“JUNK FOOD FAITH VS. GOD’S FEAST” Isaiah 55:1-5
People are always inviting me to do things that they think are fun.
Rock climbing, axe-throwing, skiing, fishing, escape rooms, parasailing, board games… I mean, you name it. People are always saying, “Come on! It'll be fun!”
And I’m like, “I hear you… but I don’t really like fun.”
At least not the kind of fun that involves gravity, potential broken limbs, or being locked in a room and using calculus to get out.
I’m more into old-school fun. Like Ecclesiastes level old school.
Ecclesiastes 2:24 says…
“There is nothing better for a person than that he should eat and drink
and find enjoyment in his toil.”
Now that’s my kind of fun right there.
I love my work.
And I love to eat and drink with family and friends.
Honestly, there’s nothing I enjoy more. That’s my idea of a perfect day.
And apparently Jesus is on the same page — because He’s always working and always eating. If you track the Gospels, He’s at a dinner party, He’s drinking with friends and sinners, He’s at someone’s Friday night party reclining at table… He does so much ministry at meals that the Pharisees accuse Him of being “a glutton and a drunkard” [Luke 7:34].
How much do you have to eat and drink before people start rumors? I like to think if we’re NOT starting rumors, maybe we’re doing it wrong.
Remember His first miracle?
Turning water into wine… at a wedding… where they had already floated the keg.
“Jesus, we’re out of booze!”
“Don’t worry, I got it.”
I think some modern Christians would rather He had turned the wine into water. Fits their theology better.
What was He doing after the resurrection?
Cooking breakfast on the beach.
The disciples are traumatized and confused — Jesus hands them a fish taco. [John 21:12].
From the opening chapters of Genesis to the last page of Revelation, God keeps inviting people to eat and drink with Him.
First command in the Bible? Do you remember what it was? I don’t think you do. Ha
God looks at Adam and say, “Here. Eat this.” He points to the fruit on almost all of the trees and said, “You may surely eat…” [Genesis 2:16]. Of course Adam and Eve couldn’t take their eyes off the one tree He said has poison.Then there’s the last command in the Bible? Remember what that is? You’re going to get this one wrong too.
Revelation 22:17 God says, “Here, drink this.” “Let the one who is thirsty come… take the water of life without price.” First page, “eat.” Last page, “drink.”
And then heaven itself is described as a feast called the Marriage Supper of the Lamb.
Some people imagine heaven like a 24/7 worship concert.
I like concerts and worship services more than most people — but spending eternity in a fog machine cloud while the worship leader changes the key of “Holy, Holy, Holy” every eleven minutes? I don’t know… I’d probably start looking for a snack.
But a sit down feast?
Prepared by God?
With Jesus and with everyone we love?
Yeah. That sounds like heaven to me.
That’s what I call real fun.
And you know… NewChurch used to lean into this.
When we started, we stayed after worship every week and ate together — BYOA: Bring Your Own Anything.
Coolers full of “Lutheran beverages.”
Crockpots filled with roast beef and all the good things. Peach cobbler, Texas sheetcake. Kerry would have loved it. Kids running everywhere making lifelong friends.
We actually lived the dream for a while—on earth as it is in heaven.
Then Harvey kicked us out of our first location, The Lab. Then schools limited our beverage choices. Then crazy cafeteria fees limited how often we could do it.
And we lost the rhythm.
But I miss it. A lot.
Because it wasn’t just food — it was fellowship, great conversations.
It was community.
It was a weekly reminder that God’s Kingdom looks like a feast with plenty for everyone.
Today, for the second week in Advent, we’re going to look at Isaiah 55, God setting the table for His people — and shouting to the whole world: “Come and get it!” Inviting starving, busy, exhausted people to a feast they didn’t cook, can’t afford, and don’t believe is actually for them.
[Isaiah 55:1–5] “Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.”
Sounds like a free lunch, but we’re all so cynical.
We’re like, “There’s no such thing.”
We assume everything has strings attached. Everything costs something.
Ever try to buy someone lunch and they instantly panic?
They’re like, “Oh… well at least let me get the tip!”
Or they refuse entirely.
Or they promise to get you next time.
Or they wonder if you’re going to try and get them into a multi-level marketing scheme.
We’re not comfortable with free things. “What’s the catch?”
Because when something is free… we’re not in control.
We feel like we owe someone.
And we don’t like it.
God’s basically saying, ‘Hey—if you’re thirsty, grab a drink. If you’re broke, no problem—have something to eat. Take all you want—it’s all on the house.’”
