Hunger and thirst
Spring has officially arrived, (even if we still are seeing the blanket of winter around us.) And with spring's arrival, we have begun to see flowers sprouting through the snow covered ground and even a robin here or there. Recently, a friend of mine sent me a photograph of the first spring life she had seen…
This sparrow had begun the duty of building a nest for it's family and in the midst of it's effort had blindly flown into the corner of her home and gotten stuck in the vinyl siding. She snapped this photo just before she and her neighbor pulled up the corner of the siding to release the trapped beak of the sparrow. When the bird was freed it was fine, besides being a little disoriented and confused, and took of in a redirected flight in a few minutes.
This bird had been looking for twigs and various items to create the nest for the upcoming arrival of its family of sparrows, but somehow – the bird had been knocked off course. Even though he had been searching, and thirsting for the materials to create a safe home – he temporarily was trapped or stunted mid flight.
This feeling of being stunted or trapped is something that I feel many Christians can relate to. So many times we feel ungrounded, or blown about by the ideas and thoughts of the world around us. These feelings are ones that the exiled Israelites could relate to as well. While historically it is thought that during the Babylonian exile, "it does not appear that any particular hardship was imposed upon the exiles, which seem to have been free to engage in trade and in the professions and even to organize themselves in communities. " However, although Jewish communal life did not suffer, the religious system was forced to undergo considerable restructuring." (Norwood)
In the scripture previous to Isaiah 55, the Israelite people were in exile, their temple had been destroyed and they were in need of comfort and direction.
According to David M. Williams essay,
"Without doubt the Exile marked the most serious blow to the Jewish religious heritage of any event since Pharaoh sought to prevent the Exodus. On the other hand, that same religious heritage was the principal factor in the perseverance of the people looking for a day of deliverance. Exilic literature in the Bible contains some of the most exalted revelations of the nature of God, his sovereignty over the world, and his will for men. Jeremiah and Ezekiel carried the faith into exile. And Second Isaiah brought to full expression the magnificent hope of redemption through the concept of the Suffering Servant."
It is this word of hope and challenge that was necessary for the Israelites and is necessary for us to look at in light of our need for direction and instruction in order to grow spiritually.
--------------------------------------------------------------
6 Seek the LORD while he may be found;
call on him while he is near.
7 Let the wicked forsake his way
and the evil man his thoughts.
Let him turn to the LORD, and he will have mercy on him,
and to our God, for he will freely pardon.
8 "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 word of God – the Bible has been provided as the source of spiritual nourishment. While the prophet Isaiah discusses the depth of God's thoughts as beyond our own – the writer encourages God's people to seek the Lord and call on him while he is near.
The kinds of things that we often hunger and thirst after in life are not the things that satisfy us. We even can fell that we don't have what it takes – or can't afford the satisfying things of life. Earlier in Isaiah 55 the prophet invites the poor to a lavish banquet. The cost of the ticket is zero and the only entrance requirement is hunger and thirst. The abundance of God's new age is often described as a banquet (Is 25:6; 65:11-15).
Isaiah 55:1-2
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.
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 your soul will delight in the richest of fare.
The things (our hunger and thirst) that we feel limit our connection to spiritual resources end up being the key to finding what ultimately satisfies our souls – communion with God.
It is so important for Christians to realize the life-giving resource that is provided for us in the scriptures. Deuteronomy 8:3 speak to this point.
" 3 He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your fathers had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD."
" Unless man and womankind eat spiritual bread, life is in vain." (George Knight) Seeking after wealth and spending it traps mankind in an unsatisfying circle that leads to wasted energy and wasted potential.
Why chase after the things in life that leave us feeling empty or trapped like the picture of the bird I showed you earlier.
The food God offers us is free, it is for everyone, it is individually offered to each person, and it is the whole answer to our deep human needs for satisfying nourishment.
In addition to spiritual nourishment, God offers more.
3 Give ear and come to me;
hear me, that your soul may live.
I will make an everlasting covenant with you,
my faithful love promised to David.
God's desire is that we join in covenant with him. Covenant in relation to religious matters is defined as:
"The conditional promises made to humanity by God, that is, to protect mortals if they kept His law. This sort of covenant is an important concept in Judaism and Christianity, derived in the first instance from the biblical covenant tradition."
God promise of relationship is made when we seek after Him and accept his word as real nourishment. God gives us the spiritual nourishment not so that we can visit the buffet once and return to our own vain and futile resources, but it is God's desire that we continue to abide in Him so that we live life in covenant - in relationship – with Him.
The promise or covenant God makes with David is mentioned here in Isaiah 55:3. David is sometimes referred to as being the Servant or speaker to/for God's people. This can be in reflection to the role of King that David was appointed to. Here in Isaiah 55, David's covenant of mercy and pardon is extended to the people of Israel as individuals and as a whole.
6 Seek the LORD while he may be found;
call on him while he is near.
7 Let the wicked forsake his way
and the evil man his thoughts.
Let him turn to the LORD, and he will have mercy on him,
and to our God, for he will freely pardon.
God is calling for the people to seek after Him, to be in covenant with Him and to receive forgiveness from Him.
The comparison of those who seek after God and his word are contrasts between examples of thriving life or desert existence.
Isaiah 55:13 Instead of the thornbush will grow the pine tree,
and instead of briers the myrtle will grow.
A few weeks ago, I was having difficulty with the plumbing in my home. I decided against using drain opener as that would cause potential for burns if I had to open the main drain of the house. I even considered running root killer down the drain as we had root grow through the drain exit in the past.
When I was discussing the options for clearing the blockage with a more experienced home owner, he told me that the root killer would have eventually caused more problems as it would be absorbed by the roots of the trees and brush surrounding my home and leading to major landscaping and tree removal. In the end, simply snaking the drain was a sufficient solution for the plumbing problem.
Just as the trees in our yards have roots that run deep, we also have spiritual roots that hunger and thirst for nourishment. When we seek after God and join in the covenant with Him, we have the opportunity to grow spiritually like the pine tree or myrtle described in Isaiah 55:13. The root killer that causes us to grow into thorn bushes and briers is the decision to seek after our own way in life.
God's word is the manna that we seek and only in Him and His word can we become strong like the pine tree and resilient like the myrtle. Seek after God. Join in covenant with Him and you will grow in spiritual wisdom and strength like the tallest tree in the forest.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Discussion Questions:
What stunts our spiritual growth as Christians?
What kinds of devotions- prayer – etc seem to be the best resource for you spiritual growth?
How has the word of God been a source of strength and growth in your own life?
