Isaiah 53, Why You Should Care About Jesus
1. Jesus Came In Humility And Nobody Cared (v1-3)
2. Jesus Cared Enough To Be Your Substitute (v4-6)
3. Jesus Cared Enough To Suffer Willingly (v7-9)
4. Jesus Cares So Much He Counts You Worth It (v10-12)
Well, as we look at Isaiah Chapter 53, I've titled the Message Why you should care about Jesus, why you should care about Jesus here in Isaiah Chapter 53 we have an incredible chapter, an incredible insight into the things that Jesus.
We would go through the promised savior.
The Messiah was foretold about, of course, all throughout the scripture.
Here Isaiah is no different.
He's giving some insights into this savior that will come on the scene 700 years after his life.
And as Isaiah prophecies about Jesus, he has some really deep and powerful insights about what Jesus endured, what he went through, and some important things for us to reflect upon. Many people have called Isaiah Chapter 53, the John 316.
The old test.
Summit because it so clearly pictures Jesus and his death on our behalf, and what that means for those who will believe in him.
And so it's really incredible how clearly it brings forth, really the objectives and Ministry of Jesus in his death upon the cross.
On our behalf.
Others have called Isaiah Chapter 53. The Holy of Holies in the Book of Isaiah. It is that place that really honors and references the Lord and that connection and fellowship that we have with God by faith in Jesus Christ and so great insights here in this chapter and.
We're just going to kind of scratch the surface on them a little bit, but hopefully encouraging us to remind ourselves and to be refreshed in our care about Jesus.
Reasons for us to be excited about Jesus and to be invested in who Jesus is and.
Return for what he has done for us, and so we're going to look.
At four points here at Isaiah Chapter 53, four reasons to care about Jesus as we consider these prophecies about him.
The first reason is found in verses one through 3 point number one.
Jesus came in humility and nobody cares.
Jesus came the promised Messiah ever since Genesis chapter 3.
The fall in the garden, God has been promising and prophesying.
There would be the savior that would come the one who would redeem all of Mankind, Deal with once and for all the sin of people and.
Give an opportunity for right relationship with God. And finally after thousands of years 6000 years, this promised Savior shows up.
And we can summarize it this way and nobody cared.
Look again at verse three it says he was despised and rejected a man of sorrows acquainted with deepest grief.
We turned our backs on him and looked.
The other way.
He was despised and we did not care.
We did not care is the summary of all of humanity collectively.
The promised Savior shows up.
The creator of the heavens and the Earth, Jesus Christ being God became man added humanity to his deity came and showed up on this earth and collectively humanity.
We did not care.
Now that may not always be the impression that we have in our mind as we work our way through the Gospels.
There can be as you work your way through the Gospels.
Your imagination kind of filling up these huge crowds of people that really responded to Jesus and really resonated at the the teaching and the life and the Ministry of Jesus well.
As you work your way through the gospels, though, the largest recorded gathering.
Around Jesus.
Maybe you're thinking of it right now, like as you're thinking through the passages like what's the the largest recorded gathering?
And you probably guessed it, the feeding of the 5000 is the largest gathering that's recorded now. There may have been gatherings of different sizes that the numbers just weren't specified for us, but.
From what we know, this was the largest gathering it's found in Luke Chapter 9, as well as a couple of the other Gospels as well.
But the feeding of the 5000 that number 5000 is really only the counting of the men. It's an estimation.
With women and children, we don't know exactly how big big this crowd was, but let's just say 10,000 just for the sake of thinking through this a little bit.
So let's say the largest gathering that Jesus ever had at at a particular occasion in his life administry was about 10,000 people.
Well, 10,000 people.
At the time of Jesus in Israel is maybe about 2% of Israel's population.
So if we show up to church on Sunday and there's 5000 people here, we'd be like, whoa, this is a huge gathering, right?
But even if that was impactful for us, the rest of the world is like, so, who cares? Like 5000? People show up?
10,000 people show up. Not not a big deal. Can you imagine the President of the United States gives a speech?
And it's you know, talked about for weeks afterwards. Like in all. Like Can you believe it? 10,000 people listen to the speech that the president gave like like that's that's nothing like why even bother giving those kind of stats. That's not even impressive.
This past year, 112 people, or sorry 112 million people watched the Super Bowl.
Meanwhile, 10,000 people showed up to listen to Jesus teach at one time it again, it's large numbers. When you think about our scale, but in the grand scheme of things, when you think about humanity.
