As the Lord may be pleased to
bless us this evening, I will speak to you from the prophecy
of Isaiah chapter 58 and we'll read verse 12. The prophecy of
Isaiah chapter 58 and reading verse 12. 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 was a very blessed prophet. and a prophet that was wonderfully
used in speaking solemn truths and yet glorious truths and throughout
the prophecy we read of those words spoken to those who perhaps
pretended to be Christians and to those who were those who were
blessed with the Spirit of God And this particular chapter 58
is really a very beautiful chapter and it splits into sections but
it all leads really to the last, well it leads up to verses 8
to 12 where a wonderful outpouring of the Spirit of God is promised
to those who do walk in the way and the counsel of the Lord. But the Prophet speaks warnings,
and it's good really for us to have warnings. And he is spoken
to by God in this way, that he was to cry aloud, and he wasn't
to spare, and he was to lift up his voice like a trumpet.
Well, I'm sure we know that when a trumpet's blown, it's got quite
a penetrating sound. And we can hear it very clearly.
And when the trumpet is blown, therefore, there is that need
to listen to what it means. Especially in Old Testament times,
when the trumpets were blown, it signified certain actions
that were required. Preparation for war, to go on
the march and that kind of thing. And so, there is that clear word
here that there is need to listen to what the prophet is going
to say and he's told and show thy people their transgression
and the house of Jacob their sins. Well we might say well
why is that necessary? Well it is necessary for this
very simple reason we can become very easily settle down in our
religion and not God's religion and we can feel to be very comfortable
in it and think we're ticking all the boxes and everything
seems to be alright but in actual fact we're not we're off the
mark we might think we're going in a right way But there's a
need to carefully look into our hearts. And that's really what
the Prophet is charged with here. And therefore he comes and he
gives a description of those who thought they were alright. And just bear with us as we go
through these words. I might just say that this twelfth
verse was really the verse which rested on my spirit. But as I
looked at this chapter really I felt well I had to go through
it because it really follows and it really gives us a picture
of this situation. So here we have these words spoken
to the church which were not acting in accordance with God's
word. And he says, yet they seek me
daily and delight to know my ways as a nation that did righteousness
and forsook not the ordinance of their God." Well, that's a
very strong position, isn't it? Here's a people that seek God
daily and say they'd like to know his ways and did righteousness
and they don't forsake the ordinances of their God. And they also, they ask of me
the ordinances of justice. They take delight in approaching
to God. Well, we look at that and we
say, well, surely that must be a righteous people. Surely that
must be the true Church of God. Well, the prophets told to cry
aloud and to speak to them and to question the truth and the
reality of their religion. And he asked them, he comes and
says, wherefore have we fasted, say they? And thou seest not. Now, they were fasting, another
good situation. And they asked the question,
and thou seest not. Surely, that God will see that
we're walking this way and we're fasting, surely we're going to
attract the attention of God. Wherefore have we afflicted our
souls? And they'll take as no knowledge.
Now it appears to be that bowing down before God and yet they
ask the question and yet God doesn't seem to be taking any
knowledge. Well, these are very searching
considerations, aren't they? As we look into our own lives,
our own hearts, perhaps we might find much similarity in such
a form of religion. Behold, in the day of your fast,
ye find pleasure and exact all your labours. Now, here we see
a little light. If we are to truly fast before
God, that won't be something which we find pleasure in. It will be a hardship. It will be difficult. It won't
be something which is easy. As I often say, true Christian
religion is not easy. If we find it easy, we need to
question the reality of our religion. So here we have this statement,
behold in the day of your fast ye find pleasure and exact all
your labours. He goes on, behold ye fast for
strife and debate and to smite with a fist of wickedness. What
it is really is to prove that we're doing better than others
We're setting a good example, and we are the people, and you
listen to what we've got to say? Well, ye shall not fast as ye
do this day, to make your voice to be heard on high." And then
he says, is it such a fast that I have chosen? And the question
is put to them, is this the fast that I have chosen? The fast
that God's chosen. The question is, is it a fast
that we've chosen? Something which is easy. Something
which suits us. Just to give you an example.
