Holy is the name of the Lord. His name is to be declared holy in the earth. It is not to be blasphemed, or used in vain.
BLASPHEMED: To be evil spoken of, or slanderously reported. To be defamed in the midst of unbelievers. Blasphemers: Those who speak contemptuously of God or of sacred things.
Ezekiel 36:23
And I will sanctify my great name, which was profaned among the heathen, which ye have profaned in the midst of them; and the heathen shall know that I am the LORD, saith the Lord GOD, when I shall be sanctified in you before their eyes.
1 Timothy 6:12-16
12 Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses.
13 I give thee charge in the sight of God, who quickeneth all things, and before Christ Jesus, who before Pontius Pilate witnessed a good confession;
14 That thou keep this commandment without spot, unrebukeable, until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ:
15 Which in his times he shall shew, who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords;
16 Who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto; whom no man hath seen, nor can see: to whom be honour and power everlasting. Amen.
Our witness among unbelievers should be unrebukeable. We should be able to obtain a good report as to how we present Christ. We are called to be a witness of the grace God has bestowed upon man. We are His ambassadors and the hope of the world. Therefore, as Christians we are responsible for the connotations we attach to the name of the Lord. It is possible for us to put the Lord to an open shame among the heathen. Thus, we are admonished by Paul to separate ourselves from sinners. We are not to indulge in darkness nor have fellowship with those who revel in the darkness. Our fellowship must be in the light. This is imperative if we are going to be the beacon that attracts sinners to the righteousness of God. The Father is Holy. He is to be reverenced, for the day will come when Christ and all those who walk in Christ will reveal His majesty. As we go back into the Old Covenant, we will find the intent of the Father’s heart in establishing the Church.
Ezekiel 36:24-27
24 For I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all countries, and will bring you into your own land.
25 Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you.
26 A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.
27 And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.
Here we see a cleansing and a sanctification of the people of God. Note that they are made clean and sanctified by the Spirit of God. Therefore, we can safely conclude that He is referring to the formation of the Body of Christ, beginning with the Nation of Israel.
Ezekiel 36:31-32
31 Then shall ye remember your own evil ways, and your doings that were not good, and shall loathe yourselves in your own sight for your iniquities and for your abominations.
32 Not for your sakes do I this, saith the Lord GOD, be it known unto you: be ashamed and confounded for your own ways, O house of Israel.
The Spirit placed within us will cause or enable us to walk in the statues of God. Note that after having walked in the Spirit, we should loathe or hate our own ways. The experience of walking in the Spirit should cause us to hate iniquity and all unrighteousness. But why is this not always the case? How is it that we are able to remain in iniquity and our own ways? I think the scriptures below explain the disposition of those who continuously walk in the flesh.
Zechariah 7:9-13
9 Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, saying, Execute true judgment, and shew mercy and compassions every man to his brother:
10 And oppress not the widow, nor the fatherless, the stranger, nor the poor; and let none of you imagine evil against his brother in your heart.
11 But they refused to hearken, and pulled away the shoulder, and stopped their ears, that they should not hear.
12 Yea, they made their hearts as an adamant stone, lest they should hear the law, and the words which the LORD of hosts hath sent in his spirit by the former prophets: therefore came a great wrath from the LORD of hosts.
13 Therefore it is come to pass, that as he cried, and they would not hear; so they cried, and I would not hear, saith the LORD of hosts:
Nehemiah 9:26-31
26 Nevertheless they were disobedient, and rebelled against thee, and cast thy law behind their backs, and slew thy prophets which testified against them to turn them to thee, and they wrought great provocations.
27 Therefore thou deliveredst them into the hand of their enemies, who vexed them: and in the time of their trouble, when they cried unto thee, thou heardest them from heaven; and according to thy manifold mercies thou gavest them saviours, who saved them out of the hand of their enemies.
28 But after they had rest, they did evil again before thee: therefore leftest thou them in the hand of their enemies, so that they had the dominion over them: yet when they returned, and cried unto thee, thou heardest them from heaven; and many times didst thou deliver them according to thy mercies;
29 And testifiedst against them, that thou mightest bring them again unto thy law: yet they dealt proudly, and hearkened not unto thy commandments, but sinned against thy judgments, (which if a man do, he shall live in them;) and withdrew the shoulder, and hardened their neck, and would not hear.
30 Yet many years didst thou forbear them, and testifiedst against them by thy spirit in thy prophets: yet would they not give ear: therefore gavest thou them into the hand of the people of the lands.
31 Nevertheless for thy great mercies' sake thou didst not utterly consume them, nor forsake them; for thou art a gracious and merciful God.
We must not take the Lord for granted. While He remains a gracious and merciful God, our rebellion is not without consequence. The scripture encourages us to let our light shine that others may see our good works and glorify the Father. However, there are those who dare to be presumptuous in this matter.
Hebrews 6:1-8
1 Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God,
2 Of the doctrine of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment.
3 And this will we do, if God permit.
4 For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost,
5 And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come,
6 If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.
7 For the earth which drinketh in the rain that cometh oft upon it, and bringeth forth herbs meet for them by whom it is dressed, receiveth blessing from God:
8 But that which beareth thorns and briers is rejected, and is nigh unto cursing; whose end is to be burned.
This passage is fascinating to me. It is so direct and to the point. Nevertheless, it houses the powerful truth about sinning saints. Here the apostle is dealing with a mindset. I might add that it is a mindset that is most common in the Body of Christ. However, I do not think that the church realizes the consequences of such a mindset. First of all, we must note that the apostle is referring to people who are born-again. You must follow me here in order to understand the inference. He begins with “It is impossible. . .” It is impossible to do what?
1. IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO RENEW THOSE WHO FALL AWAY UNTO REPENTANCE. This means they can never come to repentance. Why? They have actually fallen away from the faith. In their heart they have rejected the way of the Lord. In doing so, they have rejected the life of Christ and the truth.
Hebrews 6:4 For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost,
2. There is a difference between a saint, who for example, accepts that THE SCRIPTURE REQUIRES HIM TO LOVE HIS ENEMIES, but is having difficulty doing so, as opposed to the saint who has said in his heart, “I don’t have to do that,” or “God does not expect me to really love those who use, abuse and defraud me.” This man can never come to true repentance because his heart has not been converted to the truth.
3. THEY NEVER AGREED WITH GOD. They were not willing to go on to perfection. They remained in the infancy of their salvation. But this was a willing position. They refused to move.
4. THEY CRUCIFIED TO THEMSELVES THE SON OF GOD AFRESH. These are they who refuse to walk in the life of Christ. Usually this mindset is characterized in the old cliché, “It doesn’t take all that.” These are they who sift the word of God. They do only that which is convenient and does not interfere with their disposition or personal agendas. Therefore, Paul concludes that it is impossible for them to come to true repentance, seeing as how they never accepted within themselves the way of the Lord.
5. THEY PUT HIM TO AN OPEN SHAME. If one does not come to true repentance there will always be sin in their life, and sooner or later that sin will manifest and it will be reflected in their lifestyle. Unbelievers will witness the sin and the name of the Lord will be blasphemed among them.
6. THE END OF SUCH ONES IS TO BE BURNED IN THE LAKE OF FIRE. It is not necessary for any of the sons of God to end up in the lake of fire. The Lord is reaching out to us. It is up to us to answer with a humbled heart and a contrite spirit. Return onto the Lord while you have the opportunity to do so. Do not pull away the shoulder which is an act of pride and stubbornness. Accept God's Word as law for your life.
Let Us Pray!
