Man of Sorrows

Some 700 years before incarnate Deity walked this earth in the Person of Jesus the Messiah, an ancient Jewish prophet penned words from the Holy Spirit that foretold in precise detail who He would be as God in human flesh, and what He would do to accomplish redemption for His people. In the 53rd chapter of this great prophecy of Isaiah, we are given what John MacArthur appropriately describes as that which "contains unarguable, incontrovertible proof that God is the author of Scripture and Jesus the fulfillment of Messianic prophecy. Isaiah 53 presents details so minute that no human could have predicted them by accident and no imposter fulfilled them by cunning." And so the first thing I would like us to see is this evidence of the Divine authorship of the Bible that is so clearly and powerfully demonstrated for us in this passage.

The second thing I would like us to see as we reflect on this passage is its message. In this prophecy Isaiah has given a description in advance of Jesus in His mediatorial work as the suffering Servant of the Lord, the great Lamb of God bearing the sin of God's elect people as a substitutionary sacrifice for the forgiveness of their sins. Moreover, we find in this passage the whole saving work of Christ in summary form--His humiliation and exaltation: His substitutionary death, burial, resurrection, saving of sinners, intercession for them, and His kingdom. Matthew Henry rightly says that this chapter is so filled "with the unsearchable riches of Christ that it may be called rather the gospel of the evangelist Isaiah than the prophecy of the prophet Isaiah."

The central concern that God through His prophet speaks to us about in this passage is our most pressing and desparate need and His gracious provision for that need. While we have many felt needs, things that we think are our most important needs, by nature we do not percieve our greatest need------the forgiveness ot our sins before a holy God and a restored relationship with Him. There is a bumper sticker that says: Jesus is the answer. One might ask----what is the question? What is Jesus the answer for? Often it is to meet or satisfy not our greatest need, but one or more of our felt needs, to make life comfortable and happy. In response to this kind of desire, C.S. Lewis expressed it well when he said: "I didn't go to religion to make me happy. I always knew a bottle of Port would do that. If you want a religion to make you feel really comfortable, I certainly don't recommend Christianity."
But oh how our most desperate need, our greatest need is met in the Savior! He is "a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief," because "He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows" (vs. 3-4). Indeed "He was wounded for our transgressions; He was crushed for our iniquities; upon Him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with His stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned--every one--to his own way; and the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all" (vs. 5-6).

When He came as a baby born in Bethlehem--He came for this.

Phillip Bliss expressed it well when he wrote in his hymn drawn in part from Isaiah 53:

"Man of Sorrows! what a name
for the Son of God who came,
ruined sinners to reclaim:
Hallelujah! what a Savior!"

Bruce Bradford