So let's now read together from Isaiah 53. Let's hear God's word.
Who has believed our message? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?
He grew up before him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground.
He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.
He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering and familiar with pain.
Like one from whom people hide their faces, he was despised, and we held him in low esteem.
Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him and afflicted.
But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities.
The punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.
We all, like sheep, have gone astray. Each of us has turned to our own way, and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.
He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth.
He was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth.
By oppression and judgment he was taken away, yet who of his generation protested?
For he was cut off from the land of the living. For the transgression of my people he was punished.
He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death.
Though he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth,
yet it was the Lord's will to crush him and cause him to suffer.
And though the Lord makes his life an offering for sin,
he will see his offspring and prolong his days,
and the will of the Lord will prosper in his hand.
After he has suffered, he will see the light of life and be satisfied.
By his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many,
and he will bear their iniquities.
Therefore I will give him a portion among the great,
and he will divide the spoils with the strong,
because he poured out his life unto death,
and was numbered with the transgressors.
For he bore the sin of many,
and made intercession for the transgressors.
So we will think about the first six verses today,
this famous servant song in Isaiah 53,
and we'll think particularly about the suffering of the servant
from those first six verses.
You are perhaps familiar with the phrase
that one man's freedom fighter is another's terrorist,
the point being that one's perspective and point of view
influences how we view particular characters and their actions.
We can think of Nelson Mandela,
we can think of Martin Luther King,
and many others.
We recognise too, don't we, I think,
that our perspectives on a person or on a situation can become fixed,
especially if it's connected to our view of the world
and how the world works.
And we see that in a very polarised world that we live in today.
People find themselves in camps,
and it's really hard to even understand how the other thinks.
Well, we're going to spend three weeks in this remarkable chapter
with a remarkable perspective.
What we have is Isaiah, led by the Spirit,
700 years before the death of Jesus,
and it's as if he, led by the Spirit,
is overhearing eyewitnesses to the events
around the life, death and resurrection of Jesus.
And he hears them confess.
We thought one way, but we got it wrong.
We were wrong about Jesus.
So as he is being revealed, this prophecy,
Isaiah transports his first hearers forward 700 years,
and he then transports us back some 2,000 years,
back to the suffering and the death of Jesus
so that we might be able to answer,
what is my perspective?
What is my verdict on Jesus and what he came to do?
You've perhaps heard people talk about being on the wrong side of history,
particularly in the world of politics.
You know that there is an important issue,
and the logic goes that if you find yourself on the wrong side of that issue
or that policy, you will, and your party will lose out in the end.
Well, in a sense, we hear that principle being applied by the apostles
in the Book of Acts.
The crucial event is the sending of Jesus
and his work on the cross and his resurrection.
And the apostles will say,
if your verdict on Jesus does not match up with God's,
then you are on the wrong side and you will lose out,
and you will lose out eternally.
So in Acts chapter 2 and at verse 36,
Peter says,
God has made this Jesus whom you crucified.
There's the world's verdict.
God has made him both Lord and Messiah.
There's God's verdict.
Acts chapter 3 that we read,
you killed the author of life.
There's the world's verdict.
But God raised him from the dead,
and he glorified him.
And we are witnesses of this.
There's God's verdict.
So this unique voice,
this unique perspective from Isaiah 53
brings us a really vivid description
of Jesus' suffering and death and resurrection.
We'll see that in those three weeks running up to Easter,
and we're called then to share the Lord's verdict on Jesus
and to help us to do that,
we're going to focus today
on what Isaiah says about Jesus suffering in his life
and Jesus suffering in his death.
So first of all, in the first three verses,
two perspectives on the suffering of Jesus in his life.
So here's Isaiah's prophecy
in which he is revealing to us
what contemporaries of Jesus might have said
after the cross,
after they have witnessed those events.
And in view here are those who have now come to faith
in the Lord Jesus.
In verse 1,
these people say,
who has believed our message?
They have come to believe the message of Jesus
and now they're sharing that message,
but they are finding themselves resisted,
being resisted rather.
So as they share their testimony,
what is their approach?
Their approach is very much
there's a before and there's an after.
We used to think this way about Jesus,
but now with God's revelation,
we think differently.
So their perspective on Jesus suffering life before faith,
let's look at verse 2.
They regarded Jesus as nothing special.
He grew up before him like a tender shoot.
Jesus was fragile.
Jesus was weak.
Think about perhaps the spring flowers in your garden,
knowing that all it would take would be a harsh frost
and those flowers would not make it.
