The Servant of God Advent

Isaiah 42:1-9

Every year when Christmas comes, we see lights everywhere. Houses lit up. Trees glowing. Streets shining. And we are drawn to those lights because they stand out against the darkness. That is the heart of Advent. Advent invites us to see the darkness of the world clearly so that we can see the light of Christ more brightly.

When we read the Old Testament, we read it like people standing in a lit room. We can see the shape of everything. We know how the story ends. Christ has come, Christ has died, Christ has risen, and Christ will come again.

But Isaiah and the people of his day walked in shadows. They heard God’s promises and saw faint outlines of what God would do, but the fullness of the Servant’s identity was still hidden to them. They were waiting for the first advent while we wait for the second.

Isaiah’s book is filled with glimpses of the light that was coming. He is quoted and echoed throughout the New Testament because Jesus is the fulfillment of everything Isaiah wrote. But Isaiah’s original audience only saw the glow on the horizon. They did not know the name Jesus yet.

Leading into Isaiah 42, God confronts the false lights of the world, the idols that claim to offer hope but cannot save. He declares them empty, powerless, nothing but wind. But then God says, “Behold my Servant.” Here is the true light. Here is the one who brings justice and restoration.

This morning, as we hear this servant hymn, I want us to see the main point: Behold the Servant who brings forth justice and restoration to the world.

Description of the Servant V: 1

First thing that we see is the description of the Servant. Advent invites us to behold something, to look carefully and intentionally at the One whom God has sent into the world. In Isaiah 42, God himself is speaking, and he calls his people to Behold his Servant, whom he upholds, his chosen One, in whom his soul delights. To behold something is to linger over it, to see its beauty and majesty, to recognize its worth.

It is like a master craftsman who has many tools, but one particular tool he has designed, sharpened, and shaped with his own hands. He delights in that tool. He uses it for his finest work, upholds it carefully, and trusts it completely. When God says, “Behold my Servant, in whom my soul delights,” he is revealing the One perfectly fashioned to accomplish his will.

God is revealing his Servant to us, and he calls us to look, to marvel, and to receive what he is showing.

Look to this Servant and see what God has done to empower him to accomplish the will of the Father. God upholds the Servant. God strengthens the Servant. God ensures that the mission set before him will be completed. There is nothing uncertain about the Servant’s task. Everything God intends through him will come to pass, and nothing will derail the purpose for which he was sent.

This Servant was a mystery to Isaiah’s audience. Could this be the nation of Israel? That seems impossible, because the text consistently speaks of a singular person. Not only that, but the verses leading up to this describe Israel as resentful, complaining, fearful, blind, deaf, and disobedient. Israel looks more like the bruised reed in verse 3, not the Servant who restores bruised reeds. This Servant is not an ideal Israel but a real person God himself sends to bring justice and restoration.

Now, through Scripture, and through the direct quotation in Matthew 12, we know exactly who this Servant is. It is the Lord Jesus Christ, the One whose coming we celebrate at Advent, the One whose return we long for.

Jesus understood the constant tension and opposition surrounding his ministry. Throughout the Gospels the Pharisees and Sadducees plotted against him, trying at times to kill him or trap him. Yet each time Jesus escaped their grasp because his hour had not yet come. Jesus relied completely on the Father, slipping away to pray for long hours, depending on his Father for strength and direction.

Jesus is the chosen One in whom the Father delights. The eternal Son enjoyed perfect communion with the Father before time began. The delight and love within the Trinity did not diminish when the Son took on flesh. Advent reminds us that the eternal Son became truly human without ever ceasing to be the delight of the Father, and that love continued all throughout his earthly life.

Remember when Jesus was baptized. The heavens opened, and the Father declared, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” Remember the transfiguration in Matthew 17, when the Father again declared from the bright cloud, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased. Listen to him.” These moments reveal how deeply the Father delighted in the Son. And the Son did everything required to bring about full justice through his life, death, and resurrection.

Isaiah also tells us that the Servant would be empowered by the Spirit. At Jesus’s baptism the Spirit descended on him and remained on him. His entire life and ministry were Spirit filled and Spirit directed. Advent reminds us that the child born in Bethlehem is not only fully human but fully God, the Spirit anointed Servant who came to do the will of the Father.

A quick stop here is important. The attributes that define the Servant’s relationship with the Father, being upheld, chosen, delighted in, and Spirit filled, are the same blessings given to believers through Christ. Because of Jesus, the Spirit lives within us. Because of Jesus, we are upheld and kept by God’s power. Because of Jesus, we are chosen before the foundation of the world. Because of Jesus, the Father delights in his children.

Peter writes in 1 Peter 1:3 to 5, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. According to his great mercy he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God’s power are being guarded through faith.” That is who you are because of the Servant.

Brothers and sisters, behold the Servant. Through him you are upheld, chosen, and delighted in by the Father. And one day, if we persevere in faith, the same Servant will say to us, “Well done, good and faithful servant.”

Isaiah then shows us that the Servant brings forth justice to the nations. The concept of justice here is much deeper than our modern courtroom understanding. The justice of Isaiah 42 is the full establishment of God’s righteous order on earth. It is the putting right of everything sin has broken. It is the restoration of God’s peace. This is justice that not only punishes evil but restores what evil has destroyed.

