Christianity Is More Than Just “Religion”

Sermon on Isaiah 58:5-9

Text: Is this the kind of fast I have chosen, only a day for people to humble themselves? Is it only for bowing one’s head like a reed and for lying in sackcloth and ashes? Is that what you call a fast, a day acceptable to the LORD?
6 “Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke,
to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? 7 Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter — when you see the naked, to clothe them, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood? 8 Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard. 9 Then you will call, and the LORD will answer; you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.

There are times when people are asked what religion they are. An example of this is when you enter a hospital, so that the chaplain there can come and visit you. There are times when these categories are rather broad, such as Jewish or Christian. What does it mean to be called a Christian? What does it mean to be part of the “Christian religion?” The world has so many different ideas about the answer to that question. This morning, as we study God’s Word, we see that CHRISTIANITY IS MORE THAN “RELIGION.” 1. It Does Not Rest On Mere Outward Actions. 2. It Leads To A Wonderful Relationship With God.

Just prior to our text, the people of Israel lodged a complaint against God. It says in verse 3, “‘Why have we fasted,’ they say, ‘and you have not seen it? Why have we humbled ourselves, and you have not noticed?’” The people felt that they were doing everything that God wanted them to do. They fasted as they were told to do. They humbled themselves. Yet, what was their complaint? God didn’t notice what they were doing. This shows the attitude that was in their hearts when they were going through these religious motions. They were just doing it so that God would notice and look favorably on them. They were doing these things not out of love for God, but in order to earn something from God. It is easy to see that they were just going through the motions, because verses 3&4 continue, “Yet on the day of your fasting, you do as you please and exploit all your workers. Your fasting ends in quarreling and strife, and in striking each other with wicked fists. You cannot fast as you do today and expect your voice to be heard on high.”

In the first verse of our text, the Lord gives a bitter rebuke of Israel. Having just described Israel’s hypocritical fasting, the Lord asks, “Is this the kind of fast I have chosen, only a day for people to humble themselves? Is it only for bowing one’s head like a reed and for lying in sackcloth and ashes? Is that what you call a fast, a day acceptable to the LORD?” The people clung to the outward form of fasting as what was important to God and even adopted the opinion that the “suffering” while fasting obligated the Lord to reward them. The Lord asks them, ‘Do you think that this outward show of worship is what is really important to me? Do you think this is really what I care about? As long as you do your fasting and other outward worship of me, that’s all I’m looking for. Is that what you think?’

The Lord then goes on to show the people what he did care about. He says in 6&7, “Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter — when you see the naked, to clothe them, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?” Having denied the legitimacy of their fasts, the Lord proceeds to remind the people what kind of fast he was looking for. This type of fasting did not begin and end with the self-denial of food. Rather, the type of fast that the Lord was looking for was one that expressed itself in love for their neighbor.

In verse 6, the Lord speaks about the fact that they were “to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke.” This refers to a law that God had given his people through Moses. According to the law, the people to set their slaves free every seven years. This was to be a picture of the fact that God had set the people free from the slavery of the Egyptians. Apparently, this was not taking place. Yet, the owners still considered themselves good Jews, because they fasted. In verse 7 we have the actions that are pleasing to the Lord described in this way, “Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter — when you see the naked, to clothe them, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?” We see how cold and callous the people had become that the Lord has to remind them that they were supposed to take care of the own flesh and blood. However, these people considered themselves to be very religious, because they were doing all of the right things. This, however, was not the religion that God was looking for. He didn’t want the actions so much, as he wanted the heart and the life acting in response to what God had done for them.

Here God allows us to take a few moments of self-reflection. How often haven’t we fallen into the same trap as the people Isaiah addresses in our text? There are times when Christianity becomes the performance of certain outward behaviors, such as church attendance, offerings, and prayer. On the other hand, Christianity may become the avoidance of other behaviors: “Any real Christian would never . . .” On the surface, these are good things. They are even things that God speaks about in his Word. However, we need to look at our motivation for doing them. Are we doing these things because we want God to notice and, perhaps, help us out when we are in need? Do we do them so that other people see us and think what wonderful people we are? Do we avoid certain things because we are afraid of getting caught and punished for them, whether by God or by an authority that God has placed over us? If these are the reason why we do certain things and avoid others, they are not pleasing to God.