He grew up like a root out of dry ground.
What does that saying imply?
It implies that Jesus was unimpressive.
He began from unpromising conditions.
Can anything good come out of Nazareth?
Isn't he Mary's son?
Isn't he the son of the carpenter?
What about the appearance of Jesus?
He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him.
Nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.
There was nothing compelling,
nothing imposing.
Jesus did not draw attention by his physical presence
or by his nobility.
Rather, we know Jesus was born in a stable
and his home town was a backwater village
that was regarded with contempt.
He was homeless.
When he rode into Jerusalem,
he didn't come on a war horse.
He came on a donkey.
When image is everything,
many look at Jesus and say,
he's nothing special.
Verse 3 takes it further
to imply that in their thinking before faith,
Jesus was a nobody.
He was despised and rejected by mankind.
The natural reaction of people to Jesus
was to treat him with contempt.
We see that all through his life
with the religious leaders.
We hear the mockery at the cross.
He saved others,
but he can't save himself.
Jesus was a man of suffering,
a man of sorrow and familiar with pain.
Isolated, misunderstood,
not receiving sympathy.
And bear in mind that he's familiar
with sorrow and pain only
because he came to take ours,
because he came to save us.
He left the glory of heaven
with it was no sorrow or pain
to enter into our world
to save us.
Verse 3 says,
he was held in low esteem,
drawn from the world of accountancy.
Jesus is a zero.
People turned their faces
and turned their backs to Jesus.
He was devalued and degraded
both in his life
and as he died.
And Isaiah allows us
to overhear this testimony.
This was how we saw Jesus,
but now,
with the perspective of faith,
it's quite different.
Back to verse 1.
Who has believed our message
and to whom has
the arm of the Lord been revealed?
Who is Jesus?
He is the arm of the Lord.
What does that mean?
Jesus is God's demonstration
of saving power.
It's used a lot in the book of Exodus.
God saving by an outstretched arm,
the arm of power
to rescue from slavery.
The point now we see
Jesus is God's powerful saviour.
He brings freedom,
not from physical slavery,
but from spiritual slavery,
from sin leading to death.
And he sets people free
so that we might enjoy life with God.
And they're now able to see that.
So how did this change happen?
Because this is a total 180, isn't it?
Verse 1, again,
is so important.
To whom has the arm of the Lord
been revealed?
It was revealed to them
by God,
by his Spirit,
giving them the eyes of faith.
Without that,
they would have continued
to treat Jesus with contempt.
And without the eyes of faith,
so too would we.
Now,
they understand
Jesus suffers
to save us.
And so the message
that Isaiah 53 brings
is don't ignore Jesus.
Don't despise Jesus.
As Isaiah draws us in,
let's ask the question,
what is my verdict
on Jesus,
the suffering servant?
Does it match the crowds
of culture and society?
Does it match the Lord's verdict?
If you're a worshipper of Jesus today,
praise God
that he has revealed
that truth to you,
that he has given you
the eyes of faith.
It was nothing to do with us.
It's all a gift of God's grace.
So let's praise him for that.
And if you have up until now,
as it were,
walked on by,
ask God
to reveal the truth
to your heart.
Why did Jesus come?
Jesus came because by nature
we are all
on the wrong side of history.
We are separated from God
because of our sin
and our guilt,
our deliberate rejection of God.
We stand under the judgment of God
and we face,
left to ourselves,
eternal separation
without God
and without anything
that is good.
Jesus came because
we are a people
who need
to be rescued
and God in love
sent Jesus,
our loving rescuer.
Who is Jesus?
Jesus is the Lord's gift to us.
Jesus is the substitute
who suffers and dies
in love for us.
And he's come to promise
true, eternal life,
lasting and solid hope,
deep, unending joy,
freedom from guilt
and fear,
the answer
to our loneliness
in his person
and in his work.
Are we trusting him?
Have we seen
who he is?
And let me ask a further question
if we're Christians today.
Who are we sharing
this message with?
So remember,
this is testimony
of people whose lives
have been changed
so now they're followers
of Jesus
and they want to bring
the good news.
Remember the power
of our stories.
I read a recent survey
that said 57% of people
who come to faith
come because a friend
or a family member
taught them from God's word
and showed them Jesus
in their life
and in their actions.
So are we praying
and praying for one another
to have opportunities
and when those opportunities
come that we would
take them
and that our life
and our character
and our words
would point people
towards Jesus.
