Finishing Well
Opening Prayer
Loving Lord, You create and complete all things. I pray that You will complete Your work in me.
Read ISAIAH 1:21–31
21 See how the faithful city
has become a prostitute!
She once was full of justice;
righteousness used to dwell in her—
but now murderers!
22 Your silver has become dross,
your choice wine is diluted with water.
23 Your rulers are rebels,
partners with thieves;
they all love bribes
and chase after gifts.
They do not defend the cause of the fatherless;
the widow’s case does not come before them.
24 Therefore the Lord, the Lord Almighty,
the Mighty One of Israel, declares:
“Ah! I will vent my wrath on my foes
and avenge myself on my enemies.
25 I will turn my hand against you;
I will thoroughly purge away your dross
and remove all your impurities.
26 I will restore your leaders as in days of old,
your rulers as at the beginning.
Afterward you will be called
the City of Righteousness,
the Faithful City.”
27 Zion will be delivered with justice,
her penitent ones with righteousness.
28 But rebels and sinners will both be broken,
and those who forsake the Lord will perish.
29 “You will be ashamed because of the sacred oaks
in which you have delighted;
you will be disgraced because of the gardens
that you have chosen.
30 You will be like an oak with fading leaves,
like a garden without water.
31 The mighty man will become tinder
and his work a spark;
both will burn together,
with no one to quench the fire.”
New International Version (NIV)
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Meditate
It’s not where you start, but where you finish that counts.
Think Further
Some time ago a member of our small group heard about the son of an acquaintance who had been arrested for murder. Her shock was palpable as she explained how she used to play with him as a toddler. Who could have imagined how he would turn out? The prophet looks at Jerusalem with similar shock, mourning what she has become. Many Christians likewise start out well but drift away from the Lord; others more willfully turn their backs on God in a moment of anger or disappointment over events in their lives. Similarly, churches that once thrived and were a beacon of light may alter character with a changed leadership or split up as a result of infighting. How sad to see the promise of life with God turn to nothing!
The picture painted of Jerusalem is disheartening. She is portrayed as a prostitute, an image which, along with the reference to sacred oaks (29), hints at idolatry (cf. Hos. 1:2). “Justice” and “righteousness” (21)—shorthand for the care and legal protection of the vulnerable—no longer characterize the city. Indeed, it is precisely the leadership that is most deeply engaged in abusing the weak. It reminds us of church leaders who manipulate their flock to enrich themselves, who abuse the trust of youngsters or vulnerable women for sexual gratification, or who turn a blind eye to the abuse of others.
God’s answer to the situation is two-fold: he will chastise and purge so that God’s people will once again become what they were meant to be (25,26). Those who show repentance and offer justice and righteousness will be delivered (27). There is also encouragement for those who have lived with any kind of abuse—God will not tolerate such acts indefinitely and those who persist in evil will be destroyed (28,30,31).
Apply
How has the Lord applied a blowtorch to you to purge out dross in your life? What form did it take and what was the result?
Closing prayer
Merciful Father, I lift up to You churches that have turned away from You. I think also of those friends I know who have turned away from You. In Your mercy, reach out to them and create in them a new desire for You.
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