Isaiah 56Isaiah 56 MR/DD Awareness Month Message Don't shut that door behind you!

We've all gotten this command at some point in our lives- Shut the door behind you! -as a child running in from outdoor play or as an adult bringing in an armful of groceries. Why is this phrase expressed as such an imperative? "You'll let the bugs in!" or "you're heating the outdoors!" It is obvious to us all, that we use that expression to keep things on the outside from getting inside. Isaiah 56 begins by telling the listener to keep justice and do righteousness. Verse two of the chapter implores us to keep the Sabbath and refrain from evil . I don t know about you, but hearing those words evokes a closed off feeling. Remember, "Be careful little ears what you hear, be careful little eyes what you see." Can you hear the door slamming shut behind me. It is ingrained in us that we must be very careful what and who we let in. That is why chapter 56 is so shocking to our sensibilities. The chapter that begins with keep the Sabbath and refrain from evil does not continue with a tidy list of what and who we should keep out. Instead, we hear about who we should let in; namely, the foreigners and the eunuchs. Both in Isaiah's time were considered different in a "Not quite good enough" way. These people were easy to spot, because they dressed and behaved differently than their neighbors and family. Many acted kindly upon the outcast because, "That's what God wants us to do- be kind to the less fortunate." But everyone knew that they were excluded and none knew it better than the outcasts themselves. V.3 Let no foreigner who has bound himself to the Lord say, The Lord will surely exclude me from his people. And let not any eunuch complain, I am only a dry tree. I suppose it must have been very hard for a foreigner to the Hebrew culture to even understand the rich meaning of the Sabbath rituals. I mean really how could they? And how could eunuchs who are unable to produce offspring, offer anything of value to their community, much less God? Yet, Isaiah declares boldly that their offerings and sacrifices will be accepted by God. A couple of years ago I had a discussion with a local pastor about why he felt it was appropriate to ask disruptive people to leave a worship service. In this case the disruptive person was young lady with CP. During a well crafted sermon on tithing, she responded out loud to his rhetorical questions with a Yeah . For this young lady, church was an unfamiliar setting, and speaking is very difficult for her. In fact she can really only pronounce a couple of words clearly. Yeah is her best one. The pastor explained to me that when a member of his staff asked that the young lady be removed from the service he was following the First Noise policy. Evidently, with babies in mind, the church (was intentional enough to actually) created a procedure for removing disruptive people. It was explained to me that the reason they took this policy so seriously was that it was imperative that nothing be allowed to distract people from hearing the Gospel message. I pointed out that by asking my friend to leave the service, she was distracted from hearing the Good News she so desperately needed. The pastor very sincerely responded by asking if I really thought she could understand the service, anyway. I suppose it is very hard for her to understand the rich meaning of the sermon he was delivering. However, I know she understood clearly that day that she was not quite good enough . Like Isaiah s first hearers, we are immersed in a culture obsessed with productivity.

I think it is difficult for us to fully appreciate God s welcome to people that can produce nothing of value for us. V.8 Their burnt offerings and sacrifice will be accepted on my altar; for my house will be called a house of prayer for all nations. The Sovereign Lord declares he who gathers the exiles of Israel; I will gather still others to them besides those already gathered. I in no way believe the pastor and church in my story set out to harm my friend. On the contrary they have in many ways attempted to minister to the needs of people with disabilities and their families. As I said earlier, the message of this text is a shock to our sensibilities. It is not enough to minister to people with disabilities; we must minister with them. My friend ministered to the church by giving her Yeah as an offering, an affirmation. Rather than be distracted by her offering, we can let it in and be blessed by it. Isaiah exclaims, Don't shut the door behind you- keep the door open so others can come. Click here to return to MR/DD Month media kit page