We are living in unusual and hard times. With the whole nation observing "social distancing" in the war against the spread of the coronavirus, churches for the first time in my life are not gathering for worship, but are attending "virtual" services online. Continue to pray for one another and always remember who Jesus is:. According to Isaiah 42:1-9, He is God's chosen servant.
The Lord God opens our passage by declaring, "Behold! My Servant whom I uphold, My Elect One in whom My soul delights!" (v. 1a). "My Servant" is a term applied to several of Israel's faithful spiritual leaders over the preceding centuries: Abraham, Moses, Joshua, Caleb, Job, and Zerubbabel. A century and a half later the same term is used of Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, whom God used to invade Judah as His instrument of judgment in 586 B.C.
God the Father calls Jesus "My Servant" (v. 1a). He is God's elect, God's chosen servant. He comes doing the Father's will. God the Father upholds Him and delights in Him, as He accomplishes the Father's will in our lives.
It is in the accomplishment of that purpose in my life that makes Him my servant as well. He is my servant, not in the sense of doing my will, but in that He did for Me what I could not do for myself. He saved me by His grace!
The Lord God continues by stating the purpose for which He sent the Savior. First, the Lord says, "I have put My Spirit upon Him" (v. 1b). We see this when Jesus was baptized. When He came up from the water "the Holy Spirit descended in bdily form like a dove upon Him, and a voice came from heaven which said, 'You are My beloved Son; in You I am well pleased'" (Luke 3:22).
Then the Lord adds, "He will bring forth justice to the Gentiles" (v. 1c). Jesus brings grace, saving grace, to you and me. But there is more to it than that. It looks forward to the second coming, when He will establish and rule over a kingdom in which justice prevails throughout the world—a revolutionary idea in the ears of the Israelites. The Messiah would come not just for them, but also for the Gentiles, whom they regarded not just as pagan, but as unclean. The whole world will experience the righteousness and justice of the King.
The bottom line is that Jesus came for you and me—for our salvation. He came to suffer and die for our forgiveness. He came to change us—to make us pure and clean and righteous like He is. But He is also coming again. He is returning soon to complete the process and take us to heaven to spend eternity with Him. He is my Servant. Amen.
It is in the accomplishment of that purpose in my life that makes Him my servant as well. He is my servant, not in the sense of doing my will, but in that He did for Me what I could not do for myself. He saved me by His grace!
The Lord God continues by stating the purpose for which He sent the Savior. First, the Lord says, "I have put My Spirit upon Him" (v. 1b). We see this when Jesus was baptized. When He came up from the water "the Holy Spirit descended in bdily form like a dove upon Him, and a voice came from heaven which said, 'You are My beloved Son; in You I am well pleased'" (Luke 3:22).
Then the Lord adds, "He will bring forth justice to the Gentiles" (v. 1c). Jesus brings grace, saving grace, to you and me. But there is more to it than that. It looks forward to the second coming, when He will establish and rule over a kingdom in which justice prevails throughout the world—a revolutionary idea in the ears of the Israelites. The Messiah would come not just for them, but also for the Gentiles, whom they regarded not just as pagan, but as unclean. The whole world will experience the righteousness and justice of the King.
The bottom line is that Jesus came for you and me—for our salvation. He came to suffer and die for our forgiveness. He came to change us—to make us pure and clean and righteous like He is. But He is also coming again. He is returning soon to complete the process and take us to heaven to spend eternity with Him. He is my Servant. Amen.
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