The opener appears to be...
Illustration
Object:
The opener appears to be an introduction to the whole book, as Isaiah's life of prophecy appears to cover all of these kings. It takes a brave man to tell them what was wrong with their life. It is a surprise that he survived that long!
The message is an interesting one for many churches today who may be more interested in the offering, in lengthy prayers, and in celebrating all the holy days. How righteous we may feel if we accomplish these three areas. Then we may feel that God owes us something!
This does not mean that we should stop giving or celebrating or praying! Heaven forbid! They are commanded in other scripture! But God is asking us to check out our deeds and our motivations. Are our hands full of blood from hurting others? There was a U.S. general who was criticized for his attacks that were also killing some good people. His response was "Let God sort 'em out." We may not be murderers, but do we support causes that hurt others? Do we initiate wars and violence like the war in Iraq, which was started under false pretenses and still does not seem to have solved our problems or the problems of the people? There are many other examples if we check the news. Maybe it is too dangerous to get into the battle over gun control with the NRA. We could mention the things that we could have done to prevent the deaths of people in train or auto wrecks or in natural catastrophes. Do those who did not want to spend the money to make the oil rigs safe to prevent BPs Gulf disaster have blood on their hands? What can we do to prevent these things?
Can we wash our hands? What can we do to stop our evil deeds? In our daily prayers do we ask God to show us what we are doing that hurts and angers him? Can we stop doing evil if we lose money or hurt our reputation if others find out? What about the Roman Catholic bishops who hid the sexual sins of the pastors under their care?
A popular word in the church today is "advocacy." It means that God may want us to actually fight for the rights of others. That may be uncomfortable, especially if a cause is not popular and may hurt our relationship with friends or family. Those who fought for the rights of black people in the South during the civil rights movement might have endured suffering and death for their efforts.
Even if our sins are like scarlet, we can hope for God's forgiveness if are willing to obey him. It shows that we value our relationship to God above all else. Then we will have his reward. But if we resist his rules and want to do things our own way -- then beware!
The message is an interesting one for many churches today who may be more interested in the offering, in lengthy prayers, and in celebrating all the holy days. How righteous we may feel if we accomplish these three areas. Then we may feel that God owes us something!
This does not mean that we should stop giving or celebrating or praying! Heaven forbid! They are commanded in other scripture! But God is asking us to check out our deeds and our motivations. Are our hands full of blood from hurting others? There was a U.S. general who was criticized for his attacks that were also killing some good people. His response was "Let God sort 'em out." We may not be murderers, but do we support causes that hurt others? Do we initiate wars and violence like the war in Iraq, which was started under false pretenses and still does not seem to have solved our problems or the problems of the people? There are many other examples if we check the news. Maybe it is too dangerous to get into the battle over gun control with the NRA. We could mention the things that we could have done to prevent the deaths of people in train or auto wrecks or in natural catastrophes. Do those who did not want to spend the money to make the oil rigs safe to prevent BPs Gulf disaster have blood on their hands? What can we do to prevent these things?
Can we wash our hands? What can we do to stop our evil deeds? In our daily prayers do we ask God to show us what we are doing that hurts and angers him? Can we stop doing evil if we lose money or hurt our reputation if others find out? What about the Roman Catholic bishops who hid the sexual sins of the pastors under their care?
A popular word in the church today is "advocacy." It means that God may want us to actually fight for the rights of others. That may be uncomfortable, especially if a cause is not popular and may hurt our relationship with friends or family. Those who fought for the rights of black people in the South during the civil rights movement might have endured suffering and death for their efforts.
Even if our sins are like scarlet, we can hope for God's forgiveness if are willing to obey him. It shows that we value our relationship to God above all else. Then we will have his reward. But if we resist his rules and want to do things our own way -- then beware!
