Then your light will break forth like the dawn,
and your healing will quickly appear;
then your righteousness will go before you,
and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard.
9 Then you will call, and the LORD will answer;
you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I. Isaiah 58: 8-9
3 of my favourite passages today! Psalm 103, which was read out at our wedding! And 2 Peter 3, Getting ready for the Day of the Lord! But this verse struck my heart. Isaiah is prophesying about those who fast, but don’t really humble themselves, they set apart a day for the Lord, yet still exploit their workers. He even says, “You cannot fast as you do today and expect your voice to be heard on high. We must remember that’s the goal, for our voice to be heard on high!”We are not just to go through the motions and religiously sacrifice food. God looks at our heart, and he also looks at our actions. Our hearts have a genuine desire to fast, and our actions must be humble and caring for the lowly and the poor at the same time. “To share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter” etc.
Then this verse is the promise: Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard. Then you will call, and the LORD will answer; you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I. Isaiah 58: 8-9
It’s all about the “Here am I” Not just about our prayers going up to him, and our actions being right, but in the Lord hearing our voice from on high and Speaking to us… “Here am I” When the Lord comes, nothing else matters. He brings light, healing, glory… answers.
This kind of fasting was under the Old covenant, how much easier is this under the New Covenant! We have the Holy Spirit in fullness to lead us as we fast.
Lord, purify my heart. May the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be pleasing to you Oh Lord! Give me your heart for the poor, the hungry and the broken. Amen!