Sue J Love
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- Mar 27, 2015
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Raise Your Voice!
Isaiah 58:1-2 BSB (Berean Standard Bible)
“1Cry aloud, do not hold back!
Raise your voice like a ram’s horn.
Declare to My people their transgression
and to the house of Jacob their sins.
2For day after day they seek Me
and delight to know My ways,
like a nation that does what is right
and does not forsake the justice of their God.
They ask Me for righteous judgments;
they delight in the nearness of God.”
I have read this passage of Scripture in multiple Bible translations, including in the KJV and in one of the more literal translations, and the sense here is not that the people actually delighted to know the ways of God, but that they sought God daily, to know His ways, as though they were a nation that did righteousness and who did not forsake the justice of their God. For they gave the outward impression of a people who did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, and who did not forsake the judgments and justice of God.
And so this is a call for the servant of the Lord to give an outward cry (call, shout, plea, appeal), and to not hold back. The servant of the Lord is to raise their voice and to declare to the people their sins. And their sins include this outward display of a nation who actually delights in the ways of the Lord and who does not forsake the righteous judgments of God. And this reminds me of my nation (the USA) which is called a “Christian” nation, but as a nation is not surrendered to the will of God in full compliance with His commands.
Performing but Not Obeying
Isaiah 58:3-7 BSB (Berean Standard Bible)
3“Why have we fasted,
and You have not seen?
Why have we humbled ourselves,
and You have not noticed?”
“Behold, on the day of your fast, you do as you please,
and you oppress all your workers.
4You fast with contention and strife
to strike viciously with your fist.
You cannot fast as you do today
and have your voice be heard on high.
5Is this the fast I have chosen:
a day for a man to deny himself,
to bow his head like a reed,
and to spread out sackcloth and ashes?
Will you call this a fast
and a day acceptable to the LORD?
6Isn’t this the fast that I have chosen:
to break the chains of wickedness,
to untie the cords of the yoke,
to set the oppressed free
and tear off every yoke?
7Isn’t it to share your bread with the hungry,
to bring the poor and homeless into your home,
to clothe the naked when you see him,
and not to turn away
from your own flesh and blood?
The people thought that, just because they participated in some religious practices, God should be pleased with them, that God should notice their efforts to do what was right in the eyes of God. But God is not impressed by human performances, by things done in the flesh, supposedly to please God, but while those who perform for God’s (or other humans’) approval are sinning against the Lord, against the will of God. But this is what some professing Christians do, perform to make themselves look righteous.
And this can be done in many different ways. This does not have to do with fasting, at all, but this is a great illustration for us. For we can do all sorts of “good deeds” outwardly to give a “good Christian” persona, and to make it appear that what we are doing is obeying God and serving the people, but while it is possible that any of us might be sinning in secret (I am not), deliberately doing what is evil in the eyes of God. But God sees what is going on inside our hearts, and He knows who is doing evil and who is not.
And Jesus Christ taught that to come to Him we must deny self, take up our cross daily (die daily to sin), and follow (obey) Him. For if we hold on to living in sin and for self, we will lose our lives for eternity. But if we deny self, die daily to sin, by the Spirit, and we walk in obedience to our Lord and to His commands, in His power, then we have eternal life with God. For not everyone who calls Him “Lord” will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one DOING (obeying) the will of God (see Luke 9:23-26; Matthew 7:21-23).
The Lord will Guide You
Isaiah 58:8-11 BSB (Berean Standard Bible)
8Then your light will break forth like the dawn,
and your healing will come quickly.
Your righteousness will go before you,
and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard.
9Then you will call, and the LORD will answer;
you will cry out, and He will say, ‘Here I am.’
If you remove the yoke from your midst,
the pointing of the finger and malicious talk,
10and if you give yourself to the hungry
and satisfy the afflicted soul,
then your light will go forth in the darkness,
and your night will be like noonday.
11The LORD will always guide you;
He will satisfy you in a sun-scorched land
and strengthen your frame.
You will be like a well-watered garden,
like a spring whose waters never fail.
When our lives are surrendered to the Lord, to doing His will His ways, to following Him wherever He leads us, to leave our lives of sin behind us, and to now walk (in conduct, in practice) in obedience to His commands, then we will be regarded of the Lord as those who are righteous in the sight of God. When we forsake our selfish and sinful desires to love and serve God, and to love and minister to our fellow humans, especially to the poor and needy who He places in our paths, then God will be pleased with us.
