:24:13.980 --> 00:24:16.099 you carry the name of Christ. 00:24:16.279 --> 00:24:18.359 Christian means little Christ. 00:24:19.039 --> 00:24:20.399 That's what that word means. 00:24:20.480 --> 00:24:21.960 Christian is little Christ. 00:24:22.379 --> 00:24:26.319 The name Christ is associated with everything you do. 00:24:26.319 --> 00:24:29.779 And so your reputation reflects his reputation. 00:24:30.619 --> 00:24:34.939 And when we fail to carry the name of Christ in an honorable way, 00:24:35.039 --> 00:24:35.200 we, 00:24:35.299 --> 00:24:41.259 we damage his reputation because there's a misalignment between our lips and our 00:24:41.259 --> 00:24:41.679 lives, 00:24:41.779 --> 00:24:44.980 between our creed and our character and our conduct. 00:24:45.919 --> 00:24:50.339 But here's an even like deeper layer to this command. 00:24:51.279 --> 00:24:53.379 Jesus gave us that amazing prayer, 00:24:53.799 --> 00:24:54.059 right? 00:24:54.159 --> 00:24:55.179 In the sermon on the Mount, 00:24:55.180 --> 00:24:55.740 he said, 00:24:56.180 --> 00:24:57.060 when you pray, 00:24:57.480 --> 00:24:58.200 pray this way. 00:24:58.299 --> 00:25:01.840 And this is the first and most important thing that I want you to pray. 00:25:01.980 --> 00:25:02.480 Pray this way. 00:25:03.060 --> 00:25:04.259 Our father in heaven, 00:25:04.480 --> 00:25:04.680 what? 00:25:05.759 --> 00:25:08.140 Hallowed be your name. 00:25:09.400 --> 00:25:11.920 May your name be glorified in me, 00:25:12.740 --> 00:25:13.900 in my thoughts, 00:25:14.180 --> 00:25:14.880 in my mind, 00:25:14.980 --> 00:25:15.840 in my heart, 00:25:15.940 --> 00:25:16.960 in my desires, 00:25:17.560 --> 00:25:18.440 in my will, 00:25:18.560 --> 00:25:19.660 and in my decisions. 00:25:19.840 --> 00:25:24.259 May your name be hallowed in my marriage and in my kids and our family 00:25:24.259 --> 00:25:24.879 relationships. 00:25:25.240 --> 00:25:29.680 May your name be hallowed in this church and this brother in Christ and this 00:25:29.680 --> 00:25:30.359 sister in Christ. 00:25:30.440 --> 00:25:32.079 May your name be hallowed in my neighborhood. 00:25:32.779 --> 00:25:34.359 May your name be hallowed in my workplace. 00:25:34.599 --> 00:25:37.700 May your name be hallowed in the city and in this nation. 00:25:37.700 --> 00:25:39.700 May your name be hallowed. 00:25:41.120 --> 00:25:47.420 And so what we see here is that prayerlessness is a violation of the third 00:25:47.420 --> 00:25:48.360 commandment. 00:25:49.740 --> 00:25:56.480 It's functional atheism to not be calling on the name of the Lord and to not be 00:25:56.480 --> 00:25:59.759 praying the main thing that Jesus told us to pray. 00:25:59.759 --> 00:26:00.759 And that's the question is, 00:26:00.839 --> 00:26:01.160 do you, 00:26:01.279 --> 00:26:05.039 do you spend time every day asking father, 00:26:05.180 --> 00:26:06.319 let your heavenly name, 00:26:06.420 --> 00:26:09.460 let your glorious name be hallowed. 00:26:10.920 --> 00:26:11.359 Parents, 00:26:11.460 --> 00:26:16.259 do you take time with your kids after a meal or before bed and show them how to 00:26:16.259 --> 00:26:16.720 pray this way, 00:26:16.819 --> 00:26:19.019 pray this way with your kids and with your youth father, 00:26:19.140 --> 00:26:21.160 hallowed be your name. 00:26:21.240 --> 00:26:21.960 It's so important, 00:26:21.960 --> 00:26:25.940 but there's another layer and it's a deeper layer. 