“THE GRACE OF GOD”
ISAIAH 55

I. Introduction
What is grace? Unless we establish that right here at the beginning, we won’t truly appre-ciate what God has to say to us this morning through the Prophet Isaiah. So what is grace? One popular definition is found in the acrostic, “God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense”. That is certainly true, as far as it goes. God’s grace has come down to us through the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ.

But there’s at least one critically important point the acrostic completely misses. While God’s riches are made available to everyone, no one is worthy of receiving them. And it is in that where we find a better definition of grace – “Unmerited Favor”. What has unmeri-ted favor done for you and for me?

Just consider our situation prior to the pouring out of God’s grace. We were born in sin.
Romans 3:23 (Paul speaking)
23 …for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God…

We have sinned by breaking God’s perfect holy law.
1 John 1:8-10 (John speaking)
8 If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us.
9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
10 If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar and His word is not in us.

We were God’s enemies. Therefore, we deserved death.
Romans 5:10 (Paul speaking)
10 For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.
Romans 6:23
23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

That may be the clearest practical definition of grace in all of Holy Scripture. We are guilty. We deserve eternal death and damnation, but by God’s matchless grace, He declares us righteous and gives us the free gift of eternal life with Him in glory. How should you and I respond to this gift of grace? How about this…
*Ephesians 1:3-7
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ,
4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world,
that we should be holy and blameless before Him. In love
5 He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will,
6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved (Jesus)
7 In Him we have redemption through His blood, (and) the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace…

• John writes about it. John 1:14 says that this grace is found in the Lord Jesus. “And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.”
• Paul writes about it. Ephesians 2:8 says it is this grace that saves us. “For by grace you have been saved through faith…”
• Luke writes about it. Acts 20:24 says that this grace is the heart of the gospel. “…the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify solemnly of the gospel of the grace of God.”
• James writes about it. Regarding the issues of sin and personal pride James 4:6 says this grace gives us victory. “But He gives a greater grace. Therefore, it says, ‘God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble.’”

One more thing before we turn to Isaiah 55. The NT repeatedly refers to grace as a gift. Ephesians 4:7 says “But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift.” We all know what a gift is, don’t we?
• First, a gift is not a loan. The recipient of the gift is not required to pay it back.
• Second, the recipient doesn’t pay for a gift – the giver pays for it.
• Third, the ownership of a gift transfers to the one who receives it.
• Fourth, the one who gives a gift “loses” something, while the recipient of the gift gains something. Listen to Paul in his second letter to the church at Corinth.
2 Corinthians 8:9
9 For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor, (so) that you through His poverty might become rich.

We did nothing to earn this matchless gift of grace because there was nothing we could do to earn it. We were lost sinners without any hope of salvation until God poured out His grace upon us. We deserved justice – death and eternal destruction in the lake of fire. But by His grace, His unmerited favor, He gave us life and eternal joy with Him in His heaven.
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II. Text
In this morning’s text, Isaiah 55, the prophet will not say so much about the details of God’s unmerited favor. Rather, he will shed light on the faithfulness, the power, and the character of the God who gives it.
The Book of Isaiah gives us a more complete picture of Jesus than any other OT book. It contains prophecies of His coming to Israel (40:3-5), His virgin birth (7:14), His proclama-tion of the gospel (61:1), His crucifixion and death (52:13–53:12), and His Second Coming (60:2-3). Isaiah also contains more detailed information about the Millennial Kingdom than can be found anywhere in the NT.

For us to be “…rightly dividing the word of truth” as 2 Timothy 2:15 says in the KJV, we must view any verse, passage, or chapter in the context in which it is found. This is espe-cially true when diving into the middle of a book such as Isaiah. Therefore, a quick over-view of the book is in order. Isaiah 1-39 speaks of the judgment that must come upon this fallen world. Isaiah 40-66 speaks of God’s salvation and the future glory of God’s people.

Narrowing it down – chapters 53-55 speak of God’s Servant (the Messiah – the Christ). Chapter 53 is about Jesus’ suffering. We often read from it on Resurrection Sunday. “He was despised and forsaken of men” – “…smitten of God and afflicted” – “…the LORD has caused the iniquity of us all to fall on Him.” Chapter 54 is about the salvation that comes through God’s Servant. It concludes with this promise…
*Isaiah 54:17
17 “No weapon that is formed against you will prosper; and every tongue that accuses you in judgment you will condemn. This is the heritage of the ser-vants of the LORD, and their vindication is from Me,” declares the LORD.

