Blasphemy! Will God hold us guiltless?

       At a Christian function in Lagos not too long ago, an invited comedian opened the program by saying “ I don’t want anybody pleading the blood of Jesus here, you people have used the blood of Jesus so much that it has now dried up. Maybe we should start using the blood of God the father from now on.” The large crowd roared with laughter.  For most Christians gathered at that function it was a very funny joke but the bible calls it blasphemy.

      Have you noticed that in order to make people laugh, comedians often resort to the mocking of church worship activities, Pastor’s deliverance prayers and bible verses turned upside down. Most Christians find this mocking of Jesus, His word and His Church very amusing. In fact most of the so called comedians that are really into this thing call themselves Christians. Yet what they are doing and other Christians find amusing is nothing less than blasphemy. If the same things were to be done to some other religion, adherents of that religion will immediately invoke the punishment of blasphemy on the comedians.

      What is blasphemy? It is a show of disrespect for God, His name, His attributes, His acts, His word or His Church. It is treating that which is sacred as common. The third commandment clearly states that “Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain. (Exo 20:7 KJV). God promised to punish every irreverent use of his name and as a corollary, things associated with his name.

      Peter said “But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear”. (1Pe 3:15 KJV).  To sanctify means to separate God as Lord in our heart, completely different from us, belonging to a uniquely exclusive realm with authority above everything else. It means to treat Him and esteem Him in our heart as incomparable to anything we have seen or heard or imagine. It means to stand in a perpetual reverential awe of him, ready to give an intentional reverential response to Him always irrespective of our external circumstances.  This is not what we see in our comedians.

      Rather than separate Jesus in their heart as Lord these so called Christian Comedians are not afraid to join themselves to Jesus and treat him as one of them. They use the word ‘we’ to refer to themselves and Jesus. They make irreverent references to His name, His words, His actions and His promises. When Moses, though a prophet of no mean standing with God, made the mistake of joining himself with God at the water of strife by saying “Ye rebels; must we fetch (here Moses join himself with God and referred to himself and God as we) you water out of this rock” (Num 20:10), God immediately rebuked him and said “Because ye believed me not, to sanctify me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore ye shall not bring this congregation into the land which I have given them.” ( Num 20:12 KJV). In this scripture, Moses failed to treat God as awesomely different from himself. He was able to join himself with God and refer to both as ‘we’. No wonder, true to his word, God did not hold him guiltless.

       If God did not hold Moses guiltless, what makes people think that they who have trivialised the name, word and the Church of Jesus Christ will be left unpunished? Is this not why the scriptures says “Wherefore, as I live, saith the Lord GOD; Surely, because thou hast defiled my sanctuary with all thy detestable things, and with all thine abominations, therefore will I also diminish thee; neither shall mine eye spare, neither will I have any pity. (Eze 5:11 KJV). This is the lot of those who refuse to retrace their steps.

In worldview Wars, Ifiok J. Ukobo exposes the hidden, but very aggressive, war of worldviews being waged against righteousness in our personal lives and community. This battle has now arrived in every home, community, and country. We are under attack, and the battle front spans our schools , media, national policies, and pulpits. Families are breaking down, children are becoming rebellious; communities no longer have shared values, and a cultural flux is emerging. In Worldview Wars, the author presents practical ways to win the battle in your life, family, and community. This book will renew your mind and help you to stay free and bring freedom to others that have been taken captive. You will also discover practical strategies that will help you to teach your children a biblical worldview and arm them against deception. "

Worldview Wars is a timely book. it arrives at a time in the war - when truly heavy ordinance is needed. It will be a game changer. Prof Yemi Osinbajo, SAN

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     You may say that you did not know these things before now. If what you are saying is right, then the time to repent in truth is now. The bible says “In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent. For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising him from the dead.” (Act 17:30-31).  True repentance involves a quality decision to stop all acts of blasphemy and stop supporting and consuming blasphemous arts and comedy. Confess these sins to God and ask him for forgiveness then join like-minded people to fight this scourge.

     Brothers and sisters, let us take a stand against this blasphemy. Let us not patronize their shows nor buy their CDs. Let us teach our children true reverence for God. We should refuse to sing choruses that do not show appropriate respect for God.  As we sanctify the Lord in our hearts, we will experience His sanctification in our lives. And the blessing of sanctification will be ours. May the Lord grant us grace to sanctify Him in our hearts and lives in Jesus Name.