The reproach (part 1)

Throughout the Bible, there are a number of passages that speak of God’s people living in a state of reproach – that is, a state of shame and disgrace that resulted in their becoming a laughingstock, having to endure the ridicule, mocking, and scoffing of onlookers. As bad as this would be for any people, it was even worse for the people of God, since any shame they endured reflected directly upon God as well.

Because of this, it has always been and still is the plan of Satan to somehow bring a reproach upon God’s people, so that he might not only ridicule them, but through them ridicule God as well. And unfortunately, though many Christians are unaware of it, there is a very real reproach upon the people of God today. It is very important for us to understand the nature of this reproach so that together, by the power of the Holy Spirit, we can begin to remove it.

One of the simplest and yet most powerful insights the Bible gives us concerning the nature of reproach is found in the illustration of a woman having children. By God’s design, women are designed to bear children, just as fruit trees are designed to bear fruit. A number of passages even refer to Children as “the fruit of the womb.” Psalm 127:3 declares that “children are a gift of the LORD; the fruit of the womb is a reward.” And in Luke 1:42, after learning that Mary was pregnant with the Messiah, Elizabeth declared, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!”

Because of this view of childbirth, it was considered shameful in the Jewish culture for a woman to be childless, and such women were often looked upon with scorn and ridicule. Women in this position lived under a constant state of reproach. A good example of this is Jacob’s wife Rachel. For many years she was barren, while Jacob’s other wife Lea continued to bear children. Finally Rachel too conceived and gave birth to Joseph, at which time she declared, “God has taken away my reproach.” (Genesis 30:23)

Another similar example is Hannah. Like Rachel, Hannah was not only barren, but had to live with the continual taunting of her husband’s other wife, who had borne her husband a number of children. 1 Samuel 1:7 gives us an idea how unpleasant this reproach was to Hannah, stating that, “Her rival provoked her till she wept and would not eat.” We also get an idea of how strong the reproach of being fruitless is for women in Isaiah 4:1. This verse speaks of a time of coming judgment in which so many men would die in battle that there would not be enough husbands for all the women, and consequently there would be many women without children. The verse says that in those days, “Seven women will take hold of one man in that day, saying, "We will eat our own bread and wear our own clothes, only let us be called by your name; take away our reproach!”

At this point you may be wondering what the reproach endured by childless women in the Jewish culture has to do with the reproach that is upon the people of God today. You may be surprised to find that these two seemingly different situations are actually very similar. Ultimately the reason being childless is such a reproach for women is because, as I said before, God designed women to bear children. A woman who is childless is not merely denied the pleasures and joys of motherhood she is denied the fullness of God’s design for her life. And this, as I said earlier, ultimately reflects poorly upon God as well.

What may not be readily apparent from the passages I mentioned earlier is that, in the case of married couple, the reproach felt by childless women was borne by their husbands as well. Psalm 128:2-3 says that one of the blessings upon the man who fears the is that his wife will be “like a fruitful vine.” The clear implication from this passage was that, if a man’s wife was not a “fruitful vine,” then the blessing of the Lord did not rest upon him. Consequently a man in such a position would find himself also having to endure the reproach of others.

This very same thing is true of the church, which is referred to in several passages as the “bride” of Christ. As the bride of Christ, the church has the incredible honor of being called to “bear fruit for God” (Romans 7:4). But the church is not just designed to bear fruit for God but the fruit of God. Just as in a natural marriage, it is only through intimacy with her husband that the church can bear his fruit – also referred to in scripture as “the fruit of righteousness” (Isaiah 61:3, Philippians 1:11), “the fruit of the spirit” (Galatians 5:22-23), “the fruit of light” (Ephesians 5:9) and “the fruit of the kingdom.” (Matthew 21:43) And the simple fact is, that if the church is not bearing “the fruit of the kingdom,” it is experiencing less that the fullness of God’s design for it, and therefore comes under the reproach of the enemy.