During World War II, a fleet of American ships was patrolling the waters in the North Atlantic in search of German U-boats. One night, some American pilots took off from an aircraft carrier and were ordered to return by a certain hour. The pilots thought that with a little more time they could find the enemy and score an impressive hit, so they stayed out a bit longer. As the sun set, German ships entered the area.
What the pilots didn’t know was that the Americans had ordered radio silence between the ships and the aircraft so the enemy wouldn’t find them. The pilots who hadn’t returned on time were running out of fuel. They were desperately trying to find the aircraft carrier, but all the ships had gone dark.
The Americans had to make a decision. They could either save the lives of several American pilots or lose hundreds, maybe thousands, of American sailors. So, to the shock and horror of those onboard the ships, the pilots crashed into the icy waters of the North Atlantic.
In the same way, there are people who repeatedly reject God’s call. They keep resisting the urging of the Holy Spirit, but one day, God will order radio silence, so to speak. God said in Genesis 6:3, “My Spirit will not put up with humans for such a long time, for they are only mortal flesh.” God also spoke through the prophet Isaiah when He said in Isaiah 55:6, “Seek the Lord while you can find Him. Call on Him now while He is near.”
In Isaiah 55:1-9, the Lord contrasts His thoughts and ways with sinful Israel’s. Human plans inevitably fail and falter, but the Lord’s plans are different. When He promises forgiveness and restored blessing to His people, He will be true to His word. Just as the rain and snow fall to the ground and fulfill their God-given purpose unhindered, God’s promises and purposes will be realized.
The context of Isaiah 55 is important. The long exile in Babylon is over. Most of the exiles have been born in Babylon and have only heard about the old land of promise and its capital, Jerusalem. Isaiah brings a word of hope. Isaiah has appeared among them to tell them that God’s anger has cooled against them and that He has a job for them to do.
God told the Israelites that they were to be “light to the Gentiles” and “to the ends of the earth.” For the Israelites, it would not be easy to invite foreigners or Gentiles to join them in God’s kingdom. As God’s chosen people, they had developed a distinctive identity that tied their ethnicity with their faith. To be a Jew referred both to race and religion. Throughout their history God had commanded them to keep their ethnic origins and their religious worship pure. Intermarriage and idolatry were contaminants to be avoided at all costs. The purpose for these commandments went beyond ethnic and religious purity as an end in itself. God wanted to keep His people pure so that they could fulfill their chosen servant role of being the light to the Gentiles and bring the message of redemption to all nations.
During Isaiah’s time the Israelites rebelled against God, intermarried with heathen, and mixed idolatry into their religious worship. Later, in Jesus’ time, Israel sinned by assuming that they were exclusively chosen by God for salvation and created a religious system based upon regulations rather than faith. Unfortunately, they are not alone. The church also is tempted to sin on one side or the other. Contamination by the world and isolation from the world are like magnetic poles that have power of attraction in every generation.
God’s purpose is to build a kingdom of righteousness that is inclusive of Jews and Gentiles, chosen children and foreigners, neighbours and strangers. All other plans for affirmative action pale before His ultimate purpose to bring all races, ages, genders, and ethnic origins from all corners of the earth together in a spiritual body created exclusively by trust in God and faith in Christ. The phrase “everyone who thirsts” is God’s call to participate in the blessings of salvation.
The phrase “to seek the Lord” means to approach Him through prayer and repentance. This carries with it the idea of discerning and emulating God’s way of life and His character. The phrase “while He may be found” means that the opportunity for response is urgent. The language of these verses echoes other passages that look forward to a time when the Lord will restore His repentant people.
The thought that salvation is free can be mind-boggling. The analogy of spiritually thirsty people is advanced to the truth that salvation is something that money can’t buy. Isaiah invites us to “come to the waters”, even if we don’t have any money. Isaiah could see that the price of salvation would be paid by the Suffering Servant, and faith in Him is all that we need to receive the living water of salvation. God tells everyone who is thirsty and trusts in Him that they will receive His mercy, and they will be a witness to the people.
