Restoration with the Father

7 I will recount the steadfast love of the Lord,
    the praises of the Lord,
according to all that the Lord has granted us,
    and the great goodness to the house of Israel
that he has granted them according to his compassion,
    according to the abundance of his steadfast love…
¹⁰ But they rebelled and grieved his Holy Spirit;
therefore he turned to be their enemy, and himself fought against them.
¹¹ Then he remembered the days of old, of Moses and his people.^[d]
Where is he who brought them up out of the sea
    with the shepherds of his flock?
Where is he who put in the midst of them his Holy Spirit,
¹⁵ Look down from heaven and see, from your holy and beautiful^[e] habitation.
Where are your zeal and your might?
    The stirring of your inner parts and your compassion are held back from me.
¹⁶ For you are our Father, though Abraham does not know us,
    and Israel does not acknowledge us; you, O Lord, are our Father,
    our Redeemer from of old is your name.
¹⁷ O Lord, why do you make us wander from your ways
    and harden our heart, so that we fear you not?
Return for the sake of your servants, the tribes of your heritage.
¹⁸ Your holy people held possession for a little while;^[f]
    our adversaries have trampled down your sanctuary.
¹⁹ We have become like those over whom you have never ruled,
    like those who are not called by your name.  Isaiah 63:7,10,11,15-19 ESV

This chapter encompasses the positioning of a wayward heart that is seeking restoration.  Isaiah recounts God’s wrath in response to rebellion.  He shows how God choose Israel, but they rebelled and grieved the Holy Spirit’s presence that was among them.  So God judged them and allowed them to be taken into exile.

This is how the heart positions itself to see restoration

      1.    Remember God’s past goodness.  The heart that is turning back to the Lord starts by remembering God’s goodness in their past. 

      2.   Start speaking out loud. Isaiah says that he “recounts” or in some versions that he will “mention” about how God led them in the past. 

      3.   Give specific examples that reveal God’s movement among his people in the past.  Isaiah rehearses how God worked through Moses and led his people.

      4.   Acknowledgement must be made of rebellion against following the Lord’s leading.  ¹⁰ But they rebelled and grieved his Holy Spirit;

      5.   Remind God of your relationship with him.  O God you are our Father.  This also reminds us of our responsibility in that role.  We are to obey and love our Father. 

      6.   Remind God of His commitment toward his children.  Where are your zeal and your might?    The stirring of your inner parts and your compassion are held back from me.

     7.   Ask God to return and make things right.

     8.   Let God know that you believe that life could be better than it is right now, if people were acknowledging His rule once again.  

This last verse captures the heart praying for revival. 

We have become like those over whom you have never ruled,
    like those who are not called by your name

For those who are God’s children, there is an expectation of the role of the Father and that of the child.  Protection, Provision and His Presence are what children experience that are walking in loving obedience.  When those attributes are withheld, absence or removed, the child is lost.  Restoration is the end goal of hope for those who are lost.  

Can God really restore the relationship?

Are we owning up to our own rebellion?  Are we recounting God’s goodness in the past?  Are we seeking the restoring of relationship with Father and child?  Are we ready to conduct our affairs as a child to a Holy God?