Sep 12 – Isaiah 29, Isaiah 30:1-18 2 Corinthians 12:11-21 Psalm 107:1-9

Isa 29:13

And the Lord said: “Because this people draw near with their mouth and honour me with their lips, while their hearts are far from me, and their fear of me is a commandment taught by men,

What an inditement. They draw near to God and honour Him with their lips – but their hearts are so far away from Him. Their fear of God was just a tradition – it wasn’t part of their life.

We must be careful we don’t live like this. I remember when I was a new Christian, I bought an album by DC Talk and on it there was a track that simply said “the greatest single cause of unbelief in the world is Christians who acknowledge Jesus with their lips then walk out the door and deny him by their lifestyles. That is what an unbelieving world finds simply unbelievable”.

It’s always stuck with me. I don’t want to be the cause of anyone’s unbelief because of my lifestyle. And this verse in Isiah really pinpoints what the problem is.

When the fear of God is not real, but just tradition, lifestyles fail.

What you say and what you do… do they match? It’s one thing to call Him Lord – it’s another to live like He is Lord.

Isa 29:16

You turn things upside down! Shall the potter be regarded as the clay, that the thing made should say of its maker, “He did not make me”; or the thing formed say of him who formed it, “He has no understanding”?  

Ah… the arrogance of man. Isaiah points out how upside down we’ve really gotten things. He is the potter – we are the clay. That determines the order of things.

First of all, how can the clay say “He didn’t make me” of the one who formed it. Yet that’s what the word has done. God didn’t make us… random chance did. I am not fearfully and wonderfully made I’m an accident and the process of trail and error over millions of years…. what tosh. No wonder the world feels so hopeless, everyone thinks they are an accident instead of a wonderful creation.

But Isaiah goes even further – what right has the clay to say “He has no understanding”? Yet man in it’s arrogance dares to judge God! “I wouldn’t believe in a God who”… “I don’t think God would”… wow! Get down off your high horse for one second and realise it’s not that high at all.

How can man judge God? Let me tell you, if your and God disagree – you are the one who is wrong. You might not like that, you might not see that, but tough luck, it’s still the case.

Don’t use your tiny morality to judge the one who created morality.

If that all seemed to get a bit angry… well it’s one of those things that does rather bug me somewhat. I suspect Isaiah felt similar.