St. Timothy's Church

The First Sunday after Epiphany, 2010

The Baptism of Jesus

January 10, 2010

The Rev. W. Terry Sweeney

Isaiah 43.1-7; Luke 3.15-17, 21-22

“Ascribe to the LORD, O heavenly beings, ascribe to the LORD glory and strength. Ascribe to the LORD the glory of his name; worship the LORD in holy splendor.” Psalm 29.1-2

In the Name of God: + Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen.

I’m of the opinion that vulgarity and using the Lord’s Name in vain is at an all time high – it’s invading every aspect of human life – and is indicative of a growing sickness of the human soul.

Let me give a simple illustration then ask a question.

I was sitting in a restaurant the other day; behind me four men were talking rather loud and were using the name of God in derogatory ways time and time again.

They did this by breaking the 3rd commandment (using God’s name in vain) and using expletives to season their speech. (One guy was angry about something at work and gave God’s name a good workout describing the situation trying to drum up sympathy)

They were vulgar, loud and acted as if what they were saying and how they were saying it didn’t matter to anyone within ear shot. . . . they were having a good time.

To make my point I have to use some examples – so forgive me.

Saying “Jesus” or “Christ” to punctuate speech and to make a point . . . . or just say something like , , , , “God, you should have seen this” or “God, I was shocked.”

People often say, “I swear to God”, “As God is my judge”, “I swear on a stack of bibles”.

I hear it all the time, God’s name thrown out in exclamation or in anger or as a warning.

Does it make any difference if we throw around the name of God in these ways or in any other creative form we want to? Does God care? After all it’s just words. What difference does it make?

I believe it makes a great difference. Let me explain.

Several thousands of years ago the Semitic people received God’s revelation that He is ONE . . . . there are no territorial gods . . . . there are no images which can be god . . . .

There is one creator of the universe who is in control and is jealous for our worship and obedience.

God was holy – his Name was holy – so holy it was not to be spoken.

The personal Name of God was given through what’s called a tetragrammaton: four letter YHWH which with vowels added is pronounced Yahweh.

The bible most often translates this as Jehovah although other names such as Adoni or Elohim are also used.

The Name of God is such that it means “He who creates” . . . . .God’s name references Him as creator, it implies His sovereign nature and universal majesty. . . there is no other like Him and therefore His Name has NO equal.

When Moses encountered God at the burning bush and was told to go back top Pharaoh seeking the release of the Hebrews from slavery, he asked, “who shall I say sent me?”

God responded by saying, “Tell them I AM sent you!”

God eternal has no equal and therefore His Name has no equal.

In what ever form God’s Name has been revealed to us it always has the connotation of Holiness. . . . it also points to His nature . . . for example:

Long before the birth of Jesus the prophet Isaiah received a word from God saying that Messiah would be called Emmanuel – God with us. He would be a mighty prince of peace whose Name would be like no other.

In fact Philippines 2:9-11 tells us this about the Name of Jesus, “God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.all “

The Angel told Mary that her son would be not just exceptional, but as she would see, God in the flesh whose name is synonymous with the salvation of Israel. He would be great and will be called son of the Most High – God was to give her son the throne of King David – in fulfillment of prophecy he would reign over the house of Jacob.

John the beloved disciple describes Jesus, who is God made flesh, this way: 1That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched—this we proclaim concerning the Word of life. 2The life appeared; we have seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us. 3We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. 4We write this to make our joy complete.

In His Gospel He clearly says that Jesus is God – God’s eternal Word – the creator of everything that has and will be created.

Peter goes on to say: “. . . . we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. 17For when he received honor and glory from God the Father, and the voice was borne to him by the Majestic Glory, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased," 18we ourselves heard this very voice borne from heaven, for we were with him on the holy mountain.” 2 Peter 1.16

Given this testimony once again I have to ask: does it make any difference how we speak about God?

The answer is a resounding YES and here’s why.

Many people would say they know something about God. We invest certain amount of time and energy in reading and study about God. We may read all the right books, own the best study bibles. We have a summary knowledge of church history. We learn our way around scripture and can find Habakkuk and Philemon without too much difficulty; we have a certain command of the liturgy of the church and her hymns; we’ve memorized The Lord’s Prayer and the Nicene Creed.

