Text: Isaiah 58:1-14, Isaiah 59:1-21, Matthew 21:12-22
I never had a rebellious phase.
As far back as I can remember, I’ve been a “good girl,” running my life on the straight and narrow, delighted to follow the rules. I loved to please my parents, my teachers, and my coaches because I was devoted to maintaining my pristine reputation.
Due to my well-practiced, people-pleasing ways, Christianity came easily to me. Religion offered one more list of boxes to check, all affirming my goodness. The only problem with all this box-checking is that as much as I honored God’s law, I did not understand His grace. I understood it on a head level, but not on a personal one. Not in my heart. I couldn’t grasp the urgency of it, or my deep need to be rescued by a Savior. Because, if I was really being honest, I didn’t think I needed rescuing. I was doing Christianity pretty well on my own.
That’s the beautiful irony of my story. While I lived my good Christian life of following the rules and doing all the right things, I only proved the depth of my brokenness. The truth was, my rule following was my rebellion. It was my own attempt to justify myself. As Tim Keller once suggested in his book The Prodigal God: Recovering the Heart of the Christian Faith, my rebellion wasn’t against God’s law but against God’s grace.
We witness this same kind of brokenness in Isaiah 58. Although the Israelites engage in the godly discipline of fasting, it only reveals their sin all the more, to which the prophet had this to say:
“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” (vv. 3-4).
According to Old Testament scholar John Oswalt, the Israelites were fasting for the wrong reason. They were not doing it to “express gratitude and submission to God” but were instead doing it “for the very same reasons the pagans do, to manipulate God to act in their favor” (Oswalt 625). This manipulation is why the Israelites are confused at God’s silence: “Why have we fasted, and you have not seen it?” (Isaiah 58:3). They thought they had done everything right. They thought fasting was a guarantee of divine favor. Why wasn’t God holding up His end of the deal?
In response to their entitlement, God had this response:
“Surely the arm of the Lord is not too short to save,
nor his ear too dull to hear.
But your iniquities have separated you from your God;
your sins have hidden his face from you,
so that he will not hear” (Isaiah 59:1).
In short, God was not the one who broke His word. The Israelites’ “good deeds” point right back to their sin. They are unable to keep His commandments, try as they might. Thankfully, as Oswalt explains, “God will come and do for his people what neither they nor anyone else can do for them” (Oswalt 636).
The truth is, we all go through a rebellious phase. Some of us rebel against the rules and some of us rebel against the rescue, but the end result is the same: separation from God. Our only hope is to name and to confess our rebellion, in whatever form it takes. Because no matter how good and well-behaved we are, our arms are most definitely too short to save ourselves.
“The Redeemer will come to Zion,
to those in Jacob who repent of their sins,”
declares the Lord.
– Isaiah 59:20
Sharon Hodde Miller is a writer, speaker, pastor’s wife, and mom of two boys. She is a regular contributor to Christianity Today and recently completed her Ph.D, which focused on cultivating the gifts of women in the church.
Well you just described me to a T. The good rule following, box checking girl. And I was so proud of me. Couldn’t have understood grace if it hit me over the head like a 2×4. Goodness I was judgmental. I absolutely cringe at the thought of me and my younger days. But God. He’s so good and so faithful. I had a period of time where I had many disappointments-all of them God ordained to let me know He is God and I am not. It was not pretty but it was for my good. Thank you for this I today. I need This reminder still that I need grace for myself and to give others often.
Amen and amen. I also can relate. Thank you.
It is as if I wrote the first portion myself! I needed to read these Words today
whoa, the phrase “rebel against rules, rebel against rescue” struck me hard. I’m a good girl with some bad girl tenancies, and I understand both of those statements. I have a hard time accepting that God forgives completely and 100% without conditions, without limitations, without jumping through hoops, everything I’ve done is completely forgiven, and that is so hard for me to accept. I want to try and prove that God’s forgiveness is worthy to be used on me (silly I know) but doesn’t stop me from trying to be the gold star, knows all the answers, good girl. So grateful that He looks at me and laughs about my pathetic attempts to prove that His forgiveness was worthy…He is good to me, far better then I deserve.
Whether you’re the good girl or the bad girl (me) understanding the need for Him is key.. good behaving girls need Jesus just as much as bad behaving girls do.. often bad girls turned good is the recipe for legalism.. my story anyways.. I had to make up for all that bad by being oh so good! Being good for any other reason than pure love for God ends up breeding a “You owe me” mentality.. God I’ve been so good so You in turn have to give me the desires of my heart because You owe me.. we have a deal, I’m good, You bless me.. behaving good or living the righteous life must flow out of a heart of love and gratitude with no expectation of anything in return.. simply put, You died for me, I’ll live for You.. living right is an endless thank You to Jesus.. and I can’t live right, nor can you, without His empowering.. have a wonderful Monday behaving good in His sweet might! xo
I love the phrase “rebel against rescue.” A majority of clients that come to me for counseling or therapy have issues surrounding performance based worth. This kind of reliance on performance for my value pervades our culture and makes it hard for us to submit to rescuing. Sadly, it is the heart of grace and the truly transforming part of the gospel that makes the difference between relationship and religion. Thanks for your thoughts.
“The truth is, we all go through a rebellious phase. Some of us rebel against the rules and some of us rebel against the rescue, but the end result is the same: separation from God. Our only hope is to name and to confess our rebellion, in whatever form it takes. Because no matter how good and well-behaved we are, our arms are most definitely too short to save ourselves.” Amen!
This morning before I opened up the devotional part of today’s study, I said a quick prayer just asking God to connect something with me today. I have been feeling a desperate need to feel connected and understood. And then I read the opening lines and knew God had answered that prayer. I love rules and box-checking and feeling like I know all of the right things to do and say. But the more I “do” and “know,” the further I feel from the Lord. And to be honest, I’m still trying to figure out how to serve and study His Word in response to His grace instead of a desire to check a box or do the “right thing.” So now I’m praying that God will teach me a new way to know Him, to rest in His grace and to serve and seek Him out of a place of love instead of pride and duty.
Raises hand….me too!
Praise the Lord for prayers answered through His word! Thankful for you, Casey.
– Stormye
Casey, I am right there with you!!! Thanks for sharing!
I hadn’t thought before about pursuing goodness in my own strength as a form of rebellion against the grace of God!! Wow. Thank you, Sharon, for this insight.