Mocking God

The Third of the 10 Commandments is, “Thou shalt not take the Name of the Lord in vain.” “No using the name of GOD, your God, in curses or silly banter; God won't put up with the irreverent use of his name.” ~Deuteronomy 5:11 ~MSG version We are living in a time when we hear the Lord's name taken in vain everywhere! Turn on the TV, watch a movie, listen to an elected politician, News commentators, comedians, even schoolteachers and college professors! Every religion is acceptable to bring into the schools except Christian teachings and the Holy Bible. Scriptures tell us God will not put up with this, yet these people freely mock and laugh at His words. I've heard small children cussing in front of their parents in stores, while their parents cuss back at them. I remember Jesus saying, “Let the children come to me. If you lead them astray, you might as well tie a mill stone around your neck and throw yourself in the ocean.” There is coming a day when we all must stand before the Lord and give account for our words and deeds. Many may take this lightly and laugh, yet the Lord does not change His mind, just because society says it's fine to do so... Many years ago, I had a friend that I'll just call “Bud.” At lunch time, many of us would set at a different table to eat lunch. Once after we had said blessings over our food, Bud loudly said a blessing in a loud mocking voice...not a prayer but swearing and vain words used against the Lord. After lunch, I talked to Bud and told him there will come a day when he will regret what he said. I told him he should repent because God will not be mocked. I'm sure one might be thinking, “Why do you have friends that are not Christian?” Because we live by example...our testimony is something they notice more than just preaching at them, then walking away. Around a month later, Bud did not come to work for several days. Soon we found out he had collapsed from a brain tumor. The surgeons removed the tumor, but had to perform a second surgery involving drilling a hole in his skull to drain blood. A few months later, I was taking my daily production papers to the main office, when I happened to see Bud and his wife stopping in for a few minutes. Bud's face was still swollen and bruised. I walked over, placed my hand on his shoulder and said, “I've been praying for you.” He gently replied in a somewhat weak voice, “Thank you, I knew that you were.” When Bud returned to work later on, he was a different person! I am thankful the Lord gave him a second chance because not everyone receives that blessing. Every day I am thankful that I was raised by a Christian family and raised 3 wonderful Christian children. I still remember schoolteachers either telling me or my wife, “He is so strong in his faith and Christian witness!” I've seen the crumble and decay of this country starting from the day that the Bible and prayer were taken out of the public schools. We need to pray every day for our young people because they will be the leaders of tomorrow. When we hear someone mock God, we must tell them they are in great danger of judgment! When King Herod said, “There will be no other King of the Jews”, he died the most painful and agonizing death possible.... his body was literately eaten by worms and decayed while he was still living.... I am thankful, for those who have not accepted Him, that He is giving them some extra time to do so. Pray for these people daily and pray they will not only Love Him but want to Live Him! Let us be brave and strong disciples in the Lord's service! The harvest is ready, but the workers are few...