We live in a hurting world. There are times in each of our lives that we have pain. Everyone struggles from time to time. Some people struggle more than others and some emotional and spiritual wounds run deep into the heart and struggling to rise above it can be a monumental task for those who are hurting. We have all heard someone say, "Where is God when I am hurting?" or "I pray but God doesn’t seem to hear." Maybe you have said the same things. In this study, I want to look at Isaiah chapter 58. I want to first look at Isaiah 58:3, "why have we fasted, they say, and You have not seen? Why have we afflicted our souls, and You take no notice?" That sounds all too familiar. I have often heard similar things said by Christians.

Lets look at Isaiah 58:6-12:

6 Is this not the fast that I have chosen:
To loose the bonds of wickedness,
To undo the heavy burdens,
To let the oppressed go free,
And that you break every yoke?
7 Is it not to share your bread with the hungry,
And that you bring to your house the poor who are cast out;
When you see the naked, that you cover him,
And not hide yourself from your own flesh?
8 Then your light shall break forth like the morning,
Your healing shall spring forth speedily,
And your righteousness shall go before you;
The glory of the LORD shall be your rear guard.
9 Then you shall call, and the LORD will answer;
You shall cry, and He will say, ‘Here I am.’
If you take away the yoke from your midst,
The pointing of the finger, and speaking wickedness,
10 If you extend your soul to the hungry
And satisfy the afflicted soul,
Then your light shall dawn in the darkness,
And your darkness shall be as the noonday.
11 The LORD will guide you continually,
And satisfy your soul in drought,
And strengthen your bones;
You shall be like a watered garden,
And like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail.
12 Those from among you
Shall build the old waste places;
You shall raise up the foundations of many generations;
And you shall be called the Repairer of the Breach,
The Restorer of Streets to Dwell In.

This, I believe, is how to be healed. The Bible clearly teaches with many examples, that when you heal others, God heals you. This passage probably clarifies it better than any other. Look at verse 6, "Is this not the fast that I have chosen?" Fasting has a place in a Christian’s life. Fasting and prayer are a good thing and I like to fast before a major decision or an event in which I know I am totally dependent on God’s intervention. I can see a huge difference when I take time out for prayer and fasting than when I don’t. What is fasting? It is denying yourself in order to put a focus on God. The greater fast is when we deny ourselves and focus on God by reaching out to another. The most important breakthrough in a Christian’s life is when he or she learns to get outside of themselves. Even in spiritual things, we tend to make ourselves the focus. There is a place for self-examination. Examining your heart is very important but it is not the end of your calling. Examining your heart and filling your heart with godliness is only the first step.

You are not called to be a light unto yourself, but a light to the world. If you spend your life seeking happiness, peace, fulfillment and all the things the world is searching for, you will never find it. You will have moments of enjoyment, but you will never have lasting satisfaction. If you live solely for yourself, you will chase these desires for the rest of your life. Forget about gratification. Jesus said in Matthew 6:33 that if you seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, all these things would be added to you. Psalm 25:14 says, "the secret of the Lord is with those who fear Him". I believe that this is why most Christians never truly experience God. His secrets are only revealed when we learn to fear Him. To fear God is to take Him serious. Most live by sight and never find the true benefits that flow from walking with God. When we seek our selves, we never find what we are looking for (other than a moment of enjoyment), but when we seek God and trust him to fulfill these things, He will fill to overflowing.

Before I go on, I believe it is important to mention that reaching out is not the only goal of the believer. Renewal is critical. There has to be a time when we withdraw from the world and spend time with God. We must be filled before we can overflow to others. There must be a time that we separate ourselves and pray, study, memorize, worship and build that relationship with God. Once we have renewed, it is up to us to then become an outflow to others. God has chosen us to be the reflection of Himself. If we choose to become islands or separated to the point of having no influence in the world, we will become stagnate. This stagnation is what God is addressing in Isaiah 58. God is addressing the people who were questioning why their self-sacrifice seemed to be ignored by God.

The answer. "This is the fast that I have chosen to honor: loose the bonds of wickedness, undo the heavy burdens, let the oppressed go free, and YOU break every yoke." God makes it clear that if you ignore the needs around you, you are ignoring your own flesh. In other words, it is your responsibility. So much is it your responsibility that if you ignore, you will stagnate and feel distant from God, but if you meet these needs, you will find that you are healing. God builds us up and pours Himself into us. There comes a point where we must stretch and grow. We have a tendency to become content with only experiencing a little of God and not allowing God to stretch us. If we refuse to stretch, we quickly reach the plateau of our faith. We can’t remain in one place for long. We will either desire to grow and move upward, or we will become discontented and start descending away from God. God does not pour himself in a stagnate pond. Look at verse 10-11, "If you extend your soul to the hungry and satisfy the afflicted soul, then your light shall dawn in the darkness, and your darkness shall be as the noonday. The Lord will guide you continually, and satisfy your soul in drought, and strengthen your bones; you shall be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail."

How can anyone read this passage and not feel renewed already? To have the promise of being guided, satisfied in drought, strengthened and being filled like a watered garden who never dries up is an amazing promise. The key is as always, obedience. One’s life must be first founded on Christ, then reach out to the needs. We even have the promise that God himself is our rear guard. The Bible clearly teaches that in order to love God, obedience is essential. If we reject God’s word, we reject Him with it. To obey with the promise that we will call and the Lord will answer, "Here I am", is a comforting principle. The Bible teaches us that God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble. The proud will never hear God say, "Here I am", but only the one who humbles himself, seeks God as Lord of their life and obeys.