Well,
from two perspectives
on Jesus'
suffering life,
let's think now
about two perspectives
on Jesus'
suffering in his death.
So Isaiah is continuing
to invite us in
to listen in
to the testimony
of these spectators
who were at the cross
and it's very vivid
his description.
The events,
did you notice,
the events are described
in the past tense
as if they have already
taken place.
Isaiah invites his readers
to span time and space
to take us right
to the foot of the cross.
So as we watch
the suffering
and the death of Jesus,
what's clearly understood
by the people
in view here
is that God
was involved
in the death
of Jesus.
But before faith,
they thought God
was punishing Jesus
for his sin.
But once the Spirit
worked and opened
their eyes
and gave them faith,
they saw Jesus
as punished
for our sin.
So let's consider
both those perspectives.
Let's see how they viewed
the cross
before faith
when they thought
Jesus was punished
for his sin.
Look at the second part
of verse 4.
It's very strong language.
We considered him
punished by God,
stricken by him
and afflicted.
This is the language
of deep suffering.
They clearly,
as they watched the cross,
recognised God's hand
of punishment
upon Jesus
but they misunderstood
why it was happening.
We know
that the charge
that was brought
by the religious leaders
was that Jesus
was guilty of blasphemy,
claiming to be
Son of God
when he wasn't.
And then when we go
to the cross,
we hear mockery,
let God rescue him
if he delights in him.
So many in the crowd
looked at Jesus
and thought,
here is someone
who is dying
under God's curse
and he deserves it
because he's claimed
something that is
just not true.
He's made himself
equal to God.
But then,
as the Spirit worked
and as the truth
was revealed,
what's their view
of the cross
after faith?
Not that Jesus
was punished
for his own sin,
no,
that Jesus was punished
for our sin.
The Spirit works
in them
and they recognise
Jesus is
our substitute.
He takes our sin,
he takes our place,
he takes our punishment.
Isaiah's first hearers
were familiar
with the Day of Atonement
and what happened
on the Day of Atonement
is that there were
two animals,
two goats
and one goat
it was taken
and the sin
of the people
as it were
was transferred
onto that animal
and then it was slaughtered
as a way to say
it's a blood sacrifice
that is required
for forgiveness
and peace with God.
But then there was
the other animal,
the scapegoat
and again the sins
of the people
were symbolically
laid on that animal
and the animal
was then sent
out into the world
and it's carrying
as it were
those sins,
carrying them
out of sight.
And now the testimony
from Isaiah 53
is Jesus is what
that ceremony is,
what the Day of Atonement
points to.
His life is that
perfect sacrifice,
his blood brings
forgiveness,
he is the one
who carries sin
and disposes of it
in his life.
And we see in verses
four to six,
I think three important
aspects of the gospel.
First we see the cost,
the cost of our salvation.
Look again at verse four.
Surely he took up our pain
and bore our suffering,
yet we consider him
punished by God.
There's an emphasis
in this chapter
on the great distinction.
There's he,
the servant,
Jesus and we,
those who benefit.
But the point is
that Jesus stands
and acts alone
in his suffering.
Jesus took up our pain
and bore our suffering.
Perhaps it would be helpful
to think of the image
of waist disposal.
What if you get someone
who comes to do
a bulky uplift?
What do they do?
They come and they pick up
our waist,
our rubbish.
They perhaps put it
on their shoulders
depending how heavy it is
and they then dispose of it.
So it is no longer
our problem.
Isaiah 53 reminds us
that Jesus picks up
our sin,
our moral and spiritual garbage
and he shoulders it
and he carries it
as if it was his own
and he disposes of it.
He takes the full punishment
for it
so it is fully forgiven
for those who have
the eyes of faith
and who trust in Jesus
and that what he did
on the cross
he did for us.
This is costly grace.
This is the cost
to God
of our salvation.
Jesus,
the Son of God,
dies for our sin
in our place
to secure for us
a forgiveness
we can freely receive
by faith,
by trusting
and believing.
So that's the cost
that we see
in the gospel.
But then in verse 5
we are shown
the exchange
that takes place,
the great exchange
that takes place
in the gospel.
Jesus takes something
from us
and he gives something
to us.
What does Jesus take?
Verse 5
He was pierced
for our transgressions
He was crushed
for our iniquities
The punishment
that brought us peace
was on him
and by his wounds
we are healed.
