Let’s DO This!

“Come now, and let us reason together,” says the Lord, “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow. Though they are red like crimson, they shall be as wool.”
Isaiah 1:18

I admit it– I’m a nerd. I didn’t always love school, but I did, and still do, enjoy certain kinds of assignments. I remember one English teacher who allowed students to earn “coupons” to get out of homework. He gave one assignment that was so hated, every single kid in the class turned in a coupon the next day… except for me. I know, I know. Nerd alert!

Our preacher gave us an interesting assignment a while back— to analyze the “let us” statements of Hebrews 10. You can read the whole context in verses 19-25, but the three statements are these:

let us draw near..in full assurance of faith

let us hold fast..without wavering

let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works

The main thing I noticed about these statements was their chronological order.

We cannot hold fast to something unless we draw near to it first. And having that “full assurance of faith” that we talked about last week allows us to draw closer to God all the time. We don’t draw near and then walk away; rather we “hold fast.”

This relationship is intensely personal, and yet, that’s not all there is to Christianity. We must also “consider one another,” developing relationships with our brothers and sisters in Christ. In a healthy family we don’t JUST have a relationship with our parents but not our siblings. Such a thing would be very sad.

The progression IS chronological. The first tie is to the parent, the Father. Until you are born again as a child of God, there are limitations to the depth of the bond you can have with members of His family, the church. You can’t really change the order of the “let us” statements. First you approach God; then you grab hold and don’t let go; then you look out for your brothers and sisters in Christ who have done the same.

Not that people can’t form very close bonds without God. But leaving God out of the equation is never a good idea. That is very clear from the “let us” statements of another chapter, Genesis 11. Let’s go for a little extra credit, shall we?

In verses 3-4 of Genesis 11, Noah’s descendants come up with a simple idea: “let us make bricks.” But that leads to a more complex idea: “Let us build ourselves a city and a tower whose top is in the heavens; let us make a name for ourselves lest we be scattered abroad over the face of the whole earth.”

The problem was that the people’s plan was not in line with God’s plan. Sometimes God allows us to do things He doesn’t like. But He doesn’t just sit back and let people thwart His plans. So God made a “let us” statement of His own in verse 7. “Come, let Us go down and there confuse their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech.”

Sometimes the children are close with each other but not with the parents. This, too, is a sad state.

“Let us” (or “let’s” as we more commonly say today) is grammatically interesting (yes, for a nerd those two words can go together) because it’s the one imperative (command) form that includes the speaker. It often sounds more like a suggestion. And even when it is a command, “let us” implies that the speaker will help. It’s the difference between Mom saying, “Clean your room,” and her saying “Let’s clean your room.”

In Isaiah 1:18, God Almighty says to His people, “Come now, and let us reason together…Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow. Though they are red like crimson, they shall be as wool.” God is definitely the authority figure in this relationship, but He wants to help us, He HAS to help us, if we’re to deal with the problem of our sin.

When it comes to cleaning your room or doing homework assignments, you’re probably on your own. Lucky for us, when it comes to salvation and living the Christian life, God’s plan is always “let’s do this together.”

Dear Heavenly Father, I thank you for being an active participant in my life. Help me to draw nearer to You each day and to hold fast to Your goodness. I pray for deeper relationships with my brothers and sisters in Christ, that we may daily encourage one another in following, not our own plans, but Yours. In Jesus’s precious name, Amen.

by Christie Cole Atkins