The third commandment of the Decalogue is found in Exodus 20:7 and states “You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain.”
This may be the most violated of the Ten Commandments and the violators are believers and unbelievers. We might expect to find the unbelieving enemies of God who are at war with God and hate God to use God’s name in vain. But believers, children of God, should never be found to use their heavenly Father’s name in vain. Believers are to fear God, which does not mean to be afraid of God, but means that we are lovingly and respectfully and worshipfully in awe of God as the God and Creator of all things.
Regarding the name of the Lord your God; when Scripture refers to the “name” of God, it is expressing the very nature of God and all he has revealed to us about Himself. The name of God refers to the whole manifestation of God, including His attributes, in relation to His children in such a way that it becomes synonymous with God Himself. His name signifies His absolute being having no beginning and no ending; He is not becoming, He is. God in His essence is the autonomous first cause of all. Consequently, God’s name should be revered and we should not use His name in connection with anything or in any manner that does not glorify Him. Jesus taught that we should hallow (i.e., set apart and glorify as intrinsically righteous and holy) the name of the Lord (Matt. 6:9) and Jesus even glorifies God’s name on the cross (John 12:27, 28).
The term in vain, means fruitless, futile, pointless, failure to achieve the desired result, to use in a disrespectful or irreverent manner, and to use in connection with a falsehood. Using God’s name in vain certainly includes any and all frivolous appeals to God, profane oaths in His name, and any other irreverent use of His name.
Some examples of using God’s name in vain are using such terms as “God” followed by the word “damn,” or “Jesus Christ!” or “My God!” or Oh, “My God” or “Good Lord!” and many other terms when used without any recognition of their true import or when used as a mere expression of surprise. One of the most common phrases used by believers and unbelievers that uses God’s name in vain is the term “Oh, my God.” In fact, it is in such common use that when texting, this phrase is converted to the letters “OMG!” People who use this phrase are not calling on God for assistance but are instead simply making a spontaneous exclamation or a sudden statement uttered as a reaction to a surprising, startling or shocking event, or having suffered an injury. It is simply a way of expressing shock, surprise, fear, anger, etc. This term is an irreverent, frivolous, and sinful use of God’s name, when used in this way.
Another common way of using God’s name in vain is when we say “God bless you” after a person sneezes. Reflexively and extemporaneously blurting out “God bless you” in response to a sneeze is not a respectful and reverent way to use God’s name. It is a frivolous afterthought. Even unbelievers do this and they certainly are not desiring that God bless anyone for any reason when they use his name in this matter.
The Bible teaches us to bless others and to be a blessing to others. We’re even taught to pray for our enemies (e.g., 1 Pet. 3:9; Rom. 12:14; 1 Cor. 4:12; Luke 6:28; Ps. 35:11-14, etc.). My point is the nature of your motivation for saying one of these vain statements. Did you do it for the glory of God or just to be polite. The Bible teaches “So… whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” If you are really sincere about a person who sneezes in your presence receiving God’s blessing, for example, then it would be better if you told the person that you will pray for him that he may have improved health. And do it for God’s glory.
Jesus, quoting Isaiah, talked about using tradition to make void the word of God and honoring Him with their lips when the heart was far from Him (Matt. 15:8–9). Using God’s name or referring to God with these types of frivolous, irreverent and sinful phrasings is a sin against God and Christians need to stop using this type of unloving language toward God.
