Transcendental Pretense--now doesn’t that phrase get your attention, just hearing it? One of my favorite philosophers, Robert Solomon, is the one who made it up. It describes in two words the whole history of philosophy for the last three centuries: everything that’s really important is what makes a difference to me.

That’s not just the easiest way for me to understand something, or even to relate to people—no, it’s deeper than that, it’s the way things really are. I’m the center of the universe, the way I see things and relate to them, well that’s as good as it gets. ‘Pretense’ is just the right word there—I enjoy so much pretending that I’m the only important thing there is.

Christians know better, don’t we? We know that God is there, really. We’re sure that the way he sees things is more important than the way we look at things, right? Right, in a way—but we can fudge it all by committing to ‘God’ but then making up who he is. More sophisticated but still transcendent and still pretense. 

God wants us to get his name right, to know who he is. In the Bible names aren’t as arbitrary as the way we use them today. I’m called Clair because my mother taught high school in Eau Claire Wisconsin and loved it there. It is a beautiful place, with those two little rivers, the Eau Claire and the Chippewa. If my mother had called me Chippewa, would I have landed a seminary job? 

With God it’s much more important than that, call him by his right name and mean it. When you do don’t do it in vain. That’s more than avoiding vulgar language, which we upper-class Presbyterians don’t do anyway. It’s the opposite of that pretense thing. It’s knowing who you are and who God is at the same time. (Enjoy this Solomon line from Heinrich Heine: ‘Himself as everything? How does Mrs. Fichte put up with it?’).  Just stay away from make-believe.

A son honors his father, and a servant his master. If then I am a father, where is my honor? And if I am a master, where is my fear? says the Lord of hosts to you, O priests, who despise my name. But you say, “How have we despised your name?” By offering polluted food upon my altar. But you say, “How have we polluted you?” By saying that the Lord's table may be despised. When you offer blind animals in sacrifice, is that not evil? And when you offer those that are lame or sick, is that not evil? Malachi 1: 6-8

Do we get that? Offering to the Lord anything cheap insults him, it despises his name. Vulgarity with the Lord’s name is bad but that’s worse, and it comes closer to home for us doesn’t it? When we talk about the Lord as sovereign and almighty and send up our prayers and nothing much happens, then we can get grumpy and doubt that prayer, maybe any prayer, is worth much—then we’re playing games with his name. Then we’re talking big about him without meaning it. That has to be major for Presbyterians, since we talk bigger about him than anyone.

What is it that the Lord wants us to do with his name? First of all, we need to pray about it, that it be hallowed. That’s the old word and the best. In the ‘Lord’s Prayer’ it’s the first thing we should pray for. So we will call on the Lord to exert his power and wisdom so that his identity, who he is, will be honored, worshipped and be the heart of the whole universe. At first that seems self-centered on God’s part—but if he isn’t working at it, do you think it’s going to happen? That points ahead to our lives together with him eternally, when the main job we have is worship. (Not never-ending harp practice, a lot more glorious than that). So just ask the Lord with all your heart to see to it that we (and the angels) do our worship right. That’s complicated, it’s so easy to think that means, I’ve got to check on how I’m checking on how I’m worshipping. No, this is how it goes, what we ask for as we pray, as we ask him to be himself: 

O Lord, work in my heart today, keep me from forgetting who you are and what you’ve done and will do forever. Yes Lord, you made the world, all very good, a place for us to be with you. I worship you my heavenly creator for that. You chose a people, you kept after them when they fell away, you restored them, you always took care of your own even they forgot you. I worship you Lord. You have done that so much in my own life, I honor you for that. O Lord, the world here is turning away from you, fewer and fewer are worshipping you. O Lord, it’s not about my church it’s about your glory. You should be worshipped and it isn’t happening, so I call on you to fix that. O Lord turn me first of all back to you, to worship you and lift up and hallow your name. Not just now and then, but daily Lord. May my prayers be not so much about what I want, but mostly about you my Lord. Yes Lord, send your Spirit again and again on this earth, awaken millions of people to honor you Lord.  Save them Lord so they may worship you forever and ever.  Amen and Amen.