January 5, 2011

BOOTY, GOD, BOOTY

Isaiah 3

Michael Fleming
Wednesday's Devo

January 5, 2011

Wednesday's Devo

January 5, 2011

Central Truth

The most important resolution you can make this year is to have the right programming formula for your life.

Key Verse | Isaiah 3:8

For Jerusalem has stumbled, and Judah has fallen, because their speech and their actions are against the Lord, to rebel against His glorious presence. (Isaiah 3:8)

Isaiah 3

Judgment on Judah and Jerusalem

For behold, the Lord God of hosts
    is taking away from Jerusalem and from Judah
support and supply, 1 3:1 Hebrew staff
    all support of bread,
    and all support of water;
the mighty man and the soldier,
    the judge and the prophet,
    the diviner and the elder,
the captain of fifty
    and the man of rank,
the counselor and the skillful magician
    and the expert in charms.
And I will make boys their princes,
    and infants 2 3:4 Or caprice shall rule over them.
And the people will oppress one another,
    every one his fellow
    and every one his neighbor;
the youth will be insolent to the elder,
    and the despised to the honorable.

For a man will take hold of his brother
    in the house of his father, saying:
“You have a cloak;
    you shall be our leader,
and this heap of ruins
    shall be under your rule”;
in that day he will speak out, saying:
“I will not be a healer; 3 3:7 Hebrew binder of wounds
    in my house there is neither bread nor cloak;
you shall not make me
    leader of the people.”
For Jerusalem has stumbled,
    and Judah has fallen,
because their speech and their deeds are against the LORD,
    defying his glorious presence. 4 3:8 Hebrew the eyes of his glory

For the look on their faces bears witness against them;
    they proclaim their sin like Sodom;
    they do not hide it.
Woe to them!
    For they have brought evil on themselves.
10  Tell the righteous that it shall be well with them,
    for they shall eat the fruit of their deeds.
11  Woe to the wicked! It shall be ill with him,
    for what his hands have dealt out shall be done to him.
12  My people—infants are their oppressors,
    and women rule over them.
O my people, your guides mislead you
    and they have swallowed up 5 3:12 Or they have confused the course of your paths.

13  The LORD has taken his place to contend;
    he stands to judge peoples.
14  The LORD will enter into judgment
    with the elders and princes of his people:
“It is you who have devoured 6 3:14 Or grazed over; compare Exodus 22:5 the vineyard,
    the spoil of the poor is in your houses.
15  What do you mean by crushing my people,
    by grinding the face of the poor?”
    declares the Lord God of hosts.

16  The LORD said:
Because the daughters of Zion are haughty
    and walk with outstretched necks,
    glancing wantonly with their eyes,
mincing along as they go,
    tinkling with their feet,
17  therefore the Lord will strike with a scab
    the heads of the daughters of Zion,
    and the LORD will lay bare their secret parts.

18 In that day the Lord will take away the finery of the anklets, the headbands, and the crescents; 19 the pendants, the bracelets, and the scarves; 20 the headdresses, the armlets, the sashes, the perfume boxes, and the amulets; 21 the signet rings and nose rings; 22 the festal robes, the mantles, the cloaks, and the handbags; 23 the mirrors, the linen garments, the turbans, and the veils.

24  Instead of perfume there will be rottenness;
    and instead of a belt, a rope;
and instead of well-set hair, baldness;
    and instead of a rich robe, a skirt of sackcloth;
    and branding instead of beauty.
25  Your men shall fall by the sword
    and your mighty men in battle.
26  And her gates shall lament and mourn;
    empty, she shall sit on the ground.

Footnotes

[1] 3:1 Hebrew staff
[2] 3:4 Or caprice
[3] 3:7 Hebrew binder of wounds
[4] 3:8 Hebrew the eyes of his glory
[5] 3:12 Or they have confused
[6] 3:14 Or grazed over; compare Exodus 22:5

Dive Deeper | Isaiah 3

Last year, I heard Jonathan Acuff (author of stuffchristianslike.net) give a talk about creative communication. He told a story of listening to an R&B radio station on the way to work. He heard a segment called the "Inspirational Vitamin," in which a Bible verse would be read, followed by a clip from a preacher on the subject. It was always uplifting, but the problem was that before and after the segment, the station played an R&B song that was super sexual. Their programming formula: Booty, God, Booty.

Maybe you laugh as you read this, or maybe it offends you. The sad thing is that we Christians often live our lives the same way. The programming of your life might sound like this: Wake up, read the Bible, and pray. Go to work and live disconnected from God. Drive home, spend time with the family/friends, read the Bible, and pray.

There is a good chance that the format of our life is as out of sync as "booty, God, booty." Maybe for you the difference isn't so drastic, but the inconsistency between who you are when you are in "religious mode" and who you are when you are in "work mode" is huge. Ultimately, it reveals a heart and life that is against the Lord, defying "His glorious presence" (Isaiah 3:8). The people of Judah were suffering from the same disconnect, and God finally called them on it.  

You see, a God on the sidelines is no God at all. People say all the time that a God of judgment can't be a God of love, but they are wrong. A loving God, like a loving parent, must always have our best in mind and be willing to lovingly discipline us when we start pursuing anything less than the best. God made us to delight in His glorious presence, but we have "brought evil" on ourselves (Isaiah 3:9) by replacing God at the center of our lives with things like jobs, friends, money, sex, etc.

Is your life disjointed, or is the Savior your center?

Discussion Questions

1. In what areas of your life are you unfaithful like Judah, unwilling to give control over to Christ? How is it hurting you? How does it impact others?

2. The central idea in the gospel is life from death. Philippians 1:21 says, "For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain." What would it cost you to turn over control of those areas of your life to Christ? What would be the benefit?

3. The gospel applies to your life in two ways. First, as you uncover the lies you believe and apply the truths that Scripture reveals. Second, by realizing the idols you desire more than Jesus and focusing on your identity in Christ. What lies do you believe and what Scripture realigns you toward truth? What idols are stealing your true joy?

This year, The Journey adds a Weekly Family Activity written by Watermark's Children Ministry to encourage parents to read God's Word with their children and to facilitate family discussions about the daily Journey passages. Each week will bring a new family activity.

WEEKLY FAMILY ACTIVITY

ISAIAH 1-5 (JAN 3-7)

Activity Part 1: Take a small, washable object and cover it with mud. As you cover it, take turns talking about behavior that is disobedient/rebellious towards God.

Read Isaiah 1:1-6 & 16-20.

Verses 4 and 5 tell us that the Israelites are rebellious, hardhearted, and far from God.

What was Isaiah encouraging them to do because of the condition of their hearts (verses 16-17)? Give examples of when you have rebelled/disobeyed authority in your life (God, parents, teachers, bosses, or coaches). What do you think makes you want to rebel/disobey? Also give examples of times of obedience and what made you want to obey.

How do you get to know God in a way that your heart consistently wants to honor and obey Him, rather than rebel and disobey? Think about the need daily to take a bath/shower. How do we do that with our hearts?

Activity Part 2: 
Now go back to your object. Talk about what needs to be done to remove the dirt from the object. Have fun getting the object clean and repeating together what Isaiah says in verses 16 and 17.

Talk together about how each of you can keep your hearts clean daily.