Sin Separates Us from God
“Surely the arm of the LORD is not too short to save, nor His ear too dull to hear. But your iniquities have built barriers between you and your God, and your sins have hidden His face from you, so that He does not hear.
For your hands are stained with blood, and your fingers with iniquity; your lips have spoken lies, and your tongue mutters injustice. No one calls for justice; no one pleads his case honestly. They rely on empty pleas; they tell lies; they conceive mischief and give birth to iniquity. They hatch the eggs of vipers and weave a spider’s web. Whoever eats their eggs will die; crack one open, and a viper is hatched. Their cobwebs cannot be made into clothing, and they cannot cover themselves with their works. Their deeds are sinful deeds, and acts of violence are in their hands. Their feet run to evil; they are swift to shed innocent blood. Their thoughts are sinful thoughts; ruin and destruction lie in their wake. The way of peace they have not known, and there is no justice in their tracks. They have turned them into crooked paths; no one who treads on them will know peace.
Therefore justice is far from us, and righteousness does not reach us. We hope for light, but there is darkness; for brightness, but we walk in gloom. Like the blind, we feel our way along the wall, groping like those without eyes. We stumble at midday as in the twilight; among the vigorous we are like the dead. We all growl like bears and moan like doves. We hope for justice, but find none, for salvation, but it is far from us. For our transgressions are multiplied before You, and our sins testify against us.
Our transgressions are indeed with us, and we know our iniquities: rebelling and denying the LORD, turning away from our God, speaking oppression and revolt, conceiving and uttering lies from the heart. So justice is turned away, and righteousness stands at a distance. For truth has stumbled in the public square, and honesty cannot enter. Truth is missing, and whoever turns from evil makes himself prey.
The LORD looked and was displeased that there was no justice. He saw that there was no man; He was amazed that there was no one to intercede. So His own arm brought salvation, and His own righteousness sustained Him.
He put on righteousness like a breastplate, and the helmet of salvation on His head; He put on garments of vengeance and wrapped Himself in a cloak of zeal.
The Covenant of the Redeemer
So He will repay according to their deeds: fury to His enemies, retribution to His foes, and recompense to the islands. So shall they fear the name of the LORD from the west and His glory from the rising of the sun; for He will come like a raging flood, driven by the breath of the LORD.
“The Redeemer will come to Zion, to those in Jacob who turn from transgression, ” declares the LORD. “As for Me, this is My covenant with them,” says the LORD. “My Spirit who is upon you, and My words that I have put in your mouth will not depart from your mouth, from the mouths of your children, or from the mouths of your children’s children, from now on and forevermore,” says the LORD.”
Sometimes people complain that they are praying but God is not listening to them. The problem is from those people, not from God. “But your iniquities have built barriers between you and your God, and your sins have hidden His face from you, so that He does not hear.” We all have sin problems, no matter how good we think we are. Sin separates us from God, and the more we go our own ways, the farther we wander from God.
“No one calls for justice; no one pleads his case honestly. They rely on empty pleas; they tell lies; they conceive mischief and give birth to iniquity. They hatch the eggs of vipers and weave a spider’s web. Whoever eats their eggs will die; crack one open, and a viper is hatched. Their cobwebs cannot be made into clothing, and they cannot cover themselves with their works.” God is still trying to get the attention of His people, and this time He employs ugly vivid descriptions. Face it, NOBODY likes spiders and snakes, particularly venomous vipers. God is comparing the sins of his people to spider webs and viper eggs; spider webs cannot possibly cover anyone, and vipers can kill with their poison.
“Their deeds are sinful deeds, and acts of violence are in their hands. Their feet run to evil; they are swift to shed innocent blood. Their thoughts are sinful thoughts; ruin and destruction lie in their wake. The way of peace they have not known, and there is no justice in their tracks. They have turned them into crooked paths; no one who treads on them will know peace.” Brr! Life in Judah and Jerusalem in the time of Isaiah is deteriorating rapidly. The very people whom God has called to holiness are descending into an increasingly downward spiral into the abyss of evil.
“So justice is turned away, and righteousness stands at a distance. For truth has stumbled in the public square, and honesty cannot enter. Truth is missing, and whoever turns from evil makes himself prey.” Those who stand for righteousness are being attacked. “The LORD looked and was displeased that there was no justice. He saw that there was no man; He was amazed that there was no one to intercede.” If there are intercessors, they are hiding.
“So He will repay according to their deeds: fury to His enemies, retribution to His foes, and recompense to the islands.” Retribution is coming, for God refuses to allow Himself to be mocked. But there is still hope.
“As for Me, this is My covenant with them,” says the LORD. “My Spirit who is upon you, and My words that I have put in your mouth will not depart from your mouth, from the mouths of your children, or from the mouths of your children’s children, from now on and forevermore,” says the LORD.” WOW! What a promise! For those who turn away from evil and seek the Lord, He promises to give His Spirit and His words, not only to them but also to their children’s children forever.
APPLICATION: The recent Grammy Award program featured a number of overtly Satanic performances, causing many to believe that these artists were doing everything they could to mock God. Little did these performers realize that they were making horrible choices, choices that could blight their lives and ultimately send them to hell. By all accounts, it was truly an exhibition of spiritual spider webs and hatching viper eggs.
Standing for righteousness has never been easy! One friend of ours who was a retired police officer once told us that as a Christian, he found some of his fellow officers were the biggest danger to his life. Those who were taking advantage of their positions to do evil didn’t want anybody reminding them of their original calling to serve and protect. Many whistle blowers have suffered for their brave stands, even when their courage has unmasked corporate wrong – doing.
Galatians 6:7-9 tells us, “Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” Actions have consequences, and all of us have choices. But if we choose to serve the Lord, He promises to send His Spirit to us and to put His words in our mouths and the mouths of our descendants.
We can leave a legacy of righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit. OR we can leave a worthless legacy of viper eggs and spider webs. Choose wisely!
PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, forgive us for our ridiculous efforts to make ourselves look righteous when You are the only true Source of righteousness. Thank You for sending Jesus to die for our sins so that we might be freed if we will only believe in what Jesus has done for us. Thank You for making a way for us to be with You forever. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.
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