GOD’S WORD WILL NEVER RETURN TO HIM EMPTY WITHOUT ACHIEVING ITS PURPOSE
Although terrible unpredictable happenings are occurring worldwide and there is much dark news, yet in light of God's prophecies' fulfillment, the time of His consummation is undoubtedly close.
‘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.
Why spend money on what is not bread, and your labour on what does not satisfy? Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good, and you will delight in the richest of fare.
Give ear and come to me; listen, that you may live. I will make an everlasting covenant with you, my faithful love promised to David.
See, I have made him a witness to the peoples, a ruler and commander of the peoples.
Surely you will summon nations you know not, and nations you do not know will come running to you, because of the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel, for he has endowed you with splendour.’
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.
‘For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,’ declares the LORD.
‘As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.
As the rain and the snow come down from heaven,
and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater,
so is my word that goes out from my mouth: it will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.
You will go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and hills will burst into song before you, and all the trees of the field will clap their hands.
Instead of the thorn-bush will grow the juniper, and instead of briers the myrtle will grow. This will be for the LORD’s renown, for an everlasting sign, that will endure for ever.’ ISAIAH 55:1- 13.
Isaiah prophesied the suffering and glory of the Jewish Messiah in the fourth servant song recorded in 52:13-53:12. After the servant’s death, the things written in Chapter 55 (quoted above) would become available for all those who would respond to God’s calling. Because the death of the servant paid for the free gift of life, now all those who are spiritually thirsty can freely drink of the water of life. This is Christ’s invitation to everybody in the New Testament as well.
This chapter begins with the words not of the prophet but of the Lord Himself, who initially addressed the surviving remnant of Israel, the chosen people, through whom His salvific work will subsequently extend to the whole nations. Thus, the whole message is directed at the Gentiles as well, and the means of their salvation is through the Gospel and Christ’s teachings, which Isaiah expressed using the terms ‘wine and milk’ in v.1. The Gospel is of far more worth than gold and silver in the world and yet, the fact is that we have nothing to give to God for it. Only His grace has given it to us without money and price. An Aramaic translation of the Hebrew Bible, “the Targum” interprets this verse as: ‘Lo, everyone that would learn, let him come and learn… He that hath no silver, come hear and learn; come, hear and learn… without price and money, doctrine better than wine and milk’.
If false doctrine, including pagan philosophies, traditions and heresies by false teachers are not ‘bread’, spending our time, energy and strength in reading and hearing it is not wholesome but rather harmful. Labouring for the works of the law to achieve righteousness brings no satisfaction, peace nor comfort. Instead, all those who sincerely seek after God need to turn to the Lord Himself and His Word. Only God’s Word, the Gospel, when found and eaten by faith, is digested to produce the joy in the heart of the seekers. David sang his joy in the Lord in Ps.36:5-10:
The Lord invites the remnant of Israel with earnestness and tender care, repeatedly exhorting them to hear and come to Him to live. He refers to ‘an everlasting covenant’, which is not the same as the Sinai covenant of works and circumcision given to Moses, but a covenant of grace. The Messiah, the son of David, Jesus Christ is the Mediator of the eternal covenant. This covenant sprang from God’s mercy, and has been ratified and confirmed by the blood of Christ shed on the cross. The covenant promises redemption, pardon of sin, regeneration, salvation and eternal life to all the nations, both Jews and Gentiles, who turn to Christ in faith.
God specifically chose the Israelites among all nations as His witnesses to convey His messages of salvation to the whole world:
Isaiah foresaw the arrival of the bright day when the Gospel would be sent to all nations and the Messiah would rule over the entire earth. The Gentiles who did not even know God and the existence of God, who were in a state of darkness and who did not hear the Gospel would come to Christ in response to His call so as to lay hold on Him the hope set before them.
