Say Yes to God: How to Find True Soul Satisfaction

Reverend Leo H. McCrary II

If you hunger and thirst to be made happy, God welcomes you to come and be made happy in your soul, but will you say yes to His invitation?

Introduction  

Throughout this series of sermons, I have focused on God as our shepherd and asked, “Will you follow the good shepherd?”  

I want to share Isaiah 55 with you today because this chapter offers a wonderful invitation from the Lord.  Isaiah 55 reveals much about God, our internal struggle, and why we should say yes to God’s invitation.  As I have said a lot recently, there is much going on today that is causing much anxiety on the inside, and I feel this message will help to take away that pain.

God Is a Welcoming God

Isaiah 55 opens with revelation about the Lord; we learn a lot about God in the opening words of this chapter.  Isaiah 55 opens with the Lord saying through the prophet, “Ho! Everyone…” 

The word “Ho!” expresses excitement and urgency, which means the message is an exciting and urgent one that is directed to everyone.  The message being directed to everyone means it is to every nationality, race, gender, and the young and old.  

Isaiah 55:1 reveals that God is a welcoming God, right?  God has not restricted Himself to one nation, as some would love to believe.  The Lord hasn’t restricted Himself to one race, as some try to portray.  Moreover, God has not limited Himself to one gender, as some wish to think.

When I say that God is a welcoming God, I want you to understand that He is loving and caring.  If He were not loving or caring, He wouldn’t welcome anyone to come to Him.  Yet, God has made Himself available; He is not sleeping, and He is not so busy that He cannot be bothered, nor has He stopped up His ears so that He won’t listen to you!

God is accessible!  The Lord does not reject or turn anyone away from coming to Him.  Now, I know some of you may think otherwise, but Scripture repeatedly shows us that God doesn’t turn anyone away from Him.

In Luke 7:1-9, a centurion of the Roman army sought help from Jesus, pleading that He help his servant who was in need of healing. Not only did Jesus not turn the centurion away, He healed his servant on the spot.  In case you’ve forgotten, the Romans were ruling over the Jews at that time.

In Luke 7:36-50, a woman who was a known sinner entered the home of the Pharisee named Simon.  As she stood by while the Pharisee and Jesus were eating, she began to wash Jesus’  feet.  The act disgusted the Pharisee because Jesus was letting a sinner touch Him, and he believed Jesus should have forbidden such.  Not only did Jesus not reject her, He forgave her sins.

Let us also not forget that on multiple occasions Jesus sat and ate with tax collectors and sinners, which upset the scribes and Pharisees, but didn’t bother Jesus at all.  Are you starting to feel welcomed yet?

God Invites the Thirsty and Poor

Well, if you’re not feeling welcomed just yet, let’s take another look at Isaiah 55:1.  We will notice in this verse that while God calls out to every nation, race, and gender, there are two specific groups that the Lord invites to come.

The Lord said, “Ho!  Everyone who thirsts, come…and you who have no money, come (Is. 55:1).”  So, to be clear, the thirsty and those who have no money are invited to come by the Lord.  

Now, this raises the question:  Who are those who are thirsty and have no money?  Now, pay close attention because here is where you come into the picture.  

Who are the thirsty?

In general, those who are thirsty are parched, and if their thirst is not quenched, they can become dehydrated.  If one’s dehydration isn’t treated, one can find themselves near death and die.

Alternatively, being thirsty could mean that one has a strong desire for something.  For example, one can be thirsty for knowledge, or a reward, or a promotion at work.  

Spiritually speaking, those who are thirsty have a strong desire for salvation and to be happy in their soul.  To quench such a thirst, the thirsty have drunk from the figurative waters of the world, but have come up dry, having found no salvation and left unsatisfied in the soul. 

If you have a strong desire for salvation, deliverance from sin and a sinful world, and you have tried everything you can to escape sin, but keep coming up empty, God calls out for you.  Does that sound like you?

