The Cure (2)
Wash yourselves; make yourselves clean; remove the evil of your deeds from before my eyes; cease to do evil, Isaiah 1:16 ESV
Clean – God instructs His people to “wash” themselves. He demands ritual purity and the submission that accompanies humility before Him. We might think this is sufficient. If we just worship the Lord in the right way, then He will be attentive to our needs. But Isaiah’s voice adds another Hebrew verb, zaka; a verb that means “to be clear, clean and pure in a moral sense.” In fact, the form of the verb zaka in this verse is the only place in the Tanakh where the verb is in the Hithpael; where it is a reflexive action performed by the subject on himself. In other words, God is not waiting for us to allow Him to clean up our morality. He expects us to do it ourselves. Do you want to be pure before Him? Then change your ways! Do it yourself! Stop waiting for God to somehow intervene and straighten out your corrupt practices. Make yourself clean! Then you can enter into His presence.
Isaiah’s verse reminds us that ritual and moral purity walk hand in hand. If we want to enjoy God’s company, we must take care of both requirements. We must worship Him according to His instructions, preparing ourselves as He directs in order not to defile the holy place. God has given explicit, detailed instructions about this and we would do well to heed His directions. But ritual alone is not enough. We must also cleanse the inside of the cup. Once again we find that this is an action we are expected to perform. If we wait for God to supernaturally alter our moral choices, we will never progress toward purity. We must grab ourselves by the throat and force the yetzer ha’ra to relinquish control of our behavior. We must determine to change and carry through our resolutions. Waiting for divine mediation is a fool’s game. God has given us the power and the choice to change our character and He expects us to do so.
Of course, Isaiah’s verse flies in the face of the doctrine that Man is essentially corrupt and unable to make any right moral choices without the direct aid of the Spirit. If you believe that you are totally helpless in your moral state, then there is no reason to fight the yetzer ha’ra. In fact, fight is impossible. You must wait for God before you can exercise moral improvement. But if this is what you believe, then you have offered yourself an excuse for lack of correction. The yetzer ha’ra wins by default. You have given up before you begin. What God says through Isaiah only proves that God demands more than we can ever deliver. And you walk away convinced that no one can ever live up to the standard God sets – so why bother?
But if God asks of us only what He knows we can accomplish, then Isaiah’s verse becomes a battle cry. We can change. God’s request confirms it. We are not bystanders. Pick yourself up. Dust off your defeats and determine to do what God equipped you to do – to live according to His directions. As soon as you make the effort to meet His expectation, you discover that He is by your side offering aid in the fight.
Topical Index: clean, zaka’, yetzer ha’ra, Isaiah 1:16
NOTE on Rosanne’s father dying: Thank you all for your support and prayers. We received many, many emails and blog comments. Rosanne and I will be leaving for Syracuse today and stay until after the funeral. I will be out of touch for a bit.
Skip,
Our Prayers are with you and your wife.
David
More Gooder
This is THE action we are expected to perform: Ask, and you will receive.. Seek, and you will find, Knock (persistently,patiently) and it shall be opened unto you. Ask, Seek, Knock. “ASK.”
“Father, forgive me for I have sinned.” This was (and still is the prayer of the erring son. “Against Thee and against Thee only have I sinned.” This is the prayer of the king- (on bended knee).
Baruch (in Hebrew) is a blessing. Blessings (every good and perfect gift) come from Above. Every good and every perfect gift is given unto us by The Giver (who is God). God is our Lover/Giver.
Our breath? from God. Our heart’s beating? from God. The gift of memory or remembrance? from God. The gift of family? from God. – The gift of health? Thank you God for good water and for good food. Amen. (all from God). He is our Source. Our Strength. And our Sustainer. Daily bread and daily blessings.
Now what about “forgiveness?” According to Levitical Law: without the shedding of blood -there is no forgiveness of sins. (Hebrews 9.22) We might forgive ourselves for what we have done..- easy enuf- just sear your conscience with a hot iron.. Gloss over the “fact” of sin. Give it a different name. Call “it” anything, but what it is. Call good evil and evil good. (let me know how that works out for you!) – What does the prophet Isaiah have to say about people such as this? (and there ARE people such as this- even today!- in this “enlightened” age! Bad is good and good is bad. There is a name, a word for this and it is “perversion,” or “twistedness” or better yet- “iniquity.”