We have a basic competence about God and have confidence that we can think reasonably clearly about fundamental Christian issues of today.

This is all good and to be commended but let me say this – even the most lapsed and lost of souls will claim to know something ABOUT God.

Even the atheist can say something about God – even if he says there isn’t one.

How we use God’s Name isn’t so much a matter of what we know ABOUT God – even though I’ve gone to some length to say what we know about Him . . .

NO it’s a matter of we know OF God.

To know OF God requires personal contact – personal experience – encounters in which the living God has revealed Himself to us and thereby as Moses’ face reflected the Shekinah glory of God – knowledge OF God changes us.

The knowledge OF God gives us a new birth that causes our losses and crosses to cease to matter to us – our thoughts turn less to self and more to Christ – and therefore out of love and knowledge of God will speak well of Him with reverence.

The more we know OF God the more we’re aware of the holiness of His Name and therefore refrain from using it ill advisedly or in a frivalice way.

Listen carefully to what Jesus says: Come Follow me and I will make you fishers of men and My sheep listen to my voice . . I know them, and they follow me. (Matthew 4.19 , John 10.27).

He again says: I am the bread of Life; I am the Light of the world; I am from above; I am the Door; I am the Good Shepherd; I am the Resurrection and the Life; I am the way, the truth, and the life; I am the true vine; I am the son of Man . . . he who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him. Truly, truly I say to you, he who hears my word and believes Him who sent me, has eternal life (Jn. 5.23-24).

I would submit to you that when the voice of God is heard – we begin to know OF Him therefore His claims are confessed as truth – we believe His word is true – and we make a confession of faith that sets us on a lifelong road to growing into His likeness.

There is a lot of profanity in the world today. Maybe there always has been and because of technology we read it or hear it more.

The only solution is for the world to experience the grace of knowing OF God.

Without such grace it becomes easier to conform to the standards of the culture around us.

That culture has blessed the use of the “F” word as normal for either sex to say (in mixed company) . . . . as well as any form of vulgarity one wants to exercise. . . even in public.

You and I are made to know about God and to know OF God. Such knowledge is supposed to make us a blessing to the world . . . . bring light into darkness; healing into brokenness; peace into chaos.

The words we use to describe God or the words we use in everyday speech reveal what we are like in our inner self – they reveal who we are – really.

When we’re loose with our tongues – when vulgar words come sliding out of our mouths when another word could just as easily been used – it says something very revealing about us.

The words used in anger or in great joy will tell those listening something about us as well and whether we know it or not at the time, it will be an indicator of our experience OF God.

I once sat in on a clergy conference in which a bishop of a well known southern diocese was the guest speaker. His first presentation lasted about 50 minutes and in it he very easily used 10 expletives and used God’s name in vain once . . . . all done in a casual, conversational tone – without any reservation, discomfort or apology.

I decided to leave the conference.

I found the evaluation form in my packet and filled it out saying I left because the bishop had a potty mouth and I wasn’t inclined to think it was funny or appropriate . . . I handed in the form and left.

The bishop was being a bad example to those listening to him . . . he was modeling a worldly example and not that of a shepherd of Christ’s flock.

I have told many of you that I was raised in a household where vulgarity and profanity was common . . . . I know all the words . . . . and have used them . . . . but have turned from those ways as a result of knowing OF the LORD.

One of my favorite movies is “A Christmas Story”. It’s a story about a middle class family and the hopes of Ralphie, the older of the two young boys, to get a Red Rider BB gun for Christmas. There is one in which the family is driving home from buying a Christmas tree; they’re singing away when a tire blows out. Dad takes great prided in changing tires in a few minutes, jumped to change the tire and asked Ralphie to assist. Ralphie is holding the hub cap and dad is loosening the lug nuts and dropping them in the hub cap Ralphie is holding. Dad somehow hit the hub cap and caused it to fly out of Ralphie’s hands – lug nuts flying everywhere into the snow. Ralphie in shock let the “F” word . . . . dad is stunned and sends him (now crying) back to the car where upon finishing the tire change, commences to tell mom what Ralphie said. Mom is horrified.

