Murderers and Other Disobedients

Isaiah 1:21

How the faithful city has become a harlot! It was full of justice; Righteousness lodged in it, But now murderers.

The first chapter of Isaiah tells us that the faithful city has become a degenerate city. God longs to bring us back to him and set us back in righteousness, but we must obey him. God started out setting us up in beauty, but our sins have made it ugly.

Last week I mentioned that God’s job is vengeance. We’re supposed to stay away from that and let him do it. In Isaiah 1:24, God again says he will take vengeance on his enemies.

God intends to correct us and get us back on the right track. His will is for us to live in peace and order. But we can’t live in the beauty that God provides if we are disobedient and disrespectful to him. Adam found that out when he was kicked out of the Garden of Eden. We have to carefully watch ourselves and be diligent to obey God. When we allow ourselves to go crazy with selfishness and sin, we end up as unrighteous murderers.

In Isaiah 1:19-20, we read that our obedience brings blessing.

“If you are willing and obedient, You shall eat the good of the land; But if you refuse and rebel, You shall be devoured by the sword”; For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.

Yes, we have all sinned, but there is hope in God. If we return to him and accept his love, there is hope for us.

Prepare for Love

Isaiah 40:3-5

A voice of one calling: “In the wilderness prepare the way for the LORD; make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be raised up, every mountain and hill made low; the rough ground shall become level, the rugged places a plain. And the glory of the LORD will be revealed, and all people will see it together. For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.”

This month, I’ve mentioned becoming spiritually aware and allowing God to shine his light through you so you can do the good works he designed you to do. But none of that makes any sense if you don’t have a relationship with God.

Nobody welcomes a door-to-door salesman into their home and throws an impromptu party for him. Mostly because they don’t know the salesman.

If someone is suspicious and distrustful of God, that’s usually because they don’t know him. Getting to know God takes time, but God makes it pretty easy for us. There are a lot of descriptions of God in the Bible. Each one of them agrees that God is love. He is a special kind of peaceful love. A love that is very powerful. A protecting love. A passionate love.

He is the kind of God you want to make room for in your life. If you heard someone down the street yelling that God was coming to your house, you’d want to prepare for him, but you wouldn’t have a lot of time.

You couldn’t go out and buy new furniture or order a catered dinner. All you have time to do is straighten the rug. If you’re tempted to hide behind the door and not answer because of what he may see, don’t worry. He already knows what’s in there. He knows who you are and what you have, and he’s interested in you.

With him about to knock on your door, all you can do is prepare to welcome him. Your mountain of laundry cannot get in the way. Your rough schedule will have to be cleared. In order to welcome him, you must take a moment and quiet your heart.

Prepare to receive encouragement from him, expect instruction from him. But know that whatever he reveals to you will change your heart. If you prepare to receive God’s presence, he will feel welcomed. If he feels welcomed, he will reveal something of himself to you, and you won’t be the only one who sees what God reveals.

It might not be like when Moses came down the mountain after being in the presence of God. Everyone could see the light of God still shining on his face. With you, it might be that people will be able to tell that you’ve been with God because of the love showing up in your attitudes and actions.

Prepare a place in your heart for God and see what happens.

Shine the Light

Isaiah 60:1-3

Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD rises upon you. See, darkness covers the earth and thick darkness is over the peoples, but the LORD rises upon you and his glory appears over you. Nations will come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your dawn.

When you are being noticed for doing good, recognize that you are a flashlight shining in a dark room. Without the batteries, or the power of God in your life, you can’t shine your light.

Many people think that if they are talented enough, nations will come to their light. If they could just sing really well or dance or play an instrument well enough, everyone would notice them and life would be good.

But they are mistaken. When God’s light shines through us, that brightness makes everything else pale and dim. God’s light helps us see what is true and what is false. The light of God shining through us is big enough to heal bodies, bright enough to mend relationships, and strong enough to put out the fires of hell.

So if you use your gifts to help others, you are able to allow God’s light into the situation. Don’t ever think you can’t shine your light. No matter what your talent is, your light is bright when you let God shine through you.

You were created to shine, so shine.

What is your prayer? Share it with Him now.

Protection in the Storm

Isaiah 4:5-6

Then the LORD will create over all of Mount Zion and over those who assemble there a cloud of smoke by day and a glow of flaming fire by night; over all the glory will be a canopy. It will be a shelter and shade from the heat of the day, and a refuge and hiding place from the storm and rain.

When Hurricane Ike came through Houston, my family decided to stay in our house to see what would happen around us during the storm. It was the first time we didn’t leave town before a hurricane hit.

God protected us. Our children were old enough to help clear debris from the yard, but we didn’t have that much work to do in the aftermath. We lost one tree and buckets of leaves. We lost electricity for a few days, but other than a little spoiled food, we came out all right. Our roof didn’t have any leaks. We were safe.

We listened to reports on the radio and prayed for those who lost their homes. God used many with gifts from neighbor to neighbor, sharing generator power and much needed encouragement. We knew God was our shelter, and we leaned on him.

God has proven himself in so many ways. When I read in the Bible about God’s provision and protection, I can add my own stories to the discussion. If we keep remembering what God has already done for us, it’s easier for us to expect the fatherly love of God to show up again and again.

Protection for the Obedient

Isaiah 25:4

You have been a refuge for the poor, a refuge for the needy in his distress, a shelter from the storm and a shade from the heat.

Verse two of Isaiah 25 reminds me of the battle of Jericho. The strong, fortified city of Jericho became a heap of rubble and a ruin, not because of the tanks and bazookas of the Hebrew people. They didn’t have any tanks and bazookas. They had their obedience to God. That was weapon enough to pull down the enormous, reinforced city walls.

