FRAME:
In the book of Isaiah, the prophet Isaiah corrects the sinful wrongs among God’s people while giving them the hope that far exceeds anything they could deserve. In Isaiah 55, God is telling his people that they have forsaken him in their quest for something to satisfy their hunger and thirst. He calls his people to wholeheartedly turn to him in repentance and gives them hope that he will have compassion and abundantly forgive their waywardness, showing that he is the one who delights in showing mercy (Micah 7:18) and will restore greatly.
ISAIAH 55:1-12 CSB
“Come, everyone who is thirsty, come to the water; and you without silver, come, buy, and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without silver and without cost!
2 Why do you spend silver on what is not food, and your wages on what does not satisfy?Listen carefully to me, and eat what is good, and you will enjoy the choicest of foods.
3 Pay attention and come to me; listen, so that you will live.I will make a permanent covenant with the basis of the faithful kindnesses of David.
4 Since I have made him a witness to the peoples,a leader and commander for the peoples,
5 so you will summon a nation you do not know,and nations who do not know you will run to you. For the Lord your God, even the Holy One of Israel, has glorified you.”
6 Seek the Lord while he may be found; call to him while he is near.
7 Let the wicked one abandon his way and the sinful one his thoughts; let him return to the Lord, so he may have compassion on him, and to our God, for he will freely forgive.
8 “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, and your ways are not my ways.” This is the Lord’s declaration.
9 “For as heaven is higher than earth, so my ways are higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.
10 For just as rain and snow fall from do not return there without saturating the earth and making it germinate and sprout, and providing seed to sow and food to eat,
11 so my word that comes from my mouth will not return to me empty, but it will accomplish what I please and will prosper in what I send it to do.”
12 You will indeed go out with joy and be peacefully guided; the mountains and the hills will break into singing before you, and all the trees of the field will clap their hands.
13 Instead of the thorn bush, a cypress will come up, and instead of the brier, a myrtle will come up; this will stand as a monument for the Lord, an everlasting sign that will not be destroyed.
HEAR:
Isaiah 55 is the call to war against ordinary devotions and an invitation to return back to something so much greater. We have received the great invitation to come and partake in the Lord’s restorative feast, and we see the Lord’s heart to revive that which is broken.
Use this time to listen to the Holy Spirit and pray. Specifically think about:
What are the lesser things that you are spending your devotion on but do not satisfy (v.2)? Listen to the voice of the Lord and eat what is good (vv.2-3).
What in your life do you need to abandon to return to the Lord (v.7)? See the Lord as the one who will respond with compassion and forgiveness (vv.6-7).
Do you rightly recognize the Lord’s sovereignty – that he is the one who is seated above all things (vv.8-11)?
Read through the text and meditate upon it. What word, phrase, invitation, or declaration is the Holy Spirit highlighting to you?
RESPOND:
Isaiah 55 displays the Lord’s desire for his people to desire him, and he shows the beauty of a life lived in wholehearted devotion to him. We see that when God’s people return to him, his word does his work in them and joy and peace are the result. What was once barren and cursed will be filled with beauty and life (vv.12-13).
Use this time to pray quietly to yourself or to pray for the whole room:
Pray that the church in our region would have the grace to hear the Lord and hold fast to his commands (v.3). Pray that we would incline our ears to hear his voice.
Thank God for his word, which does not return empty, but accomplishes everything that he intends it to do (v.11).
Intercede on behalf of those who have not accepted the invitation to the feast or may not even realize that they’ve been invited (v.1). Pray for a boldness to share the Gospel.
Pray for strongholds of praise and united devotion to take root in our region, that we would wholeheartedly seek the Lord and call upon his name (v.6).
Comments