Thank You, Father, for Your active participation in our lives. When we are struggling with which way to go, we turn, and You are there! A prayer answered that had yet to be spoken! All praise to our loving, Heavenly Father!

Romans 2:17-29 (<<click here to read the passage)

OK, this is a very hard question to ask and an even more difficult question to answer… Does the world around us blaspheme God’s name because of us? Or maybe because of Christians in general?

In this particular passage, Paul exclaims in verse 24,

“The Gentiles blaspheme the name of God because of you.”

For some perspective, Paul here is quoting the prophet, Isaiah. (Isaiah 52:5 – from the Greek version of the Hebrew Scriptures. Most New Testament quotes of Old Testament passages are shared from the Greek translations of those passages.) So, this wasn’t a new problem. Keep in mind that when both Isaiah and Paul said it, they were speaking to the Jews. Anyone who wasn’t a Jew was a Gentile. But when we read it, we can definitely apply it to ourselves – believers in Christ, with the Gentiles being understood to be unbelievers.

My Life Application Study Bible makes it pretty clear.

Despite our knowledge of God’s will, we are guilty because we, too, refuse to live by it. Those of us who have grown up in Christian families may know what God’s Word says. But Paul says that if we do not live up to what we know, we are no better off than unbelievers.

In essence, it goes on to say, that we need to teach ourselves, not others, by God’s word. Many believers know the law so well that we’ve also learned how to excuse our own actions while criticizing others.

Where we get into trouble is thinking that the “law” is just a set of rules. God’s word is far more than that…it is a guide on maintaining a relationship with Him. Without that relationship, we cannot please God.

Think about some of Jesus’ teachings. We know that we are not to steal, but in Mark 7:9-13 He clearly points out that even when we withhold something that rightfully belongs to someone else, that is stealing.

We know that adultery is wrong but in Matthew 5:27-28 Jesus exclaims that anyone who even looks at another person with lust in their eyes has already committed adultery with them in their heart.

Here is the line that needs to be drawn. Before we accuse others, we must look at ourselves and see if sin, in any form, exists within us.

But before you ready yourself to move on while thinking to yourself, “So and so should sure see this!”, hold on just a moment.

It seems that in our current culture Christians are working overtime to see how much “Christianity” they can literally, forcibly ram down people’s throats. The mentality is that they don’t care at all who you are or what you believe but you will abide by what I believe and that’s that! And the result?

“The Gentiles blaspheme the name of God because of you.”

Read the Gospels, all four of them, and you will not find a single example of Jesus living that way. He never once forced Himself on them. He loved them. He died for them as much as He died for us. Live as Jesus lived. Love as Jesus loved. Amen.

Oct 11th, 2022, Tues, 1:18 pm