Jesus fulfilled this. He carried the sin of the world upon himself, taking our guilt, our shame, and our punishment. Through his death he satisfied God’s justice. Through his resurrection he restored what Adam broke. It is through Christ that all things will be made new. Christ is the new creation, and through him we are made new. One day our nature will be fully restored to the way God intended before sin entered the world.

The righteous One came for the unrighteous so that we might become the righteousness of God. The One without sin for those full of sin. The justice he brings is salvific and cosmic. And it also means that Jesus reigns as Lord over his people and over all creation. As one writer said, “It is through the Servant that the Lordship of God becomes effectively available to everyone.”

This is true justice, and it is guaranteed. Those who reject Christ will face the full wrath of God, and those who believe will be forgiven, rescued, and brought under the gracious rule of the Servant King.

But the Servant does not establish his reign through noise, spectacle, or human power. Verse 2 says he will not cry aloud or lift up his voice. He will not use the tactics of earthly rulers. Kings of the world announce themselves loudly. They demand attention. They manipulate crowds. They operate through force and intimidation. But God’s Servant does none of this.

Instead, the Servant comes in humility. He comes quietly, gently, faithfully. Advent reminds us that the Messiah came not with trumpets and armies but in the quietness of a stable, in the humility of swaddling clothes. Jesus entered Jerusalem not on a warhorse but on a colt. He did not promote himself or demand applause. He came to serve.

God’s answer to the arrogance of the world is not a louder arrogance. His answer to the oppressor is not a stronger oppressor. As one commentator says, “In quietness, humility, and simplicity, he will take all the evil into himself and return only grace.”

This Servant would show true humility. Jesus emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being born in human likeness, and humbling himself even to death on a cross. This is the humility Advent teaches us to behold: the King of heaven taking the form of a child so he might take the place of sinners.

This humility is seen in how he treats the weak. A bruised reed he will not break. A faintly burning wick he will not quench. The world discards the bruised and overlooks the faint, but the Servant does not.

Every one of us is a bruised reed, bent by sin and suffering. Every one of us is a smoldering wick that struggles to stay lit.

If you’ve ever been in a dark room with a candle that is almost out, you know how weak that little ember can seem. One wrong move, one sudden draft, and it appears sure to fail. But with just the right breath and the right touch, the flame springs back to life. That is exactly how Jesus deals with us. He does not blow us out. He gently breathes life back into our souls.

But Jesus comes to heal, not harm. He comes to strengthen, not snuff out. He says, “Come to me all who labor and are heavy laden and I will give you rest.”

If this is you today, behold the gentle and lowly Servant. There is no sin he cannot forgive, no brokenness he cannot restore. As Richard Sibbes wrote, “There is more mercy in Christ than sin in us.” Advent is proof of that mercy, for Christ came into our broken world to save bruised reeds like us.

And if this is how Jesus treats the weak, then this is how his people must treat one another. We bear one another’s burdens. We do not crush, dismiss, or overlook the hurting. We love one another earnestly, knowing that we ourselves were bruised reeds whom Christ restored.

Matthew 12 gives a powerful example. Jesus healed the man with the withered hand. The Pharisees valued their traditions more than the life of that man. They saw him as worthless. Jesus saw him as precious. Jesus restored him. That is the Servant’s heart.

This Servant is gentle, but he is not weak. He will establish justice on the earth. The coastlands will wait for his law. Even if the world feels chaotic now, Jesus does not grow faint. He is working out his plan. He is reigning even when we cannot see it.

Advent teaches us to wait with confidence. The world may be burning, but Christ is still on the throne. He never grows weary. He never becomes discouraged. His justice is not fragile. His salvation is not uncertain. His kingdom is not threatened.

And now the question becomes: how will he accomplish this task, and how will he bring forth justice to completion?

Next we need to see

The Servant’s Task

Look with me at verses 5-9.

We see that the Servant’s task will be from God himself, God personally working in his creation. In verse 5 God provides what we might call a mic drop for his hearers. Before he speaks to the Servant, he reminds everyone who is speaking. He lays out his credentials. He is the one who created the heavens and stretched them out. He spread out the earth and everything that comes from it. He gives breath to the people on it and spirit to those who walk in it. In other words, this is not a local tribal deity speaking. This is not one god among many. This is the Creator of all things, the Lord of heaven and earth.

That matters for Advent. The child born in Bethlehem is not a nice religious idea. He is sent by the One who calls galaxies into existence, the One who breathed life into Adam, the One who sustains every heartbeat in this room. The Servant does not step into history with his own agenda. He comes carrying the assignment of the Creator God.

After laying out his resume, God speaks directly to the Servant. The Servant is able to establish God’s loving order upon the earth because it is the God of the earth who establishes the Servant. The authority and success of the Servant’s mission rest on the character and power of the One who sends him. That is why we can be confident that what Isaiah 42 promises will truly come to pass. God's plan does not rest on human strength but on his own faithfulness.