If you've had a very good day of feasting one day, it's no
real hardship to fast the next day, is it? It's very suitable. And yet you may pack yourself
on the back and say, well I'm doing a great thing. But yes,
in your eyes, but not in the eyes of God. So he says, is it
such a farce that I have chosen? Now just look at this as he describes
what these people are doing. A day for a man to afflict his
soul. Is it to bow down his head as
a bulrush and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him? What they
call this a fast and an acceptable day to the Lord. Well, here is
a very typical picture of many people who would profess to be
very good Christians and are doing everything in accordance
with what they believe to be God's will. And they're acting
it all out. Here they are with a long face,
bearing down their heads and spitting sacks full of ashes
under them. walking this way and saying, well this must be
good and I'm setting a wonderful example and everybody should
look at me and follow me. So the question was, is not this
the fast that I have chosen? He comes to now. First of all
it was the question, is it such a fast that I have chosen? And
now, is not this the fast that I have chosen? Here we see the
difference. Now previously, that was not
the fast that God had chosen. It's very critical, isn't it? We examine ourselves. Because
no doubt, if we're honest, we would have noticed those points
and thought we were doing pretty well. The Lord says, Now, is
not this the fast that I have chosen? This is God's way. This
is God's purpose. He says now, to loose the bands
of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed
go free, and that you break every yoke. Sometimes the opposite
almost seems to be the picture. We like to keep people bound
up. We don't like them to have liberty. We like them to be under heavy
burdens and to realize they're oppressed.
Well, just notice here the gracious words of the Lord. They're not
my words, they're God's words. Is not this the fast that I have
chosen? This is what God says. This is
His chosen way. You and I should seek this way. It's not a question of walking
and pleasing ourselves. You see, what we read here previously
in these verses is really something which we just do in ourselves. It's contained within ourselves
almost. And we walk in this way and we act like this so that
people will think we're a humble and godly person. But it's really
having our religion to ourselves. It's not walking in accordance
with the ways of God. So we have this expression, to
loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, those
who are walking in a wrong way, to loose those bands, to take
any stumbling blocks out of the way. They may not be found in
a way of wickedness. Heavy burdens. What a blessing
it is when the Lord relieves us of those heavy burdens. Now,
I believe in all these things. The result is that we need to
be directed to the Lord Jesus Christ. This is the blessing. This is where there's liberty.
This is where there's freedom. This is where the bands run loose
when we look to Jesus. Religion is positive. It is not
negative. True religion is to know Christ
and Him crucified. Anything short of this is really
of the flesh. and break every yoke." He goes
on, "...is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that
thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? When thou
seest the naked, that thou cover him, and that thou hide not thyself
from thine own flesh." In Sunday school this morning,
you children will remember spoke about that Samaritan and we call
him of course the Good Samaritan and he was a Good Samaritan and
really we have set before us in that simple parable about
the Lord Jesus Christ, the picture that he portrays and if you think
of that in that Good Samaritan how true it was that he indeed
came where that poor man was. Don't forget, the Lord was speaking
to a person who was trying to justify himself. When the Lord
had told him that he should keep the name of the Lord and love
his neighbour as himself. And he came and asked the question,
well who's my neighbour? The Lord put him right very quickly
and very simply by this parable. And at the end of that, The Lord
said, go and do thou likewise. That's the example that we are
to follow. And here it is, spelled out in
the Old Testament, in these words. Is it not, to deal thy bread
to the hungry, that they'll bring the poor that are cast out to
thy house? You know, it's very instructive,
isn't it? We've got some bread. We're to give it to those who
are hungry. We're to invite. the poor to our house, not the
wealthy ones, not the ones that we think or admire, our homes
or anything like that, but to bring the poor, those who can't