Humans do have to play a necessary role in the plan of salvation. There is a sense of urgency in the imperative to “seek the Lord while He may be found, call upon Him while He is near.” Although everyone who hungers and thirsts for righteousness receives the invitation to salvation, God expects them to answer the invitation. Repentance is required before we can receive salvation. We must stop committing sins and being sinful in our thoughts.
There is a distinct difference between the thoughts and ways of God and those of human beings. He thinks as we can’t think, and He acts in ways that we can’t act. When He touches down on earth with actions that are His way, there has been a breakthrough from the supernatural to the natural. Conversely, when His ways are done on earth, they reflect His thoughts, which our finite minds can’t understand.
For example, consider Joshua’s dilemma when God asked the Israelites to attack Jericho. God gave him the battle plan, but it wasn’t what Joshua was expecting. To him, it was an irrational, unorthodox way to handle the problem. God wanted Joshua and his army to march around Jericho for six days without saying a word. On the seventh day they were to march around Jericho seven times, listen for a trumpet blast, and then yell. Does that sound like common sense?
The Book of Joshua records that the Israelites followed God’s instruction to the letter. In spite of the risks and ridiculous odds, they simply did as God said. The result was one of the most dazzling victories in Israel’s long history.
Do we let God be God? We might have been baptized and confirmed. We might serve others and give generously to God’s work, but do we let God be the Lord over our lives? It’s easy to get frustrated with God when He doesn’t do what we want, when we want, and the way we want, but Scripture says that God knows what is best. He has proven on many occasions that His thoughts and ways are better and higher than any human thoughts and ways.
It might be years before we can look back and see God’s influence in certain situations. We rarely have the whole picture all at once. We’re holding a piece of a jigsaw puzzle and God is holding all of the other pieces that we don’t even know exist yet. We can’t see all that He is doing, but just because we can’t see the entire picture doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t trust God. Right now, as we continue to reach out to the world in His name, we can remember that God is always at work.
Why would God, through Isaiah, need to urge us to join Him? Don’t we want to be near God? Most of the time, the answer is “No.” Being near to God would be both inconvenient and scary. We want God around, but only when we want Him to be around, like a genie that we summon, control, and dismiss when no longer needed. That is not God’s way. We know all too well how much our lives don’t measure up to the lives that God wants for us. We really don’t want to change, even though the life God offers us is so much better-if we would only trust Him and draw near to Him.
(An audio version of this message can be found at https://www.spreaker.com/episode/isaiah-55-verses-1-9-draw-near-to-god-and-be-saved–65021909)
Bibliography
- Jeremiah, David: The Jeremiah Study Bible: New King James Version (Brentwood, TN: Worthy Publishing; 2013; p. 945)
- McKenna, D. & Ogilvie, L.J.: The Preacher’s Commentary Series, Vol. 18: Isaiah 40-66 (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Inc.; 1994; pp. 172-178)
- Stanley, C.F.: The Charles F. Stanley Life Principles Bible: New King James Version (Nashville, TN: Nelson Bibles; 2005)
- MacArthur, J.F. Jr. The MacArthur Study Bible: New American Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers; 2006)
- John Holbert, “The Gospel According to Isaiah: Reflections on Isaiah 55:1-9).” Retrieved from https://www.patheos.com/about-patheos/john-c-holbert
- Jennifer Benson Schuldt, “Our Plans and God’s Plans.” Retrieved from noreply@ourdailybread.ca
- Pastor Allen Jackson, “Allowing God to be God.” Retrieved from emails@allenjackson.com
- Christine Caine, “When We Can’t See.” Retrieved from no-reply@christinecaine.com
- Joni Eareckson Tada, “Ignoring the Odds.” Retrieved from response@joniandfriends.org
- Deacon Timothy Siburg, “Return to the Lord and Find God’s Abundance.” Retrieved from www.stewardshipoflife.org
- Mark Granquist, “God Pause for Monday, March 17, 2025.” Retrieved from communic@luthersem.edu.
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