“The LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh His name in vain” Ex 20:7
Let us consider that Sarah Ferguson and Andrew lost their royal status because of their personal behaviour was judged to have brought the monarchy into disrepute; how much more we who profan the name of the Lord?
If a human throne disciplines its members for bringing dishonour on an earthly house, how much more seriously must the King of heaven regard those who “profane the covenant” and “dishonour His name”.
When a king’s ambassador behaves disgracefully, it reflects poorly on the throne he represents. In the same way, when we dishonour God’s name, it speaks falsely about who He is. The call, then, is to bear His name with reverence; to live, speak, and act in a way that reveals His worth.
God rebuked the priests for offering blemished sacrifices and treating His altar with contempt. In Malachi 1:6–14, they were doing the work of the temple, but their attitude made sacred things common. God said, “A son honours his father, and a servant his master. If I am a father, where is my honour? If I am a master, where is my fear?”
We are meant to display God’s glory, not diminish it. Their disobedience taught the people to treat the holy as ordinary, and that’s why God said, “My name will be great among the nations”—with or without them.
In Numbers 20:7–12, when Moses struck the rock instead of speaking to it as God commanded, he misrepresented God before the people. And God said to him, “Because you did not believe Me, to sanctify Me in the eyes of the children of Israel, you shall not bring this assembly into the land which I have given them.”
In our time, every believer shares in that priestly calling. Peter says we are “a royal priesthood” (1 Peter 2:9). That means our words, actions, and attitudes either honour God’s name or take it in vain. When we handle sacred things, His Word, His worship, His people with carelessness or hypocrisy, we repeat the same sin the ancient priests were warned against. The Gentiles, observing hypocrisy or inconsistency among God’s people, are led to blaspheme or despise God Himself.
Every believer carries a banner with God’s name on it. How we speak, act, and lead reflects either His glory or our own weakness. When we live in contradiction to His truth, we’re effectively giving others a reason to mock Him, as if His holiness were negotiable.
Author
kay.alli@legalview.co.uk