Isaiah 58:1-12; 1 Cor. 2:1-5; Matt. 5:13-16; Psalm 112
February 9, 2020
Larry Campbell
May the words of my mouth and the meditations of all our hearts be pleasing to You, O Lord, our Rock and our Redeemer.
Last week we talked about ‘hope’. We learned that Jesus, Emmanuel, ‘God-with-us’, came to do two things; God became human to teach us how to be fully human... to love God and all those around us. Jesus also came so that, through him, death would be defeated. He was raised to life. In so doing Jesus set us free from the fear of death. Our hope is in Christ Jesus and everything He represents...forgiveness, a peace that passes all understanding, and love – both being loved and being able to love. We are no longer enslaved to fear death. We are no longer alienated from our loving Maker because of our tendency to ‘miss the point’. As the psalmist says, “our sins have been removed from us as far as the east is from the west.” (Psalm 103:12)
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In today’s reading from Isaiah we are given two groupings of “if/then” statements. You know what an “if/then” statement is, right? We’ve all grown up with “if/then” statements, from our parents, our teachers, our employers... “If you clean up your room, then I will give you a cookie.” “If you don’t hand in all your assignments, then I will give you a failing mark.” “If you keep making carrot cake without the carrots, then you will be cast into the dish pit.”
Especially in the world of commerce, we have a system based on quid pro quo – if you do this for me, then I’ll do that for you. “If you give me $40, then I will give you a full tank of gas.” “If you give me 200 bucks, then I will give you those skinny jeans that will make you look young and hip.” “If you give me scads of money, then I will let you live in that house.”
This kind of transactional participation permeates almost every part of our lives. If we want something, we will have to pay for it in some way, either with currency, or loyalty, or favour. The problem is, this kind of thinking so easily influences the religious parts of our lives. What if we treat God like a business owner from whom we can purchase blessing, healing, or even eternal life? All we have to do is say the magic words, or just muster up enough faith, or work hard at doing good. If this is the way we think about God, we are going to read the Bible in a certain way. If we read the Bible with all it’s commandments thinking of them as arbitrary edicts coming down from above, it’s going to effect our perception of how God relates to us.
But God’s commandments aren’t arbitrary, are they? They have a purpose.
St. Augustine in his book Confessions, famously says, “You arouse us so that praising you may bring us joy, because you have made us and drawn us to yourself, and our heart is restless until it rests in you.” And in our pursuit to fulfill what is, in fact, a desire for the Holy Mystery, if we don’t find God, we will remain restless and searching.
C. S. Lewis’ wrote an allegory entitled “The Pilgrim’s Regress”. In it he suggests that the twisted desires that carry us away from God are poor counterfeits of our One True Desire.
Many of you have probably read “Mere Christianity”, also by C. S. Lewis. In that book he uses the analogy of the automobile and the fuel needed to keep it running smoothly.
“God made us: invented us as (one) invents an engine. A car is made to run on petrol, and it would not run properly on anything else. Now God designed the human machine to run on (God). (God’s self) is the fuel our spirits were designed to burn, or the food our spirits were designed to feed on. There is no other. That is why it is just no good asking God to make us happy in our own way without bothering about religion (or faith). God cannot give us happiness and peace apart from (God’s self), because, apart from God, they doesn’t exist.”
In the Isaiah passage, he interrupts the peoples’ claims of self-righteousness. They are quite proud of the fact that they have a vibrant religious life. They are complaining that God doesn’t seem to notice all their pious efforts. “We fast and you don’t seem to see us. We humble ourselves and you don’t even pay any attention.”
But Isaiah responds, “on the day of your fast, you get what you want. You just drive your workers harder. You don’t fast so your voice can be heard by God. You fast out of contention, and strike with a wicked fist. Even if you humbly bow your head and lay on a bed of sackcloth and ash, you’re missing the point. This is not the fast that God chooses.”
Then comes the "if/then" verses of the passage. This seems to set forth consequences if the fast is observed in the right way or improperly. However, I don’t believe these are consequences of reward or punishment. I think these consequences are Self Evident. If the people choose the fast God has set before them, then their situation will be one of blessing: understanding, healing, help, protection, needs will be met, and, most centrally, the presence and guidance of God will be with them.
Let’s take a look at some of these verses and see if they make sense that way...
If... “we fight against wickedness in our society
and set the oppressed free...
If we share our bread with the hungry,
give shelter to the homeless,
and clothe the naked...
then.. the light we will bring, will break out like the dawn,
our sense of doing right will go before us,
the glory of the Lord will guard us,
because we have said, “Here I am”, we will find good work to do.
if... we stop blaming others for our life’s predicament,
and stop gossiping and being overly critical,
if we give ourselves to the hungry,
and meet the needs of those who are troubled...
then.. our shining city on a hill will be seen in the darkness,
people who live in gloom will be able to see like it was midday,
our God will quench our thirst,
we will be like an oasis for others,
we will be seen as building on ancient foundations
and be known as makers of safe communities
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Self-Evident consequences. Natural consequences. If you get up nice and early, you will see the sun come up in the east. However, if you arrive at the theatre late, you will miss the opening scenes. If you love, you will be fulfilled, you will be a blessing to those around you. If you harbour darkness in your heart, you will be miserable, you and others will be hurt. It might even feel like hell to you.
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Well, so what? What does this all mean? For me, it’s helped me read scripture in a way that recognizes that my Creator made me, and loves me. As I consider the commandments, whether from Exodus or Deuteronomy, or the prophets, or from Jesus, I hear God saying, “listen, I love you. And I know you like the back of my hand. I’m telling you, love Me; with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might. And love those around you – those who live in your house, those who are in your neighbourhood, those who slept under a bridge, or didn’t manage to get a meal today. Love them. They will be better for it. And so will you.”
When we walk humbly, with our God, we will be connected; with others, with creation, and with our Creator; we will have been made complete. We will shine like the dawn; like a city on a hill. And there will be peace, joy, hope, and love..