Religious but Unethical
Notes
Transcript
1 “Cry aloud; do not hold back;
lift up your voice like a trumpet;
declare to my people their transgression,
to the house of Jacob their sins.
2 Yet they seek me daily
and delight to know my ways,
as if they were a nation that did righteousness
and did not forsake the judgment of their God;
they ask of me righteous judgments;
they delight to draw near to God.
3 ‘Why have we fasted, and you see it not?
Why have we humbled ourselves, and you take no knowledge of it?’
Behold, in the day of your fast you seek your own pleasure,
and oppress all your workers.
4 Behold, you fast only to quarrel and to fight
and to hit with a wicked fist.
Fasting like yours this day
will not make your voice to be heard on high.
5 Is such the fast that I choose,
a day for a person to humble himself?
Is it to bow down his head like a reed,
and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him?
Will you call this a fast,
and a day acceptable to the Lord?
6 “Is not this the fast that I choose:
to loose the bonds of wickedness,
to undo the straps of the yoke,
to let the oppressed go free,
and to break every yoke?
7 Is it not to share your bread with the hungry
and bring the homeless poor into your house;
when you see the naked, to cover him,
and not to hide yourself from your own flesh?
8 Then shall your light break forth like the dawn,
and your healing shall spring up speedily;
your righteousness shall go before you;
the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard.
9 Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer;
you shall cry, and he will say, ‘Here I am.’
If you take away the yoke from your midst,
the pointing of the finger, and speaking wickedness,
10 if you pour yourself out for the hungry
and satisfy the desire of the afflicted,
then shall your light rise in the darkness
and your gloom be as the noonday.
11 And the Lord will guide you continually
and satisfy your desire in scorched places
and make your bones strong;
and you shall be like a watered garden,
like a spring of water,
whose waters do not fail.
12 And your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt;
you shall raise up the foundations of many generations;
you shall be called the repairer of the breach,
the restorer of streets to dwell in.
13 “If you turn back your foot from the Sabbath,
from doing your pleasure on my holy day,
and call the Sabbath a delight
and the holy day of the Lord honorable;
if you honor it, not going your own ways,
or seeking your own pleasure, or talking idly;
14 then you shall take delight in the Lord,
and I will make you ride on the heights of the earth;
I will feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father,
for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”
The Context of Isaiah 58
The Context of Isaiah 58
Isaiah 56-57 declare God’s intended plan for His holy community. God envisions a community that is characterized by repentant and faithful people who receive His grace. This community will also live out God’s purpose through obedience to His commands and desires. But the sinful heart needs to be checked often because it can wander into self-centered living. God gives a wake call when religious duties are present but ethical treatment is absent. But He promises to bring blessing to those who repent and turn their ambition to delight in His pleasure, not their own.
Why does God expose the sin of hypocrisy?
Why does God expose the sin of hypocrisy?
1. God loves us.
God loves His people dearly and promises to show mercy and grace toward repentance. He will discipline those He loves. When you truly love someone, you will want the best for them. The term “what is best” is often subjective for human to human relationships. But God is all-wise and knows what is BEST for us. Like a good shepherd who calls out to the wandering sheep, God calls out the sin of His people. He exposes our dirty laundry so that we can take it to the cross and receive forgiveness.
Illustration of the Unmentionables
God wants to purify us to be white as snow. Isaiah 1:18. God exposes our unmentionables so that we can repent and receive forgiveness and LIFE.
2. We often corrupt godly rituals.
Fasting in the Old Testament was required for the sacred Day of Atonement. In addition, fasting was the appropriate response toward mourning a loss or an act of repentance. It was a proper response to God, but the people here had made it into something else.
The people were acting like the other religions of their time. To score good favor, the people did extreme things to manipulate the gods to make favorable actions. Isaiah declares that they are doing these rituals out of a self-centered motivation. Three times, God mentions that they are focused not on drawing near to God but on satisfying their selfish personal desires.
It is very easy for us to take something that is meant to aid us in drawing closer to God in obedience, faith, and worship and then proceed to make it into something that will arouse the disciplining hand of God. Spiritual rituals such as fasting, praying, or attending church will only be effective if we submit our desires to serve God and others instead of serving ourselves.
