The Substituted Servant of the Lord

Surely our griefs He Himself bore,

And our sorrows He carried;

Yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken,

Smitten of God, and afflicted.

But He was pierced through for our transgressions,

He was crushed for our iniquities;

The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him,

And by His scourging we are healed.

All of us like sheep have gone astray,

Each of us has turned to his own way;

But the LORD has caused the iniquity of us all

To fall on Him.

Introduction

Working our way through Isaiah 53

Last week: the rejection of the Servant of Yahweh

The Messiah wasn’t what the Jews expected

They expected a majestic king, but they got a carpenter's son

Jesus was hated on this earth during his earthly ministry He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him.

Israel didn’t recognize the value of the Messiah when he was on this earth

This week: the substitution of the Servant of Yahweh

This servant song is made up of five stanzas of three verses each

This stanza is directly in the middle, and it is perhaps the central stanza of the whole song

If Isaiah 53 is the Mount Everest of OT prophecies, these three verses are the peak of the mountain

Timothy Cross - “These verses are central in every sense. They give us perhaps the clearest explanation of Calvary in the whole Bible, and in the Bible, all roads lead to Calvary. In the Bible, Calvary is central and literally crucial. The centre cross of Calvary is the heart and core of the message of the Bible and the Christian Gospel.”

Though these are the words that are yet to be spoken by repentant Israel, they are just as true for everyone in our day who looks to the Son on the cross and believes in him

Surely our griefs He Himself bore, And our sorrows He carried;

There is a sudden shift from blind rejection to understanding

A complete paradigm shift

Example of a paradigm shift: the blind man on a bus

Israel recognizes that it wasn’t for his sake that the Messiah suffered, but for their sakes

They now realize the value of the one whom they had considered nothing

We saw the reaction of at least some of Israel after Peter’s sermon on Pentecost

Acts 2:37 Now when they heard this, they were pierced to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brethren, what shall we do?”

God glorified himself through Jesus by giving himself for the sins of his people’

Jesus poured out himself for the sake of others

Jesus came not to be served, but to serve

Jesus took on the burden of sin for the sake of his people

Sin: our heaviest burden

Psalm 38:4 For my iniquities are gone over my head; as a heavy burden they are too heavy for me.

Psalm 32:4 For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me

Of all of the ailments that plague the human race, sin is the root of them all

Christian in Pilgrim's Progress

Upon reading the Bible, Christian feels a heavy burden on his back

He is so distressed by his burden that he is willing to do anything to relieve himself of it

Upon listening to Evangelist, Christian departs from the City of Destruction

His burden weighs him down in the Slough of Despond, and he is unable to bear it climbing up the hill to Legality

It finally comes free when he walks down the road of salvation and arrives at the hill with the cross on top and a tomb at the bottom

Imagery invoked is that of the scapegoat taking the sins of Israel away into the wilderness

Leviticus 16:21-22 “Then Aaron shall lay both of his hands on the head of the live goat, and confess over it all the iniquities of the sons of Israel and all their transgressions in regard to all their sins; and he shall lay them on the head of the goat and send it away into the wilderness by the hand of a man who stands in readiness. “The goat shall bear on itself all their iniquities to a solitary land; and he shall release the goat in the wilderness.

The scapegoat bore the iniquities of Israel and carry them away

The burden of that sin was no longer on the people of Israel, but on the goat that was led into the wilderness, never to be seen again

In the same way, Jesus takes the burden of our sin, the punishment that is due, and takes it away never to be seen

Quoted in Matthew 8:16-17 When evening came, they brought to Him many who were demon-possessed; and He cast out the spirits with a word, and healed all who were ill. This was to fulfill what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet: “HE HIMSELF TOOK OUR INFIRMITIES AND CARRIED AWAY OUR DISEASES.”

Jesus’ selflessness and love is demonstrated through the miraculous healings that he did

Disease and sickness are results of the Fall. Jesus reverses the effects of sin

The miracles pointed to the greater reality of the forgiveness of sins that is found in him

Calvin: “The miracles which Christ performed in curing bodies, he gave a proof of the salvation which he brings to our souls. That healing had therefore a more extensive reference than to bodies, because he was appointed to be the physician of souls; and accordingly Matthew applies to the outward sign what belonged to the truth and reality.”