Those things that are pleasing to God are those things that we do out of thankfulness for all that he has done for us. This means, first of all, we acknowledge that there is no way that we could ever save ourselves. It means that we look into the mirror of God’s law and see every single sin that we have committed against God. This leads us to the realization that we, on our own, stand condemned by God and deserving of his punishment for all eternity in hell. Once we do this, then we can all the more appreciate what Jesus did for us. We see what his life means for us, as he lived perfectly in our place. We see the amazing love of God in full display, as Jesus suffered and died on the cross to pay for all of our sins. Our hearts soar at the news of Jesus’ resurrection, for it assures us that our sins are forgiven and eternal life is ours. This is, then, the motivation to live the way that was described before. This is the reason why we go to church, give our offerings, and prayer. This is the reason we avoid certain behaviors. It is because we want to thank God for all that he has done for us. We don’t do these things so that God will bless us. We do these things because we want to say “Thank you.”

What is even more amazing is the fact that God says that when we do these things for the right reasons, he will bless us. Though he owes us nothing, he promises to give us everything. It says in verse 8, “Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard.” First of all, we note the picture of our light breaking forth like the dawn. When we live for God, he gives us the wonderful opportunity to be lights in this dark world, pointing others to the love that he has for them. This is what Jesus meant when he said, “Let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:16)

Going on, God promises, “your healing will quickly appear.” This isn’t God promising that you will never get sick or that, if you do, you will heal quickly. Rather, he is pointing to our spiritual healing. There are those times when our consciences can’t seem to let go of a particular sin that we have committed. This may have even happened years ago, but, in an unguarded moment, there it is in front of us again. The Lord promises healing to our sin-burdened consciences because of the work of his Son. When that sin comes to mind again, we don’t have to be tormented by it. We can say, ‘Yes, I admit that I committed that sin. However, I also know that Jesus paid for that sin when he died on the cross.’ This was foretold to be one of the reasons that Jesus came to the earth. It says in Malachi 4:2, “For you who revere my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its rays.”

God also makes the promise, “Then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard.” Here the Lord brings to mind for the people of Israel the time when he led their ancestors from Egypt to the Promised Land. The glory of the LORD would appear as a pillar of cloud during the daylight hours and a pillar of fire at night. This was a visible reassurance that the Lord was with his people, leading them and protecting them. God promises that he will continue to be with us and protect us and lead us through this life. This is the picture of the good shepherd that we see in Psalm 23:4, “Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.”

The Lord makes one final promise to us in verse 9, “Then you will call, and the LORD will answer; you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.” Remember the opening complaint of the people of Israel. They said that God wasn’t listening to them, even though they were doing all of the right things. Once they got rid of their hypocrisy and the idea that they were earning God’s favor, and instead turned to God’s grace, then the Lord would be near and answer their cries for help and deliverance. You and I also have this wonderful blessing because we have been brought into this relationship with God. He promises that when we call on him in prayer, he will answer each and every one of them in the way that is best for us. Listen to his promise in Psalm 50:15, “Call on me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you will honor me.” Furthermore, he promises that he will always be there for us. We read in Hebrews 13:5, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” All of these blessings are ours because we have been brought into this wonderful relationship with God.

One of the buzz phrases that you hear very frequently is “fake news.” You don’t believe what they say, because the facts are not reported correctly or with a slant. As a result, we find ourselves very carefully sifting everything that we hear and read, because we don’t want to be taken in by “fake news.” This is even more true when it comes to religion. The world holds many different ideas in front of us. There are many who point to Christianity and tell us that Christianity is all about what you do. To some extent, that is true. Christianity is about what we do. However, that statement falls far short of what Christianity truly is. Christianity is about relationships. First, and foremost, it is about the relationship that God created with us, when he sent his Son into the world to be our Savior. It is about the relationship that he created when the Holy Spirit entered our hearts and made us his children. It is about the relationship that we enjoy as God cares for us and loves us. It is about the relationship we have with him, as we seek to thank God for all that he has done for us. It also is the relationship that we have with other people, as we reflect the love that God has shown to us. Christianity is more that just religion. It is the relationship that we have with God. Amen.