00:26:25.940 --> 00:26:27.380 I would say even than that, 00:26:27.380 --> 00:26:30.580 because in the gospel of Matthew chapter 15, 00:26:31.380 --> 00:26:34.940 Jesus is critiquing the Pharisees and he says to the Pharisees, 00:26:35.360 --> 00:26:36.140 you hypocrites, 00:26:37.220 --> 00:26:39.480 Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you. 00:26:39.640 --> 00:26:41.660 These people honor me with their lips, 00:26:41.660 --> 00:26:44.240 but their hearts are far from me. 00:26:44.320 --> 00:26:47.240 They worship me in vain. 00:26:47.559 --> 00:26:48.660 There's that word again. 00:26:48.700 --> 00:26:53.039 They worship me in an empty way because their hearts are far from me. 00:26:53.039 --> 00:27:00.899 The Jesus is saying the proper use of God's holy name is a sincere heart level 00:27:00.899 --> 00:27:02.299 engagement in worship. 00:27:03.139 --> 00:27:04.440 And I don't know if you're like me, 00:27:04.539 --> 00:27:08.200 you ever feel like sometimes you're just going through the motions in worship on a 00:27:08.200 --> 00:27:08.680 Sunday morning. 00:27:10.200 --> 00:27:12.019 Jesus is warning us about that, 00:27:12.619 --> 00:27:16.200 about indifference and thoughtlessness and worship where we, 00:27:16.240 --> 00:27:19.940 we come and we have the triune God's name on our lips. 00:27:20.079 --> 00:27:20.859 It's in our ears. 00:27:20.859 --> 00:27:22.459 It's before our eyes, 00:27:22.459 --> 00:27:25.139 but your heart just isn't there. 00:27:25.240 --> 00:27:34.139 Your heart is not engaged with the name of the one that you're talking to. 00:27:37.099 --> 00:27:40.339 Think about singing when we sing God's name. 00:27:41.359 --> 00:27:44.299 Do you come and robustly sing with a full heart? 00:27:44.299 --> 00:27:47.940 Or do you kind of quietly sing with a half heart? 00:27:49.220 --> 00:27:51.559 Because Psalm 66 says, 00:27:52.339 --> 00:27:53.720 shout for joy to God, 00:27:53.899 --> 00:27:54.619 all the earth, 00:27:54.799 --> 00:27:55.859 sing the glory. 00:27:56.000 --> 00:27:56.319 There it is. 00:27:56.359 --> 00:27:59.200 Sing the weightiness of his name. 00:28:00.279 --> 00:28:02.899 Make his praise glorious. 00:28:03.119 --> 00:28:05.940 Do you sing the glory of God's name with shouts of joy? 00:28:05.940 --> 00:28:09.400 Ephesians 5. 00:28:09.400 --> 00:28:10.240 The apostle Paul says, 00:28:10.539 --> 00:28:13.120 sing psalms and hymns and songs from the spirit, 00:28:13.559 --> 00:28:17.340 making music from your heart to the Lord. 00:28:17.400 --> 00:28:18.220 When you come, 00:28:18.860 --> 00:28:23.920 is your heart engaged at that level where you're making melody to his name? 00:28:23.980 --> 00:28:28.580 You're so excited about the meaning and the beauty of his name, 00:28:28.660 --> 00:28:30.380 the weightiness of his name. 00:28:30.380 --> 00:28:34.920 When we read and proclaim God's word about his name, 00:28:34.960 --> 00:28:38.220 when we pray in his name and for the glory of his name, 00:28:38.300 --> 00:28:42.700 do you let your thoughts wander so that the name is being used in vain? 00:28:44.600 --> 00:28:47.180 Consider how you prepare yourself on a Saturday night. 