If man could save himself, (‘adam’ has been trying to save himself ever since the original Adam. Try better.. work harder.. -don’t be so hard on yourself..- forgive ol’ number one- “me.”
Ah, once again “self” raises it’s head and asks? Why do I need God to save me, when all I have to do (how simple, how easy it is) is to “forgive myself”- justify my “self” in the eyes of everyone. Sweep my sin, hide my iniquity, and put on a “happy face..”.
But the fact of sin remains. Herein lies the rub. “What must “I” do to be saved is, in it’s entirety, the wrong question. Salvation/Deliverance/Freedom is not up to me. A drowning man cannot save himself- he must have one to intervene and to come to his rescue. What did Jesus say to Peter when Peter cried “LORD, save me!!”- He said, “well, Peter..- why don’t you just save yourself?” You can do it!- Try harder Peter. Come on now- you’re doing great.. Keep thrashing about with your arms- and don’t forget to breath! No. Not at all.
Peter “erred.” Here are the instructions of YHWH: Look unto “yourself” and be saved, all the ends of the earth.?” Oops!- “wrong again..” Let’s try this ~ Look unto ME and be saved- all the ends of the earth ~ Much more gooder.
But better yet.. ~ Looking unto Jesus.. the Author and the Perfecter of our faith. ~ There life for a look at the Savior.. and love more abundant and free..
DON’T LOOK AT ME!!- LOOK TO HIM!!- Whatever He says unto you- do it! Listen.. listen to HIM!!
What are His instructions? Come unto ME… (unto who?) ALL you who are weary and are heavy laden, and I (myself) will give your rest! Take My yolk upon you and learn of Me for I am meek and lowly in heart and you will find rest unto your souls..
We MUST become Christ centered. We MUST become Christ focused. He is the Centerpiece of civilization. He is the Compass by which we set our course. He is the Circumference- for Christ is all and in you all. For of Him and through Him and to Him are (what?) – all things.
There is no other Name (including my own “good name”) by which we (ALL) must be saved. What do the scriptures say? For (who?) – whosoever (that’s who) shall call upon the Name of the LORD- shall be saved.
Too simple? Then go wash in the Jordan river seven times. That will give you something to do. “Give me an occupation- or I shall run mad..” Not a problem.. Occupy your entire day with prayer and praise. Start with “thank you LORD, for saving my soul..- thank you LORD for making me whole..- thank you LORD for giving to me- Your great salvation so full and free!
I would venture to say, most of us who “claim the Name” (Christian) have no clue what we have “in Christ..”
Here is a partial list: http://www.joycemeyer.org/articles/ea.aspx?article=knowing_who_i_am_in_christ
Therefore, what manner of men ought “we” to be! (And He said unto them..) Truly, I say unto you, even as I AM.
~ because as He is, so also are we in this world ~ (1 John 4.17)
Yes, there is a tension between being active and passive in our faith. If “depending on God” means I sit at home unemployed, “serving God” in my personal “ministry” – while other people are guilted into supporting me. Well then…..? What does 1 Timothy 5 say? What level of service/age does Paul suggest before the church takes care of a person?
Did God give us Free Will, or are we complete slaves to instinct? If we are truly given the capacity to fight against the yetzer ha’ra – then that too is a gift from our Creator, but it does not mean we are not expected to exercise the gift of fighting for purity/righteousness.
If my house is not serving the Lord, then perhaps it is because the house is divided. If I am not overcoming the sin in my life, perhaps it is because I hold a waffling opinion of God’s ways. The humble heart cannot take credit for the UNEARNED EXPOSURE to God’s Ways, but we must still seek and strive to follow those ways. Yes, we pray for guidance and strength – and then we rise and join the battle.
Only God can win the battle, but he sure does expect us to swing the sword sometimes.
I keep the shabbot,I keep the feasts,but have I cleansed myself of the catholic practices?I no longer participate in sunday keeping,but we have Christmas comeing up soon and it is a struggle to separate myself from this one because family is very insistant that I attend this made up feast.It is easy for me to look back and see how Isreal under Jeroboams rule should have run away from the feasts that Jeroboam created and returned to Gods feasts.It is another thing to live 50 years with these made up feasts and decide how much of the cellebrations of these feasts I can walk away from,without having the entire family hate me.
Brian it is a tough place to be in but in coming out of the nations that love not GOD; we are invited in to be partakers of that which is whole in every aspect.
