May 10,
2003
HALLOWED
BE YOUR NAME
"Hallowed
be Your name" (Matthew 6:9, NKJV).
"To
HALLOW the name of the Lord requires
that the words in which we speak of the Supreme Being be uttered
with reverence. 'Holy and awesome is His name' (Psalm 111:9).
We are never in any manner to treat lightly the titles or
appellations of the Deity. In prayer we enter the audience
chamber of the Most High; and we should come before Him with
holy awe. The angels veil their faces in His presence. The
cherubim and the bright and holy seraphim approach His throne
with solemn reverence. How much more should we, finite, sinful
beings, come in a reverent manner before the Lord, our Maker!
"But
to hallow the name of the Lord means much more than this.
We may, like the Jews in Christ's day, manifest the greatest
outward reverence for God, and yet profane His name continually.
The name of the Lord' is 'merciful and gracious, long-suffering,
and abounding in goodness and truth,... forgiving iniquity
and transgression and sin' (Exodus 34:5-7). Of the church
of Christ it is written, 'This is the name by which she will
be called, THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS' (Jeremiah 33:16). This
name is put upon every follower of Christ. It is the heritage
of the child of God. The family are called after the Father.
The prophet Jeremiah, in the time of Israel's sore distress
and tribulation, prayed, 'We are called by Your name; Do not
leave us' (Jeremiah 14:9).
"This
name is hallowed by the angels of heaven, by the inhabitants
of unfallen worlds. When you pray, 'Hallowed
be Your name,' you ask that it may be hallowed in this
world, hallowed in you. God has acknowledged you before men
and angels as His child; pray that you may do no dishonor
to the 'that noble name by which you are called' (James 2:7).
God sends you into the world as His representative. In every
act of life you are to make manifest the name of God. This
petition calls upon you to possess His character. You cannot
hallow His name, you cannot represent Him to the world, unless
in life and character you represent the very life and character
of God. This you can do only through the acceptance of the
grace and righteousness of Christ."--Thoughts From
The Mount Of Blessing, pp., 106, 107.
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