Two Themes

Once again Isaiah is commanded to preach about the sins of Israel. And while he is to do this quite pointedly, the goal is still very constructive. Jesus wants to do good and not just to Isaiah’s audience. He also wants to do good to us. The focus of the sermon will be on two themes of Scripture that thread their way through our text. Like last week, I’m going to read our text, Isaiah 58, a section at a time.

Here are verses 1-4. ‘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. 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. ‘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. 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.’

The first verse is Jesus’ command to Isaiah to trumpet the sins of His people. As a preacher, I was struck by this. Who wants to hear someone shouting their sins? It’s not surprising that preachers aren’t always very popular. And what is this great sin that Isaiah is to trumpet about? It’s all tied to the question in verse 3. Here, the people are telling Jesus, ‘We have been appropriately religious. But You aren’t keeping your side of the bargain. We’ve been fasting, but we aren’t seeing You blessing. What’s the problem, Jesus?’ Now, notice how Jesus responds. ‘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…’ ‘Yes, they are doing all the religious things, even doing them daily. But it’s just an act. In reality they’re rejecting Me.’ And then there are Jesus’ comments about quarrelling and the like. It’s not clear what this fighting is all about, but what is clear is that their goal in being religious is to get an advantage over those they fighting with. For these folk, being religious is not about Jesus and following Him. It’s all about themselves. So, there are two parts to their problem here. First, they act religious, but they really aren’t. Second, they act religious but not for Jesus’ sake. They act religious just for themselves.

There is one word that covers both parts of this problem: hypocrisy. These folk were hypocrites. That’s when the inside of life doesn’t match the outside, when words that are professed don’t match how the life is lived. Being a hypocrite is being insincere. And this isn’t surprising. What should we expect when one’s religion is self-serving? You may remember that this same problem of hypocrisy showed up earlier in Isaiah: ‘This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me…’ Jesus applies this quote to the hypocrites of His own day, the Pharisees. So, this isn’t a problem that is limited to Isaiah’s day. It’s something that is always around, even to our own day.

Don’t misunderstand me here. We all have a certain disconnect between what we say and what we do. We still sin even though we profess to follow Jesus. But let me tell you what makes the difference. The real you wants to follow Jesus. That is who you really are. This became yours when you were born again. Though you don’t follow Jesus as well as you might, you really want to. And there is a way that you can tell that you really want to follow Jesus. When the Spirit points to some sin, you repent. There’s the proof. The hypocrite, on the other hand, really wants to follow his own agenda, not Jesus. For him, religion, this Jesus thing, has its place, but it’s a secondary thing, a means to the goal of pleasing himself. So, even when you sin, you’re not being hypocritical. Your repentance and faith is proof of that. So, listen to the Spirit. When He points out some sin, repent. As you do this you will see more and more clearly that the real you wants to follow Jesus. You will see that you are no hypocrite.

That’s the first theme of our text. Now for the second. Here, Jesus poses a question, verse 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?’ Did you notice that everything here was about outward behavior? Any hypocrite can do that, and the people of Isaiah’s day were evidently good at it. But what good is that? So, Jesus points to the alternative that He has in mind. Basically, He’s saying, ‘Do you want to be truly religious? Then, here are some things to do.’ Verses 6,7: ‘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? 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?’ The theme here is obvious. Jesus calls His people to care for the poor.

Remember that the prophet’s role was not to declare new commands from Jesus. His role was to remind the people of the old commands that they had promised to obey. So, it’s no surprise that the Old Testament is filled with commands about the care of the poor. Let me read just a bit of that.

This is from Deuteronomy. “If among you, one of your brothers should become poor, in any of your towns within your land that the Lord your God is giving you, you shall not harden your heart or shut your hand against your poor brother, but you shall open your hand to him and lend him sufficient for his need, whatever it may be. Take care lest there be an unworthy thought in your heart and you say, ‘The seventh year, the year of release is near,’ and your eye look grudgingly on your poor brother, and you give him nothing, and he cry to the Lord against you, and you be guilty of sin. You shall give to him freely, and your heart shall not be grudging when you give to him, because for this the Lord your God will bless you in all your work and in all that you undertake. For there will never cease to be poor in the land. Therefore I command you, ‘You shall open wide your hand to your brother, to the needy and to the poor, in your land.’”

This is from Leviticus. “When you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap your field right up to its edge, neither shall you gather the gleanings after your harvest. And you shall not strip your vineyard bare, neither shall you gather the fallen grapes of your vineyard. You shall leave them for the poor and for the sojourner: I am the Lord your God.”

And let me include just one from Proverbs. This is the famous Proverbs 31 woman. ‘She opens her hand to the poor and reaches out her hands to the needy.’ There is much more than this, but I think that the point is clear. The care of the poor is a major theme in the Old Testament.

