Tuesday of Holy Week reflection

7 Apr 2020 • From the Vicar

Each day we will take a look at a sentence from the Lord’s Prayer.

Hallowed be your name.Hallowed be Thy name.

"You shall not make wrongful use of the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not acquit anyone who misuses his name." Exodus 20:7

Hallowed is another word for Holy or Sacred. We say those words so many times, but do we truly know what it means for God's name to be holy?

In the King James Version of the bible the word 'vain' is used. The Hebrew word is 'shav', which means emptiness of speech, vanity, falsehood, lying, deceptive uselessness. Taking God's name in vain refers to treating the Lord our God in a frivolous, light manner.

In the Old Testament the Jews name for God is referred to as 'Yahweh', which is the name we refer to when we speak about God the Father. And to Hebrew scribes, the name 'Yahweh' is one of the most revered words. It's so revered that when a scribe writes the name, he has to wash his hands before and after he writes it. (very topical!). That's how revered, magnified and glorified the name of God is. We may not wash our hands before and after we write the name of God, (we may be doing lots of washing for other reasonsat the moment!) but we are to inspect our hearts as we speak of His name because it is so holy to God.

The holiness of God's name also speaks to us of how much power it has. Jesus teaches us to start off prayer by getting a revelation of God's hallowed name because it is in His name that we find the power that grants our prayers. It's by His name that His identity marked by grace and love gives us even the right to come into His presence. There is power in God's name because it is hallowed and holy. But thanks be to God that there is no name holier and more hallowed than the name of God. There is amazing, awe-inspiring power in the hallowed name of our God.

Prayer

Holy, holy, holy Lord help me to do only the things that will honour you today.

A Project

Do we truly understand the power in the name of God so that we are to view it as powerful and sacred and not something to be taken lightly? Think on these things. Place a battery with the Palm Cross from Sunday and the photo/names from yesterday, to remind you of the ‘Power of the name of God’.