actually repay us again, bring the poor that are cast out, the
outcasts. Now, let's realise this is the
Word of God, this is spiritual and real fasting. This is obeying
the Word of God. And when thou seest the naked,
that thou cover him, and that thou hide not thyself from thine
own flesh. Well there we have in those two
verses what it is to clearly fast in accordance with God's
way. And then after that, we have
a wonderful picture of those who receive grace to walk in
this way. And it is a very wonderful thing to be able to think that
if God enables us to do that which perhaps may not be pleasing
to our flesh, It may not be easy to our flesh, but a blessing
is if we hear the word of the Lord and follow his word and
then, what do we find here? Then shall thy light break forth
as the morning. The light, what is that light? I am the light of the world,
says the Lord Jesus Christ. Now, if we are a true believer,
our great concern will be to have this light shine into our
hearts, to have Christ revealed, and to be the great light, what
a light that will be, what a blessed light it is, what a glorious
light it is, and how it sets us apart. Then, says the Prophet,
then shall thy light break forth as the morning. You think of
the darkness at night and then as the light breaks forth and
the sun shines. Isn't it beautiful to see the
sun rise and shine upon the earth? The darkness has passed, the
light now shines. And to think that we've been
in darkness and we've been walking in our own way We've been thinking
we're a good Christian, we've been pretending to do this and
do that, hanging down our heads, putting on a long face. But my
friends, has it brought the blessing? Have we found ourselves walking
in the light? Or have we remained in that,
we might term, pseudo-condition? Then shall thy light break forth
as the morning, and thy health shall spring forth speedily,
and thy righteousness shall go before thee. The glory of the
Lord shall be thy re-reward. Well, it's a promise. It's a promise from God. It's a promise which shows what
will be our benefit. And it's a picture which is so
precious, isn't it? To think that the light of Christ
will shine into our hearts and our soul will be healthy. We won't be cramped up. Our soul will be healthy. It
will be expanding. Because the light of the glorious
gospel has shone into our heart. Thine heart, thine health shall
spring forth speedily. We may have been very cramped
in our spiritual life. We may have perhaps thought it
was normal and what was to be expected. We shouldn't really
expect any real blessing or any real favour. We might have got
ourselves into a real situation like that. Forgetting the great
promises of God. The great word of God to instruct
us, to direct us in the way that we should go. So here we have
this statement then. Yes, the light shall break forth
as a morning and thine health shall spring forth speedily,
and thy righteousness shall go before thee." What do we see
going before us? The Lord Jesus Christ as our
Righteous One. He's gone before. As we see Him
going before us, my friends, what is He? He's leading us in
the right way. Have we been stumbling along
before? We found it almost impossible. We perhaps have questioned, like
these people did, why hasn't the Lord heard? Why hasn't the
Lord done this? Now to find we see the Saviour. There's no greater blessing than
to view the Saviour. Let's be quite clear about that.
Nothing else will do us any real good. Nothing else will really
be a blessing to our souls. That's why it comes down to this,
give me Christ or else I die. Spiritual blessings in Christ
Jesus produces health to our souls, springing forth speedily,
righteousness. Go before you, the glory of the
Lord shall be thy real reward. Glory of the Lord, we should
observe. Wonderful thing, isn't it? To
observe the glory of the Lord. And the prophet goes on. Then,
then, shalt thou call, and the Lord shall answer. You may say,
well, I've been praying for a long time, and I haven't had any answers. Is it because we've been fasting
on our own terms? Is it because we've been looking
to ourselves, rather than viewing the precious Word of God, following
His commands, and those things that He sets before us? Oh, it's good, isn't it? The
Holy Spirit of God might come upon us and direct us in this
way, because he comes and says, then shalt thou call and the
Lord shall answer. Another shall in the word of
God. We long for shalls, don't we?
I hope we do anyway. I hope you long for those times
when the Lord shall come and bless. Then shalt thou call and the
Lord shall answer. Thou shalt cry, and he shall
say, Here am I." We may have wondered where the Lord was.
