Thursday, July 30, 2026

            Isaiah wrote, “Those who walk uprightly enter into peace; they find rest as they lie in death” (57:2).  This simple verse in Isaiah is a great encouragement to us today just as it was to people in Isaiah’s day around 700BC (over 2700 years ago).  It speaks to both life and death—two realities that we all have before us.  We are alive today but one day, unless the Lord comes for us first, we will die and enter into His presence as those before us have already done.  Isaiah encourages us to walk uprightly.  How do we understand this command? 
            To walk uprightly means to live honorably and obediently before the Lord.  The word “uprightly” means without pretense and in keeping with God’s commands. We are not one way when others are watching but something completely different when we are alone and think no one sees us.  Uprightness is a hunger to live and do things God’s ways as opposed to our ways.  The Bible faithfully and consistently connects “walking” with lifestyle choices. For example, “He who walks with integrity walks securely” (Proverbs 10:9). “The one who lives blamelessly, practices righteousness, and acknowledges the truth in his heart” (Psalm 15:2).  The sure pathway in life is to walk in keeping with God’s commands and ways.
            “Uprightly” can also mean straightforward, equitable, correct and with integrity.  There is a line between what we believe about God and how we live.  We are not too quick to diminish sin and minimize it.  When we fail to walk uprightly, we want to seek God’s forgiveness and take steps to correct the behavior and not repeat it ever again. Living “uprightly” does not mean we can earn God’s favor or justify ourselves before Him.  But we do live “uprightly” out of gratitude for God’s grace and forgiveness.  Because we are justified and forgiven, we want to live uprightly.  A good measurement for living “uprightly” is your attendance in worship.  We will want to be in the presence of God with other believers.  We will want to bring our worship to Him.  We will have a thirst for His Word and to offer praise to Him.  Scattered, random worship attendance should be a cause for concern.  It is neither healthy nor good.  Dropping out of or away from regular, consistent worship is a sign of some serious spiritual illness in need of God’s healing and forgiveness. Sporadic worship attendance could signify a cancer in your faith.  Research shows that when younger generations see their parents, grandparents and older generations taking worship lightly and carelessly, the younger ones are much more likely to fall out and fall away from worship altogether.  Tragic!
            Those who walk “uprightly” find rest when they die.  Now, the upright man or woman does not enter into God’s presence because they have been good enough to do so.  We go to heaven in and through Jesus and Him alone.  Our faith and trust in Jesus and calling upon His Name for salvation is what guarantees us a place in heaven.  But living uprightly means we have placed our full faith in Christ alone and rest securely in Him—whether we live or die.  John and Betty Stam were Christian missionaries who were executed for their faith in Jesus in China on December 8, 1934.  It was said that at the moment of their deaths, their faces were frozen in expressions of utter peace and contentment.  They seamlessly transitioned from this world, a world of sin and shame, into the presence of Christ, a world of everlasting life and goodness. 
            News of their death and martyrdom for the gospel led over 900 hundred students at Moody Bible Institute and Wheaton College to make commitments to go to the mission fields of the world in 1935—willingly accepting the same fate as John and Betty did, if that be God’s will.  When we walk uprightly, we are always ready to meet the Lord.  We are ready to draw our final breath from earth’s air supply and then take the next breath from heaven’s air.  Living “uprightly” means we leave no unfinished business left behind with the Lord or others.  We have resolved to live for and with Him alone.  We live for Christ and we are resolved that if we can better glorify Him in and through our death, we will gladly give our lives for the One who gave His for us.  Have a great Thursday!