“No default economy of grace”

Isaiah 55.1-5

Pastor Tom Johnson, July 31, 2011

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Tuesday is the day when our federal government runs out of money. Economists warn that the government will be default on its loans. The government has spent far more than it has borrowed. And it owes more than we are able to pay back.

It really is pretty simple economics. You must have enough money to pay the bills. You can only borrow money for so long. At some point, what you owe and your expenses are more than what you earn. That’s what it means to be in default.

The foundation of our economy is that we earn money to pay for goods and services. If it costs us $1000 per month for our apartment or mortgage, we must earn at least that much and more to pay for utilities, food, medical care, and tickets to the game, movie, or concert.

The struggle to pay the bills is not just an American problem. All around the world, countries have declared default on loans and even bankruptcy. After months of draught, thousands of Somalians have journeyed through the desert in search of food—livestock is dying, crops are not growing, and there is not enough water.

The struggle to pay the bills is not just a modern problem. In the past, governments and people have earned less money, grown too few crops, raised too few livestock to sustain their living. That same cloud over our heads—that you must pay for what you get—was over their heads. This is basic economics.

It is why God’s sales pitch is so outrageous and even ridiculous. Isaiah heard merchants giving their sales pitches and now he hears the Lord’s:

“Ho, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and you that have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy? Listen carefully to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food.”

“Hey you! Are you thirsty? You hungry? Shop at one of God’s kingdom outlet malls! Get your groceries at the marketplace of the Lord! Stop going to stores where everything has “9s” in its price and ends in “99” and go where every price is zero.”

“That’s right—zero—naught—nil—nothing—absolutely free. If you act now, I will double my offer—not just water but food too. That’s right I will satisfy your thirst and hunger absolutely free. Zero down, zero owed.”

“But wait! There’s more! When you shop here you will not receive anything with empty calories. There is nothing that lacks nutritional value. There is not one product that is poor quality.”

“With an offer like this, why would you continue to spend your money on junk food? Why buy poor quality when you can receive the best for free? This offer is good until the end of time. But act now. God’s people are standing by.”

The economics in God’s Kingdom is outrageous and even ridiculous. “You get what you pay for,” the proverb says. “There’s always a catch,” the cynic says. “Nothing is for free. There is always a cost,” the realist says.

Not so with God. It’s God’s to give because it’s all his. Psalm 24 says, “The earth is the Lord’s and all that is in it, the world, and those who live in it.”

Just a few blocks from here is 1,180 cubic miles of water—that’s 1.3 quadrillion gallons of fresh water. And yet, each month you and I receive a water bill—maybe that is even more ridiculous.

God, Scripture says, is the One “who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food” (Isa 55.10; 2 Cor 9.10). God’s economics are more like the Native American concept—where ownership of land, animals, and crops was foreign and strange.

We are not owners but stewards of God’s gifts. God invites the whole world to enjoy the richest food and drink the creation has to offer. One day, Jesus will come back and there will no longer be thirst, hunger, sickness, death, or a national debt.

I believe that this is the hardest thing to accept about God’s love for us in Jesus Christ—it is free. The economics of God’s grace is outrageous and ridiculous. “The wages of sin is death,” Scripture says, “but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Rom 6:23). It’s a no-default economy of grace—no debt ceiling on his forgiveness—and no limit to his love.

If God were to keep a record of our sins, we would blow the debt ceiling sky high. As the great pop song by the Eurythmics says, “And if I had a dollar bill For all the things I've done There'd be a mountain of money Piled up to my chin.”

The good news is the radical grace of God—that he has paid our all our debts. We owe him nothing but our love, gratitude, and thanksgiving. We do not need to purchase anything or buy his love by our obedience or good works.

He has puchased us with the priceless blood of his Son Jesus. What is the currency in the kingdom of God? Not gold, silver, or the almighty dollar—but the life, blood, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

“Nothing in my hand I bring. Simply to thy cross I cling. Naked come to thee for grace. Helpless look to thee for grace.” Sound too good to be true? Can the good news really be that good? Come and see. And don’t forget your empty pockets. It is absolutely free.