“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. Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and
our labor for that which does not satisfy? Listen diligently to me,
and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food. 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.” – Isaiah 55:1-4 (ESV).
Beginning
with Isaiah 54 and continuing through Isaiah 55, the prophet changes
from the Suffering Servant and vicarious sufferer theme, both of
which Christ became in His life. Isaiah 54 declares the eternal
covenant of peace with the invitation: “Enlarge the place of your
tent, and let the curtain of your habitations be stretched out; do
not hold back; lengthen your cords, strengthen your stakes.”
(Isaiah 54:2). The prophet also told of the splendor of the kingdom
and its domains: “I will set your stones in antimony and lay your
foundations with sapphires. I will make your pinnacles of agate, and
your gates of carbuncles, and all your wall of precious stones”
(Isaiah 54:11b-12). Many, in anticipating the coming of the Ruling
Messiah, saw Isaiah’s prophecy as the ushering in of and age of
prosperity and wealth. Since they had endured much at the hands of
oppressing nations, they would welcome restoration. They wanted
their holy city of Jerusalem rebuilt with the finest materials
available. But was God meaning a literal restoration of the kingdom
of Israel? Or did he intend this picture from our focal passage to
provide a glimpse into the eternal city prepared in heaven for the
faithful?
The
invitation that opens Isaiah 55 is all-inclusive: “Come, everyone
who thirsts…” God invites everyone to receive His blessings.
Who doesn’t have need for water? Water difficulties and loss of
water even for a short period cause great concern. Thirsting, the
need for water is a universal condition. God’s invitation in this
Messianic prophecy is for everyone. Farther on in Isaiah 55:6-7, he
urges: “Seek the Lord while He may be found; call upon Him while
He is near; 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.” Seeking
the Lord, returning to Him, and appropriating His compassion are part
of the believer’s beginning in the new kingdom. God offers
salvation to all, but each individual must make the move toward God
and accept His offer of help and salvation.
Isaiah’s
prophecy reminds us of Jesus feeding over five thousand, a miracle
recorded in all four gospels (see, beginning with these references
and following the account: Matthew 14:15, Mark 6:35, Luke 9:12 and
John 6:1). Jesus, in His ministry, was moved with compassion on the
crowds. He performed the miracle of feeding, but he also healed the
sick, cast out demons, raised the dead. He was the Messiah acting to
meet people’s needs. When the crowd followed Jesus still expecting
a constant hand-out without working for what they received, He
reprimanded them: “You seek me not because you saw signs, but
because you ate of the loaves and were filled. Do not work for the
food which perishes, but for the food which endures to eternal life,
which the Son of Man shall give to you, for on Him the Father, even
God, has set his seal (John 6:26-27, NASV). Asking how they might do
the works of God, Jesus answered, “This is the work of God that you
believe in Him whom He has sent” (John 6:29) Jesus’ word to them
was a direct fulfillment of the invitation prophecy given by Isaiah.
Note the strong verbs in Isaiah’s invitation: “come, come, come;
listen, incline (your ear), hear! All these denote actions prior to
receiving “the food that endures to eternal life.” The steps are
to go to the Messiah, seek Him with the whole heart, hear His words
and accept Him as Savior. The actions of these verbs—go, seek,
hear, accept—also precede a fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy in
54:13: All your children shall be taught by the Lord, and great
shall be the peace of your children.”
Prayer:
Lord, especially at Christmas time when we are prone to join in the
secular rush of the season, help us to hear and heed Your plea to
“Come…take of the water of life.” Help us to “hear…that
our soul may live.” In Jesus’ name. Amen. - Ethelene Dyer
Jones 12.18.2016
No comments:
Post a Comment