Isaiah 55:1-3 - Repenting of Idols

This week we studied the first three verses of Isaiah 55. In order to get some background about the passage, we reviewed some of the context of Isaiah and the history of Judah around that time. Isaiah was a prophet who ministered to Judah after the nation of Israel had been divided and was on the downward slope of idol worship, unfaithfulness to God, and wickedness. Isaiah called God's people to forsake their idols and return to the Lord. Isaiah also looks forward to the restoration of Israel, especially through the work of the Suffering Servant, who is ultimately fulfilled through the Messiah, Jesus, who is the True and Faithful Israel.

Isaiah 55:1-3 is an extended metaphor in which the Lord calls out to those who are hungry and thirsty and invites them to receive refreshment from Him at no cost. Like Israel, we are all hungry and thirsty for various things. Perhaps it is for love and acceptance, for value as a person, for purpose and meaning in life, or for freedom from guilt and shame. Whatever it is that we are deeply longing for, the Lord invites us to come to him to receive what we need but cannot provide for ourselves. This is the gospel!

The passage then goes on in the second verse to contrast the foolishness of "spending money on what is not food" with the deep satisfaction that there is in going to God and receiving "the richest of fare". I gave some illustrations to try to help us imagine better what is being contrasted. It is as if we were really, really hungry and went to the store and spent our last dollar buying something totally useless to satisfy our hunger rather than buying food. Maybe something like Kleenex or a big carton of ice cream, something that would seem to satisfy hunger but ultimately will leave us feeling sick rather than satisfied. That is in contrast with going home and having your spouse or roommate or a friend have a lavish steak dinner all prepared for you.

If you are really hungry, you would be a total fool to choose the Kleenex or the box of ice cream over the hearty meal. Yet that is what sin is like! So often we pursue idols in our lives and expect them to somehow satisfy our deepest desires and they can't. We choose the things that only let us down and deepen our ache when God is inviting us to come to him through the gospel and receive in Christ all that we need. Why are we so stupid?!

There are many reasons why we might turn away from God to idols, but what the Lord calls us to is to turn back to him. In the third verse, God invites the people of Israel to listen to him and come to him in order that they might live. The invitation is made through covenant relationship, which we also, 2500+ years later, are invited into through faith in Christ. Through faith, we are included in Christ, the True Israel, and so inherit all the many great and precious promises that God has made with his people.

Our relationship with God rests not upon anything that we can do but solely upon the covenant relationship that we have with God through faith in Christ. Each day, we are drawn away by our sinful nature and turn to idols, but God is calling us to day by day turn back to him and renew our covenant relationship with him.

"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."

Through the discussion time, I offered some questions that I hope will help us to identify some of the idols that we have in our lives and see how insufficient they are to satisfy our deepest needs and, in contrast, how absolutely sufficient God is to meet those needs.

1. What are you hungry and thirsty for?
2. What idols are there in your life that you go to to try to satisfy your hunger and slake your thirst?
3. How does that work out for you?
4. How is God sufficient to satisfy your hunger and slake your thirst where idols fail?
5. Spend some time praying and renewing your covenant commitment with God.

Recommended Reading/Listening:
Preaching the Gospel to Yourself by Drew Goodmanson (blog post)
How to Preach the Gospel to Yourself by David Fairchild (sermon with a fairly complete text outline)

Audio