"We the People"

Darvin Satterwhite

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Our use, as Christians, of God's Name is a very serious matter.

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We treasure our freedom of speech in this country. Today’s movie following the worship service is about defending our freedoms—especially our freedom of speech. In fact, the title of the movie says a lot by borrowing the opening phrase of our U. S. Constitution. The movie is entitled, “God’s Not Dead: ‘We the People.’” But freedom of speech is not a license to use our words without restraint. In our country today, there are many examples of our tendency to spew out words without considering how they may affect our eternal destinations. For instance, consider our forms of entertainment.

In TV shows and movies, the script writers regularly include profanity as part of their dialogues. At times, it seems like the only word that they know to add an expressive emphasis upon something is to employ the word “damn” prefaced by, and in conjunction with, the name of “God.” I not going to use that profane word here in Church, but you are all too familiar with it. Sometimes it is not used necessarily as a curse but as a word. Rather, this profanity is used for emphasis whenever someone is expressing their anger or frustration about something. And the TV or movie audience does not seem to be offended at all by any of this. It’s just a profanity that they have come accustomed to hearing—not even realizing that they are using God’s holy name as an expletive.

I remember taking the kids to a Tom Hanks’ movie back in 2004. The movie was directed by Joel and Ethan Coen. The Coen brothers are the same pair who wrote the script for the movie “O Brother, Where Art Thou” that had come out four years before this. Many of you have seen “O Brother, Where Art Thou” and would rate it as fairly high. That was my original assessment as well. But, quite honestly, even “O Brother, Where Art Thou” used far too many curse words—they were totally unnecessary and added nothing to the presentation. Since the Coen brothers also directed this Tom Hanks’ movie, I thought it would be safe enough for the kids as far as the use of language goes. But, of all the movies that I have seen in theatres, I believe that Tom Hanks’ movie is the one I most regret attending. The language was horribly propane throughout. In fact, it was disgusting. I sat there thinking that it would eventually get better. I am ashamed to say that I stayed throughout the whole movie when I should have gotten up and taken the kids out at the onset. That was in 2004. Today, eighteen years later, Americans absorb profanities like a sponge when they tune in to their favorites shows and movies on Netflix, Direct TV, Dish, or a host of movies streaming sites. The sad thing is that no one seems to care, or even notice this anymore.

Not that it makes us feel any better, but the use of profanity has always been a problem for Americans—just as it’s always been a problem for humans in general. In this regard, I was a bit surprised to learn that George Washington had to take measures to deal with this same problem among his troops back in 1776. It was a desperate time for Washington and his army as they were defending Manhattan Island in New York. The British had stationed 15,000 troops on nearby Staten Island which posed a serious threat to the colonials. By all reports, desertion and drunkenness was high among the American soldiers. When Washington tried to improve his position by moving his troops to Long Island, the British countered by attempting to cut him off from the rest of the Continental Army. It was under these circumstances that Washington issued a command to his officers that is quite telling. This is what Gen. Washington wrote in that order dated August 3rd, two-hundred forty-six years ago:

“The General is sorry to be informed that the foolish and wicked practice of profane cursing and swearing, a vice heretofore little known in the American army, is growing into fashion; he hopes the officers will, by example as well as by influence, endeavor to check it, and that both they and the men will reflect that we can have little hope of the blessings of Heaven on our arms if we insult [God] by our impiety and folly; added to this, it is a vice so mean and low, without any temptation, that every man of sense and character detests and despises [such profanity].”

Upon hearing this, you might think that the soldiers of the Continental Army were spewing out profanities like the cast of that Tom Hanks’ movie. Thankfully, Washington’s troops apparently responded with prayers of repentance instead of words of profanity, for on August 27ththe weather became so stormy that the British were unable to execute their maneuver to cut the Americans off. And, on the evening of August 29th under the cover of a timely fog bank, Washington was able to ferry his 10,000 soldiers from Long Island to safety on the shores of the mainland.[i]

Now with all of this in mind, I would like for you to consider two commandments that come from God’s Word relating to our speech. The first one deals with the use of God’s name. The second one relates to the names we call our fellow human beings—all of this, I suppose, in the name of free speech.

