Isaiah, I have something I need you to do

by Michael G. Mickey

It isn't always easy being obedient to God, as I'm sure the prophet Isaiah would tell us if he were able to. Recently, I was reading in the book of Isaiah when I came across a passage of Scripture that left me wondering how the conversation between God and the prophet Isaiah went when God asked Isaiah to do something for him detailed in Isaiah 20.

Isaiah 20 tells us the Lord spoke to the prophet Isaiah in the year that Tartan came unto Ashdod, fought against Ashdod, and took it. Essentially, as plainly as it can be put, the task God had for Isaiah began when the Lord said to Isaiah, "Isaiah, I have something I need you to do. Take off your clothes and shoes." Can you imagine the thoughts that raced through Isaiah's mind when the Lord asked this of him?

Although Scripture doesn't tell us anything about the dialogue that took place between the Lord and Isaiah in the aftermath of the Lord's request, it does, however, address how obedient Isaiah was to the the Lord, regardless of what he thought of the Lord's request made of him! Isaiah 20:2 reveals Isaiah did as he was told and started walking naked and barefoot.

Isaiah 20:3 continues with the Lord warning that divine judgment is about to fall on Egypt and Ethiopia. As interesting as that is, what I want you to note in Isaiah 20:3 is how obedient Isaiah was in responding to the Lord's request of him:

And the LORD said, Like as my servant Isaiah hath walked naked and barefoot three years for a sign and wonder upon Egypt and upon Ethiopia; So shall the king of Assyria lead away the Egyptians prisoners, and the Ethiopians captives, young and old, naked and barefoot, even with their buttocks uncovered, to the shame of Egypt.

There must've been a lot that took place between verses two and three of Isaiah 20! Is there any doubt that Isaiah was ridiculed, mocked, and laughed at endlessly during the three years he traveled about naked? More than once, I'm sure it's safe to say, he was accused of being insane by those around him, but that didn't matter to Isaiah, at least when compared to his desire to please God. As Scripture reveals in no uncertain terms, Isaiah was willing to suffer any displeasure that came his way in order to be obedient to God's will. No wonder many people refer to Isaiah as the prince of prophets!

God has something He needs you to do for Him! Much as He needed the prophet Isaiah to warn Egypt and Ethiopia God's judgment was headed their way, He needs you to deliver a message for Him. The message He needs you to deliver to everyone you possibly can is found in words spoken by Christ Himself, as recorded in Matthew 28:29-30:

Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

When we consider what the prophet Isaiah was asked to do to deliver a message from God to those who were perishing in their wickedness in his day, it becomes apparent the message those of us who have accepted Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior have been given to deliver to unrepentant mankind is not nearly as difficult to deliver as Isaiah's was! None of us have been asked to engage in nude evangelism, which I believe it's safe to say we are all extremely grateful for! All we've been asked to do is introduce a lost and dying world to the wonderful story of Jesus Christ and lead everyone we can to accept Him as their Savior! We even get to leave our clothes and shoes on while doing so! Praise the Lord for that, right?

How many souls could we reach for Christ if we were only partly as obedient to God as the prophet Isaiah was, as documented in Isaiah 20? We haven't been asked by God to parade through the streets naked and barefoot for even five minutes to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ yet many of us who are Christians, simply because we fear how those around us will react if we openly profess our faith in Christ, act as though we've been given a task equivalent to the one the prophet Isaiah was given!

Is there someone in your life you're feeling led to tell about Jesus Christ but you don't have the courage to do so? Is there something you are feeling you need to do for the Lord but you fear you'll be mocked, made fun of, rejected or criticized by your peers for doing so? If so, I hope you'll spend some time, after reading this, to meditate on what the prophet Isaiah was asked to do, as well as what he subsequently did in response to God's request.

The moral of the story? Obey the Lord --- and leave everything else up to Him!