In view of Solomon’s conviction in Ecc. 9:10:
Unless we accept the Gospel and Christ as our Savior now on earth, while we live in a physical body, it will be too late to confess our faith in Him. Although our soul and spirit continue to exist even after physical death, no chance to accept Christ will be given after death, that is, in a state of being without a physical body. Some Christianity denominations hold the possibility of a chance of hearing the Gospel even after death. However, the Scripture is clear on this issue and there will be no opportunity for people to be saved after death as Christ’s parable of “The Rich and Lazarus” clearly teaches and also Hebrews 9:27 declares:
God desires repentance of the wicked and their return to Him when they are thoroughly awakened and convinced of sin and their wicked course of lives, and when they forsake their own wicked ways by the saving power of Christ. Thinking of the fact that all men are unrighteous and wicked in the sight of God, we must forsake all wrong thoughts such as of man-made religion, salvation, self-righteousness and instead, receive His mercy, forgiveness, righteousness, and eternal salvation.
Compared with the thoughts of God, the thoughts of men are finite, limited and evil. The thoughts of God are infinite and boundless with no beginning and no end. Men think of their own achievement, such as saving themselves by works and efforts, obtaining righteousness on their own, justifying themselves with reasons, and aiming to get wisdom, knowledge, profession, status, privileges, honour, riches, security and so on. But the thoughts of God reverse all those, causing men to return to Him with conversion and repentance. That is why men’s thoughts should be completely forsaken to fully appreciate His abundance. God alone is willing to forgive “all returning sinners” to life.
God, who always produces sufficient food for living creatures, declares:
The world where God’s entire creation rejoices is a picture of the messianic kingdom. Instead of wicked men, likened to ‘the thorn-bush…briers’ for their unfruitfulness and harmful ways, good men, likened to fruitful, sweet fragrant and beautiful trees such as ‘the myrtle’, shall grow and spread the Gospel as His true witness.
The prophet Haggai announced the coming day of God’s judgment on the nations:
Terrible unpredictable happenings are occurring worldwide, and Japan recently came under the spotlight for a mass killing incident, in which nineteen residents were killed and twenty-six people were injured in a knife attack at a care centre for people with mental disabilities. The suspect bragged that the severely disabled should disappear from the world. The common factor behind these killings is the devil, who is
If false doctrine, including pagan philosophies, traditions and heresies by false teachers are not ‘bread’, spending our time, energy and strength in reading and hearing it is not wholesome but rather harmful. Labouring for the works of the law to achieve righteousness brings no satisfaction, peace nor comfort. Instead, all those who sincerely seek after God need to turn to the Lord Himself and His Word. Only God’s Word, the Gospel, when found and eaten by faith, is digested to produce the joy in the heart of the seekers. David sang his joy in the Lord in Ps.36:5-10:
Your love, LORD, reaches to the heavens, your faithfulness to the skies. Your righteousness is like the highest mountains, your justice like the great deep. You, LORD, preserve both people and animals. How priceless is your unfailing love, O God! People take refuge in the shadow of your wings. They feast in the abundance of your house; you give them drink from your river of delights. For with you is the fountain of life; in your light we see light. Continue your love to those who know you, your righteousness to the upright in heart.
The Lord invites the remnant of Israel with earnestness and tender care, repeatedly exhorting them to hear and come to Him to live. He refers to ‘an everlasting covenant’, which is not the same as the Sinai covenant of works and circumcision given to Moses, but a covenant of grace. The Messiah, the son of David, Jesus Christ is the Mediator of the eternal covenant. This covenant sprang from God’s mercy, and has been ratified and confirmed by the blood of Christ shed on the cross. The covenant promises redemption, pardon of sin, regeneration, salvation and eternal life to all the nations, both Jews and Gentiles, who turn to Christ in faith.
