Isaiah 22

ScriptureIsaiah 22:12The Lord, the Lord Almighty,called you on that dayto weep and to wail,to tear out your hair and put on sackcloth.Observation - What does it say?The people of Judah and Jerusalem’s sins and poor decisions had led them to time where many people had died. Not because of war (verse 2) but because of famine and disease. But, the war was about to come as the surrounding valleys would soon be surrounded by the chariots of their enemies.In all of this, God had called to his people to mourning. The things described in verse 12 were all things in Israelite culture that one would do when they were grieving over their sin and turning to God. But while God was calling for repentance, the people were calling for a party! Complacent about their struggle, they said to each other, “Let us eat and drink for tomorrow we die."Understanding - What does it mean?Before I came to Christ I made some bad decisions and had to go to court. When I went to my lawyer’s office for the first time, I sat down in in his fancy office in front of his huge wood desk. He looked across the desk and the first thing he said to me was, “Own your stuff.” Think about that statement. "Own your stuff." He said he would help me but that the first step was owning up to what I did wrong and not shifting blame. It was an interesting approach that caught me a bit off guard, but proved to be an effective one. And in reading this passage, I’d say that’s close to the same thing God was after with the people of Judah, and that he’s still after with people today.Admit your sin and ask God for help.Too often we want to make excuses for why we’re in the place we’re in. We want to blame everyone else for causing our mess. If we’re angry, it’s justified because of what someone else has done to us. If we’re struggling with sexual sin, it’s society’s fault for all the images they’re putting in front of us. If we’re struggling financially, it’s the economy’s fault.But the truth is, ultimately we choose whether or not to be angry, we choose to click those links we know we shouldn’t, and a big cause of our financial struggles is our own poor stewardship and failure to honor God with what we do have.We have to stop blaming others and accept the blame for the things that we ourselves have done.Life ApplicationDon’t make excuses. Admit my fault.Seek God alone, for he alone is the only one who can truly help.God, I ask that you would reveal to me my sins. Show us the areas we’ve shifted blame and made excuses when it’s our own poor decisions that have caused our struggles. Forgive us. And, keep us from being complacent about where we are. May we turn to you to help us grow and change and to be transformed into the image of Jesus. Amen.