Taking God's Name in Vain

You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain. (Exod. 20:7; Deut. 5:11)
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​The third commandment is always an interesting one to discuss among believers.  What does it mean?  Does keeping this commandment mean we say things like ‘gosh darn it’ or ‘oh my gosh’?  What does it mean to not take the name of the LORD your God in vain?  The 17th century Puritan theologian Thomas Watson, in his book The Ten Commandments, argues that for every commandment where God forbids us from doing something, then we are equally commanded to do the opposite.  In other words, to not take the name of God in vain necessarily means that we are to honor God’s name and hold it in high esteem.  This makes sense when we consider that Jesus taught his disciples to pray, “Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed by thy name.”  This opening line is not just a prayer of address but is the first petition of the Lord’s Prayer.  Jesus taught that the very first thing we should pray for when we pray is that God’s name would be regarded as sacred in the world.  Not only that it be regarded as sacred in the world, but that it be regarded as sacred in our lives and in our behavior.  In 1 Corinthians 10:31 Paul says, “whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.”  As believers, everything we do and think and say should ultimately be for the glory of God, should ultimately render honor and high esteem to God.  To not do so is to rob God of his due honor because if we are not doing things for the glory of God then we are by default doing them for the glory of ourselves, and that—according to Watson—is to dishonor the name of God and is a violation of the third commandment.  We violate the third commandment whenever we do or think or say anything that does not rightly give proper glory and honor to God.