All Who Are Thirsty, Come
Isaiah 55:1-13
Introduction
“To hunger and thirst for God is at the very root of our being. It’s the way God made us. When there is no hunger for the presence of God, it is an indicator that something is wrong spiritually.” - Dave Butts
Scripture is filled with the truth that we are to find the satisfaction of our spiritual thirst in God.
Matthew 5:6 “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.”
Three times in John’s Gospel Jesus calls to the Thirsty:
John 4:14 "whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”
John 6:35 “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.
John 7:37-38 ...Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. 38 Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.”
In our text today we hear from the prophet Isaiah. Many believe this is a message for those in exile who are returning to Jerusalem. They had experienced significant losses. In the hands of their enemies there was no hope. But God doesn’t give up and gives them a message of invitation.
Isaiah 55 is God’s open invitation to the beaten up, discouraged, broken, hurting humanity. It’s a message for those who’ve come through the mud and dirt of a long messy journey through life. We should all hear God calling to us in this text!
1. What God Knows About Us (Isaiah 55:1-6)
We have significant needs. (1 “Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost.)
Thirsty, poor, hungry people are called toward Him.
“When you have nothing left but God, you become aware that God is enough.”? Maude Royden.
Whether physically or spiritually, the needy are wanted and welcomed.
We live with significant frustration (2 Why spend money on what is not bread, and your labor on what does not satisfy? Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good, and you will delight in the richest of fare.)
Unfilled, unsatisfied, unable to take another step. If anyone ever felt that life was too big a mess for God to accept them, take heart… God built his Kingdom for you and calls everyone to come.
We need significant help (3 Give ear and come to me; listen, that you may live. I will make an everlasting covenant with you, my faithful love promised to David.)
God knows that we need Him and encourages us to listen to him: So we will live. So we will establish covenant relationship with Him. So we will experience His faithful love. These are spiritual necessities we cannot provide on our own.
We are offered significant love (4-5 See, I have made him a witness to the peoples, a ruler and commander of the peoples. 5 Surely you will summon nations you know not, and nations you do not know will come running to you, because of the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, for he has endowed you with splendor.”)
Last line: “He has endowed you with splendor”. After everything God knows about us, He loves us.
We are given a significant invitation (6 Seek the Lord while he may be found; call on him while he is near.)
God is outreaching to Israel, even after their continual rejection that landed them in captivity. God is reaching out to us no less…no matter what rejections or failings we have experienced. What are you doing to seek God in your life?
2. Are You Thirsty for God? (Isaiah 55:7-11)
Are We Thirsty for Mercy? (7 Let the wicked forsake their ways and the unrighteous their thoughts. Let them turn to the Lord, and he will have mercy on them, and to our God, for he will freely pardon.)
Israel’s sin led them down dark roads of captivity and loss. Where has your sin led you? Do we blame God? Mercy is for those who need it - a withholding of what we deserve because of our sin. Isaiah instructs to leave behind old sinful ways and thoughts and turn to God!
Are We Thirsty for Wisdom? (8-9 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord.9 “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.)
The more we follow our hearts, more we get into trouble. We need the insight of One who is greater than us - who Created us - who Loves us! This is why He gives us instructions / His Word! God sees a much bigger picture than we do. Psalm 139:17-18 "How precious to me are your thoughts, God! How vast is the sum of them! Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand—when I awake, I am still with you."?
Are We Thirsty for His Word? (10-11 As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, 11 so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.)
“His word, which once spoke the universe into existence…has lost none of its ancient power. Nothing can frustrate it, or divert it from its course.” - Webb. If we are dehydrated because of a lack of drinking in the Word of God, we will be weakened in our spirits.
“The Bible teaches that inside every man and every woman there is a deep spiritual thirst. It’s a thirst for God himself. All our attempts to quench or satisfy this thirst by some other means will meet with dissatisfaction.” - Greg Laurie
Are We Thirsty for His Promises? (12-13 You will go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and hills will burst into song before you, and all the trees of the field will clap their hands. 13 Instead of the thornbush will grow the juniper, and instead of briers the myrtle will grow. This will be for the Lord’s renown, for an everlasting sign, that will endure forever.”)
What beautiful promises we have here … we began with needs, frustrations, needing help … and this chapter ends with Joy, singing, beauty, and the glory of the Lord! Thirsting for God means thirsting for his Mercy, Wisdom, Word, and Promises.
Conclusion
Everything we really need, God knows about and provides. This text opens the door to all … Come, all you who are thirsty!
Believers today come to God by turning to His son Jesus! When Christ went to Jericho, He reached out to two men. One was named Zacchaeus - on top of the social ladder, a tax collector, a man of wealth. The other was named Bartimaeus - a blind beggar who was at the bottom of the social ladder. Christ saw both of them … not as rich and poor, but as miserable unhappy men who needed what only He could give them. He reached out to both of them in grace and sent them on their way rejoicing! If Christ can meet the needs of the highest and the lowest, then he can meet all of us in between! (Graham)
I pray we will all recognize our thirst for having God in our lives and turn to Him.
Revelation 21:6 “… I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To the thirsty I will give water without cost from the spring of the water of life."
Revelation 22:17 “The Spirit and the bride say, 'Come!' And let the one who hears say, 'Come!' Let the one who is thirsty come; and let the one who wishes take the free gift of the water of life.”
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Video of this message can be found by searching the YouTube channel of Forsythe Church of Christ
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LifeGroup Discussion Questions
1. Isaiah’s initial invitation in chapter 55 is for all who are thirsty to come and drink. In what ways was Jesus’ ministry open to all who were thirsty? What are some examples of people Jesus talked to that were unexpected of a Jewish Rabbi?
2. The invitation to come to God here specifies that it does not require money. In what ways is it ‘free’ to come to Christ, and in what ways is it ‘costly’ (Jesus encouraged us to ‘count the cost’).
3. The Lord says, through Isaiah, that the things we buy and the things we work for often do not satisfy us. How does this address commercialism and/or other attitudes in our world today, especially during the holiday season?
4. David is a witness to the peoples - given the first three verses, what is David a witness to? Can you recall instances from the life of David to illustrate your answer?
5. What does it mean to you when God says, “My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways” (v. 8). Can you think of some ways that our thoughts about things are so different from God’s? In what way does this verse in Isaiah impact your faith?
6. In verse 12 God affirms that his word “will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.” What do you understand that passage to be teaching?
7. Read Hebrews 4:12. What do you gather about the Word of God from this verse?
8. What are some promises that God makes to the wicked that respond to Him? (Isaiah 55:12-13) In what ways does Jesus fulfill those promises?
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Resources
Butts, Dave. https://www.harvestprayer.com/resources/personal-2/hungering/
Laurie, Greg. https://harvest.org/resources/devotion/spiritually-thirsty/
Billy Graham, Are You Getting What You Want?, A Treasury of Great Preaching, Volume XII, p. 336.
