Did you know that centuries ago when ancient copyists of Scriptures came to God’s name, they would put new pens into their writing instruments, take a bath, and change clothes before they would copy the name?
A bit extreme? Perhaps. But think for a moment. Which extreme is more dangerous, that of being overly cautious in showing reverence, or that of flippantly tossing respect for God to the wind, abusing His holy name as nothing more than a cheap by-word of vulgar exclamation?
The name of God can be heard more frequently in one evening of television viewing, or during a single motion picture, than during the whole of a normal worship service. The problem is this – with very few exceptions, the actors and actresses on television and in movies manifest a careless disrespect for God’s name, using it casually as nothing more than cheap exclamation.
Such abuse of God’s name, some years ago, raised eyebrows and stirred a righteous indignation within us. Now we seem to be accepting it as routine and normal.
Could this be indicative (perhaps causative) of our nation’s continuing moral and spiritual decline? As speech follows thought, so behavior follows speech. A lack of respect for God in language leads to a lack of respect for God in life. And yet the profaning of the sacred continues.
Our God deserves better. He expects, He demands better.