- Hard to be Humble
Today we have, for our scripture, the 58th chapter of the book of Isaiah. This chapter presents in such concise form so much of what the Bible teaches, and of what Jesus teaches; that, in order for our worship to be pleasing to God, we must engage in acts of justice, acts of compassion, acts of love to those who are the least of these: the poor, the oppressed, the victimized.
In this passage, God directs the prophet to proclaim loudly to the people their rebellion, how they have strayed from the way of God, how they have turned their back on God’s teachings, God’s laws.
The worst thing is, the people don’t even realize what they have done. They think all is well. They’ve convinced themselves they are doing what is right.
They think they are worshiping faithfully, doing exactly what God wants them to do. They claim God’s favor. They delight to draw near to God. They bask in the assumption that God is on their side; and they are baffled that God hasn’t taken more notice of their “righteousness.”
They cry out, “Why do we fast, but you, O God, do not see? Why do we humble ourselves, but you do not notice?” They don’t even see the contradiction in their own words. They don’t even see what is so obvious, that humbling yourself in order to be noticed isn’t humbling yourself.
We know that their blindness was common to other people in other times. Centuries later, Jesus had to deal with this exact same issue. People were making a spectacle of fasting, making a spectacle of public acts of prayer, making a spectacle of their humility. People would stand in conspicuous places in the city to pray just so others could see how humble they were and admire them for their humility. They would come right out and brag about how humble they were.
It was all for show.
And many people were fooled.
But God wasn’t fooled.
And even today, in our own time, we have people doing the same thing. They are fooling the people with their pretend piety and their false displays of faith. They are making a show of faith. They are praying very public prayers, then going out and doing the exact opposite of what God so clearly demands.
And too many are led astray. Too many are given a false idea of what it means to truly follow God, of what it means to truly worship God, of what it means to truly serve God.
As Isaiah says, on your fast day, on your day of worship, your day of prayer, all you are concerned about is what’s good for you. You make a show of praying to God, and then you go out and oppress God’s people. You make a show of praying to God, and then you exploit the poor. You make a show of praying to God, and then you do the exact opposite of what God requires.
You pray in public and you say, “look at how faithful we are! Look at how humble we are! There has never been anyone more humble than us! Look at our worship, at our service to the people.”
- Look!
And this is when the prophet says, “Look.”
I like it when the prophet uses that word, “Look,” which he actually says two times here in the New Revised Standard Version of Isaiah 58. It’s a word that people use a lot today, when they are about to drop some real truth on you.
“Look.”
The word “look” also echoes the people’s demands that God look at them, look at how they are fasting, at how they are praying, look at how humble they are. And that’s their whole problem, isn’t it? They want everyone to be looking at them, including God, but the prophet says, “Stop trying to get everyone to look at you, and instead, LOOK AT GOD!”
“Look at God!”
“Do you even see God? Have you ever turned your attention away from your own selfish interests to direct your attention to God and what God wants? … the kind of worship, the kind of fasting, the kind of living that God demands?
“Look. This is the type of worship God demands.
God demands that you loose the bonds of injustice, that you undo the thongs of the yoke, that you let the oppressed go free, and that you break every yoke. God demands that you share your bread with the hungry, and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, cover them, and do not separate yourself from your own brothers and sisters.”
But because you do not do these things, God says, I will NOT look at you. I will not bless your so-called acts of worship. I will not look favorably upon your prayers and your fasting.
- Chorus of Prophets
What’s going on here in the 58th chapter of Isaiah is the same thing going on in the book of Amos. The people boast about how faithful they are, how humble they are, how dedicated they are to acts of prayers and worship… But God sees all the injustice committed by them, and God says to them: “I hate, I despise your festivals, and I take no delight in your solemn assemblies. Even though you offer me your burnt-offerings and grain-offerings, I will not accept them; the offerings you make to me, I will not look upon. Even though you lift up very public prayers in my name, I will not listen.
“Take away from me the noise of your songs; I will not listen to the melody of your harps. Instead, let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.”
What’s going on in the book of Isaiah and the book of Amos is the same thing in the book of Micah. In fact, this was one of our readings last week, wasn't it? Someone comes before God, and offers God everything they can think of. “Here it is, God. Everything I can think of. Burnt offerings? Year-old calves? How about a thousand rams from my flock? How about ten thousand rivers of precious oils? How about my firstborn son? What? What do you want from me, God?”
And then the prophet replies, “He has told you, O mortal, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?”
What’s going on in the book of Isaiah and the book of Amos and the book of Micah is the same thing in the gospels. Some had come to Jesus, hoping to justify themselves before him. They had fasted, they had prayed, they had prominently worshiped God. But Jesus said to them, “I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not give me clothing, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.”
