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Ring of Truth provides 366 daily ‘proofs’ that the Bible is consistent throughout from Genesis to Revelation, and relevant for our lives today!
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Isaiah 58:6–7
“Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter – when you see the naked, to clothe him, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?”
God still feels the same way.
James, the ‘natural’ half-brother of Jesus writes, “Faith without deeds is dead” (James 2:26). He was not propounding a new theology. God hates hypocrisy as much as anything. “God is not mocked” (Galatians 6:7), nor is He stupid or hoodwinked. He knows the truth and He searches our hearts and exposes our motives.
Don’t we hate it when we start reading Matthew only to find that Jesus expands the 10 Commandments to include our thoughts and attitudes? But God is Holy. “God is light; in Him there is no darkness at all” (1 John 1:5). So God not only knows our actions but also our thoughts and motives – and He hates the hypocrite. Ow!
This is the message of Isaiah 58. The people were going through the motions but their hearts and actions were miles away from God. They were a sop to their conscience but did nothing in the eyes of God. Oh yes, they ‘sacrificed’, ‘worshipped’, ‘prayed’, and even ‘fasted’ – but they were still disobedient, rebellious, selfish and independent. They wanted God to bless what they did without doing what God desired, which would have been blessed without their asking.
How often are we like that? “God, please bless me and what I do.” “God bless our church.” “God bless our church programmes.” Yet we don’t even bother to ask Him what He really wants. Today, much of our church activity can continue without the dynamic power of the Holy Spirit. He quietly waits on the sidelines – waiting for us to turn to Him in humility and obedience.
There is even more to this chapter. Not only were they ignoring God, they were exploiting the poor and ignoring the social problems right in front of their noses. They were religiously respectable and legalistic but endorsing a ‘couldn’t care less’ attitude in society.
That is why Christianity is not a Religion. It is primarily a relationship. An obedient relationship with God, which demands a loving relationship with others. We should not be able to sit back and allow injustice to go on unabated. We should initiate social reforms and righteousness. But, more than that, we have an individual responsibility for those around us – including our “own flesh and blood.” To answer Cain’s question – “Am I my brother’s keeper?” (Genesis 4:9) Yes, you are.
As Jesus said, “Whatever you did not do for one of the least of these [brothers of Mine] you did not do it for Me” (Matthew 25:45).
As you look into God’s mirror, what do you see?
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