It is a terrible thing to insult the Almighty God. Insulting other human beings who are made in God’s images like our­selves, this in itself is bad enough. But when you insult your Creator, your Redeemer, the heavenly Father who has loved you since eternity and set you apart to be His child, the God is who infinitely greater than you are, then that is a far more serious matter.

Sometimes we might insult other people in a jesting manner, without really in­tending any harm. “You’re ugly and your mother dresses you funny!” But insulting God is never a laughing mat­ter.

But how is God insulted? Let’s consider a few examples.

God is Not like Other Gods⤒🔗

In 2 Chronicles 32 we read of God be­ing insulted. Sennacherib, king of As­syria, and his officers were threatening the city of Jerusalem. And then in verse 17 we read, “And he wrote letters to cast contempt on the Lord, the God of Israel, and to speak against him, say­ing, ‘Like the gods of the nations of the lands who have not delivered their peo­ple from my hands, so the God of Heze­kiah will not deliver his people from my hand.’”

This king of Assyria questioned the abil­ity of Yahweh to deliver His people. He considered the Lord to be just like any other tribal deity, powerless against his might. We read in verse 19 of this same chapter — “And they spoke of the God of Jerusalem as they spoke of the gods of the peoples of the earth, which are the work of men’s hands.”

This king obviously did not understand how the Lord God is almighty, infinitely great, maker of all the heavens and the earth. The Creator can hardly be com­pared to a god invented by one of His creatures.

In this particular instance, the Lord de­cided He would immediately respond to this abuse. He caused havoc in the ranks of His enemies. And so Sen­nacherib, who had been so bold in his insulting of the Lord, was put to shame, a shame from which he never recov­ered.

How often does this not happen in our world today, that the Christian God is insulted by being compared to the false gods of this world, as if He were no bet­ter, no more effective, than any other god? The Christian faith is considered to be just another religion among many, just another faith option. Hey, we have to make sure that we give equal credit to other gods! And so Christianity is considered to be no better than, say, Hinduism. This is like saying that the Almighty God is no better than any one of the multitude of false Hindu gods, no more powerful, no more legitimate. Whatever works for you. Christianity is considered to be no better than Islam. This is like saying that the triune God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, is no better than the false conception of God worshipped by the Muslims.

It is simply amazing that God would be insulted in this way. That the world has the audacity to treat the God of Scrip­ture so lightly! As if God will not judge the wickedness of those who insult Him in such a blatant fashion. God alone is worthy of all praise and glory, and He will not share His glory with another. He is a jealous God, and rightfully so, because it is terribly sinful to give to some false god the honour and worship that belong to His name alone. He alone is uncreated, infinite, all-powerful, and we insult Him when we do not fully appreciate His exclusive claims to being worthy of worship.

Attacking God’s People Is Attacking God←⤒🔗

Another example of how God is in­sulted: In Psalm 74:18-19 we read, “Remember this, O Lord, how the en­emy scoffs, and a foolish people reviles your name. Do not deliver the soul of your dove to the wild beasts; do not forget the life of your poor forever.” Here, the defeat of the people of God at the hands of their enemies is mentioned in the same breath as God being mocked. The thing is, when God’s peo­ple are attacked, it is an attack upon God.

Consider Isaiah 52:4, 5 — “For thus says the Lord God: ‘My people went down at the first into Egypt to sojourn there, and the Assyrian oppressed them for noth­ing. Now therefore what have I here,’ declares the Lord, ‘seeing that my peo­ple are taken away for nothing? Their rulers wail,’ declares the Lord, ‘and continually all the day my name is despised.’” When God’s people are mocked, He is mocked, His name is blasphemed.

Now why should attacks upon the people of God be the same as insult­ing God? It’s quite simple: God has promised to be the God of His people. He binds Himself to His people, so that their problems become His prob­lems. And so an attack on them is like an attack on Him.

Of course, the people of God are still being attacked today. These days Christians are attacked as extremists if they speak out on such issues as homosexuality and abortion. They are told to keep their faith to them­selves. And who can forget our broth­ers and sisters living in countries where exercising the Christian faith could cause them to be killed? Ulti­mately these attacks are attacks upon God Himself. They are insults to Him.