And they said, “Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not take care of you?” And Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me. Yet this is what you should be doing. This is how you can serve me, honor me, worship me…”
God has no patience for people who are quick to raise holy hands in worship, but slow to extend a helping hand to their neighbors in need. God has no patience for people like that, and God's favor is not upon them.
And yet, many of our leaders in Washington who like to boast about their faith and pray in public continue their attacks on the poor. They are taking from the hungry, the thirsty, the stranger, the naked, and the sick.
They’re cutting and eliminating welfare and food stamps and health care and so many services that the poor depend on. They’re doing this so that they can instead spend that money on themselves, on tax breaks for the wealthy, and on welfare for corporations instead of people.
- American Pie
CBS This Morning recently did a segment in which they visualized all of America's wealth as a pie. And they asked people: If Americans were divided into five segments based on wealth, how much pie would each segment get, in order for it to be an accurate display of how wealth in America is distributed?
They divided the pie into 10 slices. The wealthiest group of Americans got 9 of the 10 slices.
The next wealthiest segment - the upper middle class - got most of the last remaining slice.
The third wealthiest segment of the population - the middle class - got about one bite.
The fourth segment - the lower middle class - got a crumb.
And the fifth segment - representing the poor - got no pie, but they did get the bill. That's right: the bill for the pie that the wealthiest are eating goes to them.
That’s how our leaders have shaped the economic system to favor those who have 90% of the pie, while the poor - those with no pie - are being forced to pay more and more while services that might benefit them continue to be slashed.
So when the government says the economy is doing well, you have to ask yourself, who's it doing well for? The poor, and even the middle classes, are struggling. Only the super rich are enjoying the pie.
This is immoral, and contrary to the will of God. It is the number one concern of the biblical prophets. Some religious leaders today are saying that the most offensive thing to God this past week was the Super Bowl halftime show, but the prophets would tell you otherwise. The prophets would tell you that the most offensive thing to God is how we treat the poor.
So it doesn't matter how many times the president is photographed with his court priests praying over him. When our leaders neglect the poor, they are forsaking God's ways. They are acting in ways that are immoral, and contrary to the will of God.
- A Light Breaks Forth
But do you know, there is a movement of people - a faith-based movement - that is paying attention to the word of God, and paying attention to what’s going on, and they are holding our leaders accountable for their sins just as the prophets held the leaders of their time accountable.
The Poor People’s Campaign, led by Disciples pastor William Barber and Presbyterian pastor Liz Theoharris, is leading the way. The campaign is pushing to make poverty an issue of conversation leading up to this year’s elections, and is calling for greater discussion on issues related to poverty and justice among the presidential candidates.
This is why when William Barber speaks and when the Poor People’s Campaign acts, I pay attention.
Week of Compassion, which we are highlighting this month, is also working to bring justice to those who are poor and vulnerable. For those who don’t know, Week of Compassion is the name given to our church’s disaster relief and recovery ministry, and all month long, a portion of our offering is going to Week of Compassion.
A story sent out by Week of Compassion describes how, more than twenty years ago, a group of young men were living in a refugee camp in southern Mexico. Their families were preparing to return to their home village in Guatemala, and these boys had the opportunity to go to school in Guatemala City. With support from Week of Compassion, they completed high school, and then university.
These young men made a commitment to give back, using their education not only to make a living but also to improve conditions for others. Now, more than twenty years later, some of them work as human rights attorneys; some provide agronomy services; and some are teachers. They serve in leadership roles in their village of Santa Maria Tzeja, where one of them is even in local government.
Recently, a group from Central Christian Church in Indianapolis traveled to Guatemala for a visit. Pastor Linda McCrae said, “I wish all Disciples could see the impact that these scholarships have made. One of the men, Emiliano, is the oldest of five children. When he finished his studies and began to work, he paid for the education of the next oldest brother. They continued that practice until all five had completed college.
In addition to supporting their siblings, this group of former students has contributed about $5,000 to educate eight other young people in the community who are not related to them.”
Now, two decades later, 50 members of this community are now going to college. As one of the men says to the Disciples of Christ church: “We are the fruit of the sacrifices that you have made.”
This is the kind of work that brings joy to God. Acts of justice. Helping the poor. Empowering the powerless.
This is why we do what we do.
The prophet says that when you engage in acts like these, through prayer, through financial support, and through hands-on participation, then “your light shall break forth like the dawn, and your healing shall spring up quickly. You shall call, and the Lord will answer.
“If you remove the yoke from among you, the pointing of the finger, the speaking of evil; if you offer your food to the hungry and satisfy the needs of the afflicted; then your light shall rise in the darkness and your gloom be like the noonday.
“The Lord will guide you continually, and satisfy your needs in parched places, and make your bones strong; and you shall be like a watered garden, like a spring of water, whose waters never fail. Your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt; you shall raise up the foundations of many generations; you shall be called the repairer of the breach, the restorer of streets to live in.”
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