October 15, 2024
Seek the LORD - Part 2
Isaiah 55:3-4
10/15/2024
3 Incline your ear, and come to me; hear, that your
soul may live; and I will make with you an
everlasting covenant, my steadfast, sure love for
David.
4 Behold, I made him a witness to the peoples, a
leader and commander for the peoples. (ESV)
The prophet Isaiah, speaking as inspired by the Holy Spirit,
invites each person to join in God's rich banquet of wisdom and
blessings. This invitation gives a time and place and menu. Now
is the time, wherever the good news of salvation from sin and
death is proclaimed is the place, and the menu is God's rich
blessing of everlasting life.
Isaiah pleads for everyone to listen to this invitation for
their eternal blessing. He shows by the example of God's
promises to King David that this invitation is real and for all
people.
Incline your ear, and come to me; hear, that your soul
may live; and I will make with you an everlasting
covenant, my steadfast, sure love for David. Behold, I
made him a witness to the peoples, a leader and
commander for the peoples.
What is the promise made to King David to which Isaiah
refers? It is the promise that the Messiah, the Redeemer of all
people, is to be a descendant of the great king. Indeed, the
Evangelists Matthew and Luke show conclusively that Jesus is
descended from David.
The covenant God makes is simple, He grants us pardon and
peace because His Son, Jesus Christ, took upon Himself our sins.
This forgiveness is offered to us as a gift, not as something we
earn.
Who needs this forgiveness? We do. No one, except Jesus
Christ, is without sin. No one has perfectly kept the letter of
the law, much less the spirit of the law. Yet God, in His mercy,
invites you to Himself, to trust in His promises, and to receive
complete remission of our sins. This is the message of the
Gospel, proclaimed throughout the Old and New Testaments alike.
May our Lord grant you the peace of knowing your sins are
forgiven, for where there is forgiveness, there is life
everlasting. Amen.