The Golden Rule: Learn to “Do Good” (Prophet Margins – Part VI)

Sermon Title: The Golden Rule: Learn to “Do Good”

Good News Statement: God invites us to do good all the time

Preached: Sunday, August 21, 2022 at Dogwood Prairie UMC & Seed Chapel UMC

Pastor Daniel G. Skelton, M.Div.

 

Scripture (NRSV): Isaiah 1:1-2, 16-20 Today’s scripture reading comes from the Prophet Isaiah, who was writing during the mid-eighth century alongside the minor Prophets Amos and Hosea. We will be reading chapter one verses one thru two and then verses sixteen thru twenty. Listen to the words of Isaiah ben Amoz…

 

The vision of Isaiah son of Amoz, which he saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah.

The Wickedness of Judah

² Hear, O heavens, and listen, O earth, for the Lord has spoken: I reared children and brought them up, but they have rebelled against me….

¹⁶ Wash yourselves; make yourselves clean; remove your evil deeds from before my eyes;
cease to do evil;
¹⁷ learn to do good; seek justice;  rescue the oppressed; defend the orphan; plead for the widow.

¹⁸ Come now, let us argue it out, says the Lord: If your sins are like scarlet, will they become like snow? If they are red like crimson, will they become like wool?
¹⁹ If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land,
²⁰ but if you refuse and rebel,  you shall be devoured by the sword, for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.

This is the Word of God for the People of God; And all God’s people said, “Thanks be to God.”

 

Introduction:

A child comes home from his first day of school and his mother asked them, “What did you learn today?” The child says, “Not enough. I have to go back tomorrow!”

The Teacher told a student to get rid of his drink because there are no drinks in class. The student responded, “I got it from my doctor and he told me to drink it.” The teacher asked, “Who’s your doctor?” And the student responded, “Dr. Pepper.          

[Last week, we were reminded through the unrelenting and never-ceasing parental guidance of God that God will never give up on us.  Hosea chapter eleven brought forth the struggle of God to reclaim His children, the very children whom He called “Children of the living God” back in chapter one of Hosea (1:9). God saw His people rebelling against Him, but He didn’t give up. Instead He made sure that they were given “cords of human kindness and bands of love” (Hosea 11:3-4).

We at times are like the children of God: rebelling, arguing, falling, sinning, doing and saying the wrong thing, and losing sight of what truly matters in life. But in the end, through all the negative engagements in our life, God was still there. He didn’t forsake us; He didn’t abandon us; and He didn’t leave us on our own cross to die. Rather, God is still teaching us how to walk, still comforting us, still healing us, still feeding us, and still loving us. God is never going to give up on you or anyone else in your life because He loves you and He loves them. God is always willing to grant you His cords of kindness: His love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23). God is never going to give up on you. However, God does need us to try our best to do good all the time.

Today’s text challenges us to learn to do good. The Book of Isaiah (Hebrew “yesha’yah(u)”) meaning “The LORD saves,” is named for the prophet Isaiah ben Amoz who lived during the latter half of the eighth century BCE at the time of the Assyrian invasions of Israel and Judah. Isaiah chapter one verse one states, “The vision of Isaiah son of Amoz, which he saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah.” Isaiah begins his three part saga by calling us to learn to do good. If we learn to do good in the sight of the LORD, then we will begin to live and do well as James states in chapter two verse eight of his book: “If you really fulfill the royal law according to the scripture, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself,’ you [will] do well” (James 2:8).I believe we all want to do well in this life! I believe we all want to follow in the footsteps of Jesus Christ! I believe we all want to do all the good we can for as long as we can! And I believe we all want, in our heart, to live within the bounds of what we were taught on the first day of school: those words that have become known as the “Golden Rule.”

In order to follow the Golden Rule, we must realize that it takes heart. It’s about the heart. It’s about whether our words in worship match our words the rest of the week. Whether what we pray for is what we work for. Whether what we hope for is what we live for. It’s about living into the words of Matthew 7:12 “In everything do to others as you would have them do to you….” It’s about practicing and living out the words of Luke 4:18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, [and] to set free those who are oppressed…” It’s about fulfilling the second greatest commandment, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself” (Luke 10:27; Mark 12:30-31; Matthew 19:19). It’s about the heart and doing good all the time.

Today, Isaiah’s proclamation to learn to do good becomes the heartbeat of our very nature. God invites us to do good all the time; to live out His Golden Rule.