When you think about all of.
Israel at the time.
Of Christ, 2% showed up 2% paid attention 2%.
That's like just barely the amount of fat that you like in your milk, right?
It's just like hardly nothing.
It's almost nobody.
When you think about the world population at that time.
Estimations are that the world population at the time of Christ was about 300,000,000.
Well, 10,000 of 300,000,000 is .0033%.
Collectively, we can safely say as a world as humanity.
We did not care.
We didn't care that he was there, we didn't care that he came.
We didn't care about him.
We weren't interested in him.
When Jesus put on humanity.
The creator of the heavens and the Earth showed up in our midst and in our presence collectively we.
Said, who cares?
No big deal, doesn't matter.
Didn't even pay attention.
Here Isaiah hints at the humanity of Jesus. In verse two, he says, my servant grew up in the Lord's presence like a tender green shoot like a root in dry ground. He's always existed. He is the creator, and yet he grew up in the Lord's presence. He.
Became a child he was born.
And he grew up.
He experienced humanity and he walked this life.
To experience it like you and I do, verse two goes on to say there is nothing beautiful or majestic about his appearance.
Nothing to attract us to him.
Jesus came in humility he didn't come in all.
Of his glory.
Now there is passages that describe Jesus coming.
That promised Savior coming in full glory and that is yet to happen.
That will happen at the second coming of Jesus.
This first time around he came in humility.
And there was nothing beautiful or majestic about his appearance.
Nothing to hint at the quality of who he was at at the caliber of man or being that was there in their midst.
Now, that's not always the case.
You go back to the Old Testament in Genesis chapter 39 and you find that Joseph.
Was described as a very handsome and well.
Built young man
Jesus, on the other hand, didn't get this kind of description.
There was nothing beautiful or majestic about his appearance.
King Saul for Samuel Chapter 9 is described as the most handsome man in Israel.
Jesus didn't get.
As much of a handsome description as King Saul, the first King of Israel, David later on, in first Samuel Chapter 16 is described.
As a brave warrior, a man of war has good judgment and he is also a fine looking young man.
But Jesus did not have beauty or Majesty displayed visually.
He didn't come, and you know, try to attract crowds by being the best looking human being that anybody has ever seen.
He came in humility.
He came in ordinary form.
There was nothing outstanding, nothing unusual about his appearance.
To gather a crowd of 10,000.
He just came.
In simplicity.
And as a result.
This world is not a huge fan of ordinary simplicity.
Verse three tells us.
He was despised.
And rejected a man of sorrows, acquainted with deepest grief.
He was despised.
Now I found it interesting.
Pastor Thomas Constable gives a little insight on this.
He says the English word despise carries strong emotional overtones, but its Hebrew source means to be considered worthless and unworthy of attention.
People would reject him because they would not see him as having any significance for them.
They would not give him a second thought.
For us despise does kind of have that emotional.
It's like almost like a hatred right?
But there was those who despised Jesus in that way.
The religious leaders really had this.
Despising of Jesus.
So much so that they were working hard.
Plotting to put him to death but again.
Looking at we.
Collectively, we as humanity, it wasn't even that we hated Jesus.
As a world as a society, as a people it was that.
We looked at him and we.
You don't seem like you have anything to offer me, so I'm not even going to give you the time of day or another moment to consider like there's nothing of value here.
That's kind of the idea here to to be despised.
Like yeah, we thought about it for half a second and nothing really stood out.
And so.
No, thank you.
I'm going to go pursue someone beautiful and hear what they have to say.
'cause they probably have great wisdom because look at how good looking they are, right?
And so that that was the idea here is, he's despised and rejected.
But he's also a man of sorrows, and acquainted with deep.
Missed grief Jesus in putting on humanity experienced humanity.
And one of the effects or the experiences of humanity is the effects of sin, and I think here we get a good summary of that.
Here's the effects of sin upon mankind.
And deep grief.
This is what?
Sin brings to us.
It brings sorrow and grief.
We we experience these as a result.
Of thin in this world.
The hurt the pain.
The loss.
The failures.
It's all the result of sin, and Jesus experienced the hurt and the pain, the sorrow, the grief.
That we experience in this life as well.
Verse three goes on to say we turned our backs on him and looked the other way.
Remember that parable, Jesus told of the Good Samaritan?
And there was only the one the Samaritan that paid attention to the robber that had or to the person that had been beat up by the robbers.
