THE GOSPEL MESSAGE IN SEVEN MINUTES OR LESS

March 18, 2011

THE GOSPEL MESSAGE IN SEVEN MINUTES OR LESS

Isaiah 55

James Stewart

Central Truth

We have an open invitation to God. God's grace and mercy are ours for the taking. Praise for Him is so natural that the rocks, hills, and trees are all poised to praise Him. Yet, we often choose to look elsewhere for life.

"For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
So are My ways higher than your ways
And My thoughts than your thoughts."
(Isaiah 55:9)

The Compassion of the LORD

1 “Come, everyone who thirsts,
    come to the waters;
and he who has no money,
    come, buy and eat!
Come, buy wine and milk
    without money and without price.
2 Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread,
    and your labor for that which does not satisfy?
Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good,
    and delight yourselves in rich food.
3 Incline your ear, and come to me;
    hear, that your soul may live;
and I will make with you an everlasting covenant,
    my steadfast, sure love for David.
4 Behold, I made him a witness to the peoples,
    a leader and commander for the peoples.
5 Behold, you shall call a nation that you do not know,
    and a nation that did not know you shall run to you,
because of the LORD your God, and of the Holy One of Israel,
    for he has glorified you.

6 Seek the LORD while he may be found;
    call upon him while he is near;
7 let the wicked forsake his way,
    and the unrighteous man his thoughts;
let him return to the LORD, that he may have compassion on him,
    and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.
8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
    neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD.
9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
    so are my ways higher than your ways
    and my thoughts than your thoughts.

10 For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven
    and do not return there but water the earth,
making it bring forth and sprout,
    giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater,
11 so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth;
    it shall not return to me empty,
but it shall accomplish that which I purpose,
    and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.

12 For you shall go out in joy
    and be led forth in peace;
the mountains and the hills before you
    shall break forth into singing,
    and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.
13 Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress;
    instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle;
and it shall make a name for the LORD,
    an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.”

If you were to read one book of the Bible, many folks say the book of John should be it. If you want the good news in one verse, try John 5:24. After meditating on Isaiah 55 for a bit, I'm thinking this would be a great chapter to see the gospel -- the good news.

We begin with a lovely open invitation to come drink the waters. An image so attractive that when I hear it being sung by David Crowder, it often brings me to tears. Mind you, I may have just run 20 miles, but hey, tears are tears, oxygen deprived or not. "Come and listen, come to the water's edge all you who are thirsty, come," says Mr. Crowder.

Toward the end of the chapter, there are more poetic, songworthy verses. Songs praising the Messiah. Emmanuel literally means "God with us." In fact, Sufjan Stevens has a song titled "All the Trees of the Field Will Clap Their Hands." Straight up -- check it out!

Sure, the songs are nice, but they're not pointing out why we still get thirsty. Since the original deception there has been a divide between the invitation to be with God and the opportunity to be with Him through His Word. We sin when we think we can be like God and can somehow earn righteousness with our good deeds. We choose to pay for what's free and remain convinced that we can know the mind of God.

But today, I looked at the first verse as a commandment more than as an invitation, and it helped me to get through my head why I still "pay for what's free." I am disobedient. Disobedient is never in a song. I can't think of anything that rhymes with it. And as much as it galls us, our thoughts aren't like His. But if I come and listen, seeking God every morning and every moment of every day, God is there fulfilling the promise of His faithful love. Awesome.

1. What are things you "pay for" that are yours "for free?"

2. Matthew 6:33 also talks about seeking God. Why do you think that's encouraged in these two places?

3. How does the dictionary define meditation? How could meditation help us understand God's Word?

4. Can we understand God's Word without understanding God's mind?

WEEKLY FAMILY ACTIVITY

ISAIAH 51-55 (MAR 14-18)

Read Isaiah 53.

To whom does this chapter refer?

Activity: Fold a piece of paper in half, longwise. At the top of the left side, write "The Prophecy (Isaiah 53);" on the right side, write "It Happened! (New Testament)." Read each Isaiah verse and look in the New Testament (specifically the Gospels) for verses that show the prophecy coming true. Fill in the chart with what you find. Here are a few examples: Isaiah 53:2/Luke 2:52; Isaiah 53:5/John 19:34; Isaiah 53:9/Matthew 27:57-60; and Isaiah 53:12/Mark 15:27. Look for others!

Isn't it awesome that Isaiah prophesied about Jesus coming to be the Savior of the world? Have you put your trust in Him and accepted His gift of bearing your sins (verse 12)?