Blasphemy appears to be fashionable. That is what is on this shirt. It is short hand for a phrase of blasphemy.
Our culture has created a new way to communicate. It seems that everyone has a caught on to the text message way of communication. Everything is communicated in micro text.
"U r my bff" If I wrote this on an English paper my teacher would have no idea what I was saying. But sent as a text message most people know that those characters translate into "you are my best friend forever".
People have also found a way to micro text blasphemy. And, they think it is cute.
Most of the time people don't think about blasphemy at all. And if they do, they reserve their definition for those really big, bad words.
It is true that those foul curse words associate with God's name is blasphemy. Let me remind everyone that blasphemy is a sin. "You shall not take the Lord's Name in vain." (Exodus 20)
But, blasphemy is more than just saying curse words. It is anytime you take God's Name in vain.
OMG clearly fits into that category. That is the most common blasphemy that I hear today. People say it like it means absolutely nothing. It rolls of the lips of people all around me all the time. And that is exactly why it is blasphemy.
Saying, "oh my God" is not necessarily blasphemy. It is the context in which it is used. If I am in earnest prayer and crying out for the help of my Lord and say what the psalmist said, "Oh God, you are my God, earnestly I seek you." (Psalm 63:1) That is a completely appropriate usage.
That is not how people use that phrase in common parlance. It is simply an expression of excitement, surprise, or even disgust. The phrase can actually be used to represent a variety of emotional outbursts.
That by definition is taking God's Name in vain. It's not cute.
Do not think that I am some sheltered prude. I have been around profanity and blasphemy plenty. I have used my fair share in my younger years. I did live for four years in the Moore Hall Dorm which was a breeding ground for all kinds of vulgar language. I have worked jobs in warehouses in which it must have been a prerequisite to gainful employment to have a foul mouth. I know that foul language is a part of our culture.
That should not and is not a reason for me to become desensitized to the sound of my God's Name being dragged through the mud.
It will also not be something that my daughters will use in our house. There are lots of words I don't want them saying. The most serious will be any careless use of God's Name.
I not only detest the flippant use of OMG, but when people use the name Jesus as profanity it is like a punch in the gut. How did that become so popular? It pains me to hear the Name of the One who shed his blood for my sin used as a filthy expression of profanity.
As for me and my house, we will bless the Name of God.
By the way, the micro text in the title translates to this, "Oh my god equals blasphemy".
1 comment:
Careless invocations of divinity in one’s daily prose can certainly qualify as gross violations of the third commandment.
Thankfully, I am not like other men in this regard.
Ouch!
I think that there is also another important facet to this commandment. As I understand it, the “name” of our God also connotes the concept of “authority.”
Another significant way we can take God’s name in vain is when we - like the seven sons of Sceva - presume to invoke spiritual authority that we do not, in fact, possess.
Have you ever heard a prophet, priest, or pastor invoke God’s name, saying, “God showed me this”, or “God told me that”, when God’s private “communication” turned out to be nothing more than frivolous human efforts at church empire building, ministry justification, blatant solicitation, false prophesy, personal agenda, or even words of comfort to people living in open rebellion?
I have, many times.
Have I ever said, “God told me” or “God showed me”, when He probably really didn’t?
Thankfully, I am not like other men...
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