Good Morning.
You shall not steal, nor deal falsely, nor lie to one another. And you shall not swear by My name falsely, nor shall you profane the name of your God: I am the Lord. (Leviticus 19:11)
There are multiple times that God reminds His people that they are not to profane His name. which is to say, don’t make Him look bad to others if you claim to be one of His people. In a sense, He has entrusted His reputation to His people to honor or to defame depending on their behavior. So then, it might surprise some of you to know that, within Judaism, there is a warning given to its adherents not to be content to display just the outward signs of holiness but to be holy, in heart and soul. To wear the outward trappings without a heart change would amount to living a lie — dealing falsely with one another and with God.
Furthermore, it is believed in Judaism that someone who only attains the “letter of the law” can easily become a degenerate with the permission of the Torah. In other words, someone can meet the technical requirements outlined in the Scripture while continuing to surrender to self-indulgence. Frankly, this is not exclusive to Judaism for we well know that this is also present in Christianity and here is why — it isn’t a problem with a certain religion but is a problem with the heart of man. This is what Christ confronted throughout His ministry and why He challenged His listeners to do what the Word command without “neglecting the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith” (Matthew 23:23).
Our God expects more than just an outward appearance of holiness — He wants our hearts to be inclined to live holy lives. Not only that, but we are to be aware of those who are living a lie — those who are profaning His Name. In fact, Paul said that we are to turn away from those who “have a form of godliness but deny its power” (2 Timothy 3:5). Why would we do such a thing? Because we want to make sure the world sees an authentic and sincere demonstration of true Godliness and holiness so that those who hunger and thirst for such will not be seduced away by those who don’t hunger for those things. So then, let us be authentic and live a life that is honest, sincere and full of the Truth that we may bring honor and glory to His Name.
Blessings and Shalom,
Bill
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