Who are those who have no money?

In general, we recognize those who don’t have money as being broke, poor, and lacking wealth.  Because they are broke and poor, we consider that those who live in poverty are struggling to “make it”.  In fact, those of us who live in poverty also recognize that we are struggling to “make it”.

Spiritually speaking, those who have no money are those who, like the thirsty, desire salvation, deliverance from sin, and to be made happy in their soul.  However, unlike the thirsty, those who have no money have spent all their money trying to buy salvation.  Spiritual happiness cannot be purchased, and so those who have no money have come up empty and wasted their money.

If you desire salvation, deliverance from sin and a sinful world, and have tried to buy your spiritual happiness but keep coming up empty, God has called out to you.  Does that sound like you?

God Loves the Thirsty and Poor

Do you know that God loves the thirsty and poor?  Why yes, the Lord loves the thirsty and the poor in spirit.

In Psalm 34:18, David sang, “The Lord is near to those who have a broken heart, and saves such as have a contrite (remorseful) spirit.”

In Isaiah 57:15, God proclaimed, “I will dwell with him who has a contrite (remorseful) and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones

In Isaiah 66:2, God said, “On this one will I look:  On him who is poor and of a contrite (remorseful) spirit, and who trembles at My word.”

Now, you may wonder, ‘Why does God love and invite the thirsty and poor to come?’  Some will suggest that it’s because God needs someone to praise Him.  This suggestion suggests that God wants us to be thirsty and poor, but this goes against what God says.

Again, I refer to Jeremiah 29:11, when the Lord said to the prophet, “I know the thoughts that I think toward you, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.’

Let’s be clear about this: God does not need our praise.  Jesus told the Pharisees when they tried to get Him to stop the people from praising Him, “If these should keep silent, the stone would immediately cry out (Luke 19:37-40).”

So, why does God love and invite the thirsty and the poor if He does not need their praise?  He sees the desperation and despair of the thirsty and poor and desires to do something about it!  

We can see this in Isaiah 55:2 when God asks, “Why do you spend money for what is not bread, and your wages for what does not satisfy?”

You see, God does not want to sit idly by while one continues to thirst and hunger for salvation when He knows that He has the answer!  This is why we see the Lord say to the thirsty and poor, “Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good, and let your soul delight itself in abundance (Is. 55:3).”

Do you notice the urgency, the giddiness, that God has as He calls for the thirsty and poor to come and to listen to Him?  God wants you to stop searching endlessly for what He has to give.  God wants you to delight, or to indulge in the abundance He will provide to satisfy your soul!

The Divine Help God Provides

In Psalm 23, David sang that God prepares a table, but what is on that table that God is inviting the thirsty and poor to delight in?  Well, if we look back to Isaiah 55:1-2, God said to the thirsty and poor, “Come to the water… Come, buy [bread] and eat. Come buy wine and milk.”  

So, on that table are three drinks, water, milk, and wine, and then there is bread.  Now, you may think to yourself, ‘What kind of meal is this, and how is it going to help?  Let’s go over these four items so that you can understand that this is all you will ever need for your soul to be satisfied.

The water of God

Let’s start with the water since that was first mentioned.  Now, in general, when we think of water, we recognize it as the bringer of life.  We will also consider that water replenishes and renews one who was parched.  Lastly, we know that water cleans and makes brand new.

Scripture and Jesus often referred to the spiritual meaning of what water represents and does.  In John 3:5, when Jesus was teaching Nicodemus, he said to the Pharisee, “Unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.”  Spiritually speaking, water cleanses and renews.

When He sat at Jacob’s well, asking the Samaritan woman for water, Jesus said to her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, ‘Give Me a drink,’ you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water.”  The water of God gives life to the spiritually parched.

Jeremiah 17:8 helps to show what the living water of God can help to do for the soul.  The Scripture speaks of a tree whose roots spread into the living waters of God, and in its endless supply, the tree was able to endure even in seasons of heat and drought.