It doesn’t stop there, though. The same theme is picked up in the New Testament.

So, first from Acts. ‘Now the full number of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own, but they had everything in common. And with great power the apostles were giving their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all. There was not a needy person among them, for as many as were owners of lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold and laid it at the apostles' feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need. Thus Joseph, who was also called by the apostles Barnabas (which means son of encouragement), a Levite, a native of Cyprus, sold a field that belonged to him and brought the money and laid it at the apostles' feet.’

There’s also the example of the Macedonians. Paul was collecting some money for the saints in Jerusalem who were having a really hard time. He writes to the Corinthians about this collection, pointing to the example of the Philippian and Thessalonian Christians. ‘We want you to know, brothers, about the grace of God that has been given among the churches of Macedonia, for in a severe test of affliction, their abundance of joy and their extreme poverty[!] have overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part. For they gave according to their means, as I can testify, and beyond their means, of their own accord, begging us earnestly for the favor of taking part in the relief of the saints – and this, not as we expected, but they gave themselves first to the Lord and then by the will of God to us.’

One more. This one is from Jesus directly. “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. 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. And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left. 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. 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, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ 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.’ “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’ Then they also will answer, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to you?’ Then he will answer them, saying, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’ And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.” I find this one quite striking. Jesus is talking about the Last Day and how He will evaluate us all. The only criterion He refers to in this parable is this: Did you care for the poor and needy?

So, from Old Testament and New Testament, it’s clear. Jesus calls His people to care for the poor.

There’s another dynamic back in Isaiah that you need to see. Jesus doesn’t just command; He also promises. To those who heed His call to care for the poor, He makes these promises. Verses 8-12: ‘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. 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, 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. 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. 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.’ Let me translate that list. Jesus promises: healing; being held in high esteem for knowing God; being protected by Jesus Himself; answered prayer; a bright and joyous outlook on life; being guided into a life of deep satisfaction with a sense of peace and beauty; the restoration of institutions that will provide a solid foundation for future generations. You can ponder those on your own. But this much is clear: Jesus encourages His people to obey His call by promising to do them good. Caring for the poor will be rewarded.

Sadly, I need to spend a little time on my next point. There are some today – even within the Church – who read our text and twist it. They teach that doing the religious stuff, fasting and all of that, is unimportant. What’s really important is social justice, doing things for the poor. They tell us that Isaiah has redefined what being religious is all about. So, they say, let’s forget the rituals and all of that, and just focus on social justice. Jesus, however, disagrees with them. These folk forgot to read the rest of the chapter. “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; 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.” This is far from any call to ignore the religious stuff. Jesus calls His people to a religious ritual called the Sabbath. And again, this is pointing to the part while intending the whole. So, it’s not an either/or. It’s not, either we care for the poor or we pursue a pious life. Following Jesus includes both.

And that leaves my last point. The care of the poor is important to Jesus. It’s His expectation that part of following Him includes investing time, money and energy to dealing with the issues of poverty. Now, it may be that you are already hearing those voices warning you about going too far. ‘Don’t do anything rash. You need to be responsible. What if something were to happen in the future? You need to prepare for that rainy day. So don’t do anything risky. And keep clear in your mind that your first responsibility is to your family. If there is anything left over after caring for them, well, then fine.’ It’s helpful to note that all of those comments have a measure of truth to them. But remember that a half-truth presented as the whole truth is a lie. And Satan is extremely good at using half-truths to deceive. So, let me present the other side. What about those Philippian and Thessalonian Christians in Macedonia? They didn’t conform to the common notion of being responsible – and they were praised for that. Barnabas probably cashed in what amounted to his retirement fund when he sold that land. And when it comes to taking risks, consider this. The basic idea of following Jesus is taking a risk, a big risk. You believe that Jesus is the Savior and that He will lead you into heaven. You’ve entrusted the eternal state of your soul into His care. But what if God is a Moslem or a Hindu, and Jesus is a fake? You’re already risking your soul. Compared to that what’s a little money, time and energy? And while the Bible is clear that we are called to care for our families, remember that Jesus did say, ‘Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.’ In fact, He even said, ‘If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.’ So, let’s opt for the whole truth, not just a part of it.

So, what do you do now? What about the poor? What are you supposed to do now? The answer is not complicated. Actually, it’s quite simple. Follow Jesus. You are all different people in different situations. So, what caring for the poor and all the rest will look like will be different for each of you. There are no cookie cutter answers here. And we’re back to the disciple’s prayer. ‘Lord Jesus, I want to do whatever You want me to do. Just tell me what it is, and please give me the ability to do it.’ That’s not complicated. Doing it isn’t easy. It is hard. But it’s not complicated. So, this is what you do: talk to Jesus about this, listen to what He tells you and, by the ability that the Spirit will give, work at doing what He’s told you. And then relax.