Before we partake of the Lord's Supper and sit down to be fed of the Lord with His sumptuous feast we do well to turn to these words. Why does Isaiah speak these words to God's people? He wants them to understand one thing...that they will experience deliverance from the Babylonian captivity only because of what GOD has done. We too need to know who we are and where we come from and realize full well that it is GOD who stands in the foreground and it is all of God who forgives for His own name's sake and for His glory!

Challenge: The Lord will engage His people so that we may know who we are and see God's deliverance. God pleads with us as He does with Israel. Israel had wearied the world in their sacrifices. We too often times make the yoke burdensome instead of it being a joyful and happy occasion as it should be. The Lord says make a list..."you have served me with sin." The very sacrifices that wearied Israel pictured what great thing the Lord had done for them! We too don't serve God with the zeal as we are called to do and often times fall short of being "living sacrifices" to Him.

Verdict: God spreads His table and proclaims "I have blotted out your transgressions and have orgiven your iniquities!" We present God with nothing but incriminating evidence and YET God comes to us with this verdict. He has blotted out from all of eternity giving way to all the bounties of His mercy to us! You and I sin, yet Christ pays the price for them!

Reason: Often times we look at God's grace as an arrow that flies our way instead of as a boomerang that returns UNTO HIM and for HIS GLORY. Let us make sure we walk into and out of the doors of church making sure that we return the praise to Him. We should be to His praise and His glory now and into all of eternity!