In John 7:37-39, it is made clear that when Jesus invited one to come to Him and drink the living waters, He spoke concerning the Spirit whom those who believe in Him would receive.  When one receives the Holy Spirit at that table, He will awaken their spirit and lead them into all truth.  

There will be no more wondering around aimlessly trying to fulfill one’s desperate desire for salvation.  The water of God, the Holy Spirit, will quench one’s spiritual thirst, renewing their strength and giving them life to push forward on the journey.  You won’t grow weary as you drink from the waters of God.

The bread of God

In John 6, Jesus had fed thousands with a few pieces of fish and bread.  The next day, the same crows hung around waiting for Jesus to feed them again, and when He had crossed the sea to the other side, they came again, looking to be fed.   

Upon seeing their devotion and desire for earthly bread, Jesus began to speak about the bread from heaven.  When their minds began to think of the manna that their forefathers ate, Jesus said to them that the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world (John 6:33).

So that there would be no doubt about what or who the bread of God is, Jesus proclaimed that He is that bread – the bread of life.  Jesus then said that those who come to Him and eat would never hunger and would live forever (John 6:35, 58).

Let’s be clear about this: the bread of God provides unending nourishment to the soul so that it can, once again, live.  If you choose to eat of the bread of God, consuming Christ and His doctrine, you will never hunger nor feel empty on the inside again!

The pure milk and wine of God

There were two more drinks on the table – the milk and the wine.  

In general, we know that milk nourishes, as it is very nutritious and helps growth; it is what babies are given.  Spiritually speaking, milk also nourishes and helps growth for those who would be considered babies in the faith.  In 1 Peter 2:2, Peter said that as newborn babes, one ought to desire the pure milk of the word, that one may grow thereby.  

Yet, as good as that milk tastes, one ought to grow up from drinking only milk, as stated in Hebrews 5:13.  The wine being on the table that God invites the thirsty and the poor to drink is truly most interesting to me.  How many of you are inviting the thirsty and the poor to drink of your wine?

Wine wasn’t necessarily the casual and recreational drink it is today.  In ancient times, wine was used either for special occasions or for nutrition, to give someone life and energy.  We actually see wine used for such purposes in scripture that I wnat to reference.

It is often confused for wine, but at the Feast of Passover, when Jesus sat with the eleven, He took the cup filled with fruit of the vine and told them what it represented.  Jesus told them that it represented a new covenant being made in His shed blood for the remission of all sins.

Then, when Jesus hung on the cross, Scripture tells us that He was offered wine to drink twice.  At the second offer, Jesus tasted the sour wine before surrendering His soul and having victory on the cross for the souls of mankind.

The wine of God is a drink of celebration for the one whom He gave as a witness to lead and to command (Is. 55:4).  The wine of God is our celebration drink for at the table of God there is victory for the soul no longer being in suffering, but having salvation–victory.

God’s Invitation Changes Everything

I want you to note that everything that God has set on His table and invited you to partake in is for your soul.  Nothing that God offers is for satisfying the flesh.  I also want you to notice that everything that God invites you to partake in is founded in the good shepherd, Jesus Christ, who saves souls.

The question that you must answer is whether or not you will accept God’s invitation to save your soul.  You see, accepting God’s invitation, saying yes to God, is a life-changing decision!

When you say yes to God’s invitation, you will thirst and hunger no more in your spirit because Christ satisfies the soul!  In other words, when you say yes to God’s invitation, you won’t feel empty on the inside any longer!  Therefore, you will hurt no longer on the inside.

When you say yes to God’s invitation, all of the fear and anxiety from trying to find salvation will be removed from the soul, and the soul will know peace.  The soul at peace is a soul that is blessed.  Will you accept God’s invitation to be blessed and satisfied in your soul, or will you continue a desperate search that will leave you stressed and empty in a day when that is Satan’s main goal?