Christian cursing may sound like a weird title to you. You can’t imagine how there could be such a thing. If you will read to the end I think you will understand and it should make your relationship with God stronger as you search through your own vocabulary.
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 his name in vain.”
God, Jesus, Holy Spirit – just to say those words gives me a feeling of love, gratitude, and sometimes a little fear. Love because of His immense love for me; gratitude because of all He’s done for me; and a little fear because of who He is: the creator, all-powerful, all-knowing, always present God that is never taken by surprise on anything. Yet, He loves, guides, and protects me! His name is precious to me!
The word vain means empty, purposeless, false, or futile. Why would I want to devalue the name of the one who gave everything for me? When we pull the name of God into our world and use it as a byword, we devalue his name and his sovereign ability. To use it as a byword is to use it as a common saying, to use it as an object of scorn. There is nothing in the definition of vain that describes my God!
The Trinity is God exhibited in three persons: the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. So, when talking about his name in this devotion, one is just as important as the other. None of those names should be used unless we are talking about them in a truthful way. Jesus tells us in John 14:13, that we can ask anything in His name, and he will do it!
John 14:13 “And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.”
He came in His father’s name in John 5:43.
John 5:43 “I am come in my Father’s name, and ye receive me not: if another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive.”
Jesus performed miracles in His Father’s name.
John 10:25 “Jesus answered them, I told you, and ye believed not: the works that I do in my Father’s name, they bear witness of me.”
We are kept in His name.
John 17:11 “And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are.”
In Acts 4:12, we are told it’s the only name by which we can be saved.
Acts 4:12 “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.”
It is also the name that will be honored at the end of this earthly period.
Philippians 2:10 “That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
So, I ask the question, can a name that is so important that it carries this kind of weight for all eternity be used in such a manner as to dishonor him? Using it in a demeaning manner also tells others something about us. Maybe we are just ignorant. We say things out of habit never intending to discredit or bring reproach to our God. We love him, but we are too lazy and too selfish to dig in and find out if what we are saying is truthful.
It has always been a little ironic to me that those who are not Christians know more about this subject than we do. I once had an unsaved person tell me that Christians are no different than the unsaved in their language. In a conversation we had, he used God’s name in vain and I ask him not to because that was my friend he was talking about. He then begins to tell me how Christians use God’s name.
The first phrase was “Oh my God,” or “OMG.” Next came “Jesus Christ.” Those two were obvious. God’s name was being used as a slang phrase. Then he, a nonbeliever, proceeded to bring to my attention words that we use that are derivatives of the Holy name, but nonetheless, mean the same thing. He called them Christian curse words!
I will name a few:
Gee Whiz – a mild expression, typically of surprise, enthusiasm, or sympathy. It was taken from the name Jesus in the mid-19th century but is only found in the English language. Hum, something to think upon.
Golly – late 18th century: euphemism for God.
Gosh -also, a late 18th-century euphemism for God
Holy Cow-used mostly in the United States, Canada, Australia, and England. It is a minced oath or euphemism for Holy Christ. Holy Cow dates to at least 1905
Oh, My Word – The phrase has its origins in John 1:1 of the Bible. In the beginning, was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. To avoid saying “God “which is considered blasphemous, particularly by Christians, people used alternative phrases like “oh my goodness” and “oh my word.”
There are others, but these are the ones I hear the most. As the man told me, “it’s just a Christian’s way of cursing.” That hit me hard. Here was a man who felt he was better than Christians because we were being hypocritical! It’s hard to witness to a man who feels this way about who we are.
None of the phrases I mentioned give the real picture of who God is. They all are a way of using his name as slang, using His name as empty and worthless. If we are Christians, we bear His name. We represent Him. We should represent His name accurately and have the ultimate reverence and respect for it. I honestly can say that when I hear any of these phrases, it hurts me to the core. I know people do it out of ignorance, and they would be offended if I brought it to their attention, but I still hate it. I know it hurts God, and anything that hurts him should hurt me.
The other problem with hearing it all the time is that we get desensitized to it, and it becomes common to us. If not very careful, we will find ourselves thinking those phrases and soon we will be saying them. Just like any other curse word.
The verse says we shall not “take” the Lord’s name in vain. To take means to carry or represent the name or reputation of God in vain; that is without purpose, inaccurately, or in an empty way.
Please, do not brush this off as “someone’s opinion” or “not important.” We would not want anyone talking about our children or our family and friends in a demeaning way, so, why would we think it is ok to talk about our God, our Savior, or our Comforter that lives within us that way?
Excellent