The others who walked by looked the other way, pretended not to see, and just tried to move on and collectively as humanity.
That's what we did.
We turned our backs.
We looked the other way.
We we didn't care, we didn't pay any attention to God who had become man for us.
He was despised.
And we did not care.
Jesus came in humility.
Again, the Savior that had been brought promised to humanity for thousands of years, finally shows up.
And there was a small group of people that responded.
But overall collectively we can say nobody cared.
The world did not pay attention.
When Jesus Christ came.
John Chapter 12, verse 37 and 38 says despite all the miraculous signs Jesus had done, most of the people still did not believe in him.
This is exactly what Isaiah the Prophet had predicted he's quoting here verse one of Isaiah 53, Lord, who has believed our message.
To whom has the Lord revealed his powerful arm?
Part of the.
The life and Ministry of Jesus.
Is that here you have the creator.
Here you have Jesus on the scene, working miracles, proclaiming truth like no one has ever proclaimed truth before.
And still, most of the people did not believe.
Who has believed our message?
When Jesus came.
Nobody cared.
So we should.
Let's make up for our collective humanity.
Let's let's make amends for us as a people for us as a species that we we.
Ought to care.
And and it should strike us how little.
We as humanity care about the Lord.
Now you can think of it if you want to kind of in your own ideas and own experiences.
With this, I'm sure you have experienced situations where you have.
Sacrificed greatly worked significantly on behalf of somebody else who expressed little care in response.
I think it's probably the experience of most parents, right?
Your children don't care and don't really appreciate and understand how much you have.
Done on their behalf.
And perhaps as a parent you might say I'm doing this and my kids just don't care.
The King of Kings and Lord of Lords.
It's our creator.
Put on humanity.
And we collectively said.
Doesn't matter, we don't care.
As we continue on I, I pray that you would continue to just allow your heart to be stirred.
Why should you care about Jesus?
Because he is God who became men and he came in humility.
That's an admirable thing.
That is an honorable thing, and.
We as a society or we as a people said it doesn't matter.
We don't care.
We as a society today talking, talking about our nation.
Essentially we still say we don't care.
But you and I as followers of Jesus.
You and I as those who have understood who Jesus is, and.
What he has done for us?
Ought to have a huge appreciation.
And it should strike us anew afresh every time we go through these kinds of things to be reminded and refreshed.
And and what it really was for Jesus.
To become a man.
To walk this earth and then ultimately to die upon the cross for us, and that leads me to the next reason for us to care about Jesus as we work our way through verses 4 through 6. Here's point. #2, Jesus cared enough to be your substitute.
Collectively, we the world, we said we don't care but Jesus still cared and so he said, I'm going to complete my mission.
I'm going to fulfill the purpose for which I came to be the substitute for all of humanity to deal with the issue.
Of sin, let's look at verses 4 through 6.
It says, yet it was our weaknesses he carried.
It was our sorrows that weighed him down, and we thought his troubles were a punishment from God, a punishment for his own sins.
But he was pierced for our rebellion, crushed for our sins.
He was beaten so we could be whole.
He was whipped so we could be healed.
All of us like sheep.
Have strayed away.
We have left God paths to follow our own.
Yet the Lord.
Laid on him, the sins of us all.
Here Isaiah walks us through.
Jesus as.
The substitute and notice the contrast there at the end of verse three, we did not care, right?
But then in verse 4, yet it was our weaknesses he carried.
Notice the contrast.
We didn't care, but he carried our weaknesses.
We said So what you're here?
And he said I could get a bad attitude from that and decide.
Well, forget you, then you're not worth it.
No, remember those.
Sorrows that he was acquainted with those griefs that.
He carried though.
Those weren't his own.
Those were yours.
Those were mine.
He carried our burden.
We didn't care about him, but he cared so much about us that he was willing to come and carry.
Our sorrows our burdens.
To be the substitute in our.
It was our weaknesses he carried.
It was our sorrows that we'd him down.
But we looked at the Lord.
And we thought his troubles were a punishment from.
God look at.
That guy, he's going through all kinds of hard things.
He must be a terrible Sinner and be, you know, on time out from God and being punished by God.
Again, collectively, the world looked on at Jesus and said he probably deserved to die upon the cross.
He probably deserved a criminal death.
He probably deserved all of that.
Even though Pontius Pilate was conflicted about it and he kind of sensed that Jesus didn't deserve it, he allowed it and.
