Jesus Christ – the Sin-Bearing Suffering Servant who took OUR place
August 2 Bible Reading: Isaiah Chapters 52-54
Jesus Christ – the Sin-Bearing Suffering Servant who took OUR place
"Surely
He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed Him stricken,
smitten by God, and afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions, He
was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him,
and by His stripes we are healed." (Isaiah 53:4-5)
Isaiah 53 is a prophecy about Jesus Christ – the suffering
Servant - God’s perfect sacrifice for the sins of the world (Acts 8:26–40). This
prophecy actually begins in Isaiah 52:13 telling us that the Servant suffered
for doing God’s will and yet was highly exalted by the Lord. Jesus was
humiliated in His birth and life (vv. 1–3) as well as during His trial, His
sufferings and His death (vv. 4–9). He was depicted as a beaten servant
(52:13–14), a root (53:2), an innocent lamb (53:7), an offering for sin
(53:10), a woman in travail giving birth to spiritual “seed” (53:10–11), and a
victorious general (53:12).
Our Lord Jesus suffered all
five kinds of wounds known to medical science: contusions (through blows by a rod), lacerations (through scourging on His back), penetrating wounds (through crown of thorns on His head), perforating wounds (through nails on His
hands and feet) and incised wounds
(through spear on His side). It was for our transgressions, for our iniquities,
and in order that we might have peace, in order that we might be healed. The
truth is that we were the ones who went astray and who walked in self-will and
Jehovah placed our iniquity on Him, the sinless substitute.
Our Lord Jesus literally fulfilled all the prophecies made by Isaiah with regards to the Suffering
Servant:
- He will be exalted (compare Isaiah 52:13 with Philippians 2:9)
- He will be disfigured by suffering (compare Isaiah 52:14; 53:2 with Mark 15:17, 19)
- He will be widely rejected (compare Isaiah 53:1, 3 with John 12:37, 38)
- He will bear our sins and sorrows (compare Isaiah 53:4 with Romans 4:25; 1 Peter 2:24, 25)
- He will make a blood atonement (compare Isaiah 53:5 with Romans 3:25)
- He will be our substitute (compare Isaiah 53:6, 8 with 2 Corinthians 5:21)
- He will voluntarily accept our guilt and punishment (compare Isaiah 53:7 with John 10:11)
- He will be buried in a rich man’s tomb (compare Isaiah 53:9 with John 19:38-42)
- He will justify many from their sin (compare Isaiah 53:10, 11 with Romans 5:15-19)
- He will die with transgressors (compare Isaiah 53:12 with Mark 15:27, 28; Luke 22:37)
Let us consider the glory of the salvation that Jesus has purchased
for us on the cross. God, the Father was pleased, not that His Son suffered,
but that His sacrifice accomplished eternal salvation. God’s justice was
satisfied, and believing sinners can be justified (v. 11; Rom. 3:21–31). Griefs
(or pain) and sorrows (or sickness) refer to the consequences of sin. Our Lord Jesus
came to this earth to suffer and die for our sins and sickness (Isaiah 53:6,
11, 12; Matt. 8:17; Heb. 9:28), so that we can enjoy redemption, health, joy,
peace and eternal life. Have you taken
advantage of His sufferings and death by accepting Him as your Lord and Savior?
"For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps: 'who committed no sin, nor was deceit found in His mouth'; who, when He was reviled, did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but committed Himself to Him who judges righteously; who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness--by whose stripes you were healed." (1 Peter 2:21-24)
