Exposed on the clothes line for all to see

Isaiah 58:1-8

I recall mother hanging out the wash on a clothes line and all was exposed to the neighbors, yes, that was a long time ago, a different culture where doing the laundry was an all morning event, and often we kids were ask to participate.  It was all hung out, undergarments, sheets, towels, etc. for the world to see.  But what went on inside our home was not open for anyone but family to see or hear, we were told often not to share our family issues outside of our home.  Now before your imagination takes off to ax murders, or drunks, those were not the issues.  We were normal for our time, but we did not want the neighbors to see us in any light but being perfect.  That is going to backfire on me later, for 27 years I had one foot in the church and the other in the world; then I ask Jesus Christ to forgive me and take my mess of a life and turn it into something good, and He did, but now those old flesh patterns of our family kicked in, the need to look good, to appear perfect.

It did not happen over night, but I was being a poser, but it seemed the more God blessed me with people and responsibility, the more I needed to look like something both God and I knew was not true.  My flesh then and now likes to be seen, it longs to be first in line, and to be praised, and for years I was not able to share those truths, for I had roots that told me if you knew me there was no way you would like me or want to have me as your friend.  But God always sends an Isaiah to expose a poser like me, and I’m so thankful for the men who loved me and told me God loved me, He knew all about me and loved me anyway, Jack Archer was the first of many mentors.

We find in the first verse of chapter 58, God is giving Isaiah these orders “declare to my people their transgression, to the house of Jacob their sins.”  It is what is happening inside the house of His chosen ones, not the pagans, and it is what is happening inside the church, not the outside world, are you as foolish as the chosen people of Isaiah’s time?  The men that addressed my sins did not proclaim it to others, but God is telling Isaiah to expose them for what they are, rebellious.  These people looked good on the outside, they came to the Temple, they did the outward rituals so others would think higher of them than both they and God knew to be true, they were posers.

These religious folks who were at the top of their game, began a fast with the expectation 

that God would do as they wished, but it was not a fast God desired, in fact, they were not 

observing the Sabbath, one of the most important commands.  And God was silent, all their 

actions only brought more silence, for God said; “Behold, in the day of your fast you seek 

your own pleasure, and oppress all your workers.  Behold, you fast only to quarrel and to 

fight and to hit with a wicked fist. Fasting like yours this day will not make your voice to be 

heard on high.” (Isaiah 58:3-4 ESV)  How often do you and I go to a Bible study and the 

Holy Spirit gives us new insights, yet we do not apply them to our lives’?  That is the hard 

work of being a follower of Christ, being obedient the first time God puts His finger on our life.  

How does God desire a fast, it is clear, not to look good to others but to humble our self, and 

to be light to the world around us and to help the under resourced.  These are God’s words:  

“Is such the fast that I choose, a day for a person to humble himself? Is it to bow down his 

head like a reed, and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him? Will you call this a fast, and 

a day acceptable to the LORD?    “Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of 

wickedness, to undo the straps of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every 

yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into your 

house; when you see the naked, to cover him, and not to hide yourself from your own flesh? 

Then shall your light break forth like the dawn, and your healing shall spring up speedily; 

your righteousness shall go before you; the glory of the LORD shall be your rear guard.”   

(Isaiah 58:5-8 ESV)  Please pray for me, and others who still have a long way to go.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

"When you hid your face, I was dismayed.”

Isaiah 57:16-21

Many followers of Christ spend time in the Bible, this writer has chosen to read a Psalm and the Proverb of the day most mornings, and that is a good thing.  But this writer does not always apply the morning reading to his life, and there is the missing cog in the wheel.  King David wrote this song for the dedication of the Temple in Psalm 30, it is titled “Joy Comes in the Morning.” It is clear to even the most casual reader that David got off the path of righteousness a few times, he was a lot like you and I, with this exception I fear, when confronted by God David always agreed with God, we call that confession; David’s heart was tender to God’s ways.

Isaiah was speaking from his own personality but telling the people what he was hearing from God; he is telling them how God must deal with a sinful people, a people who are called by His name.  He is sharing that judgment has come because of sin, and yet God who loves them has a limit to His anger and wrath and will not totally destroy them.  Now they were not like king David, they did not agree with the message God had sent by Isaiah and they kept on sinning.