— and we don’t really believe Him.
There has be a catch.
Let me see the fine print.
Got to be some hidden fee.
Isaiah isn’t making a casual suggestion; this is an urgent invitation. A town crier at closing time, he’s not whispering, he’s shouting: ‘Come now, before the market closes, before it’s too late.’
Isaiah is echoing the cries of ancient market vendors — except this one crazy guy is giving it all away for free. So we’re skeptical. And with good reason. It’s not really free, it was just paid for by someone else. The “price” had already been paid by the Suffering Servant in chapter 53, prepaid by His wounds—but it’s free to us.
The best bread.
Wine = to make the heart glad.
Milk = for complete nourishment.
Water = for life itself—wisdom and salvation.
Jesus didn’t just pay for it, He is the feast. He’s the Bread of Life, the Living Water, the true wine that gladdens the heart.
All the good stuff, and it’s all free. We couldn’t pay for it if we wanted to.
It’s grace. And God doesn’t sell grace. It’s not for sale.
He serves it. Just dishes it out for the taking.
Which should sound like good news but instead it offends us. You know why?
Because it’s not the way the world works.
Every belief system outside Christianity puts the burden of reaching God on us — whether through striving, rituals, or karma — but Jesus reverses that: He comes to us.
Buddhism says:
“Strive without ceasing.”
Enlightenment has to be earned.
Islam has:
The Five Pillars—good deeds weighed against bad deeds.
Salvation is never certain. You have to try and earn it—and hope for the best.
Hinduism is all about:
Karma and endless cycles of rebirth.
You achieve your advancement by how you live.
And secular culture is the worst:
It’s all about self-help. Hustle. The grind.
You have to manifest your reality.
Most of us can’t even manifest a clean kitchen.
Every path says, ‘Do more, climb higher.’ Only Jesus says, ‘It is finished. I did it for you.”
Too many branches of Christianity even drift away from the truly free Gospel, which is “You have been saved by grace through faith.”
Instead they say it’s “Grace and…”
“Faith but also…”
It’s “Jesus forgives as long as…”
Too many Christians are like, “Sure salvation is a gift, but you have to keep it with your performance.”
We are allergic to grace. We hate grace.
Tomorrow night the ladies and gentlemen of NewChurch are having White Elephant Gift exchanges. Most of us would feel pretty bad if we brought nothing to the party and ended up with a $500 gift. Rightly so. You’d have to be a sociopath not to. But the gospel is a party where you bring less than nothing and end up getting everything. It should be humbling. In a good way.
So, God gives us all the good stuff…
And then [VERSE 2] goes on to say, so…
“Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy?”
We don’t even try to buy the good stuff, we spend all our money on garbage.
That which is not bread—Junk food.
And why do we do that? Because junk food is delicious. Who doesn’t love a Twinkie? A Ding Dong wrapped in foil like in the 70s? We knew it wasn’t food but it tasted like childhood and joy. Set us up for a lifetime of poor nutritional decisions. We learned, if it tastes good, it’s bad for you. Not exactly solid advice but who you going to trust? The experts?
Who change their minds every two days?
First eggs are bad for you.
Then they’re good for you.
Then only the yolks are bad.
Then only the whites are bad.
Then the whole chicken is bad.
Then cholesterol is actually the hero.
Then everything causes cancer except kale, unless you like kale, then it probably causes cancer, too.
We don’t know what to believe or who to believe. But we’ve all pretty much accepted that anything we like is bad for us.
Isaiah’s saying we have the same problem spiritually. We buy a lot of junk food and then wonder why we feel so empty.
Because we have an endless craving for…
The applause of people.
Making a god out of our children and damaging them by pushing them to be perfect.
Possessions that won’t last, financial obsessions.
Porn that excites in the most empty way possible.
Addictions that promise peace but steal our future.
Endless scrolling that wastes our days and leaves us depressed.
Religion without Jesus.
Faith without believing the Word of God.
Christianity without the cross.
A gospel that kind of starts with “grace” but ends up being some version of “but you better not screw it up.”
Junk food. All of it. That which is not bread. Chasing after false teaching, idolatry, trying to save ourselves. All the trash we try to “feed” ourselves with. This isn’t just about unhealthy habits. At its core, it’s unbelief. We don’t trust that the Father’s table is enough, so we eat out of the trash instead.
We’re starving of spiritual malnutrition while ignoring God’s banquet.
I have my own pantry full of junk food and distractions—seasons when I try to feed everyone else but foolishly live on leftovers and empty calories.
