[1: The Titles and Attributes of God]
Why does God give Himself so many names and titles in the Bible? To give us true knowledge of Himself, His perfections and His will. Some of those titles are: Jehovah, God, Lord, Holy One of Israel, Rock, the Creator of the ends of the earth, the Preserver of men, King of nations, Lord of hosts, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, Father of mercies, the Hearer of Prayer, the God of salvation, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. His names—Jehovah, El Shaddai, Elohim—reveal who God is in Himself, and His titles—Creator of the ends of the earth, the God of Abraham, the Father of mercies—reveal who God is with reference to His creation and His people. (274)
Therefore, we are to speak and use God’s names holily and reverently. (278)
God is what He reveals Himself to be. He is His perfections. God’s Being is God’s Perfections. His Being is the fullness of His perfections, which are “real distinctions and differentiations that are to be found in the [inexhaustible] fullness of God’s Being.”48....Although God’s perfections can be distinguished, nevertheless every perfection is “identical with God’s being.
48. Smith, Systematic Theology, 1:127. (278)
Because all of God’s perfections are “majestic in holiness,” they are all to be spoken of holily and reverently. (279)
[2: The Ordinances of God]
The ordinances of God are those rules by which God is to be worshipped, which are established by Him and commanded of us in His Word. They are those actions and rituals that He has commanded us to observe in His worship. Those divinely-appointed ordinances include the reading, preaching and hearing of the Word of
God, the administration of the sacraments of baptism and the Lord’s Supper, prayer, the singing of praise, offerings, confessions of faith, benedictions, fasting, times of thanksgiving, oaths and vows.
All of these ordinances are outward and ordinary means of saving grace whereby Christ communicates to us the benefits of His mediation…all which are made effectual to the elect for their salvation (WLC, Q. 153–154). Therefore they are to be used with diligence, because the only way we may escape the wrath and curse of God due to us by reason of the transgression of the Law is what God has required
of us—repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ, and the diligent use of the outward means of grace (WLC, Q. 153). (281)
Therefore, we use God’s ordinances holily and reverently only when we: (1) Believe that by them Christ communicates to us the benefits of His mediation, and by faith we draw strength from them to increase our faith and holiness of life; and (2) Believe that God is present in and through them, so that we use them with “a single eye to His glory.” (282)
[3: The Word of God]
Most especially must the Word of God—the reading, preaching and hearing of it—be approached with humility, holiness and reverence. Because of all the divine ordinances, it is especially the Word, sacraments and prayer that are the means by which Christ communicates to His church the benefits of His mediation. (283)
When the Word is faithfully preached, the exalted Christ Himself from the right hand of God preaches to His people in the preaching of His ministers: “How then will they call upon Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? And how will they preach unless they are sent?” (Rom. 10:14–15a). (283)
[4: The Sacraments of God]
The sacraments of baptism and the Lord’s Supper, being instituted by the Lord Jesus Christ are divinely-commanded ordinances that are, along with the Word of God, especially… effectual to the elect for their salvation, as “the visible words” of God. The Bible is God’s sermon to the heart, through the ears. The sacraments are God’s sermon to the heart through the eyes, mouth, nose, and hands....Because in the Lord’s Supper, for instance, we commune in the benefits of the breaking of Christ’s precious body and the spilling of His precious blood (1 Cor. 10:16), and because of the close sacramental union between Christ’s blood and body and the visible elements of bread and wine (1 Cor. 11:24–25), communion is an especially holy and joyful meal, not to be taken lightly or flippantly. (284-285)
[5: Prayers to God]
Prayers said mindlessly, flippantly, impatiently, or disrespectfully are transgressions of the Third Commandment. Because of the holiness and supremacy of the God to whom we pray and because of the solemn nature of prayer as coming before the throne of God, we are always to pray with an awful apprehension of the majesty of God, and deep sense of our own unworthiness, necessities and sins; with penitent, thankful and enlarged hearts; with understanding, faith, sincerity, fervency, love and perseverance, waiting upon Him, with humble submission to His will, directed by the Word of God and offered in the name and merits of Jesus Christ (WLC, Q. 185). (286-287)
[6: Oaths and Vows to God]
Oaths and vows are to be made holily and reverently, not only because of the solemn nature of them and because so much depends upon their truthfulness, but also because as ordinances of God, they are means of grace, and in faithfulness to Biblical oaths and vows God “reveals His name to us,” i.e., sanctifies us and brings us into closer fellowship with Himself. (287)