Take a moment and ponder on Psalm 30 verses 6-7, “When I felt secure, I said, “I will never be shaken.”   Lord, when you favored me, you made my royal mountain stand firm; but when you hid your face, I was dismayed.”  What just happened to David can happen to anyone, Christian or non-Christian, it can happen to a person, a family, a nation, and to a church.  David took inventory of his stuff, he had a lot of stuff, and he moved from trusting in God, to trusting in stuff, good stuff, but just stuff.  David goes on to explain that it was God who favored him, but David like so many of us moved from faith in a big God to faith in stuff.  Now David was wiser than many of us, and was much wiser than the people of Isaiah’s time, for God had stopped all conversation with David, and David’s word should be our words, “but when you hid your face, I was dismayed.” 

Isaiah tells us they did not turn back to God, and yet God in His grace still promises to heal them.  We the forgiven, we who God has extended His grace to should hold fast to these words from king David; “Sing the praises of the Lord, you his faithful people; praise his holy name.   For his anger lasts only a moment,
but his favor lasts a lifetime; weeping may stay for the night, but rejoicing comes in the morning.”

Do not think in your heart that God is going to give the wicked a pass, for verses 20-21 tell us, “But the wicked are like the tossing sea; for it cannot be quiet, and its waters toss up mire and dirt.  There is no peace, says my God, “for the wicked.”  I believe it is a foolish person who tries to draw the line between those to whom God grants His grace and the wicked, but if you have no hunger for the things of God it is time to search your heart and do as king David in Psalm 30.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

Faith is the Victory

Isaiah 57:14-15

How is life?  All around us we see challenges, and some seem like mountains too high to climb, and yet God is still speaking if only we have ears to hear and eyes to see.  In our adult Bible study, the prayer requests were as mountains in the lives of many and the needs seemed beyond anyone’s ability to scale those mountains.  Our teaching was in Mark 11:12-26, and our teacher asked for thoughts from the class.  The Scripture addressed Jesus cursing a fig tree, the cleansing of the Temple, and the withering of the fig tree.  It was Peter that made the observation of the withered fig tree in verse 21 and Jesus answered in verses 22-23, “And Peter remembered and said to him, “Rabbi, look! The fig tree that you cursed has withered.” And Jesus answered them, “Have faith in God. Truly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him.”

This Scripture is about faith, and Jesus uses the impossible for a human, telling a mountain to be moved, but we all have mountains in our lives, and only faith in God will move them.  The apostle John tells us we have in Christ a victory that is world changing, now that far exceeds just moving a mountain.  Look in 1 John 5:4, “For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.”  Faith, the Christians secret weapon when engaged without disbelief.

It is faith that gives us the ability to do Isaiah 57:14-15, “And it shall be said, “Build up, build up, prepare the way, remove every obstruction from my people's way.” For thus says the One who is high and lifted up, who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: “I dwell in the high and holy place, and also with him who is of a contrite and lowly spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly, and to revive the heart of the contrite.”  As a follower of Christ what obstacles are keeping you from living the victorious life?  Isaiah is telling the people to remove obstacles that stand between them and God.  For us to have faith that overcomes the world, it will require an intimate relationship with God.  It will also require each of us to come to brokenness, no longer relying on our talents, our wealth, our skill set, but on God.  For we are told in the Psalms 57:17, “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.”  

 How are you doing in removing the obstacles that stand between you and God, a personal testimony; the closer I get to the prize the more obstacles become visible, they seem like that mountain Jesus talked about, many have deep roots in my life, and they need to wither like that fig tree, all the way to the roots.

It is very hard for a blind man to help a blind man across a busy street, but we who have sight must allow Jesus to use us in this world of blind people.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice 

             

“Does Jesus tell the truth?”

Isaiah 57:3-13

My friend Dennis called last night to discuss Mark 12:30, “And you shall love the Lord your 

God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your 

strength.”  It was a great exchange of thoughts, and it led us to why so many people have a 

problem with the claim Jesus made in John 14:6, “I am the way, and the truth and the life.   