00:28:47.260 --> 00:28:51.380 If you knew that you were meeting a person of grand renown and worldwide importance, 00:28:52.820 --> 00:28:57.380 how would you get yourself ready for that encounter so that when you come, 00:28:57.460 --> 00:28:59.960 you're not just a drone with words on your lips, 00:28:59.960 --> 00:29:02.440 but your heart is there with that person. 00:29:05.480 --> 00:29:07.200 I'm going to go to another level. 00:29:07.279 --> 00:29:07.579 You ready? 00:29:07.779 --> 00:29:08.720 There's so many levels. 00:29:09.940 --> 00:29:11.519 Deuteronomy 18 says, 00:29:11.980 --> 00:29:16.980 a prophet who presumes to speak in my name anything I have not commanded. 00:29:17.120 --> 00:29:18.720 I'm against that kind of prophet, 00:29:18.920 --> 00:29:19.460 God says. 00:29:20.600 --> 00:29:21.299 And that means, 00:29:21.460 --> 00:29:26.640 have you ever used God's name to communicate doctrine or ethics 00:29:26.640 --> 00:29:29.299 other than what God has revealed in his word? 00:29:29.960 --> 00:29:33.319 Have you ever sanctified your own passion, 00:29:33.480 --> 00:29:36.360 your own agenda with his name? 00:29:36.420 --> 00:29:42.299 Have you ever claimed divine endorsement for your own personal desires or your political agenda? 00:29:43.779 --> 00:29:45.819 Have you ever caught yourself saying, 00:29:46.019 --> 00:29:46.279 you know, 00:29:46.740 --> 00:29:47.980 God told me, 00:29:48.920 --> 00:29:50.000 or this one's worse, 00:29:50.400 --> 00:29:52.220 God told me to tell you, 00:29:52.220 --> 00:29:56.660 and then you put God's name on your plans? 00:29:58.360 --> 00:30:03.380 Have you ever used God's name to get your way and to manipulate a situation? 00:30:05.039 --> 00:30:08.220 That is to misuse the name of God. 00:30:08.299 --> 00:30:10.299 It's to use his name in vain. 00:30:10.299 --> 00:30:15.639 We pollute God's name when we blatantly use it in service of our own name, 00:30:15.740 --> 00:30:17.419 our own selfishness, 00:30:17.480 --> 00:30:18.500 and our own power, 00:30:18.859 --> 00:30:19.799 and pride, 00:30:19.919 --> 00:30:21.200 and personal advantage. 00:30:22.659 --> 00:30:25.139 But I want to say one like final level 00:30:25.139 --> 00:30:29.319 that was convicting to me when I was thinking about this this week. 00:30:29.319 --> 00:30:33.460 The proper use of God's name is to make a vow 00:30:33.460 --> 00:30:36.939 and to make a promise that you keep. 00:30:38.159 --> 00:30:42.200 And if you're married and you got married in a Christian service, 00:30:42.759 --> 00:30:47.039 you took a vow in the name of the Father, 00:30:47.159 --> 00:30:47.319 Son, 00:30:47.339 --> 00:30:51.119 and Holy Spirit that you would love and cherish this person, 00:30:51.679 --> 00:30:52.619 right? 00:30:53.379 --> 00:30:53.859 For better, 00:30:53.979 --> 00:30:54.539 for worse, 00:30:54.539 --> 00:30:55.539 until you die. 00:30:56.939 --> 00:30:59.779 If you're a parent and you had your child baptized, 00:31:00.059 --> 00:31:01.359 when you had them baptized, 00:31:01.359 --> 00:31:04.399 you took a vow that you would bring them up in the faith 00:31:04.399 --> 00:31:06.259 and the loving discipline of the Lord. 00:31:06.879 --> 00:31:08.459 If you became a member of this church, 00:31:08.500 --> 00:31:12.659 you took a vow in that name to live as becomes a follower of Christ, 00:31:12.719 --> 00:31:15.799 to support and to serve the ministry, 00:31:15.799 --> 00:31:21.199 to work for the unity and purity and peace of the church here in Berkeley. 