There was the select few.
Like Pontius Pilate who had that kind of insight.
But overall, the rest of the population.
They figured.
He's just getting what he deserves.
He's just suffering like the rest of us suffer as a result of our own mistakes and failures and sins.
But Jesus had no sin.
And so his suffering wasn't for his own sake or any consequence of his own action.
His suffering was his carrying.
Of our burdens and our sorrows, verse five says he was pierced for our rebellion, crushed.
For our sins.
He was beaten so we could behold, he was whipped.
So we could be healed.
The reason why Jesus was pierced was not because of some sin or some mistake or some failure on his part.
But he was pierced.
His hands pierced his feet, pierced his side, pierced.
For our rebellion.
He received the piercing.
In our place.
Essentially, Jesus said, don't don't Pierce Josh Pierce me instead.
He said don't.
Push me push.
A push pop?
No, he didn't say that.
No, he said I'll take the place I will step in and the penalty, the pain, the hurt, everything that is harmful.
That is due to every individual.
Put all of that upon me.
And so he was beaten so we could be whole.
He presented himself as the substitute.
To say, let me take the penalty.
Let me carry the whole burden of the consequence for sin.
Let me take it all upon myself so that there is no consequence left, no wrath left.
For any person.
I will bear it all.
He was whipped.
So we could be healed.
By his stripes.
We are healed.
It tells us in the new King James version now.
This verse has raised some questions throughout the years.
What does this mean about being healed?
Is it talking about a spiritual healing?
Is it talking about a physical hearing, healing and different Bible teachers kind of land on different sides of that.
One of the things I would encourage you to consider is the best commentary on the Bible is what?
The Bible the Bible is the best commentary on the Bible, and as you look at this passage quoted in the New Testament, it's quoted at least two times.
One time is in first Peter Chapter 2, the other time is in Matthew Chapter 8.
And in those.
Passages one time it's referring to physical healing and one time it's referring to spiritual healing.
In Matthew Chapter E it quotes here from Isaiah Chapter 53 about the healings and applies it to the Ministry of Jesus and the healings that were going on upon the people there and the the miracles that were taking place in first Peter chapter two. He quotes from this passage and talks about.
Our spiritual healing.
It says that he carried his sins in our sins in his body on the cross, so that we can be dead to sin and live for what is right by his wounds you are healed, and so in the New Testament we see this applied to spiritual healing and physical healing.
And so I would suggest looking at the best commentary on the Bible.
That this kind of healing can be applied in both ways, not to say that every.
Sickness, we will be healed of, but there is always that opportunity and possibility.
That we can be healed.
If God chooses to do so.
We ultimately will be healed completely physically in eternity.
New bodies glorified bodies, whole, restored, healed.
We're spiritually healed.
Of course, in our connection to the father and our forgiveness of sins.
But also in this life and and I don't want to take away too much from that that we have the opportunity to ask God for healing, and let me say it in a way that it sounds maybe weird.
God will heal Christians in this life every time they ask.
With one exception.
You with me so far.
God will heal Christians in this life every time they ask, with one exception.
The exception being when it's ultimately not what's best for you, then you're not going to get healed.
But to think of it that way, it's not really much different to say you know if it's good for you.
God will heal you, and that's not as exciting to you know, there's not that lead up right to the to the point there, but.
But the principle is the same.
The reason why we have this opportunity and and the reason why God may choose to heal you.
Is because it's good for you, and because of what Christ has done for us upon the cross because of his substitution, he has the freedom and the opportunity to heal you because your sins have been forgiven and the wrath and the judgment has been paid for at the cross.
You know, James encourages believers to gather together leaders of the church to pray for you when you're sick.
And so there is the opportunity.
And there is the encouragement for us to ask for healing.
It doesn't demand that God heal everybody in every situation, but at the same time we shouldn't go so far to the other side and say we should never ask.
James tells us you should ask and so ask because God is interested in healing in all kinds of ways.
Not just one limited perspective or one limited way.
Because Jesus was our substitute, he cared enough about you.
To take your place.
To receive your penalty and the judgment that you deserved, verse six goes on to say all of us like sheep, have strayed away.
We have left God paths to follow our own.
Yet the Lord laid on.
Him the sins of us all.
Again, there's the contrast.
We we're like sheep.
What does that mean?
Well, that means we've all gone astray.
Now, I'm not a shepherd and I have no experience trying to lead sheep.
