5th Sunday after Epiphany
Scripture: Isaiah
58:3-9a
This chapter of Isaiah begins with God’s command to Isaiah
to cry out against Israel for pursuing religious ceremony over God’s judgment
and his righteousness. He confronts them specifically about fasting, which was
all form and no substance. He calls Israel to acts of righteousness instead of
mere lip service. The reading challenges us to consider how our faith in Jesus,
our Savior, is revealed in worship and in action.
Teaching
Hypocrisy is at the heart of what is going on in this
passage. The people of Israel were going through the motions (specifically with
fasting in this passage) and wondering why God wasn’t blessing them as they
expected. The New Testament also warns us against hypocrisy.[1]
God desires our lives to show obedience to him, which makes us different from
the world and reveals him as our savior and God.
God desires his people to oppose all forms of evil. He has
saved us from sin and death, and it is our joy and privilege to stand against
the impact of sin and death in our world. One of the places we do this is our relationships
with our neighbors as we love them for Christ’s sake. This includes feeding the
poor, clothing the naked, and welcoming the homeless. It also includes loosing
the bonds of wickedness. This is a broad statement, but ultimately we loose the
bonds of wickedness by proclaiming the forgiveness of sins through the cross of
Christ, for even a prisoner can be free in Christ while she is yet in prison.
Life
There is much happening these days in the area of what many
refer to as Social Justice. Sadly, some of what passes as Social Justice has
nothing to do with loosing the bonds of wickedness, but, instead, embracing and
celebrating it. As Christians, however, we are called to love our neighbor, and
that means acting on his or her behalf to do good. That could take the form of
protest. It could also look like donating to charities that help people in need.
It also means that we, individually, help people. We speak the truth in love.
We feed, clothe, shelter, and help people get on their feet.
Our help is not always on a grand scale. Yet, do not
overlook the beauty of helping one person one time, for a season, or repetitively
across a lifetime. Is this not what Jesus did for us when he bore our sins?
Faith and gratitude lead us to do good to others in Christian love.
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