That takes us to Chapter 55 where the offer of salvation is announced to all. We’ll see that the offer comes from a God of grace who cannot lie and whose words MUST come to pass.
*Isaiah 55:1-13 (Please stand with me in honor of reading God’s Word.)
1 “Ho! Everyone who thirsts, 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 do you spend money for what is not bread, and your wages for what does not satisfy? Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good, and delight yourself in abundance.
3 “Incline your ear and come to Me. Listen, that you may live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, according to the faithful mercies shown to David.
4 “Behold, I have made him a witness to the peoples, a leader and commander for the peoples.
5 “Behold, you will call a nation you do not know, and a nation which knows you not will run to you, because of the LORD your God, even the Holy One of Israel, for He has glorified you.”
6 Seek the LORD while He may be found; call upon Him while He is near.
7 Let the wicked forsake his way and the unrighteous man his thoughts; and let him return to the LORD, and He will have compassion on him, and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon.
8 “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways,” declares the LORD.
9 “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts (higher) than your thoughts.
10 “For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return there without watering the earth and making it bear and sprout, and furnish-ing seed to the sower and bread to the eater;
11 so will My word be which goes forth from My mouth; it shall not return to Me empty, without accomplishing what I desire, and without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it.
12 “For you will go out with joy and be led forth with peace; the mountains and the hills will break forth into shouts of joy before you, and all the trees of the fields will clap their hands.
13 “Instead of the thorn bush the cypress will come up, and instead of the net-tle the myrtle will come up, and it will be a memorial to the LORD, for an ever-lasting sign which will not be cut off.”

Let’s break the chapter down into three segments. In verses 1-5 God lays out His gracious invitation to come to Him for salvation. In verses 6-11 we see both His promise to save and His power to do so. And in verses 12-13 God speaks of the ultimate outcome for those who will receive His offer of sovereign grace.
*Isaiah 55:1-2
1 “Ho! Everyone who thirsts, 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 do you spend money for what is not bread, and your wages for what does not satisfy? Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good, and delight yourself in abundance.

“Ho!” is a shout, loud and clear, that is meant to get people’s attention. For those of you who were in the military it would equivalent to, “All right everybody, listen up!” What the speaker has to say is important and he wants to be sure everyone, Jew and Gentile alike, hears it. Here it is: If you are thirsty for forgiveness and salvation, the following message about water will be for you. Isaiah used similar terminology back in 12:3 where God’s Word says, “Therefore you will joyously draw water from the springs of salvation.”

Jesus speaks of the water of salvation in John’s gospel.
John 7:37-38
37 Now on the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink.”
38 He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being shall flow rivers of living water.’”

In John’s gospel Jesus told the woman at the well that He would give her living water.
John 4:13-14
13 Jesus answered and said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water shall thirst again;
14 but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life.”

In Isaiah 55:1-2 this water is free. Don’t bother bringing money. Jesus says the same thing near the end of Revelation where He is still offering unbelievers God’s grace.
Revelation 21:6
6 And He said to me (to John), “It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the begin-ning and the end. I will give to the one who thirsts from the spring of the water of life without cost.”

Once again you can see that salvation is a gift. It is free. You cannot buy it. There is a cost, to be sure, but you don’t pay it. Jesus has already paid it at the cross. He will give it to all who will believe in Him and receive the gift of salvation. Remember, a gift has no value if the one to whom it is offered refuses to receive it. That’s why John said…
John 1:12
12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name.

Now notice that in Isaiah 55:1-2 it isn’t just God’s water that is free. So too is His wine and His milk. So too are all the pleasures that God has ordained for us. Isaiah is telling us to put our time and our efforts into the things that truly matter. Don’t waste your resources on things that can never truly satisfy your soul. The end of v. 2 makes it clear… “Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good, and delight yourself in abundance.”

*Isaiah 55:3-5
3 “Incline your ear and come to Me. Listen, that you may live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, according to the faithful mercies shown to David.
4 “Behold, I have made him a witness to the peoples, a leader and commander for the peoples.
5 “Behold, you will call a nation you do not know, and a nation which knows you not will run to you, because of the LORD your God, even the Holy One of Israel, for He has glorified you.”