00:31:21.200 --> 00:31:23.279 And, you know, 00:31:23.340 --> 00:31:26.279 when we fail to cherish our spouse 00:31:26.279 --> 00:31:32.420 or when we fail to engage with our kids about the things of God, 00:31:33.220 --> 00:31:36.299 when we fail to forgive a fellow church member 00:31:36.299 --> 00:31:38.460 and to serve them in Jesus' name, 00:31:38.600 --> 00:31:39.460 what we're doing, 00:31:39.559 --> 00:31:42.640 it's not just a sin against your beloved spouse 00:31:42.640 --> 00:31:43.900 or your precious children 00:31:43.900 --> 00:31:46.140 or these people that God loves so much. 00:31:46.299 --> 00:31:48.039 It's a sin against God himself 00:31:48.039 --> 00:31:50.599 because you've taken his name 00:31:50.599 --> 00:31:54.019 and you've made a promise, 00:31:54.180 --> 00:31:54.940 you've made a vow, 00:31:55.420 --> 00:31:57.740 but now you're taking it lightly 00:31:57.740 --> 00:32:01.259 and trivially 00:32:01.259 --> 00:32:03.039 and making it empty, 00:32:03.139 --> 00:32:04.500 making it worthless. 00:32:04.500 --> 00:32:09.660 And I want to shift our attention 00:32:09.660 --> 00:32:12.680 to, you know, 00:32:12.740 --> 00:32:13.619 thinking not just, 00:32:13.759 --> 00:32:16.500 not only about the glorious name 00:32:16.500 --> 00:32:18.319 and what it is 00:32:18.319 --> 00:32:19.200 and what it means 00:32:19.200 --> 00:32:21.519 or, you know, 00:32:21.559 --> 00:32:24.960 the negative kind of misuses of the name, 00:32:25.640 --> 00:32:27.559 but I want to finally turn to 00:32:27.559 --> 00:32:29.539 what's the right way to use the name? 00:32:30.379 --> 00:32:31.799 What's the good and pleasing 00:32:31.799 --> 00:32:33.359 and honorable way 00:32:33.359 --> 00:32:35.019 to use the name? 00:32:35.099 --> 00:32:36.279 And it's just simply to say, 00:32:36.879 --> 00:32:38.460 praising the name. 00:32:39.680 --> 00:32:40.339 That's what, 00:32:40.460 --> 00:32:42.799 that's why you exist as a human being 00:32:42.799 --> 00:32:44.839 is to praise this name. 00:32:45.599 --> 00:32:46.180 It's the, 00:32:46.259 --> 00:32:47.740 it's the main reason you're here 00:32:47.740 --> 00:32:49.440 to praise the name. 00:32:50.119 --> 00:32:50.859 And again, 00:32:50.859 --> 00:32:53.379 our goal is to deepen our repentance, 00:32:53.379 --> 00:32:56.799 to increase our sense of how much we need a savior 00:32:56.799 --> 00:32:58.639 and to enlarge our vision 00:32:58.639 --> 00:33:01.039 of holiness and obedience 00:33:01.039 --> 00:33:02.680 in the Christian life. 00:33:02.740 --> 00:33:03.399 And this is the point 00:33:03.399 --> 00:33:05.859 at which I'd like to urge you 00:33:05.859 --> 00:33:08.599 to put your faith 00:33:08.599 --> 00:33:12.240 and to put your hope in Jesus 00:33:12.240 --> 00:33:13.680 as we think about this command 00:33:13.680 --> 00:33:16.980 because he perfectly keeps all these commands 00:33:16.980 --> 00:33:19.039 and he pays the penalty 00:33:19.039 --> 00:33:21.119 for those who break them. 00:33:22.480 --> 00:33:24.000 Jesus in the gospel of John, 00:33:24.059 --> 00:33:24.259 again, 00:33:24.319 --> 00:33:26.000 he's praying there in the upper room 00:33:26.000 --> 00:33:27.660 John 17 00:33:27.660 --> 00:33:29.059 and he prays to the father. 