Gerhard and Walther

When in the Second Commandment God the Lord forbids that we should use His name in vain, He desires that through petition, prayer, supplication, and thanksgiving we should use and hallow His name properly.—Johann Gerhard, Schola Pietatis III:292.

The impenitent person who is not anxious about his sins is more than happy to join the chorus that proclaims, “We are all sinners; we are all poor, weak men; each one has his faults.” When such a person joins this song, he thinks he has enough knowledge of his sins. The anguish over sin that dwells in the heart of a penitent person shows itself differently… He is anxious to recognize his sin rightly. To do this, he examines all the works of his daily life to see if has done and is doing what God’s Word commands in the vocation and position in which God has placed him.—C. F. W. Walther, God Grant It!, p. 591,2.