But everything that everybody who has that kind of experience writes and talks about sheep is that they all go astray like that is a consistent thing.
Sheep need a shepherd.
They need someone.
To watch out for them because sheep will not.
Stay where they need to be or go where they need to go without someone to help them and left to their own devices.
Sheep will stray away.
To their own hurt to their own detriment.
And in that way.
You and I are just like sheep.
Without a shepherd, we stray.
We wander and we wander to our own hurt.
We leave God paths to follow our own.
Even when we know what God has said, we think, but I think in this situation my way is better and so we follow our own path.
We chase down our own ideas and pursue our own goals and dreams.
And so, like sheep, we have strayed away.
We followed our own paths.
But the Savior Jesus, he followed God's path.
And the Lord lead on him.
All of our sins.
All of those issues that came from us wandering off God's path.
Jesus cared enough to be your substitute.
To see everything that you deserved.
From your sinfulness.
And to say I can't.
Just sit by and let them experience what they deserve.
That's going to hurt.
That's going to be incredibly destructive now.
Let me step in and take the bullet, take the fire, take the judgment on their behalf.
Even though it could be easily said we don't care, we didn't care and we wandered, and we did whatever we want wanted.
Jesus cared.
So I said I'll be your substitute.
Why should you care about Jesus?
He came in humility and nobody cared.
He came as a substitute.
And still, collectively.
It seems like nobody cares.
But you know?
You know better.
We have the prophetic word here given to us in advance to lay out for us.
The significance the value of what Christ has done for us moving on to verses 7 through 9, we get the third reason and that is that Jesus cared enough to suffer willingly.
Here's why you should care about Jesus because he cared enough about you.
To be your substitute and and to do so willingly, to make a deliberate choice.
It wasn't something he was subjected to.
It was something he chose.
Let's look at verses 7 through 9.
It says he was oppressed and treated harshly.
Yet he never said a word.
He was led like a lamb to the slaughter.
And as a sheep is silent before the shearers, he did not open his mouth.
Unjustly condemned, he was led away.
No one cared that he died without descendants, that his life was cut short in midstream.
But he was struck down for the rebellion of my people.
He had done no wrong and had never deceived anyone, but he was buried like a criminal. He was put in a rich man's grave.
As Isaiah continues on, he highlights for us.
How passive Jesus was in this?
He was oppressed and treated harshly.
And he never said a word.
Here is Jesus.
In command of.
All of creation and angelic hosts.
He didn't have to take one second of suffering that he didn't want to take.
Nothing was forced upon him. Remember, in the garden of gas simony, in Matthew Chapter 26?
When Peter sees the arrest that's about to happen and he starts to freak out and he pulls out his sword.
Slashing away
Jesus tells him, put away your sword.
Those who use.
The sword will die by the sword.
But he goes on to say, don't you realize?
That I could ask my father for thousands of angels to protect us and he would send them instantly.
Don't you realize?
But then what Jesus goes on to say is.
But if I did, how would the Scriptures be fulfilled?
That describe what must happen now.
Jesus tells Peter I could get out of this instantly if I wanted to.
But if I did well, how would all of those promises and prophecies be fulfilled?
Now I'm choosing to restrain all of the power.
The resources I'm choosing to restrain myself and receive this suffering to receive this injustice.
I'm allowing myself to be oppressed and treated harshly.
And I'm not going to fight back.
Because that is how the will of God and the plan of God is going to be fulfilled.
And so in all the injustice that he faced and nobody faced more injustice than Jesus.
And all the injustice he faced, he never.
Said a word.
He did not fight back even just verbally.
Verse seven it says he was led like a lamb to the slaughter and as a sheep is silent before the shears, he did not open his mouth.
The silence of Jesus was something noteworthy.
He went through in those final hours leading up to the crucifixion.
Many trials and many questionings and investigations.
Before the chief priests and the elders.
Matthew chapter 26.
And notes for us in verse 62 and 63.
His silence.
Standing before Pontius Pilate.
It tells us in Matthew 27, verses 12 through 14.
That Pilate was marveling.
He was surprised at the Silence of Jesus.
Standing before Herod Antipas.
Ask question after question.
And Jesus remained silent.
Here's Isaiah.
Noting this characteristic of Jesus 700 years before the life of Jesus.
Prophesying foretelling.
Here's the Messiah again, the creator of the heavens and the Earth all power almight all resources.
But he is accepting willingly.
The suffering.
