These words have been hanging on my heart for almost a week. "This people honors me with their lips though their hearts are far from me." I pondered on them for most of the week. It was easy to see the truth in them. These words are from Isaiah chapter 29. I went through and read the entire passage and understood why the Lord would bring these words to my attention. Lip service... but hearts that say, "We will not serve." Isn't this true? If it were not true, we would not see such widespread sin in the world. Most people believe in God, statistically speaking, but we don't live as if we truly honor Him and his commandments. What good is mere lip service? Is it just a form of fire insurance? The truth is... if I say I believe in God but do not follow his commandments then I am dishonoring the Lord. Plain and simple. We need to turn our hearts to God. He created us and knows all things. When we admit our sins and ask forgiveness with a whole heart we will be healed.
"Come now, let us set things right, says the Lord:
Though your sins be like scarlet,
they may become white as snow;
Though they be crimson red
they may become white as wool.
If you are willing and obey..." Isaiah 1: 18, 19
Like Babylon, the great harlot - America (and the world) has committed adultery. When the Bridegroom comes to meet His bride (symbolic of the Church and we, the body of Christ on earth) will our wedding attire be smeared with the scarlet letter A upon it? Or will it be white as snow? The choice is ours, for the Lord, in his mercy, is more than willing to wash us clean.
Utterly Thine, O Lord
Wise words, indeed.
ReplyDeleteI'm afraid in today's society that there are many who share only lip service.....I don't know why as it is much easier to follow the commandments then talk about them and pretend to be Christians......bottom line they can fool other people, even themselves but they can never fool God, he sees, knows and is "all"
ReplyDelete.............:-) Hugs
Your quote from Isaiah is one of my all-time favorites!
ReplyDeleteAnne,
ReplyDeleteI love that scripture passage, too. Gives everyone hope :)
Love this post. God keeps wanting us to lift our eyes to Him, but when we are given the grace to do so, we look elsewhere, all the time sitting in the pews ever Sunday! I think that the Church has the right idea encouraging us to examine our conscience every night.
ReplyDelete