Our hope and our eyes must be on the very ONE who has redeemed us from the hand of the enemy and into HIS SAFE KEEPING HAND who has never lost one of HIS OWN.
It is hard !
Anybody that is a Pilgrim knows the territory that it IS rough as we journey away farther and farther from what we have known to the ONE who knows and loves us.
The WORLD must see what GOD has done in our lives in spite of the family opposition.
The WORLD must acknowledge His work in us who have been changed from vileness to victory.
Let it start with those who are serious about bringing HIM back to the nations by our walk in victory and yes, feeling the tight spots that the LORD has allowed for us to be straightened out in.
We are so crooked and the way is straight and narrow ; so it is us who are being straightened from all the crookedness that sin has done on us.
MAY YOU BE BRIGHT AND SHINING this holiday season and know that THE GOOD LORD sees your efforts to come along side of righteousness.
The very people that we love the most are in trouble and they do not even know it .
So be a light in their darkness and ask the LORD JESUS to give you wisdom in and through it all.
HE WILL for HIS sake.
Just ask and know that HE is your stay in this situation.
Jesus knows HOW and WHAT to be and to do no matter WHAT the situation.
BE BLESSED BRIAN;
Dear Brian
Yes, this is a though one and although my approach has always been the very straight forward one of God says it, so I do(or dont) it, I now tend to think everyone’s approach depends on your relationship with your family and also their approach towards Christmas – most people actually don’t really care what you believe since they don’t really know what they themselves believe.
If they are comfortable with open discussion and have respect for other view points and/or religion, then you have a open door and you can maintain relationships. A soft: “this year, God clearly told me to only keep Biblical feasts and not pagan ones” might do it. May be you are strong enough and have enough courage to go through all the rituals. How will they see and hear the change in you if you don’t show them?
Personally, I felt like a traitor afterwards and I struggled to bite my tongue. So the next year my family and inlaws just got it straight forward: What is Christmas? Where does it come from, etc. I’ll be happy to attend if the invitation comes from Scripture. And after 5 years they still invite us!
Then you can also ask: IF hesed is thinking of others and not of yourself, will you be showing hesed if you participate in a lie or in sharing the truth? What does God expect of you? Will you be thinking of others or of yourself? I believe that life is in the truth of His Word. It is very sad that they still choose tradition, but I don’t judge them – its their choice. Torah is not for everyone.
…unto blood, brother!
When Jehoshaphat tore down the high places in Israel did the people rejoice? Not likely! And yet because he was courageous and faithful YHVH performed a great deliverance for him and all (grumbling) Israel was saved.
We’ve struggled every year for more than 2 decades to find yet another way to embrace or family and not participate in the rituals of the pagan holidays. It never works! I don’t know what to tell anyone else to do.
The last few years have been a real struggle because my mother is desperately ill and nothing makes her happier than to see us all in the same house bowing at the foot of the pagan tree pulling expensive worthless gifts out from under it for each other. It literally makes me nauseous to watch. But her days are short and miserable. How can I cause her more pain?
It’s a tough one folks!
Actually reading the Maccabee’s really strengthens my resolve to fight against being absorbed into the culture. I’m very grateful Hanukkah comes right before xmas.
Who of us were comfortable when we first stepped out of the boat?
Are you sure this “faith stuff” really works? Really?
But God knew what He was doing when He said “Come to Me”.
It would be a relationship like no other we’d ever experience.
“See, I have inscribed you on the palms of My hands . . .” Is 49:16
Fear not.
So we’re yoked to Him. And we learn from Him.
And, oh, what we learn!
“I can of Myself do nothing . . . I do not seek My own will
but the will of the Father who sent Me.” Jn 5:30
We’ve learned that as we step out on our adventure of
faithful obedience, He’s equipped us to do His will.
Maybe not so well at first, but because He’s with us
every step of the way, we DO get the hang of it!
We have several Biblical mentors to draft on. None perhaps
more notable than Job.
“Why do I take my flesh in my teeth and put my life in my hands?
Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him.” Job 13: 14-15
We couldn’t be in better hands!
“The Lord life up His countenance upon you, and give you peace.” Num 6:26
“The Lord LIFT up His countenance” . . . sorry.
Our thoughts and prayers are with you . We know our LORD will protect you on the travel, and comfort you as your dad has left this place to have the eternal promise fulfilled.