God specifically chose the Israelites among all nations as His witnesses to convey His messages of salvation to the whole world:
You are my servant, Israel, in whom I will display my splendour’ (Is.49:3) and ‘I will also make you a light for the Gentiles, that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth (Is.49:6).However, Israel failed to faithfully respond to His commission and now, God, in His love and grace, has appointed Christ to the office of a mediator to be His true witness. As a good shepherd leads his flock to good pastures, Christ has been leading all the nations out of their own ways to His way and ultimately He will lead those who obey and trust in Him to eternal kingdom as the Targum interprets: ‘Behold, I have appointed him a Prince to the people, a King, and a ruler over all kingdoms.’
Isaiah foresaw the arrival of the bright day when the Gospel would be sent to all nations and the Messiah would rule over the entire earth. The Gentiles who did not even know God and the existence of God, who were in a state of darkness and who did not hear the Gospel would come to Christ in response to His call so as to lay hold on Him the hope set before them.
In view of Solomon’s conviction in Ecc. 9:10:
Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might, for in the realm of the dead, where you are going, there is neither working nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom,taking heed of the exhortation of v.6:
Seek the LORD while he may be found; call on him while he is nearis very important. Under the Old Testament, particular places were appointed to worship God and for Israelites to seek after Him. First, it was the tabernacle, then later, it became the temple. In contrast, under the New Testament, God could be sought and found wherever Christ’s followers met together. This exhortation refers to public worship, as well as private prayer/worship.
Unless we accept the Gospel and Christ as our Savior now on earth, while we live in a physical body, it will be too late to confess our faith in Him. Although our soul and spirit continue to exist even after physical death, no chance to accept Christ will be given after death, that is, in a state of being without a physical body. Some Christianity denominations hold the possibility of a chance of hearing the Gospel even after death. However, the Scripture is clear on this issue and there will be no opportunity for people to be saved after death as Christ’s parable of “The Rich and Lazarus” clearly teaches and also Hebrews 9:27 declares:
Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment (Line added).
God desires repentance of the wicked and their return to Him when they are thoroughly awakened and convinced of sin and their wicked course of lives, and when they forsake their own wicked ways by the saving power of Christ. Thinking of the fact that all men are unrighteous and wicked in the sight of God, we must forsake all wrong thoughts such as of man-made religion, salvation, self-righteousness and instead, receive His mercy, forgiveness, righteousness, and eternal salvation.
Compared with the thoughts of God, the thoughts of men are finite, limited and evil. The thoughts of God are infinite and boundless with no beginning and no end. Men think of their own achievement, such as saving themselves by works and efforts, obtaining righteousness on their own, justifying themselves with reasons, and aiming to get wisdom, knowledge, profession, status, privileges, honour, riches, security and so on. But the thoughts of God reverse all those, causing men to return to Him with conversion and repentance. That is why men’s thoughts should be completely forsaken to fully appreciate His abundance. God alone is willing to forgive “all returning sinners” to life.
God, who always produces sufficient food for living creatures, declares:
my word that goes out from my mouth: it will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.This may either refer to the Word of God, Christ Himself or God-sent prophets’ messages, through whom His whole plans and purposes were announced. The former came from heaven as God’s free gift to everybody and produced a large harvest of souls on earth and accomplished the whole will of God.
The world where God’s entire creation rejoices is a picture of the messianic kingdom. Instead of wicked men, likened to ‘the thorn-bush…briers’ for their unfruitfulness and harmful ways, good men, likened to fruitful, sweet fragrant and beautiful trees such as ‘the myrtle’, shall grow and spread the Gospel as His true witness.
The prophet Haggai announced the coming day of God’s judgment on the nations:
This is what the LORD Almighty says: “In a little while I will once more shake the heavens and the earth, the sea and the dry land. I will shake all nations, and what is desired by all nations will come, and I will fill this house with glory,” says the LORD Almighty (Ha.2:6-7).We are lately seeing His shaking of everything in the world: climate change causing an abnormally high temperature worldwide, drought and famine, storms and floods, typhoons and hurricanes, earthquakes and volcanic eruptions, as well as political, cultural, social, financial and religious instability. All these indicate that the biblical prophecies are coming true. Christians need to know what the Lord is saying to His people, Jews and Gentiles, through these shakings so that we can appropriately prepare ourselves for His next actions.