The oppression, the harsh treatment, the beatings, the scourging, the crucifixion.
The penalty for your sin and my son, verse eight, goes on to say, unjustly condemned.
He was led away.
No one cared that he died without descendants.
That his life was cut short in mid St.
But he was struck down.
For the rebellion of my people.
What happened to Jesus was unjust?
It was.
The greatest crime that has ever been committed the greatest injustice that has ever taken place.
The one man.
Who was perfect from beginning to end?
Treated as a criminal and put to death.
And no one cared that he died without descendants.
No one cared. He died in the prime of his life, 33 years old.
Nobody cared.
But he was struck down for the rebellion of my people again, our substitute, receiving the penalty willingly.
Choosing it, he could have gotten out of it.
He couldn't, he could have.
Got away if he wanted to.
He could have put an.
End to it all.
Verse 9 says he had done no wrong and had never deceived anyone, but he was buried like a criminal and he was put in a rich man.
's grave interesting prophecy there about Joseph of Arimathea in Matthew 27. It goes and receives the body of Jesus after his crucifixion and places him in his own tomb. There in the garden next to you.
The place where he was crucified.
And fulfilling this prophecy and and.
Reminding us of the reality of Jesus being much more than just a guy who died.
He was the promised savior.
He was God who became man.
Who could have done anything?
To avoid it to get away.
But said no.
I choose.
To suffer willingly, this is a good plan, and I'm going to participate in it.
He cared enough.
To suffer willingly.
Commentator Alec Motyer says animals go as uncomprehending to slaughter as to shearing.
But the servant who knew all things beforehand went to his death.
With a calm silence.
That reflected not an uncomprehending, but a submitted mind and tongue.
If you lead a sheep to be sheared, or you lead a sheep to be slaughtered.
It doesn't know the difference either way.
But Jesus knew the difference.
He knew they weren't just.
Gonna give him a haircut.
He knew he was going to be slaughtered.
But he chose to be silent.
He chose to receive willingly.
All of that treatment.
All of that suffering.
And even much more than what is visible on the surface.
But what happened spiritually as he received?
The penalty for our sin, as he bore our sin.
He said I choose that route.
I choose that path.
This passage is quite noteworthy in the book of Acts Chapter 8.
The Ethiopian Eunuch is reading this passage and he's perplexed by it and that's when the Lord.
Works it out, said the Holy Spirit leads Philip to be right there next to him while he's reading that passage, and.
This servant, being LED like a sheep to the slaughter, being silent as a lamb before its shearers.
And it's got his mind going.
And so the Lord brings him Phillip alongside of him.
To say, hey, do you understand what you're reading?
You know what that's really about?
It's not about animals, it's not about livestock education.
This this is about the survey and it tells us an act separate that from that very passage here in Isaiah Chapter 53, Phillip explained.
The life and ministry and purpose of Jesus there to him, and he believed in Jesus.
He suffered willingly. It's noteworthy.
It's a good reminder for us to care about all that Christ has done for us.
Well finally, 4th point for the reason Jesus cares so much.
That he counts you worth it verses 10 through 12, verse 10 says.
But it was the Lord's good plan.
To crush him and cause him grief.
Yet when his life is made an offering for sin, he will have many descendants.
He will enjoy a long life and the Lord's good plan will prosper in his hands.
When he sees all that is accomplished by his English, he.
Will be satisfied.
And because of his experience, my righteous servant will make it possible for many to be counted righteous.
For he will bear all their sins.
I will give him the honors of a victorious soldier because he exposed himself to death.
He was counted among the rebels.
He bore the sins of many and interceded for rebels.
As Isaiah wraps up the chapter.
He calls this whole thing several times.
A good plan.
Coming in humility and having nobody pay any attention and nobody care.
Coming in as a substitute.
To receive.
A penalty that.
You didn't deserve.
And willingly choose to experience that and.
To suffer in that way.
Like if anybody proposed this kind of plan to you, good plan would not be the first ideas that came to your mind, right?
But it was the Lord's good plan.
Jesus looked at this plan and said Father, you nailed it with this one.
That is a good plan.
It was the Lord's good.
Plan to crush him and cause him grief.
Not that the father took any pleasure in any of this, right?
But the important truth being presented here is that the crucifixion was not an accident.
It wasn't a plan with good intentions that just went really badly.
There wasn't, you know, almost a good plan that just kind of fell apart.
Crucifixion was the plan.
