Scripture:
Isaiah 58:6-14 NKJV
[6] “Is this not the fast that I have chosen: To loose the bonds of wickedness, To undo the heavy burdens, To let the oppressed go free, And that you break every yoke? [7] Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, And that you bring to your house the poor who are cast out; When you see the naked, that you cover him, And not hide yourself from your own flesh? [8] Then your light shall break forth like the morning, Your healing shall spring forth speedily, And 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 extend your soul to the hungry And satisfy the afflicted soul, Then your light shall dawn in the darkness, And your darkness shall be as the noonday. [11] The Lord will guide you continually, And satisfy your soul in drought, And strengthen your bones; You shall be like a watered garden, And like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail. [12] Those from among you Shall build the old waste places; You shall raise up the foundations of many generations; And you shall be called the Repairer of the Breach, The Restorer of Streets to Dwell In. [13] “If you turn away your foot from the Sabbath, From doing your pleasure on My holy day, And call the Sabbath a delight, The holy day of the Lord honorable, And shall honor Him, not doing your own ways, Nor finding your own pleasure, Nor speaking your own words, [14] Then you shall delight yourself in the Lord; And I will cause you to ride on the high hills of the earth, And feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father. The mouth of the Lord has spoken.”
Observation:
Last night as I was reading I stumbled across this passage again. It’s something I have written about a few times, but as I went over it again and again. The verses started setting themselves into my heart. I started asking others if they had gotten the opportunity to read it lately. Unfortunately I got no response from them. My daughter hearted the passage to let me know that she loves scripture and has a heart for Jesus but never said anything about it. However, to be honest I didn’t really anticipate her responding to much because 15 year old girls have other things to reply to via text message. I’m just grateful that she loves scripture. That means her attention is on the LORD. Over the years I have made an attempt to make fasting a regular part of my spiritual walk not to mention a weapon for spiritual warfare. When Jesus teaches HIS disciples about it, HE doesn’t say “IF” you fast, but, “WHEN you fast” so as we look at these scriptures I want us to keep that in mind. One thing that came to mind as I was reading these verses is that religious rituals are one of the things that Jesus Christ seemed to take issue with as HE was confronting the Pharisees and Sadducees. I believe religion drove HIM to a point of irritation, because it removed the one thing that was pivotal, the position of the heart. That’s something that was made clear to me as I read and reread these few verses last night. As I stated a few short days ago Isaiah is one of my favorite prophetic books to read. He has an interesting way of writing what GOD has explained to him. The purpose of this portion in his book is to redirect the Jewish people. They had gotten into the religious habit of fasting. It had become something they did to seemingly earn something from GOD, and what Isaiah wanted them to know is… that’s not how it works. It is important to know the purpose behind something especially if it’s something you are looking into doing. There is a spiritual principle behind it. Skipping meals has some physical benefits, and it’s important to know that. But what’s the point if your heart is still callous and hard. The kind of fasting that GOD desired and still desires is one that gets them outside themselves. One that puts their heart in a position to consider others and draw closer to HIM, they had turned fasting into a way to draw attention to themselves attempting to look spiritual, without changing any aspect of who they were inside. The heart of the matter is that it’s the heart that matters. Considering the needs of others was not even on their mind. Their need to look and feel spiritually superior was the only concern. That led to a heart that was full of pride. A look at me, kind of religious behavior that did absolutely nothing but irritate GOD. As Isaiah talks about the heart position needed to move things in the kingdom, what I see is that GOD’S desire is that we be selfless. HE wanted HIS people to fast so that they could give to others setting themselves aside knowing HE had them, HE showed them that by not only sending prophets to speak messages to them like this one here, but also sending HIS one and only SON to do what religious behavior could never do, change our hearts. The kind of fast HE wants as we look at this is the kind the does not consider that behavior to earn some kind of religious merit from HIM but one that looks at the needs of others and sets aside the needs that they have to meet them. As we look at this spiritual principle and take it into the new testament we see that it’s not something to be talked about, it’s like blowing a trumpet when you give. If you are doing it to be noticed, you have already received your reward.
Application:
I want to be the kind of person that shows the heart of Jesus to others. I’m going to be honest, that’s not always who I am. Sometimes I’m more concerned about my needs than the needs of others. But that’s not where our hearts need to be. The bible tells us to love our neighbors as we love ourselves. This brings me to a question: do you want to go hungry? What about walking around without shoes on? Do you want to know you are loved, or have a place to stay? Can I tell you something? We need a heart change. We need to be looking at those around us and setting aside our needs to show others the heart of Jesus. The question becomes… are we whitewashed tombs full of dead man’s bones? Where is our heart at? Are our needs more important than showing someone who Jesus is? There was a man who came to Jesus and asked HIS if he could stay with HIM. The response that was given was an indication of what was given up in order to do what HE was doing, “Foxes have dens and birds have homes, but the SON of Man has no place to lay HIS head,” HE sacrificed everything so that we would not have to, that’s the heart of GOD. Loving your neighbor runs deeper than saying hi as you get in your cars to go to work. My goal is to give it all away. Storing up anything here on earth is a worthless venture. You can build bigger barns and gather more to put in them but what good is it. This place is not our eternal home. It’s not where we will be when this dirt suit wears out and returns to the dust in which it came. Selfless sacrifice…. That’s the heart I want…. It’s the heart I pursue…. It’s the heart that Jesus had and the heart that everyone of the disciples had as well. They gave up everything so that you could have a picture of what the heart of Jesus looks like. We are only vessels. This life is fading, and soon we will see the king. Where will your heart be on that day? Will it be chasing after earthly possessions and selfish desires? Or will it be seeking after a selfless heart that has given everything for the sake of others? My life is not my own. It has been purchased with a price that I can never repay. Armed with that truth, I will do my best to be as selfless as I know how.
Prayer:
Father, you gave it all for me, and like I said yesterday, sometimes it’s difficult to understand why you would. As many times as I have run from you, rejected you, and flat out disobeyed you. I don’t want that kind of heart. I want a heart that sets aside what I think my needs are, and considers the needs of those around me. Not just in meaningless words, Father but in the actions I take. I want to be shaped and molded to be like your SON. Having HIS mindset. Selfless and self sacrificing. Father, show us how you would have us be. We don’t want to live for this life, It’s too small a thing to live for, and anyone who thinks that it’s important has been lied to. We want to chase after your heart full speed ahead. Making an impact for your kingdom not ours. We don’t want to build bigger barns here. When we have a mansion in the heavens with you. Help us to redirect our thinking so that it lines up with your heart. It’s in the mighty name of Jesus we pray amen.