November 13: WHO ARE YOU BECOMING?

Hear the word of the LORD, You rulers of Sodom; Give ear to the law of our God, You people of Gomorrah. Isaiah 1:10

Now, the cities of the plain had long-since been utterly destroyed (Genesis 19) never to be rebuilt. This history was very well-known among the Jews. For Isaiah to address Judah this way pointed to the identity theft that Satan was accomplishing among God’s people. Not only was wicked perversion known in the land of Judah (Judges 19), but the downward spiral of the nation of the Jews as a whole was taking them on a steady course into their darkest days, spiritually speaking: captivity in Babylon. That had not happened yet, but when it did, the plain-spoken Ezekiel called it out: “You did not walk in [Sodom’s] ways nor act according to their abominations; but, as if that were too little, you became more corrupt than they in all your ways” (Ezekiel 16:47).

God’s people, chosen to bring the Good News of salvation to the world, eventually became more corrupt than Sodom and Gomorrah. Ezekiel continued: “Look, this was the iniquity of your sister Sodom: She and her daughter had pride, fullness of food, and abundance of idleness; neither did sha strengthen the hand of the poor and needy” (v.49).

The Jews were religious, but God was disgusted by the formal religious motions that they went through, even though He had originally commanded them. This is because God cannot abide religious hypocrisy, which puts forth a false assurance of a right relationship with Him while pursuing a life of disobedience. The appearance of reverence on the Sabbath may look good in the community, but such a smoke screen does not fool the all-seeing, all-knowing One.

“To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices to Me?” Says the LORD. “I have had enough of burnt offerings . . . When you come to appear before Me, Who has required this from your hand, to trample My courts? . . . I cannot endure iniquity and the sacred meeting” Isaiah 1:11a,12,13b

Anyone not personally yielded to the divine work of the Lord — transformation into His likeness — is, by default, handing Satan free reign to mold and shape as his perverted mind sees fit. Who are you coming to resemble as time passes? Worship apart from loyal obedience expresses a lie about one’s relationship with the Lord. Such a misrepresentation of His character delights Satan and leads others into the sin of religious hypocrisy. To shrug off the instructions given by God places the ‘shrugger’ and those he or she influences on very dangerous ground. “Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice” (1 Samuel 15:22). Obedience is an indicator of where one’s loyalty lies. The primary indicator of loyalty to God shines brightest through simple obedience to Him.

Zion shall be redeemed with justice, And her penitents with righteousness. Isaiah 1:27

Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one’s slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness? Romans 6:16