Isaiah 57:11-15
Down from the High Places

Whom did you dread and fear
so that you lied, and did not remember me or give me a thought?
Have I not kept silent and closed my eyes,
and so you do not fear me?

I will concede your righteousness and your works, but they will not help you.
When you cry out, let your collection of idols deliver you!
The wind will carry them off, a breath will take them away.

But whoever takes refuge in me shall possess the land
and inherit my holy mountain.

It shall be said, "Build up, build up, prepare the way,
remove every obstruction from my people's way."
For thus says the high and lofty one
who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy:
I dwell in the high and holy place,
and also with those who are contrite and humble in spirit,
to revive the spirit of the humble,
and to revive the heart of the contrite.

New Revised Standard Version

Isaiah had an unpopular message to deliver at an inopportune time. God had called him to declare to the Hebrew people that they had abandoned God and were relying on false worship and pride as their source of strength

It is no wonder most rejected Isaiah's message. As far as they were concerned, they were a successful people, growing richer by the day, and having lived for years in peace with their neighboring countries. To them, it was obvious they were doing things right -- and wasn't God blessing them for their deeds? How else would you explain the success?

Isaiah gives them God's answer: don't confuse God's mercy with God's approval. Just because God had been patient and, as the passage puts it, "kept silent and closed His eyes," that didn't mean that judgement wasn't coming, and that the falseness and worthlessness of their beliefs wouldn't be revealed.

And then the contrast...

God tells them what he does want, what would cause God to rush from the High and Holy Places down to wrap His arms around the people He loves -- a humble heart, an open mind, ready to be led, and a repentant soul.

Just the opposite of what the Hebrew people had become. Just the opposite of the conclusions they had drawn from their prosperity. Just the opposite of the pride they expressed in being the "chosen race" and their confidence that they knew the rules to the game of religion and how to keep God's blessings coming.

It is so hard to grow humility when everything seems to be going your way. It is so hard to focus on repenting and setting aside our selves to be closer to God, when we seem to be doing very well by ourselves. We all want "success," but success measured the wrong way can bring failure in exactly the same way that "pride goes before a fall." (Proverbs 16:18).

Jazz musicians often talk about knowing their roots, going back to their roots, so that in knowing how their music genre developed, they can be true to the essence of "jazz". How much more important is it that we know our Root, and humble ourselves to receive nourishment and guidance daily from God!