We may have wondered. Perhaps we couldn't find Him. Then to be blessed with this,
to cry to Him, And the Lord answers. He says, Here I am. Here I am. The Lord says that. And we will be very low, very
broken down in our soul, because we will be then in the presence
of the Lord. The Almighty God. Yes, truly the light will have
shone. Christ our God, and here we are before the Lord. Here I am. Thou take away from the midst
of thee the yoke, the putting forth of the finger, and speaketh
vanity. Another indication here that
we are to be very careful. We are not to take away the midst
of thee the yoke, and the putting forth of the finger, and the
speaking vanity. You see, by nature, we often
point the finger, don't we? We point the finger. We're very
careful with that. We've got to realise that the
fault may be in ourselves. It may not be in the people that
we think it's in. It may be in ourselves. It's good to examine ourselves
first. to not be found speaking vanity. We do speak vanity very often
and very easily. Well, here we have this word
here, and speaking vanity, we might take it away, take it away. And I believe when we're walking
in the light, And when the Spirit of God is in our heart, and when
we're enjoying that communion with our God, then you see, there
is not any room for vanity. And if thou draw out my soul
to the hungry, draw out my soul to the hungry,
here we have a very spiritual statement, don't we? It's drawing
out our soul to those who are hungry and thirsty for the things
of God. That is to speak and encourage
in the things of God, to draw out our soul to the hungry. Well, that's a good statement,
isn't it? It's a good situation that we
should be concerned about in our spiritual life. We have here
the Word of God, standing before us a great example to draw out
our soul to the hungry. We want to see those who are
hungry for the things of God. We don't want to discourage them,
do we? At least I hope we don't want
to. Maybe we found in like this Drawing
out our soul. Our soul goes out to them. And we, as it were, in a natural
sense, you can see, if someone's hungry they want feeding. If
someone's spiritually hungry, they need feeding. What a blessing,
if you and I are given that grace to come alongside them. Again,
this won't be to vaunt ourselves. This will be for the concern
of their souls and for the honour and glory of our God. Draw out thy soul to the hungry
and satisfy the afflicted soul. The afflicted soul. Someone who is afflicted. That
means they are spiritually sick and they need healing and they
need encouragement. Let's not be those who pass by
on the other side, like that priest and the Levite. It's an
easy thing to do, isn't it? To pass by on the other side.
Say, well, I'm just too busy. Well, I really can't get involved
in that. I'm just going on and off you
go. Ignoring the afflicted. Remember that good Samaritan,
he came where he was. And he did all that he could
to alleviate that man's needs. All that he could. It's a high
standard, isn't it? My friend, it's God's standard. And satisfy the afflicted soul. And then we gain another wonderful,
beautiful encouragement. Because, let us be clear, this
situation will mean sacrifice. It'll cost us to do these things,
but here's the blessing. Then shall thy light rise in
obscurity, and thy darkness be as the noonday. It means, does
it not, the sun of righteousness will arise and shine into our
hearts. Yes, there'll be the answer to
a good conscience then, between your soul and God. You'll thank
God that He's given you grace to do those things which the
Word of God instructs us in, and now to enjoy the wonderful
benefit of His grace in pouring forth His love into our hearts. Wonderful blessing. Glorious
words, aren't they, really, the instruction here. And the Lord
shall guide thee continually and satisfy thy soul in drought. Continual guidance by God. What a blessing that is. Why
don't we seek guidance? We don't seem to obtain the guidance. Perhaps it's because we're not
doing God's will. Perhaps it's because we're not
walking closer to him. Perhaps we're following our own
little way. and the Lord shall guide thee,
and satisfy thy soul in drought." That means when there's drought
around us, we won't be left. The Lord will
come. And to be satisfied is an amazing
truth. It's not just a skimpy situation. It's one which the Lord fulfils,
satisfying our soul. Again, let us realise, this chapter
here speaks in two ways. It speaks of natural religion
and it speaks of spiritual religion. And we are instructed here in
these things. And then the wonderful favour,
as he speaks the blessing to our souls. And it's a wonderful
thing to know the blessing of the Lord in our souls. And the Lord shall guide thee
continually and satisfy thy soul and make fat thy bones. Yes,
the Word of God speaks, doesn't it, of being fat and flourishing
in the things of God. Not lean. Fat and flourishing. Enjoying. Communion with Christ. You and I are fat and flourishing.
