Word Void

Isaiah 55:8–13 KJV 1900

8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, Neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. 9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are my ways higher than your ways, And my thoughts than your thoughts. 10 For as the rain cometh down, And the snow from heaven, And returneth not thither, But watereth the earth, And maketh it bring forth and bud, That it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater: 11 So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: It shall not return unto me void, But it shall accomplish that which I please, And it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it. 12 For ye shall go out with joy, And be led forth with peace: The mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, And all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. 13 Instead of the thorn shall come up the fir tree, And instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle tree: And it shall be to the Lord for a name, For an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.

Examples

The French atheist Voltaire boasted in the 1700’s that in 100 years Christianity would cease to exist, but within 50 years the Geneva Bible Society used his own printing press and house to publish Bibles [Geisler and Nix, A General Introduction to the Bible, 1986, pp. 123, 124]. The Communists gathered Bibles and burned them. Hitler burned Bibles and declared he would write his own. Nations have risen and fallen, but the Word of God lives on! Emperors, Kings and Dictators have attempted to stamp it out, but the Word of God lives on! Many philosophers and educators have mocked the Bible, but today they are dead and the Word of God lives on! B. THERE’S NO FORCE POWERFUL ENOUGH TO STOP IT Moses was opposed by the magicians, but the Word fell on them too. Balaam tried to curse Israel, but God turned his curses into blessings!

Jesus said, Matthew 24:35 “35 Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.”

THE SCRAP OF PAPER . The small piece of paper was hardly worth bending over to pick up. Yet the young father retrieved it and what he read changed his life. He was a devout Hindu living in India. . But the scrap of paper presented a new concept: it told him that he was a sinner and needed a Savior. He decided to put his faith in Jesus Christ who freely forgives all who will ask. The tract was one tiny seed with far-reaching effects. . The man became a preacher of Jesus to unreached areas of India. Two of his sons became missionaries, taking the good news about Jesus to new towns. As a result, 22 new churches have been started and thousands have heard of freedom in Christ. “Just a piece of paper?” Not if it has the Gospel on it! [Daily Bread, Feb. 23, 2000]

The shoe boxes Samaritans purse sends out they change lives.

I love the promise in Isaiah 55 that assures us God’s Word will not return void. Remember it? Here it is: (Isaiah 55:11)

Have you ever wondered, “What shall it accomplish, what is God speaking of here?” After all, we can’t just make one up, can we? We can’t just assign a random purpose of our own choosing as God’s goal for his Word, right? No, we can’t. It’s not our word, it’s His. So it must accomplish what God wills and decides. That’s what it will do when it goes forth, and why it won’t return empty or void. Because it is God’s word, it will do what God would have it to do.

So what is it that God purposes?

According to the context, at least two things: nourishment and change.

Here’s verse 10 —There’s #1: Nourishment.

And here’s verse 13 — There’s #2: Change.

Don’t rush over these verses.

Something amazing unfolds.

It’s easy to see how, when the earth is nourished with water, things grow. That’s verse 10. But what is so amazingly crazy is that when God’s Word goes forth and nourishes (like water), it just doesn’t give us a bigger thorn bush (which is actually what you’d expect in the physical realm, right? Water the thorn bush, and you’ll get a bigger thorn bush). Not so in the spiritual realm! When the water of God’s Word goes forth and nourishes, it also changes things. That’s verse 13. Do you see it? The thorny bush becomes a cypress tree, the briar becomes a myrtle. Wow! God’s Word actually produces internal and external transformation!

Now back to our question: What will God’s word accomplish when it goes forth? What is it, God-intended purpose that will not turn into a voided check of sorts? In a phrase, nourishment and change. In a word, transformation(God’s word will change you)! That’s what it will do. Without fail. That’s no empty promise either.

There’s a lot we could say here, but suffice it to simply say that I hope you’ll be encouraged by this promise: God transforms people by his Word. More personally, God transforms you and me by his Word. That’s why a Bible-centered, Scripture-immersed ministry is of vast importance. You and I can’t feed everyone with our own ideas, nor can we change anyone through our own efforts. It must be God’s Word that waters their soul and eventually changes their life. That’s the only method of genuine life transformation.

Make sure God’s Word is part of, every day of your life, and front and center in your relationships. Read it as much as you can, in every way you can, knowing that when it goes forth, it is backed by the full power and promise of God Almighty Himself, the One who ensures it will nourish and change—transform—all of us who encounter it.

John 1:1 “1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”

Think about Jesus being the Word God the Father sent Jesus into the world and look what happened Jesus turned the world upside down - A total transformation to the people who hear it

Jesus transformed Saul into Paul looks what happens with God’s word

Acts 17:6“6 And when they found them not, they drew Jason and certain brethren unto the rulers of the city, crying, These that have turned the world upside down are come hither also;”

Romans 12:2 “2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.”

How has God’s word transformed you?