COMMAND NO. 1: In Exodus 20:7, we find this: “You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not leave him unpunished who takes His name in vain.” (NASB) Does that sound familiar? Well yes, we all know that to be the 3rd Commandment that was etched by the hand of God in those stone tablets handed down to Moses. What does the “name” of the LORD mean within the context of this Commandment? The “name” of God stands for so much more than merely the title by which we address Him. When the Bible refers to God’s “name,” this includes the very aspects of His divine nature and being, as well as His reputation as Ruler and Maker of all things. And so, God’s “name” is bound up in His teaching and His holy ways. All of these things comprise the “name” of God.[ii]

Think of this as it relates to how your own “name” applies to you. Your “name” stands for who you are as a person and reflects upon your character—whether it is good or bad. When you say that someone has “a bad name,” you're not faulting whatever “name” their parents assigned to them at birth. Rather, you would be attacking that person’s character and proclaiming that they really can't be trusted. And so it is when the Bible mentions the “name” of God. And with this being the case, the Creator of the Universe has a “name” that must be revered and honored by all His creatures—most specifically, we human beings![iii] Think about what Jesus teaches us in the “Lord’s Prayer.” He tells us to pray, “Hallowed be thy name.” (Matthew 6:9) In other words, treat God’s name as being sacred and pure. It is to be held in great reverence and kept holy.[iv] When we use God’s name profanely, or even carelessly as just another “throw-away word,” we are guilty of blaspheme, which is a terrible sin. Note this as well: What is true for God the Fatheris equally true for God the Son—Jesus Christ. When something bad happens, how many times have you heard someone respond to the situation by saying, “Jesus Christ—that was awful!” Maybe it was awful, but in all likelihood not as awful as the vulgar use of the name of God’s Son—because such profanity also constitutes blasphemy.[v]

Now consider another important word that appears in the Third Commandment. When it says not to take God’s name in “vain,” what does in “vain” mean? The Hebrew word for “vain” refers to something that is “worthless, empty, inconsequential or false.”[vi] So, when you use a word in “vain”, you are treating the thing to which the word refers as something that is totally lacking in value. Do you really want to do that with the name of your Creator?—the name of the Sovereign LORD of the Universe? God is commanding us not to use His Name so carelessly. When people do that, they are slandering God and impugning His reputation, His character, and His Word. It is a terrible sin and one, as Exodus 20, verse 7 teaches will not go unpunished.

How many times have you heard someone say, “O my God! . . ., can you believe that?” Or, “O my God!. . . isn’t that amazing?” Or how many times have you seen the letters “OMG” in text messages, in emails, on Instagram and Twitter? This abbreviation is now used by so many (even those claiming to be Christians) as acceptable lingo that is used all the time. Is this OK? Not hardly! It is simply another way of demeaning the holiness of God’s Name. Those who persist in doing that will one day have to make an accounting to God for every syllable uttered from their mouths or communicated by smartphone, email or by whatever means they may use to defame God’s name is such a callous way. I am not exaggerating at all, for Jesus Himself proclaimed: 36 “I tell you this, you must give an account on Judgment Day for EVERY IDLE WORD YOU SPEAK. 37 The words you say will either acquit you or condemn you.” Matthew 12:36-37 (NLT2)

Now, some will respond to that by claiming: “But that was not my intent when I said or texted that. How can I be punished for something that I did not even think was wrong?” But in saying that, they only convict themselves. For that is the very point. God very much expectsthem to think about this. For those who can so easily and thoughtlessly use God’s name as if it were just another swearword or some casual means of expression, then that person has not grasped in their heart who God really is. And oh boy, if you tell them that, then you can almost bet you’ll get the standard response of: “How dare you!—You can’t possible know what’s in my heart only God knows that!” Well, true enough—but here’s the thing: God does know exactly what’s in your heart, for Jesus said: 34b “For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. 35 The good person out of his good treasure brings forth good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure brings forth evil. 36 I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, 37 for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.” Matthew 12:34-37 (ESV) When you stand before God on Judgment Day, it’s not going to matter if you didn’t think it was wrong to use God’s name in any way you pleased. Take a tip from a retiring lawyer—that’s a bad defensive strategy. The only thing that is going to matter is what God thinks, and what God thinks is extremely clear in those Scriptures that I’ve just given you this morning. Now let’s move on to that second commandment relating to your “freedom of speech.”

COMMAND NO. 2 deals with the derogatory words we sometimes use to describe other people—i.e., the names that we call them. Perhaps a quick way to understand this comes from a modern-day illustration. It has become the cultural norm to pretend that Christians are mean and intolerant because they supposedly take great delight in bashing gays, and that we are insensitive to the so-called rights of homosexuals to engage in their gross and perversive lifestyles. (Now, upon hearing me say that, some gay-rights advocate would immediately jump up and scream: “See, there he goes again—bashing gays!” I am not bashing anyone. I am just telling it like it is in God’s Word!) But today’s sermon is not directed to the sinful perversions of practicing homosexuals. Even so, let me give you an example of a gay-rights supporter who would do well to understand God’s commandment when it comes to calling other people names.