From creation from the beginning, it was the plan.
He's the lamb slain before the foundations of the world that was the plan.
This plan was the plan from the very beginning when God knew creating an Adam and Eve that they would partake of the forbidden fruit and sin in the Garden of Eden, and that there would be this requirement for humanity to be redeemed.
The plan from the very beginning was this plan.
For God himself to become man.
To become.
Our substitute
To suffer for things that he never committed to suffer the penalty.
For sin that he had no part of.
But it was.
Deemed a good plan by God.
The father, the son and the Holy Spirit.
They agree this is a good plan.
It's worth it.
For the sake of humanity.
To redeem mankind.
To restore fellowship between God and man, this is worth it.
Pastor Warren Wisby says Jesus was not a martyr.
Nor was his death an accident.
He was God sacrificed for the sins of the world.
This wasn't an accident.
He wasn't a martyr.
This wasn't a good plan, gone wrong.
This was the plan.
He chose.
And why did he chose?
Why did he choose this?
Why did this?
Why is this considered a good plan?
Verse 10 goes on to say yet when his life is made an offering for sin, he will.
Have many descendants.
Because by faith in Jesus Christ.
We have been given the right to be called children of God.
As many as believed him.
Are given the right?
To be called the sons and Daughters of God.
That through this plan.
Any person.
All of humanity if they choose.
This is able to be forgiven.
To have their sins washed away.
And since the price has been paid, they're free to accept this gift.
That Christ has given on our behalf.
So he will enjoy a long life.
It goes on to say in verse 10.
Foreshadowing the resurrection.
The resurrection of Christ.
He lives everlasting.
And the Lord's good plan will prosper.
In his hand notice when it says in verse 11, when he sees all that is accomplished by his anguish, he will be satisfied.
When he sees all that is accomplished.
Here's why it's a good plan.
It's going to cost significantly.
But when I see the end result, when I see what is produced from this great sacrifice.
I count it worth it.
That's what the Lord said looking at you.
And looking at me.
When he sees what is accomplished by his suffering in my life, he says, I'm satisfied it's a good plan.
It's worth it.
Because of his experience, my righteous servant will make it possible for many to be counted righteous, for he will bear all their sins.
Yes, it's going to be intense suffering.
It's going to be suffering like no one has ever suffered before.
But if I do that.
Then people will have the opportunity.
To be counted righteous.
They will have the opportunity.
To escape judgment.
And receive.
Redemption, forgiveness and restoration, and so God says, I will honor him, or I would give him the honors of a victorious soldier.
Because he exposed himself to death, he was counted among the rebels.
He bore the sins of many and interceded for rebels.
He chose he willingly participated.
And so he is given a.
Name above every name.
Paul kind of alluding to this in Philippians chapter 2.
He humbled himself to the point of death, even the death upon the cross, and so therefore he.
Will be exalted.
Given the name at which every knee will bow.
On Earth and under the Earth.
Because he looked at us and he said it's.
Worth it?
Hebrews chapter 12.
Verse two tells us.
Talking about the walk of faith, he says, we do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith because of the joy awaiting him.
He endured the cross.
Disregarding its shame now, he is seated in the place of honor beside God throne.
Because of the joy awaiting him because.
Of the results that his work would have in your life and in my life.
Because of the fellowship that we could have because of the eternity that we can have together now.
He said it's worth it.
There's a lot of things that you do.
That are hard.
That requires sacrifice.
That hurts in the moment.
But you do them because you look ahead at the end result and you say if I save this money right now it hurts right now, but later on it's going to be worth it.
The joy ahead, the value that I'll receive then.
If I let the doctor cut into me right now, it's going to hurt right now, but but the restoration and healing at the end, oh, it's going to be worth it.
And so I'm going to make this choice.
I'm going to to do this because I know the end result is good, that's.
Lord looked at.
He looked at us and.
He said boy, it's gonna hurt.
It's going to suffer.
I mean it's going to be just incredible pain.
But look at these people.
That I'll get to hang out with.
That will get the opportunity to have fellowship with the father once again.
And he said it's worth it.
I love them that much.
And so that's why you should care about Jesus.
That's why you should pay attention to who he is and what he's done for you. And of course there's many other reasons we could consider, but just looking at these here in Isaiah 53, I want to finish up this morning.
Just briefly talking about how can we show that we care then? OK, we're convinced. Isaiah 53. We should care how.
How do we show our care?