First it was “Ho!” Listen up! Then it was “Listen carefully…” Now it is “Incline your ear.” Are you detecting a pattern here? God wants us to pay strict attention to His mes-sage. Why? So “…that you may live (v. 3).” Many people hear a message, but only a few actually listen to it, let alone listen carefully. That’s probably why two people can hear the same message but only one of them actually derives a benefit from it.
What were “…the faithful mercies shown to David” in v. 3? Turn back in your Bible all the way to 2 Samuel and we’ll see. David wanted to build a house (a temple) for God. By God didn’t want David to build it. However, He did make a promise to the king.
*2 Samuel 7:12-16
12 “When your days are complete and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your descendant after you (Solomon), who will come forth from you, and I will establish his kingdom.
13 “He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.
14 “I will be a father to him and he will be a son to Me; when he commits ini-quity, I will correct him with the rod of men and the strokes of the sons of men,
15 but My lovingkindness shall not depart from him, as I took it away from Saul, whom I removed from before you.
16 “Your house and your kingdom shall endure before Me forever; your throne shall be established forever.” (back to Isaiah 55)

Here in Isaiah God is saying that the free gift of salvation that He offers to all is perma-nent. It is without end. It is just like His promise to King David. As his throne will en-dure forever, so too will your salvation. Listen carefully, if you have come to saving faith God has already made “…an everlasting covenant with you (v. 3).”

In v. 5 “the Holy One of Israel” is the Lord Jesus Himself. It is only through Jesus that all men, Jew and Gentile alike, will share in this great salvation of grace. Paul confirms that.
Galatians 3:28
28 There is neither Jew nor Gentile, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

In Isaiah 55:1-5 we’ve seen that the message of the gospel of grace is to be proclaimed to all people, Jew and Gentile alike. It is free. It is eternal. And it can only be received through God’s Holy One, Israel’s Messiah, the church’s Christ.

*Isaiah 55:6-7
6 Seek the LORD while He may be found; call upon Him while He is near.
7 Let the wicked forsake his way and the unrighteous man his thoughts; and let him return to the LORD, and He will have compassion on him, and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon.

Seek Him now. Call upon Him now. That’s really good advice. Let me urge you to listen carefully, to “incline your ear,” to hear what God has to say, and to repent and come to the Lord Jesus. There is real urgency here. He has never ignored or turned away a repentant sinner. And please do not be put off by the word “repent”. Repentance simply means that you are willing to turn from the life you are living and turn toward the God who is ready, willing, and able to forgive your sin and to save your eternal soul.
But please don’t wait. No one knows when they may pass from this life and into eternity. Listen to the Apostle Paul’s urging in his second letter to the church at Corinth. He says…
2 Corinthians 6:1b-2
1b …we also urge you not to receive the grace of God in vain –
2 for He says, “At the acceptable time I listened to you, and on the day of sal-vation I helped you.” Behold, now is “the acceptable time,” behold, now is “the day of salvation.”

Come to Him today, even now. You have the absolute word and the promise of the God who cannot lie that He will have compassion on you and abundantly pardon all of your sin. Really? Why would He do that? He doesn’t owe you anything, especially eternal life with Him. There is no logical human answer to that question. So let Him answer it.

*Isaiah 55:8-9
8 “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways,” declares the LORD.
9 “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts (higher) than your thoughts.

These two verses don’t surprise you, do they? Let’s take a little time to consider God’s ways and God’s thoughts. Of course, they are higher than our ways and our thoughts. He is God! Is His offer of free grace, of free forgiveness, of free salvation, of free eternal life, and all at no cost, at no charge, with no strings attached – is that hard for us comprehend? Of course, it is! Don’t we think that anything of value has a cost? Haven’t we all lived our lives learning (sometimes the hard way) that there’s no such thing as a free lunch? I mean, even if you’ve enjoyed a lunch that was free to you, somebody had to pay for it.