The original creative order of the earth was thrown into chaos after the fall of man. When sin entered the world, those who were made in God’s image were marred. Their nature changed. The harmony that once existed between God and man, between man and creation, between man and woman, was fractured. Adam and Eve’s sin affected all of mankind so that by nature we no longer simply choose to sin. We are bound by it. We are slaves to it. We do not drift toward obedience. We drift toward rebellion.

Sin penetrates the heart of man. As Paul reminds us in Romans, “None is righteous, no, not one. No one understands. No one seeks for God. All have turned aside. Together they have become worthless. No one does good, not even one. Their throat is an open grave. They use their tongues to deceive. The venom of asps is under their lips. Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness. Their feet are swift to shed blood. In their paths are ruin and misery, and the way of peace they have not known.

There is no fear of God before their eyes. That is the human condition apart from grace. This is why the Servant must come. Humanity cannot climb its way back to God. We cannot recreate Eden. We cannot restore what sin has broken. Only God himself can undo the curse, and he chooses to do so through his Servant.

A watch that has shattered gears cannot repair itself. It can tell you something is wrong, but it cannot correct the problem. Someone from outside must intervene. That is humanity in sin. We know something is wrong in the world and in ourselves, but we cannot fix it. Only someone from outside the system, someone righteous and powerful, can restore what is broken. Isaiah says that someone is the Servant.

This Servant was sent to make all things right between God and his people. He comes not as a mere prophet or moral example but as the one called in perfect righteousness. The Servant of God is without sin. He is qualified to bring humanity back to God because he is everything we are not. Isaiah tells us that he will be a covenant for the people, a light to the nations, the one who opens blind eyes and brings prisoners out of the dungeon and out of darkness.

This is what Advent announces. The righteous One came for the unrighteous. The light entered the darkness. The eternal Son stepped into human flesh so that sinners who could do nothing good might be brought near to God.

The God who created all things from nothing is not distant. He cares for the inhabitants of the earth. He is concerned for every person. He desires that people from every tribe and tongue know him and be saved. That is why he sends the Servant. This is why the incarnation happened. The task given to the Servant is not small. It is a world changing, history redirecting, humanity restoring mission. He will reign as a gentle king not shouting in the streets but showing mercy, lifting the broken, and leading people out of darkness.

And this Servant will be a covenant for the people. Jesus fulfilled this. At the Passover meal before his death, he took the cup and said, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.” Long before this moment, God’s people brought sacrifices to the altar, shedding the blood of animals in an attempt to deal with their sin. But none of those sacrifices could cleanse the conscience or restore the heart.

So God, rich in mercy, sent his Servant. The Servant poured out his own blood to establish a new covenant, one that provides salvation to sinners who believe by faith. Through this covenant, God’s creative order begins to be restored. The light of truth shines into every nation. The eyes of sinners blinded by sin begin to see. Prisoners chained by darkness are set free.

Because of Jesus this is real. Jesus defeated sin. He is the light that shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome him. First John tells us, “If we walk in the light as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.” Jesus is the light that brings us out of darkness and frees us from the prison we created for ourselves.

No idol can do this. No man made image can achieve this. No amount of effort or discipline or moral reform can bring salvation. Only the I Am, God Almighty, can save. He deserves all the glory. Through Jesus he has provided salvation for all nations. Through Jesus he is making all things new. One day he will wipe away every tear and remove every trace of darkness. A new heaven and a new earth will be revealed, and the Servant King will reign without opposition forever.

But the world tells us a different story. The world preaches that we can fix ourselves, heal ourselves, redefine ourselves, or carry ourselves out of the darkness. It tells us we simply need better habits, better friends, better careers, better dreams. But Jesus says, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” Nothing in this world can save us. Nothing in this world can satisfy us. Nothing in this world can bring us to God. Only Jesus.

Brothers and sisters, in Isaiah 42 we see the reign of the Servant of God. Jesus is upon the throne right now, reigning as King. He is the light of the nations. All tribes and tongues will know his name. We know this promise will be fulfilled. But we also know it is not yet fully realized. That is why Advent exists. We await the second advent even as we celebrate the first. We long for the day when faith becomes sight.

God, the One who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spread out the earth and everything in it, who gives breath to every person and spirit to all who walk on it, has called us to something as well. The Servant completed his task. Now his people are given theirs.

Before Jesus ascended to heaven and sat down at the right hand of the Father, he said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always to the end of the age.”

So we have been commanded to bring the light to the nations. We are to make disciples, telling them of Jesus who makes all things new. We are to teach what he taught. And this calling is not just for pastors or missionaries. It is for every believer in this room.

Are you doing this? Are you telling anyone about the Servant? The same God who upheld Jesus upholds you. The same Spirit who empowered Jesus lives in you. The same presence that sustained Jesus is with you always.

So go tell someone about the Servant who is gentle and lowly. Go tell someone about the Servant who brings justice. Go tell someone about the Savior who restores the broken and lifts the weary. Go tell them that he has brought a new covenant, that he has brought true justice, that he has brought eternal restoration.

Behold the Servant who has come. Behold the Servant who will come again. Behold Jesus today.

Pray