A Fresh Look at Isaiah 58
*I used the Names of God Bible in
quoting the scriptures here simply because it is interesting to see what names
of the Lord are used and in what context.
I wanted
to write about this chapter after reading it again today because somethings
caught my attention as never before.
The
chapter starts off with a command and a judgement.
Tell my people
about their rebellion
and
the descendants of Jacob about their sins.
2 They look for me
every day and want to know my ways.
They
act as if they were a nation that has done what is right
and
as if they haven’t disregarded Elohim’s judgment
on them.
They
ask me for just decrees.
They
want Elohim to
be near them.
3 Why have we fasted
if you are not aware of it?
Why
have we inflicted pain on ourselves if you don’t pay attention?
I have read this portion of
scripture many times and skipped by it onto the next few verses, thinking that
verses 1-5 did not apply to me. Today, though, they convicted me. I do try to
look to Him every day and live by His word. I seek to know Him more and yearn
to sit at his feet and talk to Him. I ask Him to answer my prayers and to lead
me according to His will for my life. I want to be near Him. It's not like I am
just paying Him lip service, I genuinely want to know Him and be like Him. I
genuinely want to glorify His name.
I have also asked him the very
question that these people are asking. "Why have I fasted but then not
seen an answer to my prayers? Why have I gone hungry and devoted myself to
spending time with you only to still find myself undelivered? Why have I not
received even though I ask? Why is the door closed even though I knock? Didn't
you say that if I abide in you and you remain in me, I can ask you anything?
That if I pray effectively and fervently, without ceasing, my prayers will be
answered? That if I delight in you, you will give me the desires of my heart?
All your promises are good and true and you are faithful to fulfill every word
that you speak. So, when God, When? And How?"
His response?
"Don’t you
see that on the days you fast,
you
do what you want to do?
You
mistreat all your workers.
4 Don’t you see that
when you fast,
you
quarrel and fight and beat your workers?
The
way you fast today keeps you from being heard in heaven.
5 Is this the kind
of fasting I have chosen?
Should
people humble themselves for only a day?
Is
fasting just bowing your head like a cattail
and
making your bed from sackcloth and ashes?
Is
this what you call fasting?
Is
this an acceptable day to Yahweh?"
Wow. How many times, have I, on
the days I set aside to fast, done what I wanted to do? Oh I fasted. I spent
the time with God. I sat before him with my Bible and my journal, with my water
bottle and prayed. But when I got up, did I show any fruit of time spent in
prayer? Not always, unfortunately. I would sit in the morning for an hour or two
(because I woke up late), half asleep, not really motivated. But hey, I didn't
eat breakfast. I really did sit for prayer. Then I would go to work, come home
and study, maybe read a book. Yell at my brother, argue with my parents. Watch
Netflix. Pray a little more and go to bed. Hey, I fasted, right? Nope. I
abstained from food. That's really all I did.
That way of fasting "keeps [me] from being heard in heaven." It's not the kind of fasting that is
acceptable to my Holy God. It's offensive, really. Suppose a friend said
"Hey, let’s hang out today, I have to go to work, but I'm free at this
time". I would go to meet with them, expecting to have a great time for at
least a few hours. But when I get there, suppose they are texting half the
time, not making an effort really to talk or when they do talk, they don't let
me get a word in edgewise. Then a couple hours later, they look at their watch,
say they have to go to work and we should get together more often and walk out
the door. How would I feel? How does God feel when I do the same to Him? And
how does he feel when I come back a few hours or a few days later and say
"Look, God. I fasted, I prayed, I spent time with you, why haven't you
done this for me?" What if it's not just a one-time thing? What if I keep
doing that? Looking back, I realize now that I have done that many times. At
the time, it didn't feel like such a big deal, (“I was busy after all and God
understands”) but now in the light of this, I have to confess that I really
wasn't sincere or genuine. I just wanted God to work for me without my having
to sacrifice to much of "me time"
It's OK, if all I can do is
spend an hour or two with God. Or even just half an hour. But that time
should be quality time. Not measured in quantity. When I truly spend quality
time with God, there is a noticeable change. Nothing huge usually.
