His purpose will stand

Dear Kimberly,

Turn with me, if you will, to Isaiah 55:9-11. Wait wait wait. I sound like a pastor. Not that that’s a bad thing, it’s just that a pastor’s job is to preach and mine is to...think visibly (aka, write stuff). So scratch that. But not all of it. I really do want to look at those verses, but rather than requiring you to B.Y.O.B (bring your own bible) to this little chat, I’ll give you the verses here:

“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” (NIV). 

I’m pretty sure you’ve heard the part about the word not returning empty (or “void” as we usually say), but how familiar are you with the rest of the passage? I heard the “not return void” part recently at a retreat I attended and realized I had no idea where that verse was in the bible. Was it there at all? Did it really mean what it sounded like it meant? I didn’t know any of the surrounding verses...how could I be sure it was even being used correctly?

After Todd did a word search on his iPod, I read the verse in Isaiah. Isaiah. No wonder I had no idea where it was...my OT familiarity is rough. But as I read, I was struck at how wonderful a passage it really is (no surprise, of course. I mean, it is the bible, after all). It says a lot more about God than the one little phrase “will not return void” lets on. Just look at it. 

• It proves the superiority of God over his creation: “My ways are higher than your ways.”
• It proves God knows vastly more than his creation: “My thoughts [are higher] than your thoughts.”
• It proves that his purposes stand: “...it will not return to me void but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.”

I do kind of want to focus on the last part, because it is from this section that people usually quote. God’s purpose will be accomplished; the thing he desires will be achieved. That is a very comforting thought, and it reflects that God is an incredibly powerful God. No matter what he has determined, it will happen. It must. He is God and he has complete control over all things. Over ALL things. Think about that. It makes verses like this make complete sense:

“I form the light and create darkness. I bring prosperity and create disaster; I, the Lord, do all these things” (Is. 45:7, NIV). 

So what is the purpose of God’s word here? He speaks, and we are prospered. He speaks, and we find ourselves in the middle of unimaginable disaster. I use “speak” here figuratively, of course, but the point is that what God has determined for our lives, that he will do. It may look like a blessing, or it may look at a cataclysmic downward spiral. Either way, his purpose will be achieved in our lives. It’s in times like these that the Christian can cling very closely to Romans 8:28. He does work all things out for the good of those who love him, the ones he has called according to his purpose (there’s that word again...). 

I want to give you another verse to think about in regards to this. Look at what Paul says in 1 Corinthians (or “one Corinthians,” as the people here would usually say):

“For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God” (v18, NIV). 

If you keep reading in the book (especially the next two chapters, in my opinion) you will see how the Christian is given such an incredible understanding of God’s word, but it is not something he has on his own. The purpose of God’s word to the believer is power. Christians have such amazing power through the word of God, illuminated and taught to us by the Holy Spirit. It’s really quite remarkable. Praise the Lord, he causes us to grow in this power!

But the word of God serves a dual purpose, according to this verse. It not only serves as power for the believer, but it serves as foolishness for the unbeliever. Please, stop right now and go read 2 Corinthians three and four...it’s more than I want to quote here but it’s relevant to this topic. Unbelievers are blinded, the gospel is veiled. They cannot see it until God opens their eyes. His word is to them foolishness, and this is what he intended. His purpose is always achieved. 

Ok, I’ll stop for now. God has a really massive character, so let’s not bite off more than we can chew. Think about this. Think about him. As you do, I pray that God will give you the Spirit of revelation and wisdom, so that you may know him better (Eph. 1: 17b)

Love, 

Meredith