Christians Also Insult God←⤒🔗

Mind you, it is not only enemies of Christianity who insult God. Chris­tians themselves can also easily do so. They insult God when they do not live as God wants them to live. When those who are supposed to be God’s people do not show it in the way they act, then God is dishonoured.

To illustrate, say I owned a business: Klazinga Kitchens. Now, I go away for a while and leave my employees in charge. And then I come back and find out that everything is a disaster. Customers are leaving left and right, the finances are in disarray, cheques are bouncing, and everything is going downhill. That is not going to reflect very well on me, is it? The negligent employees will have dishonoured my name. How much more is it not the case that God’s people dishonour Him when they do things that are con­trary to God’s Word?

Sinful Swearing Insults God←⤒🔗

Another obvious way to insult God: cursing. There is no doubt that using God’s name in our swearing, our pro­fanity, is certainly insulting to God. Using the name of God as a profanity is a totally inappropriate use of such a holy name. In fact, it is a detestable and heinous sin that makes one wor­thy of death. Sounds pretty drastic, doesn’t it? But as we read in Leviti­cus 24:16 — “Whoever blasphemes the name of the Lord shall surely be put to death. All the congregation shall stone him. The sojourner as well as the native, when he blasphemes the Name, shall be put to death.”

Now, I am certainly not advocating that we personally go out and kill people when we hear them swearing. I’m not even suggesting that the government institute the death penalty for swearing. But the point is this: those who insult God in this way do in fact deserve death, and this certainly shows just how seriously God takes being insulted. You know, it’s important to be reminded of how wrong it is to swear using God’s name. It’s striking that there are some profane words that are considered more offensive than swearing that invokes God’s name. But what can be worse than using God’s name lightly and flip­pantly without giving Him the honour that is due Him?

And notice something important here: this is not just a matter of offending other people, it is a matter of offending God. Some people feel personally of­fended when they hear swearing, as well they should. But swearing is not first of all a sin against other people who happen to have more sensitive ears to that sort of thing. Rather, it is a sin against God. And it certainly is a far more serious matter to offend God than it is to offend other people.

Honour God Instead of Insulting Him←⤒🔗

In summary, any time we do not treat God with the respect that is due to Him as the Holy Majestic God, then we are insulting Him. When He is considered to be just another god, then He does not get the respect He deserves. When His people are attacked, the ones doing the attacking do not respect the power of the Almighty God who has promised to watch over His people. When His people live unholy lives, they are not showing respect to His will for their lives. When people swear, they are not respecting God’s name.

Now obviously, if we are not to insult God, if we are not to show disrespect to God, then it is important for us to do the opposite and positively show respect to God. We must have a proper attitude of reverence for God.

And what is involved in having this atti­tude? Well, for one thing, it means that we will be very careful in referring to God. Every time we call upon God, it should be with a proper attitude of hu­mility. God is not some buddy that we can have a nickname for like, ‘the big guy upstairs’ or ‘the boss’, or other such flippant references to God. God is holy, and He should be treated as such; and every time we call upon Him, it should be with a sense of awe.

Plus, showing respect to God means living as He would have us to live, ac­cording to His Word. And so, honouring the Lord means honouring the Bible. It means humbling ourselves to it, it means seeking to be guided by it in all things, it means treating Scripture with respect.

Also, honouring the Lord means wor­shipping the Lord and joining with others who also love the Lord. Honouring God means praying to Him in a submissive and trusting way, and it means being grateful to God in all things. And there are so many other things that can be said as well. My friends, I would ask you, do you treat God with respect? Do you re­spect God as the only God? Do you seek to honour Him?

Remember, we all deserve death be­cause of the many different ways in which we ourselves have dishonoured God. But thanks be to God, there can be forgiveness because of Christ dy­ing on the cross to pay the price for the sins of His people. Instead of eternal death, we can know eternal life. And so, may we repent of our sin and guilt. May we turn to Him for our salvation. And may we truly seek to show proper respect and honour and worship to Him, the Almighty God.