Isaiah Chapter 48
The Lord clearly sees the hardness of hearts and the hypocrisy of His people.
They are the family of Jacob and family of Judah – the descendants of Abraham. They are the chosen people of God, and they belong to God. They use the Lord’s name to make promises. They praise the God of Israel, but not in truth or in righteousness. They call themselves the people of holy city and they depend on the God of Israel (Isaiah 48:1-2).
Even though these people honour God with their lips, their heart is far away from Him (Isaiah 29:13). Their action did not match up to the standard of God. They did not abide in truth or in righteousness. They did not do things according to God’s commandments.
That means they actually did not believe in God. Therefore, they are hypocrites. When Lord Jesus was on earth, In Mark 7:6, He reminded the Pharisees about their hypocrisy and quoted the words from Isaiah 29:3, “Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you hypocrites!”
Today, we have been baptised in the name of Jesus. We have been redeemed by the blood of Jesus. Now we belong to God. We proclaim our faith, and we also praise the name of Jesus. We pray and preach the Gospel of Salvation in the name of Jesus. But do we abide in truth or in righteousness?
The greatest failure that the people of Israel have done is that their faith has failed them. Especially when they were worshipping idols. God is a jealous God. He does not allow His people to worship idols (Exodus 20:3-5).
Through many of His prophets, God reminds His people many times that He is the One and only True God and He will bless those who obey His Commandments. In Isaiah 48:12-13, God reminds His people once again. Is it necessary for God to keep reminding His people?
This is also a reminder for us. Today we come to church, perhaps we read the Bible daily, and we have listened to many sermons. And often we listen to the same sermon topic that reminds us constantly. We must ask ourselves, have those constant reminders from the Word of God moved and changed us?
Do we do things according to God’s commandments? Perhaps, we don’t worship any physical idols today, but are there any spiritual idols displayed in our hearts? Is there anything greater than God, our wealth, career, family, etc.? If our ear is not opened and our heart is still hardened, then we are just like the people of Israel.
Let us heed God’s commandments, then there will be peace in our hearts that continue flowing like a river, and our righteousness will be like the waves of the sea that never ceased (Isaiah 48:18).
