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Dear Church Family,
You have probably heard some one take
the Lord's name in vain. Why do you suppose Jesus' name is used in that way? It is a sad thing to think that among a great many people Jesus Christ means nothing at all except as a curse.
There are still thousands of people in this country who know Jesus Christ only in this way.
But let's think a bit about the use of Jesus Christ as a curse. Strangely the very use of
Jesus Christ name acknowledges that there is no other name that can compare with it as a curse. It would mean nothing to say in anger "O Abraham Lincoln" or "George Washington." So in a sense the Lord's
name used in this way acknowledges that no other words, no other name could be so serious or so awesome.
There is an opera "Billie Budd," it is based on a novella by Herman Melville. It is the story of a captain of a ship who could not stand his first mate, because the mate was good and pure in
heart. His goodness made the captain very aware of the presence of evil in his own heart. The very presence of this first mate on his ship was like a judgment against the captain. So the captain
set out to persecute and destroy him, and he did.
We see in this story the evil that
put Christ on the cross. Jesus was not loved by all men. Men hated him and cursed him because in his presence they saw the evil in themselves. They hated him so much they could not bear his
presence among them, and so they had him crucified.
So it is with us when we do not
want to let Christ into our lives. Sometimes we reject the very one who alone can bring us new life and forgiveness of our sins. And in spite of what we do to him, we hear Christ saying on the cross,
"Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do."
Blessings,
Pastor Dottie
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