No one comes to the Father except through me.”  There is only one intellectual question 

that can be asked at this point: “Does Jesus tell the truth?”  If your answer is anything but yes, 

drop Christian from the club you’re a member of, for God has stated, “God is not man, that 

he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not 

do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it? (Numbers 23:19 ESV)

In these verses God is dealing with people who cannot be counted among the righteous, in fact they have chosen to follow the minds of man, they have decided, as many in our world today, that God cannot be trusted.  Listen to God’s portrayal of these people; son of a sorceress, offspring of an adulterer, and a prostitute.  Now listen to God’s question to them: “Who is it you are mocking?  Who is it you are opening your mouth and sticking out your tongue at?”  Often God does not wait for our answers, but it is clear in Scripture He knows us better than we know ourselves.  God tells the prophet Jeremiah about seeing him before he was born in Jeremiah 1:5, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.”  So when God warns you about the coming judgment, as He has these people, He is not mincing words about your character, and a wise person would listen.  And there lies the problem, they were so wise in their own eyes they did not see and hear their Creator.

In Israel’s past all kinds of illegitimate worship took place, and at times they even did child sacrifice.  We in the United States of America call that choice, but a God who formed that child in the womb, and who does not change, calls it murder.   God is addressing through Isaiah the idolatrous rituals in verses 6-10, and most of them have sexual practices outside of God’s guideline of a man with his wife, and many of them were adopted from the fertility religion of ancient Canaanite people.

What we had at the time of Isaiah and today are a lack of fear of God.  God was silent for what seemed to man a long time, but now He is exposing the people who go by His name, it makes one wonder how long before God pulls back the bed sheet of the church and exposes our unrighteousness?

In the past we have gone over the idols of today, and idols do not have to be bad, they may 

be good; like a child, wife, husband, job, money, golf, sports, fishing, it is anything you place 

before God.  We have many idols and someday God will say to us what He said in verse 13,  

“When you cry out, let your collection of idols deliver you! The wind will carry them all off, a 

breath will take them away. But he who takes refuge in me shall possess the land and shall 

inherit my holy mountain.”  (Isaiah 57:13 ESV)  It has always been your choice, but choose 

wisely.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

Bad things happen to good people

Isaiah 57:1-2

We have all heard the words, “Bad things happen to good people” and one of my heroes of the faith is Dr. James Dobson who is a mighty man of God, wrote “When God Doesn’t Make Sense” and the story of Horatio Gates Spafford is one great example of verses 1-2.  Horatio married Anna Larsen on September 5, 1861, in Chicago.  Horatio was a man of faith in a big God, a prominent lawyer a senior partner in a thriving law firm.  Both he and Anna were prominent supporters and very close friends of the evangelist Dwight L. Moody.  In 1870 a series of tragedies began with their only sons death from scarlet fever at the age of four.  Horatio had also invested in real estate in Chicago and the “Great Fire of Chicago” reduced the city to ashes in 1871, and it was a sizable loss in his wealth.

Two years later in 1873 Horatio decided his family needed a holiday somewhere in Europe and chose England knowing his friend D.L. Moody would be preaching there.  He had a business delay but sent his family on to England, Anna and their four daughters eleven-year-old Tanetta, nine-year-old Elizabeth “Bessie”, five-year-old Margaret Lee, and two-year-old Anna “Annie”. 

On November 22, 1873 while crossing the Atlantic their ship was struck by another vessel and 226 people lost their lives, including all of their daughters.  When Anna arrived in England she sent a telegram to Horatio, it began in this way “Saved alone.”  Spafford sailed to England to be with his wife, and it is reported by Bertha Spafford Vester, a daughter born after the tragedy, that Spafford wrote, “It is Well with My Soul” on this journey as the ship passed the area where the ship sank. (Thoughts taken from Wikipedia encyclopedia)

It is Well with My Soul

When peace, like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll;
What ever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say,
It is well, it is well with my soul.

(Refrain:) It is well (it is well),
with my soul (with my soul),
It is well, it is well with my soul.

Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come,
Let this blest assurance control,
That Christ hath regarded my helpless estate,
And hath shed His own blood for my soul.
(Refrain)

My sin, oh the bliss of this glorious thought!
My sin, not in part but the whole,
Is nailed to His cross, and I bear it no more,
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!
(Refrain)

For me, be it Christ, be it Christ hence to live:
If Jordan above me shall roll,
No pain shall be mine, for in death as in life
Thou wilt whisper Thy peace to my soul.
(Refrain)

Isaiah’s words verses 1-2, “The righteous man perishes, and no one lays it to heart; devout men are taken away, while no one understands.  For the righteous man is taken away from calamity; he enters into peace; they rest in their beds who walk in their uprightness.”   Good things happen to bad people and as the verses point out bad things happen to good people, but the righteous at death shall enter into peace, the unrighteous will enter into eternal torment.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

Leaders Beware

Isaiah 56:9-12

Isaiah is not giving his opinion but relaying the words God has spoken into his mind and heart, and it is about the lack of leadership in Israel.  At the time of this writing watchmen were placed on the walls to watch for all kinds of enemies, and one such enemy was wild animals that came into the fields to devour the crops.  The crops were the lifeblood of the nations, without crops they were not able to maintain their economy.  Verses 9 and 10 imply they sleep when they should be on duty, and the analogy of a mute dog is used, they do not bark, they do not watch for the crop destroyers, in fact, they are a sleep on the job.

It gets worse, these dreamers are the shepherds of the people, and they have much in common with our leaders in the United States of America, they have a great appetite for power and money, but no appetite for leadership.  They were consumed with self, and it is clear when self rules all else comes in second.  As you read verses 11-12 you see the heart of these leaders: “The dogs have a mighty appetite; they never have enough.  But they are shepherds who have no understanding; they have all turned to their own way, each to their own gain, one and all.  “Come,” they say, “let me get wine; let us fill ourselves with strong drink; and tomorrow will be like this day, great beyond measure.” 

We have example after example of bad leadership in the Scriptures, one such example is listed in Ezekiel 34:1-2, “The word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel; prophesy and say to them: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Woe to you shepherds of Israel who only take care of yourselves! Should not shepherds take care of the flock?”

What happens to a nation whose leaders are self-indulgent?  It looks weak to its enemies, its people have no vision, its culture begins to seek new moral lows, it becomes lawless, and it looks like the USA.  But God is watching and you do not want to be in that group.  Do you recall the prophet Jeremiah, this is what God said to him about the bad shepherds of Israel, and do not forget God does not change, what was sin for them is sin for our leadership today.  “Woe to the shepherds who are destroying and scattering the sheep of my pasture!” declares the Lord. Therefore this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says to the shepherds who tend my people: “Because you have scattered my flock and driven them away and have not bestowed care on them, I will bestow punishment on you for the evil you have done,” declares the Lord.”  (Jeremiah 23:1-2)

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

It is not an Exclusive Club

Isaiah 56:6-8

Whosoever will, Christianity it is not an exclusive club, and even before the return of the captives from Babylon God was making a place for “Whosoever will.  In no way did this lower the value to God of His chosen people, for it was always the plan that they would be a light to the nations. 

Do you recall Jesus telling us in John 15:5, “I am the vine; you are the branches.  Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.” Then I’m sure you recall the apostle Paul telling us in Romans 11 how we Gentiles were grafted into the vine, Messiah, the LORD Jesus Christ.  Picking up Paul’s account in Romans 11:17-20, “But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, although a wild olive shoot, were grafted in among the others and now share in the nourishing root of the olive tree, do not be arrogant toward the branches. If you are, remember it is not you who support the root, but the root that supports you. Then you will say, “Branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in.” That is true. They were broken off because of their unbelief, but you stand fast through faith. So do not become proud, but fear.” 

So what is our role, those who by faith through God’s grace have entered into the Vine?  We have entered into Jesus and He is the light of the world. Jesus proclaimed this in John 8:12, “I am the light of the world.  Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”  So as followers what happens to this light?  Many never let it shine, the cares of this world, family, not hiding God’s word in our heart, and the desire for more keeps the light from shining, and Jesus talks about how this happens in Luke 8:9-15.  But Jesus does not stop He goes on to explain the true follower will not cover their light in Luke 8:16, “No one after lighting a lamp covers it with a jar or puts it under a bed, but puts it on a stand, so that those who enter may see the light.”