Opening Prayer:

            Let us pray… God of the Past, Present, and Future, seldom do we know what you’ll ask of us each day. Many times, we are in the moment when we feel the nudging of your spirit to act. As we spend time in your house today, may our souls be aligned with you, so that we may readily respond when you call, when you call us to do good all the time! May my words fall to the ground as your words settle in the hearts of all those before me. In Your name we pray, Amen.

Body:

Do any of you remember the first day of school? The year was 2001, and I was sitting at the table eating my bowl of Fruit Loops as my siblings were just getting out of bed, throwing some clothes on, shoving things in their backpacks, grabbing a Pop-Tart, and walking out the front door. You see, 2001 was the year that I entered Kindergarten. After finishing my Fruit Loops, I put on my new Nike tennis shoes, grabbed my very cool Hotwheels backpack, and walked over to my Aunt’s to get on that massive yellow school bus. I, as the numerous ads would suggest, was “becoming a big kid now!” At 7:00AM, I stepped foot on that massive yellow school bus, found a seat, and waved out the window to my mom and dad and grandma. I was officially beginning my full time position as a genuine student for life.

On that first day of school, beside learning the layout of the school, getting my desk all situated, making sure that my name was written on every single crayon, marker, and colored pencil as well as on everything that I brought with me, and being reminded of the rules and what happens when we choose not to follow those rules, the teacher stood in front of the class and held up a poster that said, “Treat others the way you want to be treated.” What I didn’t realize back then is that that rule, although new to me in 2001, had been around for many years: almost two thousand years as a matter of fact. And twenty-one years later, that rule which we call the Golden Rule, still motivates me to think about others, to see a need and fill a need, and to strive to live well in a world where a little bit of goodness can go a long way. Do any of you remember your first day of school? Do any of you remember hearing the Golden Rule read to you? Or maybe you’re the one reading it today?

Isaiah doesn’t waste anytime letting us know the prerogative of his opening chapter: to point out that the people are misbehaving but yet there is still hope for them. Isaiah 1:2 states, “Hear, O heavens, and listen, O earth, for the LORD has spoken: I reared children and brought them up, but they rebelled against me.” It seems as if the people of Israel are having a tough time listening to God, their teacher: they continually choose to rebel against Him. In the fourth grade, if we missed behaved—rebelled against the rules in the classroom—we had to write our name down in a notebook on the teacher’s desk. If our name appeared in that notebook a certain amount of times, we were forced to miss recess. Let me tell you, I missed recess one day. I forgot my glasses, I left both my math and science folders at home, and I even tried to act like I completed an assignment by folding a blank piece of paper in half so the teacher couldn’t see it—but the odds were against me since I was called on to answer a question from that assignment. My name was written in that notebook for eternity. I didn’t follow the rules, and I was caught.

The people of Israel have been caught: they have become a sinful nation (Isaiah 1:4), who do evil and wicked things, who have chosen to forsake the LORD, and who have utterly despised the Holy One of Israel (Isaiah 1:4). And now God is calling out to them. But the damage has been done. God tried to lament with His people, “Why do you continue to rebel?” (Isaiah 1:5), but they lost sight of what God wanted them to do. He wanted them to do good all the time, but they couldn’t. Isaiah elaborates on this devastating situation, “The whole head is injured, and the whole heart faint. From the sole of the foot to the head, there is no soundness in it, only bruises and sores and bleeding wounds; they have not been drained or bound up or softened with oil. Your country lies desolate; your cities are burned with fire; in your very presence aliens devour your land; it is desolate, as overthrown by foreigners” (Isaiah 1:5-7). Simply put, their goodness has been destroyed. Their willingness to bring justice to the oppressed has been overturned. Their faith has been drained while their punishments become more and more severe with each passing moment. The wrath of God, the judgment of God, is raining down upon them. They have been written in God’s notebook.

I ask you, have any of you ever chosen to put “goodness” on the back burner, to set it aside, because you thought there was better a solution to what you were dealing with or struggling with? You thought being angry, frustrated, upset, and speaking with a loud voice—maybe screaming at times—would solve the problem. Maybe you thought that by overpowering the situation with devouring words of disgust, you would be able to create, as John wrote in the Book of Revelation, “a river…[that was] as clear as crystal” (Revelation 22:1). Then you found out that that crystal clear water contained more mud and algae than you ever thought possible. There are moments in our life by which we think being powerful and making the other person feel small and insignificant is the best solution. We decide to set goodness aside. When you set aside goodness, you set aside the teachings of God and Jesus Christ. Essentially you set aside the Golden Rule. You, therefore, become bruised and hurt.