Well, three things.
I'll just point out really briefly, one except his gift.
How terrible.
To understand what Christ has done on our behalf and say, yeah, no thank you.
I'll try to do it on my own.
I'd prefer to go my own way.
I'll prefer.
All of your suffering, it was needless.
It was worthless.
Jesus, I will try to get to heaven on my own, or I don't even care about getting to heaven, you know?
You shouldn't have done that for me.
I didn't want it.
That is great ingratitude, right?
But to?
Show that you care.
What would he want?
He looked at you and said it's worth it.
I want you.
And so he suffered on your behalf, and was your substitute.
And so the best thing that you can do to show that you care is to accept the gift to receive the sacrifice.
Paul tells us in 2nd Corinthians 5 God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself.
No longer counting people sins against them and he gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation.
So we are Christ ambassadors and God is making his appeal through us.
We speak for Christ when we plead.
Come back to God.
We speak for Christ when we plead, come back.
To God, God is calling.
He is saying I want you to receive this gift.
That's why I suffered.
That's why I was your substitute because I want you to be forgiven.
I want you to be whole.
I want you to be healed.
Well, another way to show that you care about Jesus is that Castro cares upon him.
Peter tells us in first Peter Chapter 5 humble yourselves under the Mighty Hand of God at the right time he will lift you up in honor.
Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you.
God is expressed and he has shown he has demonstrated his love and his care.
For you.
Now don't try to live life on your own and handle things all by yourself and be strong enough just to take care of everything on your own.
God says, look, I've already showed you how much I care and I'm taking care of the big thing.
All these little things, they don't cost me anything.
Come bring him to me.
But fellowship over your sufferings over your cares over your worries.
Let me help you with those.
Let me shoulder those loads with you.
Just as I shouldered your issue of sin.
Let me help you with all of those things you're struggling with, and finally ways that you can show that you care is to make the most of it.
Don't just.
Live whatever life you want to live.
Look at the example of Jesus.
And let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus.
And humble yourself.
And fulfill the plan of God.
Paul tells us in Philippians Chapter 3 his attitude his perspective is look, I don't count myself to have achieved it.
But I focus on one thing, forgetting the past and reaching forward to what's ahead.
I press on to the end of the race to receive the heavenly prize for which God through Christ.
Jesus is calling us.
I'm running the race for all it's worth, I'm going to do the best that I can to glorify Jesus, to serve Jesus, to honor Jesus.
Because that's what he did for me, I'm.
Gonna make the most.
Of what Christ has done for me, Paul said.
This is the way that we can show that we care that we appreciate we can show our gratitude for what Christ has done for us by receiving his sacrificial gift.
By coming to him and fellowship with our burdens with our cares with our worries and our struggles, casting our cares upon him.
And by going forward as best we can.
To live a life that honors him and glorifies him.
Parents, if you could think about it this way, you worked hard.
You saved you sacrificed greatly for your kids.
To go to college.
And they throw away the opportunity.
They just coaster all the classes.
They learn nothing.
They get no value and no degree.
At the end of it.
How would you feel right?
What that sacrifice that you put in for them to go to college?
That oh what a tragedy, right in a similar way Christ has made the way for us to know God to be empowered by God to be filled with the Holy Spirit, to live an abundant life.
To have his work on our behalf.
I mean so much.
Has been opened.
For us, because of what Christ has done for us, let's not just throw it away as like, ungrateful kids.
Just get rid of and skip out on all of our opportunities.
Now let's go forward.
Let's make the most of what we can.
Out of all that God has done for us.
Let's pray, would we thank you for?
Your incredible love towards us.
Your grace Lord.
Thinking about Pastor Warren Wiersbe defining Grace as love given at great cost.
Lord, thank you for your love and it wasn't free.
It cost you greatly, but Lord you extend to us what is good and helpful and needful at your own expense.
And so, Lord, we receive it.
We accept your gift on our behalf.
We receive.
Load your substitution.
And we believe that you.
Died in our place.
You received the penalty for sin.
That I should have received, but thank you.
I receive your gift.
I receive your forgiveness.
And I received this fresh new start to walk with you and to serve you.
And would I want to show you that I care?
And so, Lord, would you help me enable me and strengthen me?
To draw nearer to you to cast my cares upon you, and to live for you.
Look for the fullness of your will.
To the full extent of your good plan.
May I honor you?
In response.
To your love for us, I pray this in Jesus name.