Seen in the healing of the man lowered in through the roof in Matthew 9:1-8

By physical healing, Jesus demonstrates the reality of forgiveness of sins

Israel’s verdict on Jesus miracles: the are the work of Satan

From very early on in his ministry the religious leaders sought an opportunity to kill him

Mark 3 Jesus heals the man with the withered hand on the Sabbath and immediately the religious leaders start plotting to kill him

John 5 Jesus heals the man at the pool in Jerusalem and they wanted to kill him not only for that, but calling God his Father, declaring equality with God

The final verdict by the Pharisees on the miracles of Jesus was that they were performed by the power of the prince of demons

However, Israel will look back and recognize that they were the works of God for their benefit

Yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken, Smitten of God, and afflicted.

In a sense this is true, however in the sense that it is said here it is false

Jesus was struck by God. But it wasn’t for his sin

Israel’s theology of suffering

In the minds of the Israelites in Jesus’ day, suffering meant that you were being punished by God, while earthly riches were a sign of God’s favor

This is part of the reason it was so shocking that Jesus said it was impossible for a rich man to get into heaven

If the rich, those who were of such high character that they were blessed tremendously by God, couldn’t get into heaven, what chance does a lowly peasant have?

The people supposed that those who were killed by Pilate were greater sinners Luke 13:1-2 Now on the same occasion there were some present who reported to Him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices. And Jesus said to them, “Do you suppose that these Galileans were greater sinners than all other Galileans because they suffered this fate?

Even the apostles had this view John 9:2 And His disciples asked Him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he would be born blind?”

There is a sense of truth to this: those who committed evil were to be punished

There are many cries for justice today. In God’s justice system there will be perfect justice

Throughout the Old Testament we see the judgement of God carried out against wicked men

Cain was punished for his sin against his brother Abel

The flood was a worldwide punishment against the wickedness of mankind

Egypt was struck by God with plagues

God used Israel to carry out judgment against the Canaanites in their conquest of the land

And so on

Because Jesus met such a horrific end, he must have been a great sinner

Jesus died because he was a blasphemer

Claiming to be the Messiah, claiming to have been alive before Abraham, claiming equality with God

This is an imbalanced view of suffering

There are many who suffer unjustly in the world

God’s people are to even expect unjust suffering at the hands of evil men

OT case study: Job

Jobs friends thought that he was suffering for some sin that he had committed and refuses to confess

But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities;

Israel now recognize the real purpose behind Jesus’ suffering and death: it was for their benefit

It wasn’t for his own sin that the Messiah suffered, but for the sins of his people

This is a complete reversal from their original position

Pierced, crushed, scourged, punished

Indicate the violent nature of his death, and the wounds that would be sustained

Different from the customary method of stoning for execution

This is describing something entirely more violent

Pierced for our transgressions - pierced by nails in his hands and his feet, pierced by a roman spear in his side

Zechariah 12:10 “I will pour out on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the Spirit of grace and of supplication, so that they will look on Me whom they have pierced; and they will mourn for Him, as one mourns for an only son, and they will weep bitterly over Him like the bitter weeping over a firstborn.

Psalm 22:16 They pierced my hands and my feet.

Crushed - refers to beating, bruising, trampling, pounding, and can even refer to a fatal blow

Job wishing his death “Would that God were willing to crush me, That He would loose His hand and cut me off!”

Jesus was beaten by the Romans, hit with a stick, crushed under the weight of the cross

Chastening - the word for punishment for wrongdoing

Jesus’ death was a formal punishment carried out by the Roman government after the Jewish sentencing

Scourged

Not beaten with a Jewish rod, but a Roman cat-o’-nine-tails

Pilate had him scourged to the point where he thought it would be enough to satiate the Jew’s lust for his life

For our transgressions, for our iniquities, for our wellbeing, for our healing

We live in a world that is obsessed with getting what it deserves

Read Macleods intro

In our society we demand blessings from God, while at the same time condemning him for every bad thing that happens

Israel, now looking at the crucified Christ, recognizes that he got what they deserve

It wasn’t for his evil that he was put to death, but for theirs

Scripture, from the very beginning, warns us of the consequences of sins

Adam and Eve introduced sin to humanity by eating of the forbidden fruit

God warned them of death for rebellion

Their sin ushered into the world every form of wickedness and suffering

God warns of judgement and punishment against those that transgress his law

The soul that sins shall die

The wages of sin is death

Jesus warns in graphic detail about the horrific punishment that is due to sinners

Weeping, wailing, gnashing of teeth

No relief, no comfort

Imagery of flames and burning and smoke indicating horrific torment

This punishment will be carried out for all eternity with no end

This punishment is right and just, and shows us how repulsive sin is in God’s sight

We look at the horrors happening around the world, we see the wickedness that men are capable of and are shocked

This perhaps gives us a taste of how repulsive sin is in God’s eyes

Even our good deeds are filthy rags in God’s sight

Even the holiest among us cannot stand before the holy God without crying out “Woe is me!”