The next scene – Ralphie is standing in the bathroom with a bar of soap in his mouth – mom is timing . . . she then took the soap out of Ralphie’s mouth and asked him where he had heard the word. (His father uses the word all the time) Ralphie said he heard it from another kid – who? – he reveals the name; mom goes to the telephone and calls the kids mother telling her THE WORD. You can hear the mom scream – the next sound you hear is the mom whipping her son for using THE WORD.

My contention is that profanity and vulgarity is like leaven – it will spread through the family, the culture.

Kids grow up confused – thinking that if they use language that adults use it somehow levels the playing field – they “grow up” too fast not realizing fowl language doesn’t make someone a man.

Dad’s who use fowl language around their children are doing them a great injustice – it gives off a bad message.

Whether we are bishops, priests, deacons or laity – whether we’re old and gray or young or anything in-between – above all else we are walking testimonies to the power of Christ in us.

A parallel example is Paul’s discussion about eating meat sacrificed to an idol. He recognized the idol was nothing – it has no power – it was a piece of stone or wood and nothing else. But when a believer ate meat sacrificed to an idol it was possible that it might affect the faith of a new believer or a believer whose faith was weak and vulnerable.

I’d suggest the way we use God’s name is equally likely to harm someone’s faith or on the other hand build it up. We have freedom in Christ but we have to watch how we exercise it. (1 Cor. 8.9-13)

James 3.5 and following wisely says that, “ . . .With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God's likeness.

James has the wisdom to recognize that words have meaning and power, and therefore should be chosen wisely.

In Exodus 20.7; Deut. 5.11, God has said this: 7You shall not use or repeat the name of the Lord your God in vain [that is, lightly or frivolously, in false affirmations or profanely]; for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain. (Amplified Bible).

If we define “profane” as with contempt or irreverence, among other things we are not to use His Name for worthless purposes – with irreverence or contempt.

If we damn something or someone using God’s Name we are acting as a judge in anger and God’s Name become a threat – a source of a curse – against them.

God’s Name is never to be used as a curse or spell. . . He is Holy and to use His Name with this high level of contempt shows an amazing ignorance or disregard of who He is.

Likewise we are not to say “I swear to God” or “As God is my judge”. Why? Scripture tells never to use God’s name as a seal of honesty but instead to make our “Yes, yes and our No, no”

To live an upright and righteous life so as to be known as a truthful person. . . . swearing by God’s name is misusing His Name.

One last point, we cannot disregard the fact that St Paul has told us we have perfect freedom in Christ.

In 1 Corinthians 10.23 we read, “Everything is permissible"—but not everything is beneficial. "Everything is permissible"—but not everything is constructive. 24Nobody should seek his own good, but the good of others.”

Again, this specific context is eating food . . . . but it has been used in a wide application.

What then about vulgar words – Does God care if we use mild vulgarity?

My mother used to tell me that vulgarity shows a lack of vocabulary . . . . . but I also suspect that vulgarity reveals what’s inside us.

Crass, slang is demeaning, falsely defining, and aberrant to the nature God intends for man to have.

Casual vulgarity – everyday speech peppered with vulgar words – reveals a self out of control and unconcerned about themselves or other people.

Those guys sitting behind us in the restaurant had the civil liberty to use whatever language they wanted.

In God’s economy we must however keep in mind whose we are – we belong to Christ Jesus and therefore the old has passed away and the new has come. . . . we are made new in Christ and therefore we put the ways of the culture behind us.

Is there ever a time when using God’s Name profanely or vulgarity is appropriate?

I imagine we all can slip from time to time – anger is a great motivator – it results in us relinquishing control of our senses and bang the words comes flying out.

BUT let me remind you that if we are following after Christ – if we are by His Grace growing in knowledge OF Him we will – out of love for Him and the great desire NOT to be a stumbling block to another person – strive to hold every thought captive to Christ (2 Cor. 10.5).

And on the heals of that effort remember this:

“Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. 9What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.” (Phil.4.8-9)

Let our words honor God’s Holy name and be used to glorify Him, His Church and His people bringing salt and light into this dark and needy world.

God bless your speech this day.

Amen.

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