20 If with Christ you died to the elemental spirits of the world, why, as if you were still alive in the world, do you submit to regulations— 21 “Do not handle, Do not taste, Do not touch” 22 (referring to things that all perish as they are used)—according to human precepts and teachings? 23 These have indeed an appearance of wisdom in promoting self-made religion and asceticism and severity to the body, but they are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh.
Anything we do as a spiritual discipline needs to be focused on God alone and be free from selfish desire.
3. God desires godly treatment of people.
This brings us to the main complaint that God has toward their fasting. It is full of selfish desire. Selfish desire emphasizes the making one’s self the primary pursuit. And selfish desire will always result in us treating others in a self-serving manner.
God points out the two ways the people have lived out selfish desires. First, they have oppressing their workers. The scenario is that someone has hired a person and withheld part or all of the wages. They endeavor to cheat them through some means. This could be by charging interest, taking essential items as a security deposit, or changing the terms of an agreement without notice. Secondly, the resulting situation would most likely cause a confrontation, but instead of being true to their agreement, they used sinful fists to solve the matter.
God rebukes them and then declares his desire for them to act toward others in the community. In verse 6, the people are not to treat others like they treat the farming animals. People are created in God’s image, and they are to treat them fairly and not place others in a position of “owing,” from which they can never be free.
Instead, God’s people are to nourish and care for others so that they can offer a way to provide the basic needs of life. What a shame it is for God’s community to ignore the needs of those within it. God has placed us together within a spiritual family so that we may give and receive mutual love and care that reflects God’s love and forgiveness. Spiritual rituals without godly treatment of others is empty action.
God promises blessing for obedience
God promises blessing for obedience
The closing words of the chapter reveal God’s desire for a change in action and though. He promises that those who leave the hypocrisy of self-centered ritual will be blessed. God declares that His way will have the following effect:
He will make them bright lights that drives away the darkness.
God will lead them into a satisfying life that depends upon Him.
God will continually renew their strength.
God will help rebuild that which has been torn down because of sin.
Lastly, God reminds the people of honoring the Sabbath Day. The Sabbath was a command that reinforced the importance of obedience to God and faith in God’s promises. It was a weekly reminder and ritual intended for them to stop work to focus on God.
The Sabbath also had another application in the Sabbath Year and the Year of Jubilee. In the Sabbath year, the people were required to give the section of land a rest from planting and harvesting. And the Year of Jubilee was a year when all debts were canceled, and any land that was sold or transferred reverted back to the original family clan.
In the Sabbath concept, God declared that He was in charge of the preservation of human life. Humanity needed to work but ultimately recognize God’s authority and provision. The land and all things belonged to Him. Things were to be used for God’s glory and not selfish gain. Humanity was to hold on to things with a fairly loose grip. When God’s people live this way toward the physical things of life, we move toward a God-centered life.
Today, we can honor God in the Sabbath by taking a day to take a break from our pursuit of income, worship God, and rest in Him with faith knowing that God will supply all our needs.
Final Thoughts
Final Thoughts
We can not have justice without the cross of Christ.
We are poor standards of what is right and just. Therefore justice without Christ will never achieve the goal of equitable treatment of others. Injustice is a sin issue that must be solved through God’s perspective and solution. Unjust treatment of others is often the result of self-centered living. It comes in the form of us believing that others exist for my pleasure and benefit. It also comes in the form of holding on to grudges and withholding forgiveness. This is only solved by us remembering God’s forgiveness of our sins. God has cancelled the debt of sin that we owed through Jesus Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection. This is the basis for us to treat others with the same grace and mercy that we receive from God but do not deserve.
23 “Therefore the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his servants. 24 When he began to settle, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents. 25 And since he could not pay, his master ordered him to be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and payment to be made. 26 So the servant fell on his knees, imploring him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.’ 27 And out of pity for him, the master of that servant released him and forgave him the debt. 28 But when that same servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii, and seizing him, he began to choke him, saying, ‘Pay what you owe.’ 29 So his fellow servant fell down and pleaded with him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you.’ 30 He refused and went and put him in prison until he should pay the debt. 31 When his fellow servants saw what had taken place, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their master all that had taken place. 32 Then his master summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. 33 And should not you have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?’ 34 And in anger his master delivered him to the jailers, until he should pay all his debt. 35 So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart.”
Proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus Christ includes God’s word and the care for the needs of others.
31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. 32 Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left. 34 Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, 36 I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ 37 Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? 38 And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? 39 And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ 40 And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’