00:33:29.160 --> 00:33:29.420 He says, 00:33:29.539 --> 00:33:29.759 father, 00:33:30.019 --> 00:33:32.420 I have manifested your name 00:33:32.420 --> 00:33:34.259 to the people whom you gave me 00:33:34.259 --> 00:33:34.859 out of this world. 00:33:34.920 --> 00:33:36.660 He's the perfect manifestation, 00:33:36.920 --> 00:33:37.880 the perfect revelation 00:33:37.880 --> 00:33:40.039 of the name of the Lord. 00:33:40.079 --> 00:33:41.359 And he's perfectly kept 00:33:41.359 --> 00:33:43.579 commandment number three for us. 00:33:44.920 --> 00:33:46.380 And I want you to consider this 00:33:46.380 --> 00:33:47.880 beloved text 00:33:47.880 --> 00:33:49.660 from the apostle Paul 00:33:49.660 --> 00:33:51.119 in Colossians, 00:33:51.119 --> 00:33:52.660 in Philippians chapter two. 00:33:54.059 --> 00:33:54.859 Paul says this, 00:33:54.920 --> 00:33:55.180 he says, 00:33:55.180 --> 00:33:55.580 God, 00:33:55.680 --> 00:33:56.980 and this was a hymn 00:33:56.980 --> 00:33:59.279 that the early Christians would sing, 00:33:59.460 --> 00:34:00.160 Philippians two. 00:34:01.620 --> 00:34:03.019 God exalted Jesus 00:34:03.019 --> 00:34:04.420 to the highest place 00:34:04.420 --> 00:34:06.560 and gave him the name 00:34:06.560 --> 00:34:08.220 that is above every name, 00:34:08.920 --> 00:34:10.420 that at the name of Jesus 00:34:10.420 --> 00:34:11.700 every knee should bow 00:34:11.700 --> 00:34:13.220 and every tongue acknowledge 00:34:13.220 --> 00:34:16.159 that Jesus Christ is Lord. 00:34:17.619 --> 00:34:18.680 Now why does Paul say 00:34:18.680 --> 00:34:20.920 that Jesus now has the highest name, 00:34:21.000 --> 00:34:21.900 the loftiest name, 00:34:21.900 --> 00:34:23.639 the most exalted name 00:34:23.639 --> 00:34:24.360 in the universe? 00:34:25.480 --> 00:34:26.780 Because commandment number three 00:34:26.780 --> 00:34:27.619 says that God 00:34:27.619 --> 00:34:31.079 will not hold anyone guiltless 00:34:31.079 --> 00:34:33.180 who misuses his name. 00:34:34.320 --> 00:34:37.440 And we've all misused the name grievously 00:34:37.440 --> 00:34:40.360 just in the past 48 hours, 00:34:40.579 --> 00:34:43.559 much less our whole lives. 00:34:44.059 --> 00:34:45.559 We've neglected the name. 00:34:45.559 --> 00:34:47.360 We've ignored the name. 00:34:47.960 --> 00:34:49.940 We put the name below our name. 00:34:52.039 --> 00:34:53.199 So what do we need? 00:34:54.159 --> 00:34:55.299 We need a savior. 00:34:56.179 --> 00:34:57.320 We need a redeemer. 00:34:57.440 --> 00:34:58.199 We need someone 00:34:58.199 --> 00:34:59.219 who can come 00:34:59.219 --> 00:34:59.920 and take 00:34:59.920 --> 00:35:00.920 that guilt 00:35:00.920 --> 00:35:01.920 that's on us 00:35:01.920 --> 00:35:02.679 away. 00:35:04.539 --> 00:35:05.139 Jesus, 00:35:05.900 --> 00:35:06.360 Paul says, 00:35:06.440 --> 00:35:07.460 he now has 00:35:07.460 --> 00:35:08.440 the name 00:35:08.440 --> 00:35:09.119 that it's above 00:35:09.119 --> 00:35:09.940 every name 00:35:09.940 --> 00:35:11.960 for this reason 00:35:11.960 --> 00:35:12.900 and this reason alone. 