A Void in Spiritual Leadership

Without Godly leaders, a nation is doomed. That is how Isaiah describes the spiritual state of Israel in chapter 28.

Isaiah 28:7–8 (ESV) These also reel with wine and stagger with strong drink; the priest and the prophet reel with strong drink, they are swallowed by wine, they stagger with strong drink, they reel in vision, they stumble in giving judgment. 8 For all tables are full of filthy vomit, with no space left.

Notice the priest and prophet were drunk with wine and staggering through the nation. There is no hope without strong spiritual leadership. Notice the effect of the lack of spiritual maturity among them. They will end up with a nation full of children. 

Isaiah 28:9 (ESV) “To whom will he teach knowledge, and to whom will he explain the message? Those who are weaned from the milk, those taken from the breast?

Isaiah asks who will be the pupils to bankrupt spiritual leaders? The answer is simple - babes. The nation will not mature. The populace will become immature in exponential numbers. What defines childishness? A lack of personal responsibility, a victim mentality, and a sense of entitlement. These are the cultural signs of a void in spiritual leadership.

Then Isaiah mocks what the will teach:
Isaiah 28:10 (ESV) For it is precept upon precept, precept upon precept, line upon line, line upon line, here a little, there a little.”

This phrase is repeated later:
Isaiah 28:13 (ESV) And the word of the LORD will be to them precept upon precept, precept upon precept, line upon line, line upon line, here a little, there a little, that they may go, and fall backward, and be broken, and snared, and taken.

What is this illustration of "precept upon precept" and "line upon line"? It is a sort of teaching to which students roll their eyes. In modern vernacular: "blah, blah, blah." The teachers of Israel will have no effect. And verse 13 shows that because of the immaturity produced by the leaders, God's Word will have no hearing among them. 

The passage illustrates the necessity of spiritual leadership among a people. Without strong God-centered prophets and priests, the people's ears are not attuned to the voice of the Lord.

Notice that Isaiah illustrates the spiritual condition will consequently be one of demonic influence.
Isaiah 28:15 (ESV) Because you have said, “We have made a covenant with death, and with Sheol we have an agreement, when the overwhelming whip passes through it will not come to us, for we have made lies our refuge, and in falsehood we have taken shelter”;

When leaders do not teach people the truth, the people will covenant with lies. 

What is the answer? Isaiah illustrates with a few construction illustrations.
Isaiah 28:16–17 (ESV) therefore thus says the Lord GOD, “Behold, I am the one who has laid as a foundation in Zion, a stone, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone, of a sure foundation: ‘Whoever believes will not be in haste.’ 17 And I will make justice the line, and righteousness the plumb line; and hail will sweep away the refuge of lies, and waters will overwhelm the shelter.”

A cornerstone and a plumbline will measure the people and separate those who belong to God from those who do not. Isaiah illustrates the spiritual condition has so blinded the masses that when Messiah shows up, there will be mockers and believers. Jesus' ministry makes it clear that when people truly meet God, there are only two options - love or hate, acceptance or rejection. He is firm and fixed in the truth. Blessed are those who believe. 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

God’s View of You

Sometimes I think we imagine that God is mostly disappointed with us. That He puts up with us and bears with us because He has to (after all He is love), but most of the time our glaring weaknesses weary Him and make His day miserable. Of course, this is the devil’s doing in our minds. The truth of scripture bears out that the world has to get staunch-raving evil before God is totally weary of us. And the stories in the Old Testament remind us with each passing character that God is patient, loving and kind to His very flawed inconsistent servants. Saul is a case study of this. His lineage will not hold the kingdom, that has already been stated from the mishap of offering the sacrifice instead of waiting for Samuel to arrive in 1 Samuel 13. His next great gaff will happen in the chapter to come in 1 Samuel 15 where his own kingship will be taken from him and the anointing placed on one soon to come. Yes, God will regret making Saul king and we’ll talk about that next. But for now...
Read more

The Stain of Slavery

One of the greatest pains in my heart over the history of the church is the fact that many "Bible-believing" Christians used the Bible to promote, continue, and enable slavery in America's past. It may have happened elsewhere, but I'm an American, and I know it happened here. Then, some repeatedly make the claim because of a tiny amount of verses where God informs Israel on how to take slaves, it means the Bible is a pro-slavery document. How absurd. The overarching narrative of the Bible is that God sets the slaves free. The second book testifies to this part of God's character.  Getting to Jeremiah's day, one of the reasons Israel's nation was handed over to exile was because they enslaved each other. This attitude was so engrained into the culture of Israel that they had a hard time giving up slavery even in the face of national catastrophe.  In Jeremiah 34, the king is promised that he will die in Babylon, but he will die in peace. Jeremiah 34:3–5 (ESV...
Read more

Leaders Who Later Fail

Remember Johanan from Jeremiah 41? The man who saved many others from the threats of the murderous coup? He seemed like a noble leader. But time reveals a lot.  Jeremiah 42:5–6 (ESV)  Then they said to Jeremiah, “May the LORD be a true and faithful witness against us if we do not act according to all the word with which the LORD your God sends you to us. 6 Whether it is good or bad, we will obey the voice of the LORD our God to whom we are sending you, that it may be well with us when we obey the voice of the LORD our God.” These are the words of the presumptive leaders of Israel in the land while the nation is in exile. The previous chapter saw a hero arise to protect a few remaining survivors. His name was Johanan. On the surface, he seems like a good man, seeking the will of the Lord in his leadership position. Jeremiah returns with directives from the Lord: Jeremiah 42:10 (ESV) If you will remain in this land, then I will build you up and not pull you down; I will plant y...
Read more