Isaiah 1:11 "To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices unto me? saith the LORD: I am full of the burnt offerings of rams, and the fat of fed beasts; and I delight not in the blood of bullocks, or of lambs, or of he goats."
Have you ever forgotten something and run back into the room to grab it, only to completely forget what you were getting? You can make great strides but forget why! Israel was doing exactly that when Isaiah chapter 1 begins. They were doing great things but had forgotten why.
God's people were doing several good things: sacrificing, coming into the courts of God, bringing offerings, and assembling together for religious reasons. God said, "I am full of the burnt offerings . . . I delight not. . . ." He called their good works vain, abomination, iniquity, and trouble. He even said, "When ye make many prayers, I will not hear. . . ." That is pretty strong! In short, the Israelites were doing all kinds of good things without remembering why they were to do them.
Knowing how to do something is important. A man who knows how will always have a place. But a man who knows why and how is much better! I have found that most of my sermon titles begin with "how." For example, "How to Pray", "How to Read Your Bible", "How to Be a Better Husband". In fact, there is a whole host of books on "how to" do just about anything!
Ironically, as Christians, we don't struggle with "how to"; we struggle with "why." We know what to do and how to do it, but we forget why we are to do it in the first place! Be wise enough to remember why you are doing the good things you do. Nothing you do forGod will please Him when you don't have a heart for God. Don't forget why!
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