Scripture abounds in reasons to glorify the name of the Lord and shows us numerous ways we bring glory to His name. The Word also shows us what failing to bring glory to His name might look like.
Ways we Might Fail to Bring Glory to His name.
We fail to bring glory to God’s name when we do the following. Many of the verses relate directly to Israel in Old Testament time so not everything in the verses will apply to us. We can, however, fail to bring glory to His name in these ways.
don’t revere His name
If you do not carefully follow all the words of this law, which are written in this book, and do not revere this glorious and awesome name – the Lord your God – the Lord will send fearful plagues on you and your descendants, harsh and prolonged disasters, and severe and lingering illnesses. (Deut. 28:58-59)
revile His name
How long will the enemy mock you, God? Will the foe revile your name forever? — Remember how the enemy has mocked you, Lord, how foolish people have reviled your name. (Ps. 74:10, 18)
profane His name
I myself will set my face against him and will cut him off from his people; for by sacrificing his children to Molek, he has defiled my sanctuary and profaned my holy name. (Lev. 20:3)
blaspheme His name
Say to the Israelites: ‘Anyone who curses their God will be held responsible; anyone who blasphemes the name of the LORD is to be put to death. (Lev. 24:15-16)
misuse His name
You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name. (Ex. 20:7)
They speak of you with evil intent; your adversaries misuse your name. (Ps. 139:20)
dishonor His name
Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you and say, ‘Who is the Lord?’ Or I may become poor and steal, and so dishonor the name of my God. (Prov. 30:9)
fail to call on His name
Pour out your wrath on the nations that do not acknowledge you, on the kingdoms that do not call on your name. (Ps. 79:6)
We may not blatantly do the above but even subtly doing so affects the glory we bring to His name. Since His name represents God, failure to treat His name as holy is the same as disrespecting and dishonoring Him. It may not be the words we say but our actions that fail to glorify His name.
What Happens When We Fail to Bring Glory to His Name
God’s glory doesn’t lessen by what we do or don’t do. He is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow (Ps. 90:2; Mal. 3:6; Heb. 13:8; James 1:17). Failing to bring glory to His name by doing what was mentioned above, however, does have effects on us and those around us.
- It puts us in an adversarial position with God. Even but a moment out of sync with our Creator God seems rather foolish.
- Our lives won’t cause others to bring glory to His name. When we fail to glorify His name, others don’t see the full reflection of who He is in us (Matt. 5:14-16).
Though the Israelites of old repeatedly desecrated the glory of His name and did incur the consequences about which they were warned, God constantly offered restoration.
We have a faithful God. — If we are faithless, he remains faithful, for he cannot disown himself. (2 Tim. 2:13)
We have a forgiving God. — If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. (1 Jn. 1:9)