As children who by faith in God’s grace have been grafted into Christ, what is our calling?  We are called to walk in love, to be diligent but humble, for the apostle Paul reminds us in Ephesians 5:8-10, “for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true), and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord.”   As the Church we are to be the light in the world, Paul addresses this to the saints at Philippi in Philippians 2:14-16, “for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true), and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord.”

The heart of God has always been for the “Whosoever will” to by faith enter into a relationship with Him.  Listen to Isaiah 56:8, “The Lord God, who gathers the outcasts of Israel declares, “I will gather yet others to him besides those already gathered.”  This is referring to Israelites who were taken to other lands but God is faithful to keep His promises, but look at Jesus talking with the Father; “I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me.”  (John 17:20-23)

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

 

Focused on the Price

Isaiah 56:1-5

When good is spoken of as evil and evil as good, a follower of Christ needs to keep focused on the prize, a growing relationship with Jesus, not feelings, or  events, but keeping our eyes on the goal of walking in fellowship with God and man.  When we see verse one; “Thus says the LORD: “Keep justice, and do righteousness, for soon my salvation will come, and my deliverance be revealed.”  When the word salvation is used many of us would think of what Christ has done by deliverance from sin and its consequences by allowing His grace by faith in the finished work of the cross.  But that is not the correct use of the word in this case, it is God saving His people from the Babylonian bondage, the word salvation is being used as a source or means of being saved from harm. You find no call for repentance, or obedience, but you do see God’s promise of coming soon, and in His coming they will see His righteousness.

God singles out the Mosaic covenant of the Sabbath, it was key to man being in fellowship 

with God, but just keeping the Sabbath and not preserving justice and doing what was right 

would not produce a happy person.  In Exodus 20:8-11, the fourth commandment;  

“Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, 

but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, 

you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your 

livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates. For in six days the LORD made heaven 

and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the 

FLORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.”  

It is not always easy to be part of a new school, being the outsider or the new person at work, and many find this also to be true in the church, but to be a foreigner, a non Jew who has converted to the Lord, not he nor anyone should say the LORD will exclude you.  If you look at Exodus 12:48-49, “A foreigner residing among you who wants to celebrate the Lord’s Passover must have all the males in his household circumcised; then he may take part like one born in the land. No uncircumcised male may eat it. The same law applies both to the native-born and to the foreigner residing among you.”

We do not have any proclamation in the church on Eunuchs, but we do have men and woman who cannot have children, for different reasons from the Eunuch, but the same promise holds for them, God will provide a memorial for them.  If you look at Deuteronomy 23:1, it prohibits the Eunuchs from worship but my HCSB has this note about verse four: the law listed in Deuteronomy 23:1; “However this verse (Isaiah 56:4) describes an obedient eunuch and thus one who had become a eunuch accidentally or who had converted to worship of God after becoming a eunuch.  Such devout eunuchs were invited to join in the worship of God.”

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

A Love Letter to God's kids

Isaiah 55:10-13

In verse 10 God uses rain and snow to explain the ecological nurturing of the earth, without this source of moisture we would not have life.   As precipitation falls from the sky to the earth, then is drawn back up from the rivers, lakes, and the oceans and by doing this it is a source of life to our eco system.  And this we understand, energy, water, nitrogen and soil minerals are other essential abiotic components of an ecosystem, so without any one of those we have a problem.  Many verses tell us where the rains and snow come from, Matthew 5:45, states; “So that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and the unjust.”

No moisture, no life, the average human adult male is approximately 65% water, and I find it of interest that with age the water decreases in our body.  In fact, the medical community tells us to drink eight 8-ounce glasses, which equals about 2 liters, or half a gallon of liquid per day.

It matters not where one turns, we are encouraged to drink liquids and when in a drought it seems neighbors and friends remind us to ask the LORD for rain, how different it is from verse eleven where God is showing us the source of all spiritual life on earth.  Verse 11, “so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.” 