Well, somebody did pay the price for this grace that come down to us. God’s only Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, paid the price on the cross of Calvary. God took your sin and mine, put it on Jesus, and punished Him for it. The innocent Jesus paid the price for the guilty you! This is the doctrine of the substitutionary atonement. This is the very core of the gospel.
2 Corinthians 5:21
21 He (God the Father) made Him (God the Son) who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, (so) that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

Would you stand by and allow the gruesome torture and brutal murder of any of your child-ren for the sake of people who hate you and use your holy name as a curse, and all the while knowing that most of them will still hate you and will still use your holy name in cursing? “No,” you say! “I can’t understand why God would do such a thing,” you say. So why did God allow it? He allowed it because of His love for us and His matchless grace…
and because of the verses we just read. “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,” declares the LORD. “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts (higher) than your thoughts (vv. 8-9).
Listen, the plans God has for Israel, and the plans He has for the church, and the glories He has in store for us that are yet to be revealed, are beyond human comprehension.

I have not traveled as much as many of you, but the Grand Canyon and Yosemite Valley are among the most spectacular features on this earth I have ever laid my eyes on. Frankly, I can’t imagine a more beautiful place than Yosemite. It is among the many wonders of this creation. But this creation is under the curse of sin.

The most beautiful and spectacular places on this earth will be destroyed so that the new cre-ation may come into being. Can you even imagine what the new creation will be look like? There will be no sin, no evil, no sickness, no pain, no sorrow, no suffering, and no death. How good is that? And one more thing – there will be the very presence of God Himself.
Revelation 21:1-3 (John’s vision)
1 And I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there was no longer any sea.
2 And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband.
3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God (the Lord Jesus Himself) is among men, and He shall dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself shall be among them.”

His thoughts and His ways are higher than ours. I guess! But how can we be sure of all of this coming to pass? God knows that we’ll wonder about that, and so He promises us and He says…

*Isaiah 55:10-11
10 “For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return there without watering the earth and making it bear and sprout, and furnish-ing seed to the sower and bread to the eater;
11 so shall My word be which goes forth from My mouth; it shall not return to Me empty, without accomplishing what I desire, and without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it.

God’s word will not fail because God’s word cannot fail. These two verses take us in two directions here. They go back to the promise God made to King David about his throne and his kingdom, and they go forward to you and to me and to everyone who responds to God’s call to listen to and to embrace the good news of the gospel. We are promised for-giveness and eternal life in glory if we will simply repent and embrace the Lord Jesus.

Let me take a moment to offer a word of encouragement to those of you who are praying for and witnessing to loved ones and friends. Dwell on v.11. Let it “sink in” if you will.
Whatever you have said, whatever passages of Scripture you have read or shared with them, you can be absolutely assured that those very words have been, are being, or will be used by God to accomplish His eternal purpose. God will have His way.
His word will succeed. It may not be in the way that you think it should or in the time you expect it, but it will succeed. It cannot fail!

Finally, what will be the outcome of all of this? What will come from all that we’ve seen in the first eleven verses of Isaiah 55? There will be joy and there will be peace.

*Isaiah 55:12-13
12 “For you will go out with joy and be led forth with peace; the mountains and the hills will break forth into shouts of joy before you, and all the trees of the fields will clap their hands.
13 “Instead of the thorn bush the cypress will come up, and instead of the net-tle the myrtle will come up, and it will be a memorial to the LORD, for an ever-lasting sign which will not be cut off.”

As is often the case with OT prophecies, they have more than one fulfillment. These two verses had their initial fulfillment when the Jews returned to their land after the Babylonian captivity in 538 B.C. The promise will be fulfilled to a greater degree in the Millennial Kingdom. The church will know such joy when Jesus comes for us at the Rapture.

During the Millennial Kingdom the curse that came from the fall of man in Eden will be reversed. Thorns and nettle (thistles) will be replaced by myrtle (an evergreen shrub with white flowers and purple berries) and cyprus (an evergreen tree common in temperate areas of the world).

Isaiah 55:13 ends with the ultimate promise that God makes to His own. It is His salvation, the salvation that can only come through His matchless and sovereign grace.
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III. Conclusion
This morning we’ve looked into the message of the gospel of grace. What have we seen?
• The gospel of grace is to be proclaimed to all people, Jew and Gentile alike.
• It is free to you and me because the Lord Jesus has already paid the price for it.
• It is eternal.
• It is guaranteed by an infinite God whose promises are unchangeable and whose word will always accomplish its purpose.
• And it can only be found in God’s Holy One, the Messiah, the Christ.

What should you do? “Seek the LORD while He may be found; call upon Him while He is near.”
~ Pray ~

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Pastor Jim Timms
Lighthouse Bible Church – Lake Geneva, Wisconsin – 262-949-1007 – www.lighthouselakegeneva.com