Isaiah 58:11-12 “And the LORD shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not. And they that shall be of thee shall build the old waste places: thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations; and thou shalt be called, The repairer of the breach, The restorer of paths to dwell in.”
Isaiah 59:1-2 “Behold, the LORD’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear: But your iniquities have separated between you. and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.”
Isaiah 58:9 “Then shalt thou call, and the LORD shall answer; thou shalt cry, and he shall say, Here I am. If thou take away from the midst of thee the yoke, the putting forth of the finger, and speaking vanity.”
As discussed in the previous post, the Lord is seeking a faithful few who can repair the breech in our land. These believers can build up the old waste places, raise up stable foundations, and restore the paths of protection and provision. Our society desperately needs this type of healing, renewal, and revival.
But there are two primary categories of contingencies in the passage above that are holding us back today like they were in the day of Isaiah.
The first is the nature of the expression of our faith (the second will be described in next week’s post). The Lord is looking for a real, genuine, authentic, ever-guiding, never-neglecting faith. He isn’t looking for a part-time faith. He isn’t looking for lack-luster faith. He isn’t looking for a fair-weather faith. He isn’t looking for a half-hearted faith. Instead, He is looking for a faith that pervades our lives and propels our labors.
The people who were holding back God in Isaiah’s day were living with one foot in the world. They were familiar with sin, they fasted for show, and they forsook the sabbath. They failed to examine their hearts, their conversation overflowed with disrespect, and they quickly pointed their puritanical fingers at the missteps of others.
So do we! And we must change course so that we are fully directed towards Him!
PLEASE PRAY FOR AMERICAN CHRISTIANS TO EMBODY A REAL, GENUINE, AND AUTHENTIC FAITH. If we do, God is looking to quickly respond – here I am!