I’ve often stated the Bible is God’s Instruction book on living life on planet earth, the Manufacturer’s handbook, or a love letter to God’s kids.  I’m not sure this generation sends mail that you have to put a stamp on, but in a day gone by we wrote letters to our sweetheart, our wife and would give them information on how we were doing, what to do in case they needed help while we were gone, and always to tell them of our love for them.  My wife still has some of those letters.  Our Father in heaven has also done the same thing and He used men to share what God was speaking to and through them.  When it comes to the real you, the soul, the spiritual person, the one God sees; the Word of God is as important as any other source of life.  God’s Word like the moisture returns to Him, but the difference is in the process, it causes spiritual growth.

I pray that you, like Timothy were taught the Scriptures as a child; the apostle Paul is reminding Timothy of this fact and how to look only to the Scriptures as his road map on planet earth.  “But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.”  (2 Timothy 3:14-17 ESV)   

And the apostle Peter gives us this insight: “For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. For when he received honor and glory from God the Father, and the voice was borne to him by the Majestic Glory, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased,” we ourselves heard this very voice borne from heaven, for we were with him on the holy mountain. And we have the prophetic word more fully confirmed, to which you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts, knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone's own interpretation. For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.  (2 Peter 1:16-21 ESV)

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

A Title does not change Ones Life

Isaiah 55:6-9

“Seek the LORD while he may be found; call upon him while he is near; let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the LORD, that he may have compassion on him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”  (Isaiah 55:6-9 ESV)

We who go by the title of Christian, are we that much different than our neighbor who never darkens the door of a church?  For many a person who is not church related seems morally good, goes to work and provides for their family, and often is a better neighbor than the person who attend worship services.  First, it seems necessary to state a title does not change ones life, a title may just make one arrogant or even misguided.  It may come as a surprise to some that Christianity is not passed down from grandparents or parents, it is not even a creed to live by it is a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.  Maybe it is the personal part many have passed looking for a way to earn what is freely given without cost, but it is in no way easy, it requires a heart transplant, a relenting of your will, and seeking forgiveness through confession of your transgressions.   This is a good definition of “Personal’: “belonging to a particular person rather than to anyone else.”  Who do you belong to?  I once belonged to Satan, I was not aware of this for he is one smooth dude, but once I understood, once the Spirit of God opened my eyes to whom I was a follower of, I had a choice, and I chose Jesus.

You may have never read Isaiah 55:6, “Seek the LORD while he may be found; call upon him while he is near; let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the LORD, that he may have compassion on him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.”  This is your invitation from Jesus Christ, to seek Him now, to call upon Him while He is near, confess your independent ways of trying to get your needs met outside of Christ, for He is faithful to His word.  “For he says, “In a favorable time I listened to you, and in a day of salvation I have helped you.” Behold, now is the favorable time; behold, now is the day of salvation.”  (2 Corinthians 6:2)

Being a follower of Christ in no way means perfection, it may cost you greatly, but in the worst of times, the Spirit of Christ will never leave or forsake you.  Christians will battle the flesh and its desires, and they will have conflicts in this world, for this is not our home, we are just passing through.  The words of verse eight are a great reminder of who is in charge: “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” 

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

What camp are you in?

Isaiah 55:4-5

“Incline your ear, and come to me; hear, that your soul may live; and I will make with you an everlasting covenant, my steadfast, sure love for David.       Behold, I made him a witness to the peoples, a leader and commander for the peoples.  Behold, you shall call a nation that you do not know, and a nation that did not know you shall run to you, because of the LORD your God, and of the Holy One of Israel, for he has glorified you.” 

The God of Israel is both the God of the Jews and the Gentiles, those are not my words, they are found in the Manufacturers Handbook in Romans 3:29-30.  “Or is God the God of Jews only? Is he not the God of Gentiles also? Yes, of Gentiles also, since God is one—who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through faith.” 

The people of God, His chosen the Jews are coming out of being captive of the Assyrians and Babylonians, and God is stating through Isaiah that God is going to make an everlasting covenant with Israel as He has done with David.  But are you ready for this; the covenant will include the nations.  Nations coming to Israel not for war, but to share in the glory of God, as you read the newspaper of how the nations surrounding Israel today want to only extinguish the Jewish nation from the face of this earth, you wonder when will Isaiah’s prophecies materialize?

