Is It Just Spiritual Window-dressing?

In 1936, the Cunard Line launched what was then the largest passenger ship in the world. At 83,243 gross tons, she was the largest ship and the fastest ship traveling back and forth from Southampton to New York at a recording setting speed of 31 knots. During World War II, the ship was converted to a troop carrier and at the close of the war it returned to passenger service.

In the spring of 1956, the Smith family made a foggy voyage from Southampton, England to New York aboard the Queen Mary, so the ship has a place in my family history. The ship was retired in 1967 and has been a floating tourist attraction in Long Beach, California ever since.

When the ship was being refurbished for its new role in Long Beach, they needed to remove its smokestacks to complete the work. They were to be repainted and put back in place. The smokestacks were 36 feet long and 23 feet wide. The front stack was 70 feet tall and they went down in size to the rear which was 62 feet tall.

When they were removing them, they discovered that the nearly inch thick steel of the smokestacks had corroded on the inside very badly. Thirty layers of paint on the outside was (in some places) all that was holding them up. A beautify exterior covered a crumbling interior. External appearance was hiding the decaying internal reality!

This morning we will be looking at the book of Isaiah. The 58^th chapter tells us that Isaiah was asked to point out the same problem to the people of his day. No, you will not find cruise ships in Isaiah! But you will find a warning about trying to cover a decaying spiritual life with a coat of ritualistic paint! Turn with me to Isaiah 58 I hope you will forgive me for reading all of it, but it is important that you hear the full context.

Here God’s message to Israel through the prophet Isaiah.

1 “Shout it aloud, do not hold back.
Raise your voice like a trumpet.
Declare to my people their rebellion
and to the house of Jacob their sins.
2 For day after day they seek me out;
they seem eager to know my ways,
as if they were a nation that does what is right
and has not forsaken the commands of its God.
They ask me for just decisions
and seem eager for God to come near them.
3 `Why have we fasted,’ they say,
`and you have not seen it?
Why have we humbled ourselves,
and you have not noticed?’

“Yet on the day of your fasting, you do as you please
and exploit all your workers.
4 Your fasting ends in quarreling and strife,
and in striking each other with wicked fists.
You cannot fast as you do today
and expect your voice to be heard on high.
5 Is this the kind of fast I have chosen,
only a day for a man to humble himself?
Is it only for bowing one’s head like a reed
and for lying on sackcloth and ashes?
Is that what you call a fast,
a day acceptable to the LORD?

6 “Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:
to loose the chains of injustice
and untie the cords of the yoke,
to set the oppressed free
and break every yoke?
7 Is it not to share your food with the hungry
and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter–
when you see the naked, to clothe him,
and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?
8 Then your light will break forth like the dawn,
and your healing will quickly appear;
then your righteousness will go before you,
and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard.
9 Then you will call, and the LORD will answer;
you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.

“If you do away with the yoke of oppression,
with the pointing finger and malicious talk,
10 and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry
and satisfy the needs of the oppressed,
then your light will rise in the darkness,
and your night will become like the noonday.
11 The LORD will guide you always;
he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land
and will strengthen your frame.
You will be like a well-watered garden,
like a spring whose waters never fail.
12 Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins
and will raise up the age-old foundations;
you will be called Repairer of Broken Walls,
Restorer of Streets with Dwellings.

13 “If you keep your feet from breaking the Sabbath
and from doing as you please on my holy day,
if you call the Sabbath a delight
and the LORD’s holy day honorable,
and if you honor it by not going your own way
and not doing as you please or speaking idle words,
14 then you will find your joy in the LORD,
and I will cause you to ride on the heights of the land
and to feast on the inheritance of your father Jacob.”
The mouth of the LORD has spoken.

May the Lord add his blessing to the reading of the Word.

Pity the prophet of God that had to bring “bad” news to the people. The Children of Israel often heard from prophets. From Obadiah in 840 BC to Malachi in 420 BC, Israel and Judah heard a continuing series of warnings of judgment and opportunities for mercy. Often, they were “called out” for blatant disobedience and sin. In this case, however, Isaiah exposed the decay of blackening hearts.

The people were attempting to put a pious paint job over the rot, but God would not be mocked and could not be fooled. He said,

They ask me for just decisions
and seem eager for God to come near them.
`Why have we fasted,’ they say,
`and you have not seen it?
Why have we humbled ourselves,
and you have not noticed?’

On the outside, they looked like they were seeking God. They looked religious! How were they doing that? How were they looking religious? They were going through the religious motions.

Isaiah’s message speaks of two specific practices that I am certain the people thought were their spiritual responsibility. They thought they were meeting that responsibility. But, God said, “Who are you kidding?”

The first of the two was a day of fasting. Fasting was an important part of the Jewish faith. The most important fast day was the Day of Atonement (or Yom Kippur). It was the day that the high priest entered the Holy of Holies, once each year to seek forgiveness for the sins of the people. A day of fasting was an important day on the Jewish calendar.

But these people were only going through the motions. The day that was supposed to be focused on their relationship with God was instead marred by strife and even violence. Isaiah told them that God knew that their displays of humility were only for show because of their actions on the following days!

They finished fasting and went back to being greedy, intolerant, malicious bullies! God wanted worship that led to lives of justice sincerity and generosity. If they would worship with sincerity, he told them he would rebuild their lives and their nation.

First was his concern about their fasting, but second seems to have been a concern about the Sabbath. They treated the day that God had made holy as if it was any other. They went where they wanted, did and said as they pleased. God instructed Isaiah to tell them that the “Lord’s holy day” should be honored and full of delight. If they would do that, he would,

“cause you to ride on the heights of the land
and to feast on the inheritance of your father Jacob.”
The mouth of the LORD has spoken.

The Children of Israel went through the motions without dealing with the real issues. When they thought God was unresponsive, they wondered what is wrong with God?

Have you ever caught yourself doing that?  “God, things aren’t going my way. Why aren’t you blessing me? You said you would!” When you leave this place, has the time you have spent here mean anything? Acts of worship that have no effect on your daily life are simply empty acts. They are just another coat of pretty paint on the rusting, rotting structure of your life!

The word “integrity” has two meanings in English. It means being honest and having strong moral principles. But, it also means being “whole and undivided.” You see, God wants spiritual integrity from us. You cannot be one person at church and a different person during the week! God desires for us to live lives that are a great deal more than putting on religious appearances. It is more than just going to church talking Christian jargon or being politically correct.

Spiritual integrity is when our personal relationship with Jesus expresses itself in compassion for those who are in need around us; spiritual and physical need. When your life outside church matches your life inside of church, you have spiritual integrity.

14 then you will find your joy in the LORD,
and (he) I will cause you to ride on the heights of the land
and to feast on the inheritance of your father Jacob.”
The mouth of the LORD has spoken.