The Servant: Suffering (Isaiah 53:4-6)
We arrive at the central section of the Servant Song, and a central idea of Isaiah’s whole message, central to the Old Testament, and indeed the Bible as a whole, the Suffering Servant.
The suffering of the Messiah is key to the redemptive message for at least three reasons: it deals with the problem of evil and suffering in the world (v. 4), it revealed the concept of penal substitution (v. 5), and it shows that God is victorious in His plan against sin and death (v. 6).
The good news is compelling truth due to three historical pieces of evidence: the incarnation, crucifixion, and resurrection. The incarnation and resurrection tell us that God came to the world to save us and accomplished that mission. The crucifixion tells us that God sees the condition of our world and did not remain aloof. He entered our suffering. He took it and our sin upon Himself. The Servant didn’t deserve the suffering that He experienced. Jesus took on our suffering. Those who look upon the cross with disdain and dismiss it fail to see their own suffering there. Jesus did not deserve the cross; we did. To those who ask, “where is God when a child dies?” He is there, on the cross, bearing the suffering and affliction of the world.
That is not all that the cross says. In verse 5, Isaiah lays out the core of the Gospel Message. Jesus bore our punishment in our place. This is penal substitution. In our rebellion we deserve separation from God. In our rebellion we have made a complete mess of the world. In trying to usurp the place of the Creator and do things the way we see best, we have broken the world. The death, sin, disease, isolation, suffering, and evil we see in the world is of our own design. God was not content to allow His creation, His people whom He created for a loving relationship, to wallow in our own “karmic” consequences. He took that mess upon Himself and bore the punishment for it. He defeated it and offers restored relationship to any who would accept it. And just as He did not force obedience upon Adam and Eve in the garden, He does not force that reconciliation on any who would not take it.
However, He has succeeded in His mission. The Suffering Servant has borne the iniquity of those who have wandered away from Him. Forgiveness is there for any who would accept it.
The suffering of the Messiah is key to the redemptive message for at least three reasons: it deals with the problem of evil and suffering in the world (v. 4), it revealed the concept of penal substitution (v. 5), and it shows that God is victorious in His plan against sin and death (v. 6).
The good news is compelling truth due to three historical pieces of evidence: the incarnation, crucifixion, and resurrection. The incarnation and resurrection tell us that God came to the world to save us and accomplished that mission. The crucifixion tells us that God sees the condition of our world and did not remain aloof. He entered our suffering. He took it and our sin upon Himself. The Servant didn’t deserve the suffering that He experienced. Jesus took on our suffering. Those who look upon the cross with disdain and dismiss it fail to see their own suffering there. Jesus did not deserve the cross; we did. To those who ask, “where is God when a child dies?” He is there, on the cross, bearing the suffering and affliction of the world.
That is not all that the cross says. In verse 5, Isaiah lays out the core of the Gospel Message. Jesus bore our punishment in our place. This is penal substitution. In our rebellion we deserve separation from God. In our rebellion we have made a complete mess of the world. In trying to usurp the place of the Creator and do things the way we see best, we have broken the world. The death, sin, disease, isolation, suffering, and evil we see in the world is of our own design. God was not content to allow His creation, His people whom He created for a loving relationship, to wallow in our own “karmic” consequences. He took that mess upon Himself and bore the punishment for it. He defeated it and offers restored relationship to any who would accept it. And just as He did not force obedience upon Adam and Eve in the garden, He does not force that reconciliation on any who would not take it.
However, He has succeeded in His mission. The Suffering Servant has borne the iniquity of those who have wandered away from Him. Forgiveness is there for any who would accept it.
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