“Seek the Lord while He may be found; call to Him while He is near. Let the wicked one abandon his way, and the sinful one his thoughts; let him return to the Lord, so He may have compassion on him, and to our God, for He will freely forgive. ‘For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,’ says the Lord. ‘For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts.'”

Isaiah 55:6-9 (NKJV)

What an astounding declaration! What an amazing avowal of the thoughts and ways of God as compared to those of man. We may try as hard as we possibly can to figure out the ways and thoughts of God, but we will always be left shaking our heads in bewilderment, as we are left with the undeniable reality that His ways and thoughts are, indeed, above our ability to comprehend.

To understand this passage properly we must strive to place it in its historical context. God’s people have rejected the purposes and plans God had for them, and have therefore fallen under the judgement of God. Isaiah has been inspired by God to call God’s people to repentance. This is clearly seen in verse seven, where Isaiah calls for the wicked one to abandon his way, and the sinful one to abandon his thoughts. When one accepts this invitation he then experiences the forgiveness of God.

Even though this was written specifically to and for the nation of Israel, the spiritual applications are meant for all who identify themselves as children of God. We are called to holy living, and when we choose to step outside the parameters of God’s revealed will as seen in His Word, then He calls for us to repent, turning back to Him in a spirit of contrition, seeking the favor or His forgiveness.

But, for many, this is where the difficulty begins. It seems that the lines of demarcation between what is holy and what is profane have become extremely blurred. It seems that much of what the Bible denounces as being wrong is now viewed as right, and what it pronounces as right is now viewed as wrong. The words of the Apostle Paul to the church in Galatia will illustrate this point clearly:

“Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.”

Galatians 5:19-21 (NKJV)

This list of the works of the flesh is certainly not to be viewed or understood as being exhaustive, but rather a list of examples of the sort of activities that are contrary to the perfect will of God. Several of them will be readily recognized as common actions of our contemporary cultural setting. Adultery, sorcery, hatred, selfishness, envy, and drunkenness are prevalent. And it seems that they are just accepted as the norm rather than an aberration. This can only be understood as a rejection of God’s word, and an acceptance of actions, activities and attitudes which are diametrically opposite of God’s will.

We may convince ourselves that these things are of little consequence in the big scheme of things. But it is actually in the big scheme of things that these things are of greatest consequence. Why do I say that? Simply because of what Paul said. Listen once again to these explosive words of Paul:

“…those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.”

Galatians 5:21

The individual who practices – lives in habitual life patterns such as those described in this passage – will not inherit the kingdom of God. That is the reason Isaiah, and Paul, as well as practically every other Biblical author, calls for repentance. True, sincere repentance is the act of the individual to turn from his ways to the ways of God. It is a two-fold process: a change of mind that leads to a chance of action. First of all, it involves changing one’s mind, one’s way of thinking, to the align with the mind of God. And how is one to know the mind of God? By reading His Word, His revealed will as recorded by human authors under the inspiration of God.

But remember: His ways are not our ways and His thoughts are not our thoughts. So, when we read a passage such as the one quoted above from the Apostle Paul, and understand that adultery, or fornication, or sorcery, or drunkenness, are lifestyle choices that will keep me out of the kingdom of God, I must align myself with God’s Word, changing my mind about those things that I might have previously viewed as right, but now see as wrong.

However, it is not enough to change my mind to align with God’s Word: I must then change my actions to align with my changed mind. You see, it is possible to change my mind to align with God’s Word, but continue doing what I now view as wrong. For example, I might see in the Bible that adultery is an abomination in the eyes of God, and agree with the Bible’s assessment, but continue living in adultery. So, my change of mind did not lead to a change of action, so it is not true, sincere repentance.

Now, someone might ask, “What gives God the authority to prescribe for me what is right and wrong?” The answer to that is really quite simple, even though it will not be sufficient for many. God created us. As a matter of fact, God created everything. Thus, everything belongs to God. We are His possession. He can do with His creation/possession whatever He chooses. His Word, the Bible, gives us the progressive revelation of God’s purposes and plans for His creation. In that revelation He lays out for us the parameters of what is right and wrong. And He has the perfect right to hold us accountable for our acceptance, or our rejection, of those parameters.

So, let’s get to the bottom line. It is obvious that many embrace lifestyles and life habits that run contrary to God’s revealed will for His human family. We see this played out every day in the lives of children who grow up to reject the values instilled in them by their parents. A child may be taught that it is wrong to hit another child, but choose to do so anyway. As that child grows into his teenage years, he continues to reject those values, and becomes more volatile and violent. Eventually, in his young adult stage of life, motivated by the action of another, his violence comes full force as he takes the life of another in an act of rage.

This could be played out in a multitude of ways. A child is taught that pre-marital sex is wrong, but chooses to engage in sexual activity prior to marriage. He may be taught that adultery is wrong, but choose to engage in extra-marital affairs after being united in marriage. He may be taught that sorcery is wrong, but choose to visit fortune-tellers seeking information about his future. He may be taught that drunkenness is wrong, but grow up to become an alcoholic. And the list goes on.

God has revealed His plans for us in His Word, and it is our choice as to whether or not we accept His ways or reject them for our own. But please know this: His ways and thoughts lead to life and blessing and fulfillment; our ways lead to death and emptiness and futility.

I encourage you today: choose His way. You won’t be sorry you did, especially when you stand before Him at that future day of judgment and hear those words of welcome into the kingdom of God.