We who love God and who love the people of this world, and our fellow Christians and our family members, with the love of God, are to follow the example of Jesus Christ in how He lived, and in the things that He did and said, and how He did and said them. We do need to be people of God who speak the truth of the Scriptures to the people, and we should not soften the message to make it more attractive to the world. But we must guard against being nasty and hateful towards those who disagree with us, too.
Jesus Christ is our model. And if our lives are surrendered to the Lord, to doing His will His ways, He will guide us in the ways which are right and just in the sight of God. And we must then walk in them, in His power and wisdom and strength at work within us who belong to Him. We must guard against the flesh taking over, and we must allow for the Holy Spirit to work through us in saying and in doing the things which God requires of us who are His servants and messengers. For we must love like Jesus loves us.
[Matthew 7:13-14,21-23; Luke 9:23-26; John 10:27-30; Acts 26:18; Romans 1:18-32; Romans 2:5-10; Romans 3:23; Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14; Romans 12:1-2; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10,19-20; 1 Corinthians 10:1-22; 2 Corinthians 5:10,15,21; Galatians 5:16-24; Ephesians 2:8-10; Ephesians 4:17-32; Ephesians 5:3-6; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 3:1-19; Hebrews 4:1-13; Hebrews 10:19-39; Hebrews 12:1-2; 1 Peter 2:24; 1 John 1:1-10; 1 John 2:1-6; 1 John 3:4-10; Revelation 2:1-29; Revelation 3:1-22]
Declare to The People
An Original Work / August 14, 2026
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love
A Still Small Voice
An Original Work / May 23, 2011
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love
In a still small voice He calls you.
Won’t you hear and let him in?
He’s still speaking, oh, how gently.
He died to save you from sin.
Softly He speaks to our hearts.
His mercy and love imparts.
Won’t you come to Him today?
Let Him wash your sins away.
In a still small voice He whispers,
Kindly, calling you to Him.
He loves you so much, He’s willing
You not die, but live with Him.
He keeps prodding, gently so,
For His grace, you come to know.
He died so that you’d go free;
Live with Him eternally.
In a still small voice He hastens
You to turn your lives to Him,
Humbly walking in obedience,
Making Him your Lord and King!
Turn from your sin, turn to God,
Put your trust in Christ, His Son.
Invite Him into your hearts.
He’ll give you a brand new start.
Isaiah 58:1-2 BSB (Berean Standard Bible)
“1Cry aloud, do not hold back!
Raise your voice like a ram’s horn.
Declare to My people their transgression
and to the house of Jacob their sins.
2For day after day they seek Me
and delight to know My ways,
like a nation that does what is right
and does not forsake the justice of their God.
They ask Me for righteous judgments;
they delight in the nearness of God.”
I have read this passage of Scripture in multiple Bible translations, including in the KJV and in one of the more literal translations, and the sense here is not that the people actually delighted to know the ways of God, but that they sought God daily, to know His ways, as though they were a nation that did righteousness and who did not forsake the justice of their God. For they gave the outward impression of a people who did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, and who did not forsake the judgments and justice of God.
And so this is a call for the servant of the Lord to give an outward cry (call, shout, plea, appeal), and to not hold back. The servant of the Lord is to raise their voice and to declare to the people their sins. And their sins include this outward display of a nation who actually delights in the ways of the Lord and who does not forsake the righteous judgments of God. And this reminds me of my nation (the USA) which is called a “Christian” nation, but as a nation is not surrendered to the will of God in full compliance with His commands.
Performing but Not Obeying
Isaiah 58:3-7 BSB (Berean Standard Bible)
3“Why have we fasted,
and You have not seen?
Why have we humbled ourselves,
and You have not noticed?”
“Behold, on the day of your fast, you do as you please,
and you oppress all your workers.
4You fast with contention and strife
to strike viciously with your fist.
You cannot fast as you do today
and have your voice be heard on high.
5Is this the fast I have chosen:
a day for a man to deny himself,
to bow his head like a reed,
and to spread out sackcloth and ashes?
Will you call this a fast
and a day acceptable to the LORD?
6Isn’t this the fast that I have chosen:
to break the chains of wickedness,
to untie the cords of the yoke,
to set the oppressed free
and tear off every yoke?
7Isn’t it to share your bread with the hungry,
to bring the poor and homeless into your home,
to clothe the naked when you see him,
and not to turn away
from your own flesh and blood?