Jesus takes
our sin
One of the words
is transgression
that's a deliberate
breaking
a deliberate rejection
of God's law.
when we turn
our back
on what we clearly
know God
wants us to do
when we break
and dismiss
the Ten Commandments
for example
and Jesus takes
our iniquity
when God sets
a straight path
and we make it crooked
because we don't
live to fully
please God
Jesus takes
that on himself
so he takes
our sin
and then he takes
the penalty
for sin
he is pierced
and he is crushed
and he bears wounds
all pictures
of violent death
and
as we are reminded
he is punished
by God
and that is
a deeper agony
than the physical
pain he endured
Jesus as he becomes
the sin bearer
of the world
is regarded
by his father
as the worst sinner
who ever lived
and Jesus feels
that sense
of being forsaken
by his father
on the cross
as he faces
in himself
the holy anger
of God
against sin
and remember
Jesus is sinlessly
perfect
he is doing that
not for his sin
but for our sin
so Jesus takes sin
and it's penalty
and what does he give
Jesus gives
we're told
peace
and healing
the wonderful message
of the gospel
is that Jesus
is abandoned
so that we can be
welcomed
so that we can be
reconciled
Jesus takes
into himself
the poison
of sin
so that we
can be healed
and here is the
unique beauty
of Christianity
because it shows
us God's grace
and kindness
on full display
the Bible doesn't
say to us
do better
try harder
try and earn
your salvation
what we see
in this exchange
is that it's all
about God's kindness
we could never
pay the price
for our sin
we could never
earn God's favour
because we can never
be good enough
rather by faith
we receive it
as a gift
purchased for us
at the cross
by the suffering
of the Lord Jesus
and then there's
another aspect
of the gospel
that we see
in verse 6
and that's
the rescue
that takes place
notice that the
verse starts
and finishes
with an
all
we all
this is a vital
part of the
testimony that's
shared in Isaiah
53
we all have
gone astray
there's the extent
of the human
problem
no one is
exempt from
the problem
of sin
all of us
in our conscience
in our hearts
know that all
is not well
between us
and God
left to ourselves
there's a second
all at the end
there
the Lord has
laid on him
the iniquity
of us
all
there's the extent
of God's solution
and God's salvation
there is no one
who can say
this is not open
to me
this is not for me
anyone who has
faith and who
looks to Jesus
will know
that he has
taken sin
that he has
carried out
that rescue
the picture here
in verse 6
is of a wandering
sheep
and a wandering
sheep
far from the
shepherd
is in danger
and notice here
it's in danger
by their own
choosing
they turn to
their own
way
we turn
away
from our
good and
gracious
king
abandoning
the shepherd
and his
care
for us
and God's
response
the penalty
for wandering
the penalty
of rebellion
is not laid
on God's
people
it's laid
on Jesus
Jesus
as he said
in John 10
I am the good
shepherd
and I lay
down my life
for the sheep
Jesus suffers
death
so that you
and I
might enjoy
true life
if we
look to
him
and trust
him
and trust
his care
and trust
what he
did
on the
cross
again
Jesus
is being
presented
to us
as
the
suffering
servant
the suffering
saviour
and Isaiah
invites the
question
what is my
verdict
on the
cross
on Jesus
suffering
on the
cross
remember
Jesus
death and
resurrection
our true
history
every
scholar
of note
every historian
of note
whether they're
Christian or
not
recognises
the cross
is fact
and many
even
sceptical
even
non-Christian
scholars
recognise
the resurrection
has
facts
backing it
up
this is
truth
don't rush
by the truth
don't ignore
the truth
don't think
that it's
a small
thing
or for
another
day
this is
too
important
remember
the Lord's
verdict
God glorified
Jesus
God
raised
Jesus
and in
that
there is
a reminder
that the
price for
our sin
and guilt
is fully
paid
that sin
and death
have been
defeated
that Jesus
has been
vindicated
and raised
in
triumph
so just
like the
characters
of Isaiah
53
who have
been
pictured
in this
prophecy
if as
yet you
have not
trusted
in Jesus
as Lord
and Saviour
recognise
that you
need
the work
of God's
spirit
in your
life
to change
your heart
and change
your perspective
ask him
to do
that
read
God's
word
read
the
gospels
discover
who
Jesus
is
and why
he
came
so that
you would
trust in
him
so as we
approach
Easter
is it not
too far
away now
let's
worship
Jesus
with the
eyes
of faith
remembering
that there's
no part
of our
need
that he
doesn't
deal
with
that's
good
news
and if
we're
trusting
him
take
heart
that we
are on
the right
side of
history
that Jesus
the
saviour
is for
us
and he
is with
us
and he
has won
the victory
for us