00:35:12.900 --> 00:35:13.920 And here's what he says 00:35:13.920 --> 00:35:14.639 in Philippians 2. 00:35:15.180 --> 00:35:16.000 He, Jesus, 00:35:17.000 --> 00:35:18.460 being in very nature God, 00:35:18.760 --> 00:35:20.579 did not consider equality with God 00:35:20.579 --> 00:35:22.220 something to be used 00:35:22.220 --> 00:35:23.320 to his own advantage. 00:35:24.500 --> 00:35:25.000 Rather, 00:35:25.180 --> 00:35:26.480 he made himself nothing 00:35:26.480 --> 00:35:28.539 by taking the very nature 00:35:28.539 --> 00:35:29.119 of a servant 00:35:29.119 --> 00:35:30.019 and being made 00:35:30.019 --> 00:35:31.139 in human likeness, 00:35:31.440 --> 00:35:32.660 he humbled himself 00:35:32.660 --> 00:35:34.360 by becoming obedient 00:35:34.360 --> 00:35:34.900 to death, 00:35:35.519 --> 00:35:36.300 even death 00:35:36.300 --> 00:35:38.340 on a cross. 00:35:39.720 --> 00:35:40.840 The commandment 00:35:40.840 --> 00:35:41.760 says that 00:35:41.760 --> 00:35:43.880 we will not be held guiltless 00:35:43.880 --> 00:35:46.000 because we've broken 00:35:46.000 --> 00:35:46.579 the command, 00:35:47.579 --> 00:35:48.920 but the cross says 00:35:48.920 --> 00:35:50.700 that because of the final 00:35:50.700 --> 00:35:51.900 sacrifice 00:35:51.900 --> 00:35:52.740 and substitution 00:35:52.740 --> 00:35:53.700 of Jesus, 00:35:54.000 --> 00:35:54.539 our savior, 00:35:55.300 --> 00:35:56.200 he's paid 00:35:56.200 --> 00:35:57.700 for every single way 00:35:57.700 --> 00:35:59.320 that we've broken 00:35:59.320 --> 00:36:00.360 that command 00:36:00.360 --> 00:36:02.220 with his blood, 00:36:02.780 --> 00:36:04.079 with his life. 00:36:05.620 --> 00:36:06.460 Why are 00:36:06.460 --> 00:36:07.960 all the knees 00:36:07.960 --> 00:36:10.059 going to bow? 00:36:11.539 --> 00:36:12.740 Why is every tongue 00:36:12.740 --> 00:36:13.980 going to confess 00:36:13.980 --> 00:36:16.480 that this Jesus 00:36:16.480 --> 00:36:18.260 so high and exalted 00:36:18.260 --> 00:36:20.240 yet so humbled 00:36:20.240 --> 00:36:21.639 and humiliated 00:36:21.639 --> 00:36:22.559 on his cross, 00:36:23.220 --> 00:36:24.240 why is everyone 00:36:24.240 --> 00:36:25.079 going to do that? 00:36:25.940 --> 00:36:26.619 Because 00:36:26.619 --> 00:36:28.539 our only hope 00:36:28.539 --> 00:36:30.139 when faced 00:36:30.139 --> 00:36:30.820 with the breadth 00:36:30.820 --> 00:36:31.579 and the depth 00:36:31.579 --> 00:36:32.940 of these commandments 00:36:32.940 --> 00:36:34.099 that we break 00:36:34.099 --> 00:36:36.000 is to believe 00:36:36.000 --> 00:36:36.880 in his name. 00:36:38.440 --> 00:36:39.599 The apostle Peter 00:36:39.599 --> 00:36:40.820 says in Acts chapter 4, 00:36:40.860 --> 00:36:41.079 he says, 00:36:41.219 --> 00:36:42.000 there's no other name 00:36:42.000 --> 00:36:42.619 under heaven 00:36:42.619 --> 00:36:43.840 given to mankind 00:36:43.840 --> 00:36:44.900 by which we must 00:36:44.900 --> 00:36:46.000 be saved. 