God speaks to us in Isaiah in terms we simply cannot mistake, yet we so often do. Speaking on the wickedness and apostasy of Judah, God declared that He could not bear the association of the profane with the sacred via the rituals and ostentatious liturgies of His chosen people. Their sins went before them like heralds of iniquity, much the same as ours do today. Yet they tried to mask their sin in lavish, albeit improper worship. Their sacrifices were as worthless as Cain’s. Their incense, rather than raising the sweet smell of herbs and spices produced a stench that God could not bear. Despite observing the acknowledged days of adoration, given to them by the law of Moses, their worship was rejected by God for their failure to come forward cleansed of their sins. It is in this setting that God declares that He cannot, He will not endure the meeting of sin and the sacred.
“And God saw the light, that it was good; and God divided the light from the darkness.” - Genesis 1:4. We too must be able to discern and divide light from darkness in our lives. Just as surely as God will not tolerate spiritual darkness within the light neither should we, neither can we. We certainly cannot bring our sacrifices to God tainted with our willfully unrestrained and sinful lifestyles. Talk of futility! We must separate iniquity from the sacred before we dare bring the sacred to God. We can only do this within the context of repentance. “Now after John was put in prison, Jesus came to Galilee, preaching Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel. in the gospel.” - Mark 1:14-15.
This is the proper manner for us to come into the presence of and worship our most holy God: in a humble and contrite spirit of repentance. We owe Him more that we could ever pay. We dare not provoke Him with any less.
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