God blesses us through properly taken oaths and vows in at least two specific ways. First, they confirm and reaffirm the truth in us and in the congregation, thereby binding us more strictly to believing and doing the truth. Second, they are means by which we declare ourselves to be the Lord’s people, totally dedicated to His
worship and service. (287-288)
Because God takes all oaths and vows seriously, punishing those who are unfaithful to them and blessing those who are faithful to them, we must do the same and use them with all holy fear and reverence. We must be careful to avoid all unnecessary and unbiblical oaths; and we must be careful to fulfill all lawful oaths we have made, even to our own hurt if necessary: “O Lord, who may abide in Your tent? Who may dwell on Your holy hill? He who walks with integrity, and works righteousness, and speaks truth in his heart. He does not slander with his tongue… who honors those who fear the Lord; he who swears to his own hurt and does not change” (Ps. 15:1–4). (289)
This law of the Lord seeks to do two things: (1) To discourage the rash making of vows; and (2) to encourage the practice of truthfulness and faithfulness in all our relations with the Lord and with each other. (290)
[7: The Casting of Lots]
The casting of lots (similar to throwing dice or drawing straws) was an ordinance of God by which God, in an extraordinary manner, revealed His will to His people: “The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the Lord” (Prov. 16:33). (293)
We know very little about the nature of “casting lots,” but it was apparently a divine ordinance by which God revealed His will to His people. (293)
Since it was a sacred divine ordinance, it was not to be used to satisfy curiosity, discover a secret (choice of a mate, a profession, a location), or in neglect of the use of the infallible rule of the Word of God. (293)
With the cessation of divine verbal revelation in the completion of the sixty-six books of the canon of the Bible, the “many ways” that God formerly “spoke” to the people of God, revealing His will, have ceased. Now He speaks to us “in His Son” by the Spirit in and through the Bible, which not only is “God-breathed,” and therefore inerrant, but which also is “profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for
training in righteousness; that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work” (2 Tim. 3:16–17; [)]...The point is: casting lots was a temporary ordinance of God—as were the miraculous spiritual gifts—that is no longer to be used as a means of ascertaining the will of God because we have the complete canon of the Bible. (294)
[8: The Works of God]
What are the works of God? They are His mighty works of creation, providence and redemption. What is it to speak and think of God’s works holily and reverently? It is to be grateful for them, to admire God’s handiwork in them, to glorify His sovereignty, grace, power and wisdom in them, to meditate on the revelation of His
glory in them, and allow ourselves to be moved to deeper love for Him and more faithful obedience to Him so as to walk humbly and thankfully before Him. (295)
[1: In Writing]
We must make sure that if we ever write anything about God’s Self-revelation that we do so with great care and with much fear and trembling, lest what we write be displeasing to Him because it is an incorrect interpretation or application of His Word, because it is written in such a way as to mislead, because it is carelessly written, because it is written not to glorify God and that others might revere Him, but for the purpose of bringing attention and praise to self. (296)
[2: By an Holy Profession]
We are to use the Lord’s Name in public professions of faith. We are to confess the Lord is the one true and living God, besides whom there is no other (Deut. 6:4, 13). We are to profess before God and man that “we are loyal to Him, honor and fear Him, put our trust in Him, and that we are loyal to His truth, cause, and children. We must furthermore confess that we are not ashamed of this, but deem it to be the greatest honor to be known for this.” 67. Brakel, The Christian’s Reasonable Service, 3:128. (296)
[3: By an Answerable Conversation]
1 Peter 3:13–16 is emphatic: any confession of our faith or defense of our hope must be backed by a consistently Christian way of life. Our behavior must be answerable to our profession: “we must walk the talk!” (301)
[4: To the Glory of God]
What is our highest motive for obeying the Third Commandment and for using God’s name holily and reverently in thought, word and deed? Answer: to the glory of God, because the chief and highest end of man is to glorify God and fully to enjoy Him forever (WLC, Q. 1). In 1 Corinthians 10:31, Paul could not have said it more comprehensively: “whether, then, you eat or drink or WHATEVER YOU DO, do ALL to the glory of God” (emphasis added). (303)
[5: For the Good of Ourselves]
Although our ultimate purpose for obeying the Third Commandment is the glory of God, because of God’s promise to bless graciously those who obey it, we are also motivated by the good of ourselves which such obedience brings. (303)
[6: For the Good of Others]
The Christian obeys also because he knows his obedience will benefit others, it will be for the good…of others. God has enabled him to love other people from his heart and to be genuinely concerned for their physical, spiritual and eternal welfare. (304)