00:36:47.320 --> 00:36:47.980 And that's why 00:36:47.980 --> 00:36:48.760 in the church 00:36:48.760 --> 00:36:50.920 this name 00:36:50.920 --> 00:36:51.659 is so precious 00:36:51.659 --> 00:36:52.340 to us. 00:36:53.800 --> 00:36:54.760 We believe 00:36:54.760 --> 00:36:55.360 in his name. 00:36:56.400 --> 00:36:57.500 We are baptized 00:36:57.500 --> 00:36:59.019 in his name. 00:36:59.739 --> 00:37:00.820 We pray 00:37:00.820 --> 00:37:02.360 in his name. 00:37:03.300 --> 00:37:03.820 We say, 00:37:03.940 --> 00:37:04.500 bless you 00:37:04.500 --> 00:37:06.559 in his name 00:37:06.559 --> 00:37:09.500 because his name 00:37:09.500 --> 00:37:11.139 is our only hope. 00:37:12.460 --> 00:37:13.139 And we say 00:37:13.139 --> 00:37:13.880 with the psalmist, 00:37:13.980 --> 00:37:14.900 Psalm 103, 00:37:15.699 --> 00:37:16.480 praise the Lord 00:37:16.480 --> 00:37:17.059 my soul, 00:37:17.219 --> 00:37:18.599 all my inmost being, 00:37:19.719 --> 00:37:20.139 praise 00:37:20.139 --> 00:37:22.340 his holy name, 00:37:23.539 --> 00:37:24.760 the name of Jesus. 00:37:26.820 --> 00:37:27.420 Friends, 00:37:27.500 --> 00:37:27.940 do you see 00:37:27.940 --> 00:37:28.400 how 00:37:28.400 --> 00:37:29.940 big 00:37:29.940 --> 00:37:31.559 our sin 00:37:31.559 --> 00:37:32.599 actually is? 00:37:32.599 --> 00:37:34.860 and do you see 00:37:34.860 --> 00:37:36.440 how gracious, 00:37:36.759 --> 00:37:37.659 even more gracious 00:37:37.659 --> 00:37:38.500 our savior 00:37:38.500 --> 00:37:39.860 is? 00:37:41.059 --> 00:37:41.699 And do you also 00:37:41.699 --> 00:37:42.699 see how powerful 00:37:42.699 --> 00:37:44.199 God's spirit is 00:37:44.199 --> 00:37:45.019 that he can come 00:37:45.019 --> 00:37:46.599 give you a new nature, 00:37:46.739 --> 00:37:47.920 give you a new life 00:37:47.920 --> 00:37:49.360 and enable you 00:37:49.360 --> 00:37:50.119 by grace 00:37:50.119 --> 00:37:51.839 to obey these commands, 00:37:51.940 --> 00:37:53.099 to use the name, 00:37:53.179 --> 00:37:54.420 to praise the name 00:37:54.420 --> 00:37:55.699 in a way that brings 00:37:55.699 --> 00:37:56.319 honor 00:37:56.319 --> 00:37:57.480 and glory 00:37:57.480 --> 00:37:59.619 to the only one 00:37:59.619 --> 00:38:00.320 who's worthy, 00:38:00.860 --> 00:38:01.539 the only one 00:38:01.539 --> 00:38:02.780 who's weighty enough 00:38:02.780 --> 00:38:05.340 and of such substance 00:38:05.340 --> 00:38:06.219 and such depth 00:38:06.219 --> 00:38:07.099 and such beauty 00:38:07.099 --> 00:38:09.440 that we would praise 00:38:09.440 --> 00:38:10.500 his name. 00:38:12.559 --> 00:38:12.880 Friends, 00:38:12.940 --> 00:38:13.460 let's come 00:38:13.460 --> 00:38:15.099 to Jesus 00:38:15.099 --> 00:38:16.360 at this table 00:38:16.360 --> 00:38:18.500 and let's come 00:38:18.500 --> 00:38:19.119 to this table 00:38:19.119 --> 00:38:19.900 with a view 00:38:19.900 --> 00:38:21.880 to be empowered 00:38:21.880 --> 00:38:23.800 to go out 00:38:23.800 --> 00:38:24.180 and live 00:38:24.180 --> 00:38:24.920 these commands 00:38:24.920 --> 00:38:25.680 as God 00:38:25.680 --> 00:38:26.660 made us to live 00:38:26.660 --> 00:38:27.720 his life-giving 00:38:27.720 --> 00:38:29.119 law 00:38:29.119 --> 00:38:30.320 of love. 00:38:31.220 --> 00:38:31.840 In the name 00:38:31.840 --> 00:38:32.260 of the Father, 00:38:32.400 --> 00:38:32.519 Son, 00:38:32.559 --> 00:38:33.180 and Holy Spirit, 00:38:33.880 --> 00:38:34.079 Amen. 00:38:34.079 --> 00:38:34.220 Amen.