When Jesus showed up on planet earth, His own people wanted nothing to do with Him for they were looking for a Messiah to come and deliver them from Roman rule.  Jesus came as a servant, as one who was humble and meek, and had a word for all people and all nations; God loves you so much that I have come to pay for your sins.  And all anyone has to do is accept the payment by faith on what Jesus did on the cross by covering your sins with His blood.  It is so simple, many will go the hard way of religion, what they can do for God, but that option is not on the table, it will lead to your soul being separated for eternity from God.  Romans 10:9, gives the clear and only path to salvation; “because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is LORD and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead you will be saved.”

It is not David but Jesus who is going to have the nation come to Him, for He is coming back as King of Kings and LORD of LORD’S and will rule in Jerusalem for 1000 years.  If you by grace and faith have entered into a personal relationship with Christ, Jesus has already come in the sky and called His church out before any of this prophecy.  It is often referred to as the end of the Church age, the Church called out to be with Him, both those who have died in Christ and those who are alive, not a coming just an end of the church on this earth.

It is later than many believe, but Jesus is coming back soon, very soon.  What camp are you in?  Religious but lost, or maybe lost without a care for anything but self, or have you accepted the payment of the Cross, and have prayed the prayer of confession, and by faith have received Jesus as your LORD and Savior?

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice 

It comes without Cost

Isaiah 55:1-3

Often the salesperson in me comes out and today is one of those days, this is a deal too good to not share, but I must give you a disclaimer, it only has value for those who thirst.  Now this is the agreement, if you are thirsty and God uses a metaphor of water, wine and milk, and it comes without cost, it’s yours for the asking, but do not forget the disclaimer, it only has value for those who thirst.

As one who made their living trying to meet the customer’s expectations, I often forgot the fact that my Father in heaven had expectations of me, and He also has given me promises about how to live life on planet earth.  I’ve often said the easiest person to sell is a salesperson, and the world’s system has some great advertisement agents, it has an unbelievable marketing arm, and everywhere one turns they are selling you on how to get your needs met outside of God’s authority.  I bet you have bought into a few, I sure have; how to get rich without working, how this pill will change your weight problem without changing your eating habits, how this book will give you the successful marriage, or make you a better parent.  And what about the gloom and doom industry that seems to be very effective; prediction of adversity, especially in economic or business affairs; they are selling more than bad news, they always have a product that could, or might make life better.

Let me share one of my bought lessons and I have many.  Our family moved to the Houston area and bought a home in a new development, only five houses were complete, the developer and his family had died in a helicopter accident and the salesperson forgot to explain why I was getting such a great buy.  Long story cut short, I ended up on the “MUD” water district board, and we were forced to declare bankruptcy.  A large law firm came to us and offered to do work for free to help us, they made all kinds of promises, and the whole time they were buying time to kill any chance of declaring bankruptcy, it was later revealed their real client was the bond industry.   The world system is full of cons and deceivers, so be very careful, if it is too good to be true, then most of the time it is.

So with that said, why should you consider this offer from God?  Could it be you worked hard, tried all the ways of the world, and have ended up in a total mess, in business, with your family and you just want rest from all the cares of this world.  If so you, like the chosen people of God, need this invitation to experience forgiveness, you need physical nourishment of water, milk, and wine, and you need the spiritual nutrition of peace, joy, and hope found in Jesus Christ.  This is God’s offer: “Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat!  Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.”

The Bible has been the most purchased book of our times, and the most not read, it’s not 

about heaven, though it tells us about heaven, it’s about how to find life on planet earth, how

 to negotiate the pot holes of life, how to establish guard rails so when life throws you a curve 

without warning, you will not be destroyed, but remember the guard rails are to make the 

wrecks manageable, not to keep you from having the wreck.   So God asked this question:  

“Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that 

which does not satisfy? Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good, and delight 

yourselves in rich food.” (Isaiah 55:2 ESV)

A word to the wise and to the thirsty is sufficient, the Bible is the only handbook on life written by the Creator of life, it holds the truths you are searching for.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice