Blasphemy, what is it? And why should we steer clear of it at all costs?
Some define it as claiming to be God:
The Jews answered Him, “We are not going to stone You for a good work, but for blasphemy, because You, a mere man, make Yourself out to be God.” - John 10:33
_________________
Then the high priest stood up before them and asked Jesus, “Are you not going to answer? What is this testimony that these men are bringing against you?” But Jesus remained silent and gave no answer. Again the high priest asked him, “Are you the Messiah, the Son of the Blessed One?” “I am,” said Jesus. “And you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.” The high priest tore his clothes. “Why do we need any more witnesses?” he asked. “You have heard the blasphemy. What do you think?” They all condemned him as worthy of death. - Mark 14:60-64
_________________
Others say it's verbal disrespect, disregard, & utter contempt of the utmost extent:
“Then the king shall do according to his own will: he shall exalt and magnify himself above every god, shall speak blasphemies against the God of gods, and shall prosper till the wrath has been accomplished; for what has been determined shall be done. - Daniel 11:36
__________________
And the beast was given a mouth uttering haughty and blasphemous words, and it was allowed to exercise authority for forty-two months. - Revelation 13:5
__________________
And he carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness, and I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was full of blasphemous names, and it had seven heads and ten horns. - Revelation 17:5
__________________
even when they cast for themselves an image of a calf and said, 'This is your god, who brought you up out of Egypt,' or when they committed awful blasphemies. - Nehemiah 9:18
__________________
So what is it? Oxford Languages defines it as: the act or offense of speaking sacrilegiously about God or sacred things; profane talk, which ties into the Biblical definition to dishonor or revile God; to speak of or address with irrevernce and contempt.
Overall, a well bred definition of blasphemy roots in the utter comtempt, hatred, and irreverance for God inwardly, shown outwardly in verbal or action form. Blasphemy begins with the lack of fear of the LORD, and lack of awe-inspired reverance for His Name. That's why we must beware if we are growing weary of the things of the Lord, becoming nonchalant about God or are approaching God from a manner of equality and informality. While it is better to be informal and not fake with the LORD, as the Pharisees had all the formalities, but lacked true reverance (Matthew 23:27). But lacking both allows a breach in your faith to open up the room to blasphemy.
Blasphemy was the easiest and quickest ticket to death in the Old Testament: "Whoever blasphemes the name of the LORD shall surely be put to death. All the congregation shall stone him. The sojourner as well as the native, when he blasphemes the Name, shall be put to death." - Leviticus 24:16. And is the only sin which the utmost extent of it goes beyond the realm of forgiveness (Mark 3:29, Luke 12:10).
What are some methods of blasphemy:
1. Claiming to be God (John 10:33) or assume authority what is exclusively Divinely His (2 Thessalonian 2:4).
Of course, the most noticeable form of blasphemy, claiming to be God. However, who in there right Christian mind would ever claim to be God??? That would be strange... And what nonbeliever would every claim to be God when they don't believe in God?? Of course we're all then safe right? Nope. This goes beyond saying or thinking, "I am God". This goes into your actions, remember, blasphemy originates from the contempt for God, and lack of fear of Him, and then becomes an outward expression.
In Exodus 20:3, God commands us to, “You shall have no other gods before me." This is known as the sin of idolatry. Blasphemy is the idolatry of yourself, the opitomy of idolatry is Idolatry. Even with idolatarizing people it still ties back into self-worship, which is Blasphemy at it's core, because all praise, glory, & worship is due to God ("All praises belong to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. For he is the Father of tender mercy and the God of endless comfort." - 1 Corinthians 1:3). When we divert our affection from Christ to another being, whether ourselves or others we are saying: "God, you're not worthy of my praise, worship or obedience. I'm now going to step in and take my affection and my love and divert it to whom I want to, and to what pleases my desire to do so."
Idolatry = Blasphemy, Self-Worship = Blasphemy. We may not say it with our lips but we are saying with our feet that we're our top priority. When we make it our intentions to deprive God of His worship
(not singing along to a smooth song, but as Romans 12:1 puts it: Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.)
To offer: A voluntary movement/action
Your bodies: Yourself, your entire being, the very core of your existence, the essence of your reality
As a living sacrifice: One that has fully dedicated to God till the point of death, and has forfeiting the life of autonomy in all decision making, and enters a status of permenant and full exclusivity to the desires of God.
Holy and pleasing to God: Righteous according to His standards, giving all of you, not 10%, 50%, or 99.9999999999999999999999%, the full 100%, holding nothing back and reserving nothing for anyone, even yourself, your will is dead, your role as captain of your life, master of your own ship, has been permenantely resigned. Christ is in control.
By refusing to give our entire being to the will of Christ we are blaspheming the Holiness of His name, the Spirit that is supposed to reign in our hearts, and the Glory of God due to Him.
In a nutshell, Blasphemy, is not only claiming to be God or claiming what belongs exclusively to God (which I will get into another time) anytime we refuse to give God and redirect what is righfully due to God: surrender of your life & submission to His will regardless of whether you like it or not. You are no different from the unbeliever who is stirring up the war in the Middle East. You are no different from the pagan religions that defy Yahweh. You are no different from the ignorant atheist who uses vulgar language with God and/or slanders God. In fact, they are ignorant and don't know, you know better, yes you, Mr. & Mrs/Ms. Christian, and will be held far more accountable for your atrocity.
When we defame God like this, it is no wonder why the nonbelievers profane God the way they do (“For the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you“. - Romans 2:24). When we just refuse to stop loving sin, making justifications for sin, supporting sinful movements, tolerating sinful lifestyles, and justifying in our minds why God made a mistake or why sin is appropiate, and twisting the Bible so we can feel justified in continuing in our lusts, pride, envy, jealousy, wrath, hatred, malice, greed, and evil gain and making compromises so we can have comradery with the wicked culture, no wonder they mock our God.
No other religion has no much compromise like Christianity, we make compromises for simple things like Halloween and political parties to more rebellious compromises on subjects such as sexuality, tolerance for various evils, and invoking fear in the people of God if they don't abundantly tithe.
I won't get to get into the other 4 or so reasons because this took longer than expected, but pray & ask yourself, are you a blasphemer? And don't try to rationalize it, repent! The sin you lusts after now is not worth the eternal prize Christ has for you! If this doesn't apply, let it fly, and be diligent that it keeps flying, and share it so that others may be saved.
God Bless
Some define it as claiming to be God:
The Jews answered Him, “We are not going to stone You for a good work, but for blasphemy, because You, a mere man, make Yourself out to be God.” - John 10:33
_________________
Then the high priest stood up before them and asked Jesus, “Are you not going to answer? What is this testimony that these men are bringing against you?” But Jesus remained silent and gave no answer. Again the high priest asked him, “Are you the Messiah, the Son of the Blessed One?” “I am,” said Jesus. “And you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.” The high priest tore his clothes. “Why do we need any more witnesses?” he asked. “You have heard the blasphemy. What do you think?” They all condemned him as worthy of death. - Mark 14:60-64
_________________
Others say it's verbal disrespect, disregard, & utter contempt of the utmost extent:
“Then the king shall do according to his own will: he shall exalt and magnify himself above every god, shall speak blasphemies against the God of gods, and shall prosper till the wrath has been accomplished; for what has been determined shall be done. - Daniel 11:36
__________________
And the beast was given a mouth uttering haughty and blasphemous words, and it was allowed to exercise authority for forty-two months. - Revelation 13:5
__________________
And he carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness, and I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was full of blasphemous names, and it had seven heads and ten horns. - Revelation 17:5
__________________
even when they cast for themselves an image of a calf and said, 'This is your god, who brought you up out of Egypt,' or when they committed awful blasphemies. - Nehemiah 9:18
__________________
So what is it? Oxford Languages defines it as: the act or offense of speaking sacrilegiously about God or sacred things; profane talk, which ties into the Biblical definition to dishonor or revile God; to speak of or address with irrevernce and contempt.
Overall, a well bred definition of blasphemy roots in the utter comtempt, hatred, and irreverance for God inwardly, shown outwardly in verbal or action form. Blasphemy begins with the lack of fear of the LORD, and lack of awe-inspired reverance for His Name. That's why we must beware if we are growing weary of the things of the Lord, becoming nonchalant about God or are approaching God from a manner of equality and informality. While it is better to be informal and not fake with the LORD, as the Pharisees had all the formalities, but lacked true reverance (Matthew 23:27). But lacking both allows a breach in your faith to open up the room to blasphemy.
Blasphemy was the easiest and quickest ticket to death in the Old Testament: "Whoever blasphemes the name of the LORD shall surely be put to death. All the congregation shall stone him. The sojourner as well as the native, when he blasphemes the Name, shall be put to death." - Leviticus 24:16. And is the only sin which the utmost extent of it goes beyond the realm of forgiveness (Mark 3:29, Luke 12:10).
What are some methods of blasphemy:
1. Claiming to be God (John 10:33) or assume authority what is exclusively Divinely His (2 Thessalonian 2:4).
Of course, the most noticeable form of blasphemy, claiming to be God. However, who in there right Christian mind would ever claim to be God??? That would be strange... And what nonbeliever would every claim to be God when they don't believe in God?? Of course we're all then safe right? Nope. This goes beyond saying or thinking, "I am God". This goes into your actions, remember, blasphemy originates from the contempt for God, and lack of fear of Him, and then becomes an outward expression.
In Exodus 20:3, God commands us to, “You shall have no other gods before me." This is known as the sin of idolatry. Blasphemy is the idolatry of yourself, the opitomy of idolatry is Idolatry. Even with idolatarizing people it still ties back into self-worship, which is Blasphemy at it's core, because all praise, glory, & worship is due to God ("All praises belong to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. For he is the Father of tender mercy and the God of endless comfort." - 1 Corinthians 1:3). When we divert our affection from Christ to another being, whether ourselves or others we are saying: "God, you're not worthy of my praise, worship or obedience. I'm now going to step in and take my affection and my love and divert it to whom I want to, and to what pleases my desire to do so."
Idolatry = Blasphemy, Self-Worship = Blasphemy. We may not say it with our lips but we are saying with our feet that we're our top priority. When we make it our intentions to deprive God of His worship
(not singing along to a smooth song, but as Romans 12:1 puts it: Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.)
To offer: A voluntary movement/action
Your bodies: Yourself, your entire being, the very core of your existence, the essence of your reality
As a living sacrifice: One that has fully dedicated to God till the point of death, and has forfeiting the life of autonomy in all decision making, and enters a status of permenant and full exclusivity to the desires of God.
Holy and pleasing to God: Righteous according to His standards, giving all of you, not 10%, 50%, or 99.9999999999999999999999%, the full 100%, holding nothing back and reserving nothing for anyone, even yourself, your will is dead, your role as captain of your life, master of your own ship, has been permenantely resigned. Christ is in control.
By refusing to give our entire being to the will of Christ we are blaspheming the Holiness of His name, the Spirit that is supposed to reign in our hearts, and the Glory of God due to Him.
In a nutshell, Blasphemy, is not only claiming to be God or claiming what belongs exclusively to God (which I will get into another time) anytime we refuse to give God and redirect what is righfully due to God: surrender of your life & submission to His will regardless of whether you like it or not. You are no different from the unbeliever who is stirring up the war in the Middle East. You are no different from the pagan religions that defy Yahweh. You are no different from the ignorant atheist who uses vulgar language with God and/or slanders God. In fact, they are ignorant and don't know, you know better, yes you, Mr. & Mrs/Ms. Christian, and will be held far more accountable for your atrocity.
When we defame God like this, it is no wonder why the nonbelievers profane God the way they do (“For the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you“. - Romans 2:24). When we just refuse to stop loving sin, making justifications for sin, supporting sinful movements, tolerating sinful lifestyles, and justifying in our minds why God made a mistake or why sin is appropiate, and twisting the Bible so we can feel justified in continuing in our lusts, pride, envy, jealousy, wrath, hatred, malice, greed, and evil gain and making compromises so we can have comradery with the wicked culture, no wonder they mock our God.
No other religion has no much compromise like Christianity, we make compromises for simple things like Halloween and political parties to more rebellious compromises on subjects such as sexuality, tolerance for various evils, and invoking fear in the people of God if they don't abundantly tithe.
I won't get to get into the other 4 or so reasons because this took longer than expected, but pray & ask yourself, are you a blasphemer? And don't try to rationalize it, repent! The sin you lusts after now is not worth the eternal prize Christ has for you! If this doesn't apply, let it fly, and be diligent that it keeps flying, and share it so that others may be saved.
God Bless