It's more that I am joyful and content and satisfied, more so than normal. I am
normally a very optimistic, glass-half-full kinda girl but on those days when I
really am with God, there's just a little something more there. I don't really
know how to explain it.
6 This is the kind
of fasting I have chosen:
Loosen
the chains of wickedness,
untie
the straps of the yoke,
let
the oppressed go free,
and
break every yoke.
7 Share your food
with the hungry,
take
the poor and homeless into your house,
and
cover them with clothes when you see them naked.
Don’t
refuse to help your relatives.
Honestly speaking, I don't go
out of my way to "loosen chains and untie straps". I do try to help
people whenever I can, however I can. But I think this verse is speaking of
more than just that. I think it's about giving of myself to show Jesus to the
world every day. It's talking to that person at work everyone else looks down
on. Its making an effort to be available to someone when I would much rather be
by myself. It's making myself open to letting the Holy Spirit interrupt my day
to do what He wants to do. It’s about seeking first His kingdom so all else can
be added to me.
8 Then your light
will break through like the dawn,
and
you will heal quickly.
Your
righteousness will go ahead of you,
and
the glory of Yahweh will
guard you from behind.
9 Then you will
call, and Yahweh will
answer.
You
will cry for help, and he will say, “Here I am!”
If I make an effort to seek Him
first. If I make the conscious choice to not just sit with God for a
time but to LIVE Him out in my normal day to day life at work and school and
home, in the car, at the mall or even waiting in line at the ATM, "Then [I] will
call, and Yahweh will
answer.
[I]
will cry for help, and he will say, “Here I am!” The he will "make [my]
righteousness shine like the dawn, the justice of [my] cause like the noonday
sun (Ps 37). He promises that:
10 [my] light will rise in the dark,
and [my] darkness
will become as bright as the noonday sun.
11 Yahweh will
continually guide [me]
and
satisfy [me] even in sun-baked places.
He
will strengthen [my] bones.
[I] will become like a watered garden
and
like a spring whose water does not stop flowing.
12 [my] people
will rebuild the ancient ruins
and
restore the foundations of past generations.
[I] will be called the Rebuilder of Broken Walls
and
the Restorer of Streets Where People Live.
In other words, living Him out
means not just that He will answer my prayers, but that His power will flow,
enabling me to break generational curses, set free the captives being held
in bondage by the Enemy, rebuild broken lives and lead people to
the saving grace of God so that they too can live Him out.
13 If you stop
trampling on the day of worship
and
doing as you please on my holy day,
if
you call the day of worship a delight
and Yahweh’s holy day honorable,
if
you honor it by not going your own way,
by
not going out when you want, and by not talking idly,
But first, before I can be the
"Rebuilder" and "Restorer" I need to look at
spending time with God as more than just a "Christian duty" on the
list of thou shalts and thou shalt nots. I need to stop looking to satisfy me
on the days or hours I devote to God. I need to realize, it’s not about me and
what I want. It’s about Him and what He wants. It’s about being satisfied in
Him. To be content in Him. To really know that even if my house burns down
tomorrow, even if I get into a terrible accident and become paralyzed, even if
I lose everyone I love, I will be OK, because I have Him and He is
more than enough. He holds my life in His hands, he is in control and he
will never abandon me. It is so easy to say that. It’s so easy to say I believe
that. But can I live that? Can I stop living for myself and start living for
him? Can I stop focusing on me and start focusing on Him? Not just Can I, but
Will I. If I will honor God in my every day, starting with my time of worship
and prayer, if I will honor that time by not going m own way, by not going out
when I want, by not spending my hours and days idly,14 then [I] will find
joy in Yahweh.
[He]
will make [me] ride on the heights of the earth.
[He] will feed [me] with the inheritance
of [my] ancestor Jacob.
Yahweh has spoken.
Sincerely,
Praising Him Who Saved Me
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