WEBVTT

00:00:00.270 --> 00:00:03.350
This is kind of a sad verse. It's Isaiah 1, 4.

00:00:03.649 --> 00:00:07.009
Isaiah is prophesying about the people, really

00:00:07.009 --> 00:00:09.650
Judah and Jerusalem, God's people, supposed to

00:00:09.650 --> 00:00:12.369
be followers of the Lord. And he says in chapter

00:00:12.369 --> 00:00:15.509
1, verse 4 of the book of Isaiah, O sinful nation,

00:00:15.869 --> 00:00:19.750
people weighed down with guilt, offspring of

00:00:19.750 --> 00:00:24.030
evildoers, sons who act corruptly. They have

00:00:24.030 --> 00:00:27.010
abandoned the Lord. They have despised the Holy

00:00:27.010 --> 00:00:29.670
One of Israel. They have turned away from Him.

00:00:30.199 --> 00:00:32.020
I don't know about you, but when I think about

00:00:32.020 --> 00:00:34.020
the way the world's going sometimes, I wonder

00:00:34.020 --> 00:00:36.659
if this is not exactly where we're at, a sinful

00:00:36.659 --> 00:00:39.719
nation weighed down with guilt. Guilt then motivates

00:00:39.719 --> 00:00:41.600
people to do a lot of things. Sometimes guilt

00:00:41.600 --> 00:00:44.740
makes people try to do better. But the truth

00:00:44.740 --> 00:00:46.479
is, when you try to do better out of guilt, you

00:00:46.479 --> 00:00:50.520
just wind up doing better that's still bad because

00:00:50.520 --> 00:00:53.179
it's not motivated by the right heart. Realize

00:00:53.179 --> 00:00:55.899
that God does not use guilt. While a man may

00:00:55.899 --> 00:00:58.619
be guilty before the Lord, God does not use guilt

00:00:58.619 --> 00:01:00.799
to motivate people to do things. When they suffer

00:01:00.799 --> 00:01:03.340
conviction, that is to say, when the Holy Spirit

00:01:03.340 --> 00:01:04.900
convicts people, and the Bible says the Holy

00:01:04.900 --> 00:01:09.400
Spirit does do that, when they experience a feeling

00:01:09.400 --> 00:01:11.260
of conviction, they want to change. They're encouraged

00:01:11.260 --> 00:01:13.260
by God to be a better man or a better woman.

00:01:13.719 --> 00:01:16.319
This people had abandoned the Lord. Oh, I hope

00:01:16.319 --> 00:01:18.840
we're not such a people. Let us focus on God

00:01:18.840 --> 00:01:21.760
today. Let us give credit to God today for all

00:01:21.760 --> 00:01:24.099
that he has done. Let us have Jesus alone as

00:01:24.099 --> 00:01:24.840
Lord today.