Verse five reminds me of the Cloud by day and the Fire by night that guided the Hebrew slaves in the wilderness after they left Egypt. When the cloud of God hovers, there is relief from the oppressing heat of the desert. When God is with you, you can escape oppression no matter where it comes against you.

God protected the people as they left Egypt and he carried out their protection in the battle of Jericho. He is able to do that and more for you today.

He takes in the needy and protects those who follow him. That’s a great reason for us to look to God for our shelter. He covers us and hides us from the storm.

Widows and Orphans

Isaiah 1:17

Learn to do right! Seek justice, encourage the oppressed. Defend the cause of the fatherless, plead the case of the widow.

Last month, I showed in the first chapter of Isaiah how we can see God’s heart for his children. Today, I want you to see some things in that chapter that are very important to him.

In many places in the Bible, we can see the same issues coming to the forefront. God loves those who are oppressed. He wants to be the Father to the fatherless and Husband to the widow.

He wants our lives to be full of joy and peace, but if we’re oppressed, we’re not experiencing all God has for us. If we lack the fatherly guidance we need, we can go to God for that support. Women who have lost the care, provision, strength, and encouragement of a loving husband can go to God who wants to meet all their needs.

God wants to broaden our understanding of who he is. If we will take up his cause and work with him to alleviate the pain of the helpless, we will grow closer to him and draw strength from him.

God wants to help those who need it, but he wants to use our hands and feet.

God's Heart

Isaiah 1: 27

Zion will be redeemed with justice, her penitent ones with righteousness.

If you want to see God’s heart, read chapter one of Isaiah. The parental frustrations we feel have been felt by the God who created us. His heart cries for his children. He wants to give us the very best, but we make it difficult because of our rebellion.

To get past the language barriers some Bible translations cause, I’ve made up my own paraphrase, the LSV, or Laura’s Simplified Version. I read verse 2 like this: “I raised children, but they rebelled against me.”

I know how it is to plan good for my children and have to change plans because I can’t let the in-my-face disobedience go by without notice. I have to make my kids aware that they’re not going to be rewarded for bad behavior.

God taught us how to raise our kids. He taught us how to love with kindness and with discipline. He taught us how to recognize the empty pleadings of children who aren’t sorry they sinned, but are sorry they got caught.

Verses 13-15 speak to that. (LSV: Laura’s Simplified Version) Stop begging. Your prayers aren’t being answered because they’re not being heard.

Or in The Message, it reads like this. “Quit your worship charades. I can’t stand your trivial religious games: Monthly conferences, weekly Sabbaths, special meetings – meetings, meetings, meetings, – I can’t stand one more! Meetings for this, meetings for that. I hate them! You’ve worn me out! I’m sick of your religion, religion, religion, while you go right on sinning. When you put on your next prayer-performance, I’ll be looking the other way.”

But God doesn’t complain about our bad behavior without giving a way to improve our attitudes and actions. Check out verse 17: (NASB) “Learn to do good. Seek justice, Reprove the ruthless, Defend the orphan, Plead for the widow.”

God also tries to give us help with our decision-making. He wants us to know that a reward is available. There is something to work toward. Verse 18-19 sounds like this to me: (LSV) Think this through. Be reasonable. There is hope for the obedient.

Part of the reward for obeying God fully is being known as God’s obedient child. Verse 26 lists a couple of other names: (LSV) After I restore justice, you will be known as the faithful and righteous city.

Just like I love my kids enough to do what it takes to help them turn away from bad behavior, God is determined to help us get our heads on straight. He’ll discipline us if we need it. God shows us that his ways are better than ours, and he will help us become what he designed us to be. Verse 27 is filled with hope for us. (NIV) “Zion will be redeemed with justice, her penitent ones with righteousness.”

How To Hear God, part five

Isaiah 8:17 KJV

And I will wait upon the LORD, that hideth his face from the house of Jacob, and I will look for him.

Waiting on someone is a “give and take” experience.

A waiter in a restaurant is willing to do what the customer asks or, in other words, has a desire to hear and obey. He introduces himself, gets to know the customer and makes her feel welcome. He listens before serving. He comes back to ask if the food is suitable, refill the drink, or supply more condiments. These are steps one through four of this series on how to hear God.

A waiter is also patient. If the customer is slow in giving the order, the waiter gives her more time and comes back later to see if she’s ready.

Never does the waiter stand in front of the customer and plead, “Oh, great customer, I say to you in the name of my employer, what would you have me serve you? Tell me now while I wait here on bended knee. Please, make me wait no longer. I’ll do anything. Just let me serve you today.”

That would be ridiculous.

But isn’t that the attitude of some church people who don’t listen to what they’re saying to God in prayer?

In some ways, God is like that customer who keeps coming in to see what we’re willing to serve. If He feels welcomed every time He’s with you, He’ll want to hang out with you permanently. If He feels loved because you’re paying attention to Him, you’ll hear from Him.

If you want to hear from God, wait upon the Lord like you’re the waiter in the restaurant. Wait with patience.

When your constant effort in getting to know God is balanced with patience, the journey to hearing God better and knowing Him intimately will last a long time. That’s good. It takes forever to know God because there’s so much to know. You are seeking the God who is limitless and multi-faceted.

Don’t get frustrated after working at the relationship for three weeks. Only three weeks, and now you’re giving up?

Wait upon the Lord.

Step five of hearing from God is staying patient.