August 7 - Isaiah 58:9b-14

August 7 – Isaiah 58:9b-14

“If you do away with the yoke of oppression, with the pointing finger and malicious talk, and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday. The LORD will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail. Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins and will raise up the age-old foundations; you will be called Repairer of Broken Walls, Restorer of Streets with Dwellings.  “If you keep your feet from breaking the Sabbath and from doing as you please on my holy day, if you call the Sabbath a delight and the LORD’s holy day honorable, and if you honor it by not going your own way and not doing as you please or speaking idle words, then you will find your joy in the LORD, and I will cause you to ride on the heights of the land and to feast on the inheritance of your father Jacob.” The mouth of the LORD has spoken.

Isaiah repeats himself.  These are words we need to hear continually. 

Stop speaking against people, stop accusing people.  Spend yourself.

Very few of us actually give more of ourselves than is necessary.  We’ll do a couple of good deeds throughout the year, work on a committee, sing in the choir, maybe go on a week-long mission trip, facilitate a Bible study and then we’ll walk away feeling satisfied. 

No!  He calls us to care for the hungry and oppressed.  Spend yourself!  As soon as that happened, the Lord would satisfy their needs, He would strengthen them. 

The Israelites were caring only for themselves.  They kept their community pure and tight.  They followed the rules, but they did these things to make their lives easier, to make their lives more comfortable.  They gave absolutely no thought to anyone outside their community.

God wanted more for them and more from them. 

The Israelites spent the Sabbath day doing as they pleased.  They created the Sabbath for the worship of themselves.  They had absolutely no use for God on that day.  God called them to make the day holy unto Him, to do as He called them to do.  To come before Him in worship, offering themselves completely on the one day of the week that was set aside for Him.  It was never about rushing through worship so that they could get home and start their day, it was all about gathering in His presence and offering adoration to the One who would bring them joy.

Spend yourself on those in need.  Worship the Lord alone.  It sounds as if God is worn out with the self-centered religiosity of the Israelites.  I wonder how He feels about us?