Sunday School at 9 am | worship at 10 am

Taking God's Name Seriously

Most people have a hard time pronouncing and spelling my last name—even after I have pronounced and spelled it for them. A few days ago I was on the phone with a customer service rep. She politely asked me to spell my name and pronounce it for her, which I did. Then she proceeded to call me Mr. South Ards. Sometimes you just can’t win. On occasion I will answer a toll free call. Have you noticed that it doesn’t help to ignore toll free calls? They just keep calling back, several times a day until you answer. So when I answer, the voice on the other end asks to speak to Mr. South Ards or Mr. Sooth Ards or to Mr. Sutter Heads or something like that. I politely tell them that there’s no one by that name who lives here.

Those of you with easy to spell and pronounce names might wonder what the big deal is. What difference does it make if someone doesn’t get your name quite right? Your name matters. There’s more to your name than what you are called. Your name is how you are known. It’s your reputation. Your work. Your accomplishments.

We say things like: “He made a name for himself.” “He has a good name in this town.” Someone might look at an institution and say about the person who built it: “He has his name all over that.” “He has his name all over that school, that athletic program.” A person’s name speaks of his character and values and hard work.

So when Christ says: Pray this way, “Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be your name” what does he mean? By God’s name he means everything through which God is known. God is known by his attributes—his wisdom, his power, his holiness, his mercy. And he is known by his works—his Creation, his Providence, his Salvation. That’s God’s name—everything he uses to make himself known.God’s name represents who he is. It embodies his character. That’s why the Third Commandment says, “You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain” (Exodus 20:7). To take God’s name in vain means to take it lightly or flippantly. It’s the exact opposite of “hallowing” God’s name.

So what does it mean to hallow his name? Hallowed, or you can say hallow-ed, is a word that we don’t use anymore in every day English. But it’s such a good word, and it so captures the meaning that even modern translations like the New International Version and the English Standard Version still use it. To hallow means to treat something as absolutely sacred, as your ultimate treasure. To hallow is to say that this thing or this person is of supreme value. Nothing is greater. This treasure alone is worthy of all praise. Therefore, we might say that to “hallow” God’s name is to hold his name in high regard. It means to take God’s name seriously.