Skip to main content

when you think religiosity is the goal





Isaiah 58:2-8

 For day after day they seek me out; they seem eager to know my ways, as if they were a nation that does what is right and has not forsaken the commands of its God. They ask me for just decisions and seem eager for God to come near them. 'Why have we fasted,' they say, 'and you have not seen it? Why have we humbled ourselves, and you have not noticed?' "Yet on the day of your fasting, you do as you please and exploit all your workers. Your fasting ends in quarreling and strife, and in striking each other with wicked fists. You cannot fast as you do today and expect your voice to be heard on high. Is this the kind of fast I have chosen, only a day for a man to humble himself? Is it only for bowing one's head like a reed and for lying on sackcloth and ashes? Is that what you call a fast, a day acceptable to the LORD? "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? Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard.



The people of God were very religious. They wonder why God has not responded to their incredible worship services and fasting. God responds through the prophet Isaiah when he reminds them that all of the religious ceremonies in the world won't amount to a hill of beans if they come to church and do religious stuff but fail to live with compassion for one another and the poor. These people wanted to categorize their lives into "church stuff" and then "life". As long as God was acknowledged in worship....as long as they went through the rituals, then they could do life any way they wanted. Sound familiar? God points out to the people who want to hear from Him-all of life is worship! What good is "fasting" if you then go out and "exploit your workers" and "strike each other with wicked fists"? How can you possibly think you can go to church and learn about the compassion of God and then check out to live with complete indifference to the poor and the hungry? You have missed the point when you think religiosity is the goal!


When most of us think of honoring God (worship), we think of prayers, sermons, songs, Holy Communion, and fasting. God's broader definition is that we honor Him with all of our lives....especially in the way we have compassion for one another and for those in need. Honoring God is more than one hour on Sunday. We really begin to experience the power and presence of God when we take our faith outdoors! We really begin to feel the "glory of the Lord" when we become the hands and feet of Jesus in the world......sharing food with the hungry and addressing the poor. I begin to really experience what a relationship with Jesus is all about when those in need are not "the problem" but my "own flesh and blood". When we are living what it means to honor God, then the one hour on Sunday will take on new meaning and depth we never thought possible. Anything short of that will leave us feeling like we missed something important!

Thanks to Pastor Jerry Sweat of Beach United Methodist Church.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Building Trust When Faith Wavers

  Mark 9:21-24 21 And He asked his father, How long has this been happening to him?" And he said, From childhood. 22 It has often thrown him both into the fire and into the water to destroy him. But if You can do anything, take pity on us and help us!" 23 And Jesus said to him, `If You can?' All things are possible to him who believes." 24 Immediately the boy's father cried out and said, I do believe; help my unbelief." Since faith is the core of our Christian experience, the consequences of wavering faith are far-reaching. Vacillating trust can lead us to make wrong decisions. Sometimes, after praying for direction, we might receive an answer that leads us to think, I can’t do that. So, instead of asking God to strengthen our faith, we make excuses. We may choose to postpone our obedience—even indefinitely—in order...
Post a Comment
Read more

welcome to my blog

Oh the waterfall of cleansing Grace! Welcome to my Grace blog.  I hope to both share and start a dialogue about Jesus Christ and how his life, relationships and teaching have a practical working value in our everyday lives. To go beyond our belief of Jesus... and into our belief in Jesus. I hope we can learn more about how the finished work of Christ on the cross empowers his work in us in our daily lives. I hope we can grow in His Grace and Wisdom! The name came from a Joseph Prince story in his book  "Destined to Reign"...here's the story: Prince tells the story of a young boy who found a rock out in the woods. Though it looked rough at first, he rinsed it in the small waterfall of a nearby stream. Turns out, the rock was marbly, smooth, and full of color. Not wanting to lose the rock, and afraid someone would take it from him if he took it home, he buried it back in the dirt in a tucked away place before he went home for the night. There, he left it. The ne...
5 comments
Read more

When Our Faith Wavers

    James 1:1-8 1 James, a bond-servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, To the twelve tribes who are dispersed abroad: Greetings. 2 Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, 3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. 4 And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. 5 But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him. 6 But he must ask in faith without any doubting, for the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind. 7 For that man ought not to expect that he will receive anything from the Lord, 8 being a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways. Faith is the heart of our Christian life. It...
Post a Comment
Read more