Thou Hast Given Great Occasion to the Enemies…to Blaspheme

2 Samuel 12:14, “Howbeit, because by this deed thou hast given great occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme, the child also that is born unto thee shall surely die.”

This passage takes place when Nathan, the prophet, came to King David to confront of his sin with Bathsheba. After calling David out on his sin, David repented, but the conversation did not end there. Nathan proceeded to use it as a teaching time.

He told David that because of his sin, he gave an opportunity to their enemies to blaspheme. Blasphemy is, “The act of insulting or showing contempt or lack of reverence toward God.” Because of David’s sin, it gave the enemies of the Lord a chance to insult God.

This is a big issue today. Many Christians today want to dress, think, talk, and act like the world and not think anything of it. This a problem with many churches today. They draw lost people by appealing to the lost people. They drop their standards to draw a crowd. All this does is gives the enemy a chance to blaspheme the name of Christ. This hurts the cause of Christ. How are we supposed to tell others about Christ and the change he can make inside of us when we are no different than the lost people? It was Gandhi that said, “If it weren’t for Christians, I’d be a Christian.” He had witnessed so many hypocritical Christians that it didn’t seem like a difference to become a Christian.

Remember who we represent. As Christians, we represent Jesus. Every time a Christian falls, it gives the enemy an opportunity to blaspheme. Every time a pastor messes up, it gives the world an opportunity to mock and attack the Lord and his church. Our life will either help the cause of Christ or it will hurt it. Will you live your life in a way that honors and lifts up Jesus, or will you give the enemy an opportunity to blaspheme?