Israel now recognizes that on the cross Jesus was taking the punishment that they deserve

This is called “penal substitutionary atonement” - Jesus took the penalty for sin as a substitute for all who would ever believe in him

The Jewish sacrificial system is a substitutionary system, and this pointed ahead to Christ, the true substitute for sinners

Adam and Eve sinned, and God slew an animal and covered their nakedness with it’s skin

Isaac was taken up to be sacrificed, but a ram caught in a thicket was killed in his place

“God will provide a sacrifice.”

During the passover a lamb was slain in the place of the Israelite firstborn, with the passover being repeated year after year

Sacrifices on the day of atonement

The bull for the high priest, the goat for the people

These sacrifices, however, did not have the ability to take care of sins

Hebrews 10:1-5 For the Law, since it has only a shadow of the good things to come and not the very form of things, can never, by the same sacrifices which they offer continually year by year, make perfect those who draw near. Otherwise, would they not have ceased to be offered, because the worshipers, having once been cleansed, would no longer have had consciousness of sins? But in those sacrifices there is a reminder of sins year by year. For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.

Hebrews 10:11 Every priest stands daily ministering and offering time after time the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins;

God demands payment for sin. Justice must be carried out

However, justice must be carried out on humanity

How can man stand rightly before a just and holy God?

Jesus, from the very beginning of his ministry, was called the “Lamb of God,” invoking imagery of a lamb sacrificed in the place of the people

Jesus came into the world to die in the place of sinners, to stand in their place before God

The punishment that we deserve was inflicted on Jesus

The wrath of God that demands the life of those who transgress his standard

Rather than giving us what we deserve, he gave that to Jesus

The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, And by His scourging we are healed.

It is through what Jesus has done on the cross that we can have peace with God

Not through anything we do, but faith in the one who made peace for us

Romans 5:1 Therefore, having been justified by faith we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ

All of us like sheep have gone astray, Each of us has turned to his own way; Israel admits to their iniquity

No one will come to a Savior without the recognition that they need to be saved

There is a reason Paul spends the first 2.5 chapters of Romans by outlining the bad news

Without the recognition of guilt there is no recognition of a need for the Savior

Sheep by nature are dumb, helpless animals

There’s a little bit of an analogy for humanity. Apart from the Savior we are completely helpless

Israel admits to corporate and individual guilt: Each one of us has turned away

In Adam we all have fallen into sin. We have all inherited his nature and are guilty in him

Romans 5 Judgment following the trespass brought condemnation… By one man’s trespass, death reigned through that one man… One trespass led to condemnation of all men… By the one man’s disobedience many were made sinners…

However, our sin goes beyond our inherited nature. We are all individually guilty of sin

Paul’s conclusion: “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.”

Just like sheep by nature wander away from safety, we by nature have done what is right in our own eyes

“In sin my mother conceived me”

“Prone to wander, Lord I feel it”

But the LORD has caused the iniquity of us all To fall on Him

How can we stand before a holy God when we have sinned so grievously in his sight?

Because our sin was credited to Jesus

2 Corinthians 5:21 He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

That is why Jesus came, to take away the sins of his people. 1 John 3:5 You know that He appeared in order to take away sins;

How can God pass over our sins? Because of the propitiation found in the blood of Jesus, our substitute

Romans 3:23-26 For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus; whom God displayed publicly as a propitiation in His blood through faith. This was to demonstrate His righteousness, because in the forbearance of God He passed over the sins previously committed; for the demonstration, I say, of His righteousness at the present time, so that He would be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

As our high priest he stands in our place Hebrews 2:17 Therefore, He had to be made like His brethren in all things, so that He might become a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people.

Not because we did anything to find favor in God’s eyes, but because he loved us 1 John 3:5 In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.

The good news: God’s remedy for sinners

We are given new life by the death of Christ in our place

The Gospel isn’t about what we must do to inherit eternal life, but what Christ has done

How can a man stand right before God? God’s answer is the one who lays down his life for his sheep

“I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep… My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.”

1 Peter 2:24-25 and He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed. For you were continually straying like sheep, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Guardian of your souls.