Come to the Water

"Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the water; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat! Come buy wine and milk without money and without price." Isaiah 55:1

When I began studying theology roughly five years ago now, I had this great awakening in what would probably be referred to as the basics of theology, Bible 101: The entirety of Scripture is about Jesus and not me. 

I know, simple, but oh so profound, isn't it? 

Jesus is David fighting evil and death, not me. I'm no match for giants. Jesus is the fourth man in the fiery furnace with the three Hebrew men, saving them from the flames when they faithfully and boldly refuse to worship any god but the one true God. Jesus is Esther interceding for his people, willing to perish for them. 

One of my favorite places to find Jesus is in the story of Daniel and the Lion's Den, the injustice of an innocent man, the sealed stone, the reluctant ruler not quite sure about the execution he's pressured into pronouncing, the early morning surprise after the stone was rolled away. Daniel wasn't sinless, and he wasn't Jesus. But he was a "type and shadow" of the redemption to come through Jesus. The life of Joseph has perhaps the most ties to Jesus; searching for them all is like hunting for a treasure chest, or the Pearl of great price. 

Yes, I'm in the biblical narrative, of course, because his story becomes my story. I'm the sinner who, in Christ, becomes the sinner saved by grace, the sinner saint who will one day be made perfect when Jesus returns to earth. That's me. Praise God. 

All of the Scriptures, not just the prophesies, point us to Jesus. We learn from them. They offend us and  transform us as we meditate on the Word and apply it, but Jesus is the biblical center of gravity. He's the superhero. Not us. 

"And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he ( Jesus ) interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself." Luke 24:27 

"All" the Prophets and in "all" the Scriptures, Jesus told the two travelers on the road to the village named Emmaus after his resurrection, are about him. 

"You search the Scriptures because you think in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me, yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life." John 35:39  

"They bear witness about me," the prophesies are about Jesus ( not America, Trump or Biden ), the stories, the parables, the wisdom literature, all of it, Jesus told the Pharisees the truth and those gathered around him. 

 "..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." Isaiah 55:11 

This verse from Isaiah 55 is a favorite one of the prosperity and word-faith movement preachers. I heard it "declared and decreed" for years and twisted it myself, wringing out my own interpretation. We were taught to stand on this promise for health and wealth, to achieve our life goals, increase our income, buy our dream house, build a successful business, and find favor and blessing waiting around every corner. Our best life now. 

The Bible is so much better than this. 

Then one day I heard the verse preached in context, within the entire chapter, within the biblical narrative, in all of its power and glory, and the verse actually did change my life for the better and forever. 

Why?

Because it's about Jesus. 

This Scripture is not teaching us how to make the Bible or God "work for us." 

Friend, Jesus has already preached in his Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5-7 that God feeds his little, feathery sparrows and knows each one of them individually, that he clothes the lilies of the field more splendidly than Solomon in his royal robes. 

Jesus says that we are much more valuable to God than his birds and flowers, so why would we need to eisegesis Scripture in this way, imparting our meaning into the text? Pray by all means for every need, and if God is withholding something from us, hasn't the Gospel convinced you of the unfathomable love of God towards us already? And don't you trust his wisdom and fatherly response with that? So let the text interpret itself. 

What is Isaiah 55 actually teaching? 

Answer: The most beautiful truth is all of human history. 

Take a listen: 

"Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters..... Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy?" 

This is speaking of our spiritual need, and all we must do is come to be filled. The world will never be enough. 

"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." 

This is an offer of salvation - come to God. We must repent and believe "for he will abundantly pardon."

"For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD."

Our thought are usually curved in on ourselves. 

"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, so shall my word be that goes out of my mouth;"

God sent his word to the earth. The word came down like rain and snow and watered the earth, the word brings forth life where it is planted. 

"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." 

God sent the word for his purpose, not ours. 

"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 fields will clap their hands."

This is the beautiful, breath-taking language of redemption and restoration! 

"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, and everlasting sign that shall not be cut off." 

Praise God - this is a reversal of Eden and the curse we encountered because of sin. Thorns and thistles are no more! This is a salvation chapter! 

So what is the word doing when God sends it down to the earth? Constructing our dream house? No silly, the Word is saving us!!  The Word isn't going to return to God empty - what will the Word take back to God? 

Us!! 

We already have more favor and blessing with God than we can ever wrap our minds around! 

So yes, we are in the story of God as well. We are the rescued children. 

Isn't that beautiful? Aren't you so thankful that you are in Christ's arms being carried back to our Father? 

It sheds a different light on how we should be reading and interpreting the Scriptures. And out of his grace and our gratitude, that's how we live our lives. 

Come to the water.