Peter Misselbrook's Blog

Oct 23 2019 - Isaiah 55 – Invitation to the thirsty

Let's review what we have read in the last few chapters of Isaiah to remind ourselves of the context of this wonderful chapter. In Isaiah 53 we were introduced to the Suffering Servant who has borne the iniquity of his people – the iniquity that brought them to be exiled from the land of promise. His sufferings paid the price for their sin and set them free (looking back to the promise of 40:2). And although this Servant was cut off from the land of the living (53:8) yet he will see his offspring and be satisfied (53:10-11).

The theme of offspring was then taken up in chapter 54 where the previously barren city of Jerusalem will be restored and populated until it expands to cover the land – in fulfilment of God's promise to Abraham. And, in a bold image, these offspring are seen as the fruit of the union between God and his people (54:5-7). God will make a secure and unshakable covenant with this redeemed people – a covenant of peace (54:9-10).

It is against this background that we must read Isaiah 55 and its opening invitation to "Come". It is a call to Israel to leave behind their captivity and to come to the feast God has prepared for them (55:1-2). Come and enjoy all the blessings of the eternal covenant God made with his people through David (53:3). This element of the invitation seems a little paradoxical. Israel no longer has a king and yet vv. 4-5 seem to suggest that God's purpose is to use their king to summon also the nations to come running to the feast. Clearly, these verses, following hard upon the work of the Suffering Servant, are a promise that the Lord Jesus, David's greater Son, will be the one who calls the whole world to enter freely into the blessings God has for his people. In him, all nations will be blessed.

All who have ears to hear are therefore summoned:

Seek the LORD while he may be found; call on him while he is near.
Let the wicked forsake their ways and the unrighteous their thoughts.
Let them turn to the LORD, and he will have mercy on them,
    and to our God, for he will freely pardon. (vv. 6-7)

God's promise of pardon and acceptance is as sure as the rain falls down from heaven rather than travelling upwards! (vv. 8-11). Not only will the Lord God restore his people, not only will he call all the world to come and feast on the blessings of his salvation, all of creation shall also be transformed by his saving power (vv. 12-13).

This chapter finds its fulfilment in the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the Suffering Servant who has paid the price for our sin, the one through whom and in whom we are forgiven. He is the one in whom the promise to Abraham finds its fulfilment. He is the one who calls us to come to him (Matthew 11:28-30). He is the one who speaks of his kingdom in terms of a great banquet, made freely available to all who will come. He is the one who, at his return will transform this damaged and spoilt creation so that it is made anew and filled with glory and praise.

How do we respond to the call of God to "Come"? Do we come gladly to God in Christ that we might feast freely on all the good things he has for his people? Or are we, like the elder brother in the parable of the Prodigal Son, still seeking to labour for what does not satisfy? Do we, like that brother, stand outside, refusing to come to the feast?

Lord God, thank you so much for this wonderful chapter of your word and for the invitation that you have given us to come to the feast. Thank you that this invitation has been bought for us at great cost but is offered to us freely and gladly. Help us to enjoy the riches of salvation's banquet with joyful thanksgiving, and to repeat your call to others around us, urging them to come to Christ. May many who now stand outside come in and feast with us on your inexhaustible goodness.

Oct 23 2020 - James 1:1-18 – Wise up

James tells us that God, our heavenly Father, has brought us to know him "that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created" (James 1:18). We are to be an offering, pleasing to God, bearing the promise of a richer harvest to come when all creation will be transformed at Christ’s coming. What a wonderful promise.

Even the trials and difficulties we face serve this end. James tells us, “the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything” (James 1:3-4). Nor is James alone in this conviction. Paul in similar fashion tells the Christians at Rome, “We rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope” (Romans 5:3-4). And he goes on to remind these Christians that God is at work through every circumstance they face to make them more like Christ (Romans 8:28-29). Trials, says Peter, are like a furnace through which our faith is refined and proved to be genuine (1 Peter 1:7).

But in reality, we often find that trials and difficulties, far from teaching us patience or perseverance, discourage us, fill us with anger and frustration and may even lead us to doubt God.

In themselves, trials will not strengthen faith. On the contrary, trials expose our weakness; they strip away our self-confidence and teach us that we cannot live the life of faith on our own. But we were never meant to do so. James tells us that when we feel our weakness, we should ask God for wisdom (1:5). Such wisdom is not the sudden injection of intelligence but God’s direction, presence and power that enables us to live well. James assures us that God is always ready to hear the cry of his children and to come to our aid. We should not doubt him but should turn readily to him. Paul tells us that he had discovered by experience that “when I am weak, then I am strong” because God’s grace and power is made perfect in our weakness (2 Corinthians 12:10, see verses 8-10) – it’s the only thing that can keep us going. James encourages us similarly to prove God in the trials we may face. His wisdom and grace will always prove sufficient for us.

But we should never become complacent. We need always to be on guard against temptation. Temptations are not to be entertained for one moment, not even with the thought that perhaps we can become stronger through the challenge of seeing how far we can go along with them. Such thinking is sheer folly; “after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death” (1:15). When temptations come knocking on our door we are to give them no house room but to send them packing immediately. If they so much as gain a toe hold they will soon take up residence and breed with deadly effect. Here again, we need to know our own weakness, to turn to the Lord and to depend upon his grace and strength that we might live for him and grow in him.

When you face trials and temptations today, don't try going it alone – you know your own track record. Ask for help. Your heavenly Father is more than ready to give it.

Heavenly Father, we recognise that you are the source of every good and perfect gift. You have given us your Son, and our hope rests in him and not in ourselves. He has triumphed over all the powers of darkness and has defeated sin and death. You have given us your Spirit – the Spirit of your Son – that we might prove your strength in our weakness and your wisdom in our folly. Strengthen us this day that we might not be tossed about by the circumstances of our lives and the temptations of the evil one. Help us to live as the firstfruits of the new creation.

Peter Misselbrook