MY PERSPECTIVE, Gary Damron
For several weeks, we've looked at Jesus the Messiah in Isaiah's prophetic message from God. The first 37 chapters of Isaiah contain many prophecies about a king who will establish an eternal kingdom; long before the land of Israel was divided, God made a promise to David. "'I will raise up your descendant after you, who will come forth from you, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever'” (2 Samuel 7:12-13).
Isaiah 9:6-7 reads, "For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; and the government will rest on His shoulders; and His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness from then on and forevermore."
Isaiah gave more details about the king, as he wrote, “a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel [God with us]” (Isaiah 7:14). More than 700 years later, the prophecies are echoed in Gabriel's announcement to the virgin Mary that she would give birth to a child. "'He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David; and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever; and His kingdom will have no end'" (Luke 1:32-33).
Matthew confirmed the announcements. "All this took place that what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet [Isaiah] might be fulfilled, saying, 'Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and shall bear a son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,' which translated means, 'God with us'" (Matthew 1:22-23).
Each one who receives the rule of the risen Jesus can experience His wisdom, guidance and authority. Through His assurance and presence, we become a part of a spiritual kingdom. There's the looking forward to a day when He returns as king (see Revelation chapter 5), but in the meantime we rejoice in the spiritual victory He makes available now.
Another insight given by Isaiah into the character of this Messiah is that He will balance the authority of a king with that of a humble, compassionate servant. “Behold, My Servant, whom I uphold; My chosen one in whom My soul delights. I have put My Spirit upon Him; He will bring forth justice to the nations. He will not cry out or raise His voice, nor make His voice heard in the street. A bruised reed He will not break, and a dimly burning wick He will not extinguish; He will faithfully bring forth justice" (Isaiah 42:1-3).
The most comprehensive description of the Suffering Servant is found in Isaiah chapters 52-53. The Messiah acts as a vehicle for God's grace, uniting His mercy and holiness. The prophet tells us that God's servant "shall be high and lifted up" (verse 52:13) but continues with His humiliation, when His "appearance was marred more than any man" (verse 14). The Messiah will not be what we expect, rather a "man of sorrows" (Isaiah 53:3-4), willing to carry sorrows and bear grief. He is "pierced through for our transgression"; as a result, "by His scourging we are healed" (verse 5). In his suffering as one of us, He is "bearing the iniquities of many" (verse 6). "He was cut off out of the land of the living. ... And they made his grave with the wicked" (verses 8-9).
The final verses of Isaiah 53 conclude that this Servant will be in anguish and will die, saving many: "He poured out Himself to death, and was numbered with the transgressors; yet He Himself bore the sin of many, and interceded for the transgressors" (verse 12).
The words above, written by the prophet more than seven centuries before the child's birth, seem as if Isaiah was standing, sharing scenes from the foot of the cross. Between the time the angel appeared to Mary and when she and Joseph presented their baby in the temple, she also caught a glimpse of His destiny, the reason He came. An elderly man held her 8-day-old baby in the temple, and the parents marveled at Simeon's proclamation, much as we are taken with the beautiful Christmas narrative (Luke 2:25-35). But part of Simeon's words to Mary ended with, "a sword will pierce even your own soul".
In 1 Peter 2:24, Jesus' former disciple wrote, "He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed." Paul in Philippians 2:5-11 wrote of Jesus the servant, humbling himself, yet highly exalted by God.
A Christian song, "If that isn't love", talks of Jesus leaving the splendor of heaven, knowing His destiny. As a servant, Jesus humbled himself, came as a vulnerable child, and died on the cross to deliver us from sin. He was raised from the grave and sits at the right hand of the Father, interceding on our behalf. He has earned His place of worship in our hearts.
