Delivered March 11, 2007
by Pastor Eric Henderson
Ho, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters;
and you that have no money, come, buy and eat!
Come and buy wine and milk without money and without price.
Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread,
and your labor for that which does not satisfy?
Listen carefully to me, and eat what is good,
and delight yourselves in rich food.
Incline your ear, and come to me;
listen, so that you may live.
For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
nor are your ways my ways, says the LORD.
My soul clings to you; your right hand upholds me.
Now these things occurred as examples for us, so that we might not desire evil as they did…. So if you think you are standing, watch out that you do not fall. No testing has overtaken you that is not common to everyone. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tested beyond your strength, but with the testing he will also provide the way out so that you may be able to endure it.
No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will also perish as they did.
If it bears fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you can cut it down.
Mick Jaggar of the world famous rock group the Rolling Stones informed the world in song of a prominent plague of my generation.
I can't get no satisfaction. I can't get no satisfaction.
Cause I tried, and I tried, I tried, and I tried.
I can't get no…I can't get no…
when I'm drivin' in my car..
When I'm watchin' my TV…
When I'm ridin' round the world…
The song repeats over and over that satisfaction is not found in cars, TV, world travel, and other things. Regrettably many are still helplessly and hopelessly seeking satisfaction from a variety of source, that only temporarily satisfy.
When we need satisfaction God invites:
everyone who thirsts, come to the waters;
and you that have no money, come, buy and eat!
Come and buy wine and milk without money and without price.
Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread,
and your labor for that which does not satisfy?
Listen carefully to me, and eat what is good,
and delight yourselves in rich food.
Nate was in deep trouble. A dark debilitating depression robbed him of sleep and the ability to do the simplest tasks. His wife and church family sought the help of God, doctors, and medication. Nate, his family, and church joined in prayer for God's healing. Everyone was grateful to God for Nate's slow recovery.
Isaiah speaking for God calls out:
everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; Incline your ear, and come to me; Listen so that you may live.
In our times of need, God invites us to come to him.
Bob Benson tells of the conversation with a friend in church leadership who had a serious heart attack. The conversation went something like this:
W.T. how did you like your heart attack?
It scared me to death, almost.
Would you like to do it again?
No!
Would you recommend it?
Definitely not.
Does your life mean more to you than it did before?
Well, yes.
Are you and your wife and family closer now than before the heart attack?
Yes.
Do you have a new compassion for people-a deep understanding and sympathy?
Yes.
Do you know the Lord in a richer, deeper fellowship than you ever realized possible?
Yes.
How'd you like your heart attack?
Silence was his answer.
The prophet Isaiah says,
Seek the Lord while he may be found,
call upon him while he is near;
For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
nor are your ways my ways, says the LORD.
In our times of need when we've been given more time to live, God invites us to seek him even though we don't understand his ways.
Two men were talking after one had survived a car accident in which the car was totaled. One man said, "Now that God has gotten your attention and allowed you to live what are you going to do?" The other wasn't sure how to respond.
God says through the prophet Isaiah,
Seek the Lord while he may be found,
call upon him while he is near;
let the wicked forsake their way, and the righteous their thoughts;
let them return to the LORD, that he may have mercy on them,
and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.
In the times when we're given another chance, God invites us to call on him and turn from our wickedness.
Even though we may be given another day or year to turn to God, Jesus told a parable that contains a warning.
"A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came looking for fruit on it and found none. So he said to the gardener, ‘See here! For three years I have come looking for fruit on this fig tree, and still I find none. Cut it down! Why should it be wasting the soil?' He replied, ‘Sir, let it alone for one more year, until I dig around it and put manure on it. If it bears fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you can cut it down.
Jesus often is long-suffering and takes pity on us, even though we are not bearing fruit. In love, God sent Jesus to teach us the way of love and service to others. In love God has created each of us and the church for the purpose of bearing the fruit of love for God, ourselves and other people. There may be times of barrenness when we do not bear fruit. God does not quickly cut us down and destroy us. During those times when we are not bearing fruit, God patiently extends grace to us and says,
everyone who thirsts, come to the waters;
and you that have no money, come, buy and eat!
Come and buy wine and milk without money and without price.
Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread,
and your labor for that which does not satisfy?
Listen carefully to me, and eat what is good,
and delight yourselves in rich food.
Incline your ear, and come to me;
listen, so that you may live.
In our times of need, or barrenness, God patiently waits for us to ask for our needs to be met.
In the beginning God created us to be in a harmonious relationship with the creator, the world around us, and other people. Not only did God create the world and humankind in his own image, but God planned to sustain the world and humankind. One of the ways God sustains us is by demonstrating in various ways his love for us. Paul said, God demonstrates his love for us this way: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (Rom. 5.8) John said, How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! (I Jn. 3.1)
In our times of need when we humbly ask, God is faithful to forgive, to lavish love, to sustain us and feed us. One of our needs is to resist the temptation to sin, because the practice of sin creates problems of all kinds that hurt us and other people. One of our great temptations is to have our deepest needs met in a source besides God. Some are tempted to meet their deepest needs with sex, or various drugs, or accumulation of things, or endless work, the affirmation of other people, chocolate, keeping everything under control, or obsessive cleanliness, eating, exercise and fitness, hunting, and the list goes on.
Gerald May-Addiction and Grace: contends
p. 13 God has created us with a free will to choose to return God's love, or seek another source for meeting our deepest desires. Addiction, then, displaces and supplants God's love as the source and object of our deepest true desire.
To meet our deepest desire for God's love, our culture not only endorses but encourages others substitutions. If we're hungry: Super-size it. When we're thirsty and trying to get the day started, Tim Horton or Red Bull has the solution. Need some thrills and excitement, play a violent action-packed video game or get involved in an extreme sport.
We have more conveniences, more choices, more drinks and food, more technology than at any other time in the history of humanity, yet it seems more people are dissatisfied with life than ever before. My generation sought to have our deepest needs met in a variety of ways, most often apart from God and his people.
Even though many heard Mick Jaggar's song warning that satisfaction was not found in things of this world, many attempt to get what the things of this world can't supply.
Thankfully people of every generation, including the current generation are hearing the ancient call of God and responding with the Psalmist, 63.1-8
O God, you are my God, I seek you, my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you,
as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.
So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary,
beholding your power and glory.
Because your steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise you.
So I will bless you as long as I live; I will lift up my hands and call on your name.
My soul will be satisfied as with a rich feast, and my mouth praises you with joyful lips
when I think of you on my bed, and meditate on you in the watches of the night;
for you have been my help, and in the shadow of your wings I sing for joy.
My soul clings to you; your right hand upholds me.
God is faithful to help us at all times, especially when we are empty, barren, and in need of love. As we humbly ask, may God graciously supply what we need.
Petitcodiac Mennonite Church