“You are not to take in vain the name of the LORD your God, because the LORD will not leave the one who takes in vain his name unpunished.”
This is Exodus 20:7. It is one of the well-known Ten Commandments brought down from the mountain by Moses. Like me, many of you have grown up being taught that it is an admonition against swearing. While that is a good idea and covered elsewhere in the Bible, I have since learned that this command holds a much deeper meaning. We are called to be ambassadors of Christ. We are to act in such a way as to be a light to the world[i] (Matthew 5:14-16).