I am sure that you are familiar with the fantasy superhero films produced by the Disney-owned Marvel Cinematic Universe that have been so popular with younger audiences for more than a decade. Out of these movies, one of the popular DC Comic’s superheroes to emerge is “Captain America,” played by the talented actor, Chris Evans. Last year, around this time, Disney released its Pixar film entitled, “Lightyear.” Chris Evans did the voice-over for the main character in the film, Buzz Lightyear. Although this animated movie was directed primarily toward children, Disney made certain to include a scene portraying a romantic kiss between two female lesbian characters. When concerned parents voiced objections to exposing their children to Disney’s decidedly gay agenda, Chris Evans said those parents who objected to this lesbian kiss in a children’s film are “idiots” who will “die off like dinosaurs.”[vii]

So how does Chris Evan’s declaration condemning these parents as being “idiots” fare under God’s Word? Afterall, how bad can it be to call people “idiots”?—particularly, if you have the support of the gay community behind your name-calling efforts. That can’t be a big deal—right? Wrong! It’s a really big deal. Jesus said in Matthew 5, during the Sermon on the Mount: 22 “If you are even angry with someone, you are subject to judgment! If you call someone an idiot, you are in danger of being brought before the court. And if you curse someone, you are in danger of the fires of Hell.” Matthew 5:22 (NLT2) Most New Testament scholars agree that all three of the things mentioned here by Jesus are of equal degree of sinfulness: i.e.—being angry with someone, calling them an “idiot” or cursing them are equally bad in God’s eyes. Doing one is just as bad as doing the other. And that means that the penalty for one is appropriate for the others.[viii] So yeah, when Chris Evans (or even you or I) calls someone an “idiot,” it is a very serious violation of God’s commandment as expressed by Jesus. So serious, in fact, that it may indicate that such a “name-caller” could very well be on the road to Hell. Why? A. W. Tozer put his finger on the problem when he said: “A foul tongue is evidence of a deeper spiritual disease.”[ix] And what disease is that? Oh, there is no doubt about it—the diagnosis is clear: The problem is heart disease. But it’s not the heart in your chest in which the malady lies. Rather, it is the heart that constitutes the core of your very soul—because if your spiritual heartis not right with their fellowman, it can hardly be right with God either. And if you are not right with God, then there in your hand you might be surprised to find your very own personal ticket to Hell. And that ticket will be stuck to your hand like crazy glue until you repent and ask for God’s forgiveness.

So there you have them: The two commandments relating to your “freedom of speech.” They are not written in the U. S. Constitution—as important as that document may be. They originate from something more important, more sacred than that, because such “freedom” comes from God’s Word. When it comes to God’s name, use it freely to offer Him praises, to petition Him in prayer and to ask Him for forgiveness. But whatever you do, never use God’s Holy Namein vain. And not only that, bear in mind that your freedom is framed a bit differently with respect to your “name-calling” as it relates to other people. You are not free to call them whatever you like depending upon your emotional state at the time. And those who persist in telling others that they are “idiots,” “fools,” or any other contemptuous names had better get to a heart doctor fast—and the only doctor who will do is Jesus Christ! Only He can perform the surgery needed to cure such a spiritual disease in the human heart. That’s true for Captain America, Buzz Lightyear, Chris Evans, George Washington and all his entire army—and it’s true for you and me as well.

Let us pray.

Darvin Satterwhite, Pastor

Forest Hill Baptist Church

August 21, 2022

Anyone is at liberty to use this sermon or any portions thereof for educational or religious purposes, with or without credit. The pastor believes the material presented herein to be true to the teaching of Scripture, and desires to further, not restrict, its potential use as an aid in the study of God’s Word. The publication of this material is a grace ministry of Forest Hill Baptist Church in Louisa, Virginia. See this sermon on our Face Book site at https://www.facebook.com/4409sspotswoodrdgordonsvillevathat will be posted later in the week following the sermon’s delivery.

[i] Kennedy, Peter. 2010. From Generations to Generations. WORDsearch. [ii]Expositor's Bible Commentary, Revised - Genesis-Leviticus. [iii] Warren Wiersbe. Bible Exposition Commentary - Be Delivered (Exodus 25-20). [iv]Exegetical Summary Series - Exegetical Summary of Matthew 1-16, An. [v] Warren Wiersbe. Bible Exposition Commentary - Be Delivered (Exodus 25-20). [vi] Erik Raymond, “Is it OK for a Christian to drop OMG’s?” The Gospel Coalition, thegospelcoalition.org (June 25, 2013). See also: New American Standard Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible. [vii] Tré Goins-Phillips, “Woke-Lash? New Survey on Popularity of Marvel Movies Could Spell Trouble for Disney,” Faithwire, as reported in Christian Broadcasting Network, www1.cbn.com (August 13, 2022). [viii]Exegetical Summary Series - Exegetical Summary of Matthew 1-16, An. [ix] Tozer Topical Reader - Volume One.

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