Word + Walk: Wait & See
✝️ Sermon Recap: Wait & See
Text: Isaiah 58:1–14
Big Idea: Just like parents “wait and see” if what they’ve planted in their children has taken root, God examines whether His Word has truly taken root in His people. Not all who worship are transformed. God cannot be manipulated; He was, He is, and He will always be just. For humanity, that means restoration for the righteous and retribution for the reprobate, morally corrupt heart. God’s loving prescription is to stop, trust, and taste His goodness.
I. God Rejects Manipulation (Isaiah 58:1–5)
God commands Isaiah to cry aloud and expose His people’s sin. They seek Him daily, delight to know His ways, and practice fasting—but their worship is a performance, not a transformation. They are trying to use spiritual activity to move God while mistreating people made in His image.
They stopped eating, but they didn’t stop oppressing.
They bowed their heads, but they didn’t bend their hearts.
Reflection:
Where might you be “doing the right things” spiritually while still trying to manipulate God?
II. God’s Justice (Defined & Demonstrated) (Isaiah 58:6–12)
God defines the fast He actually chooses:
loosing the bonds of wickedness, undoing yokes, freeing the oppressed, sharing bread, housing the homeless, clothing the naked, and not hiding from your own flesh.
When God’s people live out His justice, His response is restoration—light, healing, guidance, strength, and a new identity as “repairer of the breach” and “restorer of streets.”
Reflection:
How is God calling you to move from ritual to justice— from performance to real, costly love?
III. God’s Prescription (Isaiah 58:13–14)
God’s prescription for a sin-sick, manipulative people is Sabbath—to “turn back your foot” from trampling His holy day, and to call the Sabbath a delight. Sabbath means stop. Stop trying to control outcomes. Stop using every moment for your own pleasure. Stop treating what God made holy as common.
In Sabbath, God provides without your effort.
In Sabbath, you learn: God didn’t create you for the routine but for relationship.
Reflection:
What would it look like for you to “turn back your foot” and honor God with true rest and trust?
🙏 Walk It Out: 5-Day Devotional
Day 1 – When Worship Doesn’t Work
📖 Isaiah 58:1–5; Matthew 6:16–18
Walk It Out:
Ask God to show you any place where you’re using prayer, worship, or service to try to control Him instead of surrendering to Him. Confess manipulative motives and ask for a transformed heart.
Day 2 – The Fast God Chooses
📖 Isaiah 58:6–7; Micah 6:8
Walk It Out:
Identify one specific “yoke” (burden, injustice, or need) around you. Do one concrete act this week to loosen that burden—share a meal, help with a bill, sit with someone lonely, or speak up for someone marginalized.
Day 3 – Restoration for the Righteous
📖 Isaiah 58:8–12; Hosea 6:1–3
Walk It Out:
Name one “ruin” (broken relationship, wounded place, or dead area) in your life. Pray for God’s restoration there, and ask how He wants to use you as a “repairer of the breach.”
Day 4 – Stop for Sabbath
📖 Isaiah 58:13–14; Mark 2:27–28
Walk It Out:
Set aside a defined Sabbath moment (an hour, half a day, or a full day) where you stop work, put the phone down, and resist “doing your own pleasure.” Use that time to delight in God—pray, rest, enjoy His creation, or worship with no agenda.
Day 5 – Taste and See
📖 Psalm 34:8; Isaiah 58:14; Hebrews 4:9–11
Walk It Out:
Bring one area of fear, control, or anxiety to God. Instead of rushing to fix it, “taste and see” by trusting Him—pray, release it to Him, and refuse to pick it back up for the rest of the day. Notice how God meets you there.
🗣️ Adult Bible Class & Family Discussion Questions
Why does God reject Israel’s fasting in Isaiah 58:1–5?
→ Follow-up: How can we fast, pray, or worship outwardly while still resisting God inwardly?
📖 Isaiah 58:1–5; Matthew 15:7–9What does it look like to try to manipulate God in prayer or worship?
→ Follow-up: Have you ever prayed a “God if You… then I will…” type of prayer? What was underneath it?
📖 Isaiah 58:3–4; James 4:2–3How does Isaiah 58 define the fast that God chooses?
→ Follow-up: Which part of that definition (loosing yokes, sharing bread, welcoming the homeless, etc.) challenges you the most?
📖 Isaiah 58:6–7; Micah 6:8What does “not hiding yourself from your own flesh” mean?
→ Follow-up: Who are the people we’re tempted to rename, avoid, or dehumanize so we can ignore their needs?
📖 Isaiah 58:7; 1 John 4:20–21How does God describe the results of true justice and righteousness in vv. 8–12?
→ Follow-up: Where do you long for God’s light, healing, and guidance in your life or church?
📖 Isaiah 58:8–12; Psalm 112:4–5What does it mean to be called “repairer of the breach” and “restorer of streets to dwell in”?
→ Follow-up: Where is there a “breach” (broken trust, injustice, division) that God might be calling you to help repair?
📖 Isaiah 58:12; 2 Corinthians 5:18–20What does “turn back your foot from the Sabbath” mean in your own words?
→ Follow-up: How do we trample on God’s rest in our culture today?
📖 Isaiah 58:13; Amos 8:5Why is Sabbath an act of trust rather than just a day off?
→ Follow-up: What fears or habits keep you from real rest in God?
📖 Isaiah 58:13–14; Hebrews 4:9–11How does Psalm 34:8 (“taste and see”) connect to Isaiah 58’s call to delight in the Lord?
→ Follow-up: Where might God be inviting you to “taste and see” His goodness instead of trying to control outcomes?
📖 Psalm 34:8; Isaiah 58:14What’s the difference between being active in church and being truly transformed?
→ Follow-up: How can we examine ourselves honestly without slipping into despair or self-righteousness?
📖 2 Corinthians 13:5; Psalm 51:10How do restoration and retribution both show up in Isaiah 58?
→ Follow-up: Why is it important to preach both sides of God’s justice?
📖 Isaiah 58:1–12; Romans 2:4–8What would it look like for our church to be known as a place that lives out Isaiah 58—justice, mercy, and true worship?
→ Follow-up: What is one practical next step we can take together?
📖 Isaiah 58:6–12; James 1:27
🧾 Quick Scripture Reference List
Isaiah 58:1–14 – True fasting, justice, and Sabbath
Psalm 34:8 – Taste and see that the Lord is good
Matthew 6:16–18 – Fasting without hypocrisy
Matthew 15:7–9 – Lips vs. heart worship
Micah 6:8 – Do justice, love mercy, walk humbly
James 4:2–3 – Wrong motives in asking
1 John 4:20–21 – Love for God and love for brother
Psalm 112:4–5 – Light for the upright
Hosea 6:1–3 – Come, let us return to the Lord
Nehemiah 2:17–18 – Rebuilding what’s broken
Mark 2:27–28 – The Sabbath made for man
Hebrews 4:9–11 – Strive to enter God’s rest
2 Corinthians 5:18–20 – Ministry of reconciliation
2 Corinthians 13:5 – Examine yourselves
Psalm 51:10 – Create in me a clean heart