The people thought that, just because they participated in some religious practices, God should be pleased with them, that God should notice their efforts to do what was right in the eyes of God. But God is not impressed by human performances, by things done in the flesh, supposedly to please God, but while those who perform for God’s (or other humans’) approval are sinning against the Lord, against the will of God. But this is what some professing Christians do, perform to make themselves look righteous.
And this can be done in many different ways. This does not have to do with fasting, at all, but this is a great illustration for us. For we can do all sorts of “good deeds” outwardly to give a “good Christian” persona, and to make it appear that what we are doing is obeying God and serving the people, but while it is possible that any of us might be sinning in secret (I am not), deliberately doing what is evil in the eyes of God. But God sees what is going on inside our hearts, and He knows who is doing evil and who is not.
And Jesus Christ taught that to come to Him we must deny self, take up our cross daily (die daily to sin), and follow (obey) Him. For if we hold on to living in sin and for self, we will lose our lives for eternity. But if we deny self, die daily to sin, by the Spirit, and we walk in obedience to our Lord and to His commands, in His power, then we have eternal life with God. For not everyone who calls Him “Lord” will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one DOING (obeying) the will of God (see Luke 9:23-26; Matthew 7:21-23).
The Lord will Guide You
Isaiah 58:8-11 BSB (Berean Standard Bible)
8Then your light will break forth like the dawn,
and your healing will come quickly.
Your righteousness will go before you,
and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard.
9Then you will call, and the LORD will answer;
you will cry out, and He will say, ‘Here I am.’
If you remove the yoke from your midst,
the pointing of the finger and malicious talk,
10and if you give yourself to the hungry
and satisfy the afflicted soul,
then your light will go forth in the darkness,
and your night will be like noonday.
11The LORD will always guide you;
He will satisfy you in a sun-scorched land
and strengthen your frame.
You will be like a well-watered garden,
like a spring whose waters never fail.
When our lives are surrendered to the Lord, to doing His will His ways, to following Him wherever He leads us, to leave our lives of sin behind us, and to now walk (in conduct, in practice) in obedience to His commands, then we will be regarded of the Lord as those who are righteous in the sight of God. When we forsake our selfish and sinful desires to love and serve God, and to love and minister to our fellow humans, especially to the poor and needy who He places in our paths, then God will be pleased with us.
We who love God and who love the people of this world, and our fellow Christians and our family members, with the love of God, are to follow the example of Jesus Christ in how He lived, and in the things that He did and said, and how He did and said them. We do need to be people of God who speak the truth of the Scriptures to the people, and we should not soften the message to make it more attractive to the world. But we must guard against being nasty and hateful towards those who disagree with us, too.
Jesus Christ is our model. And if our lives are surrendered to the Lord, to doing His will His ways, He will guide us in the ways which are right and just in the sight of God. And we must then walk in them, in His power and wisdom and strength at work within us who belong to Him. We must guard against the flesh taking over, and we must allow for the Holy Spirit to work through us in saying and in doing the things which God requires of us who are His servants and messengers. For we must love like Jesus loves us.
[Matthew 7:13-14,21-23; Luke 9:23-26; John 10:27-30; Acts 26:18; Romans 1:18-32; Romans 2:5-10; Romans 3:23; Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14; Romans 12:1-2; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10,19-20; 1 Corinthians 10:1-22; 2 Corinthians 5:10,15,21; Galatians 5:16-24; Ephesians 2:8-10; Ephesians 4:17-32; Ephesians 5:3-6; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 3:1-19; Hebrews 4:1-13; Hebrews 10:19-39; Hebrews 12:1-2; 1 Peter 2:24; 1 John 1:1-10; 1 John 2:1-6; 1 John 3:4-10; Revelation 2:1-29; Revelation 3:1-22]
Declare to The People
An Original Work / August 14, 2026
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love
A Still Small Voice
An Original Work / May 23, 2011
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love
In a still small voice He calls you.
Won’t you hear and let him in?
He’s still speaking, oh, how gently.
He died to save you from sin.
Softly He speaks to our hearts.
His mercy and love imparts.
Won’t you come to Him today?
Let Him wash your sins away.
In a still small voice He whispers,
Kindly, calling you to Him.
He loves you so much, He’s willing
You not die, but live with Him.
He keeps prodding, gently so,
For His grace, you come to know.
He died so that you’d go free;
Live with Him eternally.
In a still small voice He hastens
You to turn your lives to Him,
Humbly walking in obedience,
Making Him your Lord and King!
Turn from your sin, turn to God,
Put your trust in Christ, His Son.
Invite Him into your hearts.
He’ll give you a brand new start.