Terrible unpredictable happenings are occurring worldwide, and Japan recently came under the spotlight for a mass killing incident, in which nineteen residents were killed and twenty-six people were injured in a knife attack at a care centre for people with mental disabilities. The suspect bragged that the severely disabled should disappear from the world. The common factor behind these killings is the devil, who is
a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth for there is no truth in him (John 8:44).While there is much dark news, the following information tells us that the time of God’s consummation is close at hand, in light of a partial fulfillment of Isiah’s prophecy, as examined above.
Wouldn't it have been amazing to have witnessed a miracle like Moses parting the Red Sea, to have stood among the crowd of thousands fed by Christ using only two fish and five loaves of bread, or to have experienced some similar miracle? Where are today's jaw-dropping spectacles? Are epic wonders only a thing of the past? … apologist and New Testament scholar Jeremiah Johnston assures that, even in modern times, God is still very much on the move when it comes to working miracles. … In fact, Johnston says Jesus is making miraculous appearances to Muslims around the world. …
Although many of today's miracles might not unfold in quite the same manner or have the same look as they did when Jesus walked the Earth, the miraculous stories of triumph and perseverance of followers of Christ are occurring like never before, especially within the persecuted Church, says Johnston. The pastor is not at all surprised by God's miraculous move within persecuted churches, recalling a visit to China where he met with a Christian missionary. The missionary and affiliated Christian churches practiced their faith in that country much like persecuted churches did in the book of Acts. In Communist China, many Christians, if they wanted their churches to survive, had to go underground.
"I was in China recently with a missionary who is over 5,000 [other] missionaries in the underground church. He looked at me in Beijing and he said — to both my wife and myself — 'Jeremiah and Audrey,' he said, 'everything you read about in the book of Acts is happening in China right now. The Spirit of God is at work mightily. Everything you read about in the book of Acts — God is doing today,'" he said. …
There is a reason why many Christian Chinese churches have had to go "underground." Many have become targets of the country's Communist regime. Within China's Zhejing province, for example, the Chinese Communist Party aims to supress the growth of organized religion. As a result, the Communist Party launched a campaign to remove crosses from Protestant and Roman Catholic churches across the province, citing that they are in violation of zoning restrictions on building heights.
In one year and-a-half the government has removed 1,200 crosses, much to the dismay of the country's large Christian population of 67 million, as documented by 2011 figures from the Pew Research Center. Of the country's 67 million Christians, Pew estimates that China has 10 million Catholics, half of which belong to the state-sanctioned Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association. Millions more Catholics go to secret churches to worship. A government-approved Protestant Three-Self-Patriotic-Movement accounts for another 23 million people, while 35 million unregistered Protestants exercise their beliefs underground.
While persecuted churches across the globe seem to be full of God's Spirit, Johnston feels like a somewhat lackadaisical western church has fallen asleep at the wheel. "This winded, out of shape church of the West can't figure out if we want to share all the counsel of God's Word. I'm not surprised that God doesn't work as mightily in a church that's fallen asleep and been lulled asleep. ...
We need our Church to be awakened, and we need to have a thinking faith to be awakened — where we can see God do the miraculous and trust Him to do that, and we see that reflected right now in the persecuted Church." Pastor Johnston is confident that God is still very much in the miracle-working business. Christians simply need to open their eyes, he says. "There's not a doubt there are miracles all around us," he told CP. "Sometimes, though, we have our heads in the sand — we just don't see them. We don't give God the glory for them."
(http://www.christianpost.com/news/jesus-miraculously-appearing-to-muslims-all-over-middle-east-says-christian-apologist-165438/#jGDRX3SEocSFKCAf.99)