Isaiah
48:1, 18 (ESV)
Hear
this, O house of Jacob,
who
are called by the name of Israel,
and
who came from the waters of Judah,
who
swear by the name of the LORD
and
confess the God of Israel,
but
not in truth or right.
Oh
that you had paid attention to my commandments!
Then
your peace would have been like a river,
and
your righteousness like the waves of the sea;
To
become a Christian and to live as a Christian are two different things. The
descendants of Jacob were God’s people, yet they failed to live like God’s
people. God had not hidden himself from them. God reminds them, “From the
beginning I have not spoken in secret, from the time it came to be I have been
there” (Is 48:16) God spoke to Adam. God spoke to Abraham. God spoke to Moses.
God spoke through the prophets. It was not that God was hidden from them, but
that they had refused to listen. The People of God swore by the name of the
LORD, and confessed the God of Israel, but they did not do so in truth or
right. Their living did not match their words. The result was that they did not
experience the peace of God.
The
text laments, “Oh that you had paid attention to my commandments! Then your peace
would have been like a river” (Is 48:18a). But, “There is no peace…for the
wicked” (Is 48:22). It is one thing to call ourselves by the name of Christ. It
is another thing to live out that which is true and right. Jesus said that “In
the world you will have tribulation” (Jn 16:33b). But the warning about
tribulation was sandwiched between these two statements: “I have said these
things to you, that in me you may have peace” (Jn 16:3a). “Take heart; I have
overcome the world” (Jn 16:33c). His promise was that even in the midst of tribulation
from the world, his peace would reign in our hearts because he has overcome the
world.
So
why are we not experiencing his peace? Why is there so much turmoil in our
lives? We call ourselves by the name of Christ, but we do not live according to
the name of Christ in rightness or truth. When we buy into the World’s value
systems, we rob ourselves of his peace. When we listen to the World’s lies
about our security and significance, we rob ourselves of his peace. When we embrace
what the World tells us is important, right or true, we rob ourselves of his
peace. When we act without listening to the Word or the Spirit, we rob
ourselves of his peace. God has not hidden himself. He has spoken clearly. We
have too often been quick to call ourselves Christians but slow to trust him,
rest in him, embrace his values, or walk by his Word. Calling oneself a
Christian does not guarantee peace. Believing, thinking, speaking and living
according to that which is true and right leads to peace even in the middle of
tribulation.
Isaiah
48:18
Oh
that you had paid attention to my commandments!
Then
your peace would have been like a river,
and
your righteousness like the waves of the sea;
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