"Acts of Righteousness"

A while back as I was reading, I had a little revelation. And by that I mean just this, I gained some understanding and insight. Jesus in the gospel of Matthew taught about fasting; likewise, in Isaiah 58 the Lord reveals what kind of fasting is acceptable/unacceptable to Him. So between those two places, we learn some things...


First off, I am not a spiritual giant if I fast. Jesus plainly spoke, saying, "When you fast..." He wasn't trying to get a bunch of people to start doing the right thing; he wasn't trying to persuade the people to begin a spiritual habit of fasting. He simply said (paraphrasing), "when you fast, here's what it should and shouldn't look like." So if we fast, then we're walking in obedience to what we're already expected to be doing. So if we fast, awesome! We will reap the blessings of obedience. If not, maybe we're missing something.


Secondly, Jesus talks about fasting in the midst of discussing both prayer and giving to the needy. All three of these things are to be done in secret; Jesus says in Matthew 6:1, "Be careful not to do your 'acts of righteousness' before men, to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven." But if we do it unto Him, He says "...your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you."


So when Jesus (directly afterwards) tells us to store up our treasures in heaven, and not on earth, we can get a glimpse of where our treasures lie by our "acts of righteousness." If we can't do them for the sake of obeying the Father, and doing it to please Him, we have no reward; there is no treasure in it. But if we keep our "acts of righteousness" in the secret, without letting our right hand know what the left hand is doing, God will reward us and we can know where our treasures truly are.


Also, look at Isaiah 58. The Lord is far less concerned about the "acts of righteousness" than He is about the heart of the person doing it. Israel cried out, "we have humbled ourselves! But why haven't you recognized it?" What did the Lord have to say about it? He rebuked them for their strife and anger with others; he rebuked them for exploiting workers; he rebuked them for not taking care of the poor and needy; he rebuked them for letting people go hungry; he rebuked them because the naked were not being clothed; he rebuked them because they didn't loose the chains of injustice and set the oppressed free...


The Lord had much to say. He also said, "Is this the kind of fast I have chosen, only a day for a man to humble himself? ... Is that what you call a fast, a day acceptable to the LORD?" It's much like Samuel when he rebuked Saul...
"Does the LORD delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices
as much as in obeying the voice of the LORD ?
To obey is better than sacrifice,
and to heed is better than the fat of rams.

For rebellion is like the sin of divination,
and arrogance like the evil of idolatry.
Because you have rejected the word of the LORD,
he has rejected you as king."


We so often get caught up in our "acts of righteousness" but fail to do the things we've already been told to do. When a day of fasting is filled with fights and anger, it shows us our true self. Maybe we're not humbling ourselves under the mighty hand of God like we think we are. I know I can be way too "Justin-focused" at times to be of any use to anyone else. But praise the Lord there is hope for me!


When I turn and obey what I should be doing; when I turn my focus off of a "day of fasting" or some other "act of righteousness" and turn my focus to the Lord, I have this promise from the end of Isaiah 58...

"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.
"If you do away with the yoke of oppression,
with the pointing finger and malicious talk,

and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry
and satisfy the needs of the oppressed,
then your light will rise in the darkness,
and your night will become like the noonday.

The LORD will guide you always;
he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land
and will strengthen your frame.
You will be like a well-watered garden,
like a spring whose waters never fail.

Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins
and will raise up the age-old foundations;
you will be called Repairer of Broken Walls,
Restorer of Streets with Dwellings.

If you keep your feet from breaking the Sabbath
and from doing as you please on my holy day,
if you call the Sabbath a delight
and the LORD's holy day honorable,
and if you honor it by not going your own way
and not doing as you please or speaking idle words,

then you will find your joy in the LORD,
and I will cause you to ride on the heights of the land
and to feast on the inheritance of your father Jacob."
The mouth of the LORD has spoken."