Isaiah 55:2b [ESV] says…
“Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food.”
“Rich food” is salvation itself (Isaiah 25:6). The Gospel is described as a feast. True comfort food. Jesus didn’t just pay your bill — He pulled out a chair with your name on it, set a plate in front of you, and joined you at the table.
Every good meal you eat this December — where the mac-n-cheese is perfect, the cinnamon roll is gooey and hits just right—at our house on Christmas Day, it’s lasagna that sits in your belly like a glorious hug from heaven— all these things are a preview of the Gospel.
A foretaste if you will—of life in the kingdom of God.
Isaiah 55:3 [ESV] says…
“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.
The same promise given to David — chosen, secure, never cast off, loved by God — is now given to all who hear the gospel and come to Christ.
God doesn’t just feed you.
He adopts you. You're in the family now.
And He’s not going to un-adopt you.
Isaiah 55:4 [ESV]:
“Behold, I made him a witness to the peoples, a leader and commander for the peoples. Behold, you shall call a nation that you do not know, and a nation that did not know you shall run to you, because of the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel, for he has glorified you.”
You’ll call people that you don’t know—you’ll invite your neighbor. God feeds you so you can feed others. Think of the person at work or school who always seems exhausted… or someone who goes back to a dark house alone… the friend who jokes about hating Christmas. That’s who the feast is for.
The image is food but we’re talking about faith. Do you want to know how to tell if your faith is your own faith, or it’s really just your parent’s faith, or grandparent’s or something…
It’s like a sandwich. If I hand you a sandwich, and you think you’re just holding it for me, you’re probably not going to eat it. And you’re certainly not going to share it with anyone.
But if I hand you a sandwich, and you believe it’s yours. You’ll take a bite. And if you like it…
A great sandwich makes you lean over to your friend and say:
“Have you tried this? Oh, my gosh! You’ve gotta try it!”
If I like something from one of our crockpot buffets, I have to tell someone. I have to share it with them. I’ll make it awkward, “Here, you gotta try this!” I’ll put some on your plate—put it right in your mouth if I have to.
That’s how evangelism is supposed to work.
Not a sales pitch.
Not an argument.
Just hungry people sharing their free, delicious food with other hungry people.
Look around your life and ask God: ‘Who’s hungry? Who in my life needs an invitation?’ And then invite them — to dinner, to church, or just to hang out and not be alone.
You’ve been invited to the feast. It’s why you’re here.
Show up hungry.
When we take Communion — that’s a taste of Isaiah 55.
When we open God’s word — we are feasting on riches from heaven.
Jesus said, “I have bread that you know not of.” So do you.
When we have HangTime, stay and love the people in your church. Make it about them. Learn how to listen and delight in people. Plan ahead—bring something amazing to share with your church family. If you find something that’s really good, make sure your friends try it—that’s a little picture of the gospel.
I want us to get back to doing this pretty much every week. Eventually, I hope we have our own place where we can eat and drink in the presence of God as a true glimpse of that heavenly feast Isaiah is talking about.
None of this is a heavy burden. It’s all free.
You don’t have to earn anything.
You don’t even have to bring a dish or a gift to participate.
You can’t buy your way in, your résumé doesn’t have to be up to date, your worthiness isn’t based on anything you do. And there’s no catch.
This is what God is saying to you:
“Come and get it. Everything’s ready.”
The feast is free because Jesus paid the bill on the cross.
The seat at the table is yours because Jesus saved it for you.
The promise is unbreakable because Jesus sealed it with His resurrection.
It all comes down to this, because of Jesus…
Your sins are forgiven.
Your hunger is satisfied.
Your thirst is quenched.
Your place at God’s table is secure forever.
And here’s the thing — even after spending an entire sermon talking about God’s invitation to eat, drink, rest, and rejoice… all for free… some of you are still thinking:
“Okay… but what do I owe?”
Nothing.
Show up hungry.
Open your hands.
Take and eat.
The world is always going to invite you to the kind of “fun” that requires you to risk your neck, your peace, your soul — climbing walls, chasing approval, performing spiritual gymnastics just to feel worthy.
But God invites you to something better:
Eat. Drink. Rest. Be loved. Be forgiven.
What you were created for.
So when God says, ‘Come on… it’ll be fun,’ He’s talking about the kind of things that bring deep satisfaction. He’s talking about a feast of grace, the joy of being accepted by God as His beloved child, and the comfort of coming home.
Amen.