When we become bruised and hurt, the goodness has escaped from our very being, God reminds us that He is still there. He hasn’t given up on us. After realizing the lack of goodness in His own people, God offers them a second chance. Isaiah 1:16-17 says, “Wash yourselves; make yourselves clean; remove your devil deeds from before my eyes; cease to do evil; learn to do good; seek justice; rescue the oppressed; defend the orphan; plead for the widow.” God knows that His people are capable of treating others the way they want to be treated. He tells them, stop being evil and instead strive to be good; seek justice instead of hate; rescue the oppressed instead of putting up barriers; defend the orphan, the lost, the outcast, the one sheep who has strayed away instead of passing people by; stand up for the widows, the hurting, and the afflicted instead of letting them remain in solitude; and above all learn to do good. God is calling His people—that includes you and me—to wash ourselves of things that have brought hurt to others. The time has come to seek repentance. The time has come to restore your hope and to treat others the way you want to be treated.

Isaiah’s call to fulfill the Golden Rule reminds me of the Parable of the Good Samaritan. This parable is found in Luke 10: “An expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. ‘Teacher,’ he said, ‘what must I do to inherit eternal life?’ He said to him, ‘What is written in the law? What do you read there?’ He answered, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind and your neighbor as yourself.’ And he said to him, ‘You have given the right answer; do this, and you will live.’ But wanting to vindicate himself, he asked Jesus, ‘And who is my neighbor?’ Jesus replied, ‘A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho and fell into the hands of robbers, who stripped him, beat him, and took off, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a priest was going down that road, and when he saw him he passed by on the other side. So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan while traveling came upon him, and when he saw him he was moved with compassion. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, treating them with oil and wine. Then he put him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. The next day he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said, ‘Take care of him, and when I come back I will repay you whatever more you spend.’ Which of these three, do you think, was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?’ He said, ‘The one who showed him mercy.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Go and do likewise’” (Luke 10:25-37).

No longer can we pretend that God has turned a blind eye to those who are “the least among us,” who are injured and sitting on the side of the road. No longer can we sit back and expect that God will do all the work. No longer can we forget what we learned on our first day of school: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” The time has come to be the good Samaritan. The time has come to wash ourselves of wickedness and become clean in his righteousness: “To be washed in the blood of the Lamb.” The time has come to let the river “of the water of life” to become clear as crystal (John 21:1). The time has become to do as John Wesley has taught us: “Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as you ever you can.” The time has come to bring goodness back into your life and into the life and hearts of those around you.

Nehemiah 8:10 shares, “Do not grieve, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.” The Psalmist wrote, “The LORD is my shepherd, I lack nothing” (Psalm 23:1). Paul wrote to the people of Rome, “Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good” (Romans 12:9). The love of God is our strength that gives us joy, provides us with all that we need, and conquers the evil in our life. God will never forsake you or abandon you. You are a living child of God’s love, grace, and kindness and mercy. So don’t be afraid to share the goodness of Christ with others.

Conclusion:

I leave you with the words that I stated at the beginning of this message. In order to follow the Golden Rule, we must realize that it takes heart. It’s about the heart. It’s about whether our words in worship match our words the rest of the week. Whether what we pray for is what we work for. Whether what we hope for is what we live for. It’s about living into the words of Matthew 7:12 “In everything do to others as you would have them do to you….” It’s about practicing and living out the words of Luke 4:18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, [and] to set free those who are oppressed…” It’s about fulfilling the second greatest commandment, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself” (Luke 10:27; Mark 12:30-31; Matthew 19:19). It’s about the heart and doing good all the time.

The Golden Rule that I learned on that first day of school, by teachers who I know who were blessed beyond belief, came rushing out of my mouth as I got off that massive yellow school bus and saw my parents and grandma once again. What I learned those many years ago, is still teaching me today! However, be warned, “If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land,” shares Isaiah, “but if you refuse and rebel, you shall be devoured by the sword; for the mouth of the Lord has spoken” (verses 19-20). You have a choice. What will it be: treat others the way you want to be treated or seek to be passed by on the road of life?