chapel was interesting today. dr. bode challenged me to think about the second commandment in a way that i had never thought about before. i do exactly what he said most people do.
you shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God.
what does this mean? we should fear and love God so that we do not curse, swear, use satanic arts, lie, or deceive my His name, but call upon it in every trouble, pray, praise, and give thanks.
i try not to curse (too much). i don't find myself swearing on God's name and i stay pretty clear of satanic arts. and i don't think i lie or deceive by God's name. but then came the kicker...
do i use God's name to justify my theology? i mean, obviously, Christ should be the center of our theology, the center of our worship, the center of our lives. however, do i use God to make my point and claim that He is on my side in theological debate? granted, dr. bode did a much better job articulating this challenge. but i couldn't help think about the countless conversations i've had here or listened to where someone was convinced that they were right and that surely God had their back. it's so easy to say i'm right, that i understand God the best and what he was trying to teach us. but i am so far from that. even in ethics today, i was blown away by how much i don't know. this place continues to humble me time and time again. right now, i don't know what it means to do the "greater good" or the "lesser evil" to my neighbor... i can't even figure out who my neighbor is! but that is a side-step.
i don't want to misuse the name of the Lord. i don't want to use God to make my position sound better. i want to share the Gospel. i want to share the love of Christ with the people i know and the people i meet. that's how i want to use His name.
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