If we're lean and withered, it's because we're far off. It's because
we're following our own way. And thou shalt be like a watered
garden, and like a spring of water whose waters fail not. A watered garden. We know a watered
garden is green and fresh Pleasant to look at and pleasant to observe.
What a good thing it will be in your life and my life, by
the grace of God, that we are like a water garden. We're not dry, we're not withered.
We're fat and flourishing. We're fruitful in the things
of God. Yes, as it were, fruit on our vine. Not just leaves,
but fruit, and we're therefore Like this water garden, and like
a spring of water, whose waters fail not. It's an interesting
consideration. A spring of water, you know,
if it springs up, it springs up in drought, when it's hot,
it springs up when it's cold, when it's frozen. The spring
still springs up. comes up to the frozen ground
and springs up. So we have this picture here.
The Lord comes and blesses our souls like a watered garden and
like a spring of water whose waters fail not. So we have a
picture here, don't we, of a soul that is walking with their Lord. Enjoying fellowship. And as the evidence of Christ,
then they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus. Oh, what a difference. Oh, what
a blessing for you and me, if there's that picture. Because
if it is so, then we come to this twelfth verse which says,
They shall be of thee, shall build the old waste places, shall
raise up the foundations of many generations, and thou shalt be
called the repairer of the breach, the restorer of paths to dwell
in." Again we see here a description of a desolate situation. Waste places Foundations which
have been there and the buildings are destroyed and broken down. Breaches have been made. Paths
that don't exist. A barren place. But such people
the Lord uses. 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." Well, I'm
sure we would desire to be found in this way, to be found one
of those referred to here that the Lord uses for his honour
and for his glory. And if we look around today,
we do see, surely, for the most part, a scene of desolation,
waste places, foundations. But a blessing it is if we shall
be called the repairer of the breach, the restorer of paths
to dwelling. Not a destroyer, but a restorer. I was seeking truly for the blessing
of the Lord in this day and age in which we live. We have a God who is all-powerful. We have a God who is great and
a God who can do everything. We have here then, this great
and glorious description before us. Now, I believe these words,
we have just considered briefly here tonight, give us a very
blessed picture, but also a very solemn picture. And Isaiah, the
day and age in which he lived, remember it was a dark and difficult
age, Israel had turned their back upon God and there were
those who were pretending still to do those things which were
right and good. And there was that returning then from Babylon
to Jerusalem, there was that desire then that there may be
those who would come back and be brought like this, who would
indeed be the repairers of the breaches and the restorer of
paths to dwell in. Now as we think of the situation,
You might pause for a moment and just look at, think of Nehemiah
and Ezra in their days. How the Lord raised them up to
confess their sins, to confess the sins of the nation and to
pray earnestly for the blessing of the Lord to once again be
known in that place. The Lord heard and answered those
prayers. The walls were rebuilt. The temple
was once again established. The nation was once more able
to worship the true God. So now we live many years past
that. But we still need the same God. And we still need the same blessings. So may we be found humbling ourselves
under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt us in due time. Now these words give us solemn
instructions, but gracious and wonderful encouragements. And
may our real prayer be, and our real concern be, that we may
be found amongst those that this word speaks about. shall thy
light break forth as a morning, and thine health shall spring
forth speedily, and thy righteousness shall go before thee, and the
glory of the Lord shall be thy rear reward. And then, 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. May we be concerned
then to be Christ-like, to set before those we meet with, those
we speak with, the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ. May we point
to Calvary. May we direct them there. And
all my friends, may the Spirit of God apply the Word so there
is a spiritual movement and there is a seeking unto the Lord in
a time when he may be found, so that his name may be honored
and glorified. Amen.