“Yet it was our weaknesses he carried; it was
our sorrows that weighed him down. And we thought his troubles were a punishment
from God, a punishment for his own sins! But he was pierced for our rebellion,
crushed for our sins. He was beaten so we could be whole. He was whipped so we
could be healed. All of us, like sheep, have strayed away. We have left God’s
paths to follow our own. Yet the LORD laid on him the sins of us
all.”
Isaiah 53:4-6 NLT
These verses are an excerpt from a passage
of Scripture we've all likely heard a million times. I remember the first time I
really learned about Isaiah 53 in depth as we were assigned to memorize the
verses. In Mr. Marshall's 7th grade homeroom, this passage came alive as we
began to understand the prophetic components of the writing while gaining an
appreciation for how vital Jesus’ sacrifice was for each of us. Every child
growing up in Sunday School learns that Christ “died on the cross to save us
from our sins.” But, this passage explains exactly how that can even make
sense!
We each know ourself to be sinful to the
core-- which causes a very understandable separation between us and our perfect,
holy, set apart Creator. It is only through Jesus’ sacrifice and his willingness
to take on the punishment we deserve that we have a chance at restoration in our
relationship with God.
In this election season, we're hearing the
slogans and maybe can't help thinking of the reactionary “Make America Whole
Again” as we read verse five. No matter which candidates we prefer or don't
prefer, that phrase speaks to the desire inside each of us for peace and
restoration of what humanity has broken. We are like sheep-- those messy,
stupid and powerless animals that can so easily go astray.
The Scripture graphic you see with this
devotional is a photo taken at Evansburg State Park. It’s a place not too far
away where there are so many interesting things to the sides of the designated
path that can attract a hiker’s attention away from the safe trail. Life isn’t
so different, right? As the prophet Isaiah says, “We have left God’s paths to
follow our own.” We can’t earn our way back to God. We need Jesus to be the
propitiation by taking on the burden that is beyond what we could
bear.
Knowing this is half the battle, but if we
live our lives unchanged, then what good is it? “He was beaten so we could be
whole. He was whipped so we could be healed.” We don’t need to live wallowing
in sin or guilt. Jesus has paid the price already! This Easter, let us all be
reminded that we can have a fresh start and live different, redeemed, restored
lives by the sacrifice of Jesus Christ! What does that look like? We watch for
and strive for the fruit of the Spirit. Galatians 5:22&23 give us the
goals: “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
gentleness, and self-control.” They’re not new ideas, but we (like sheep)
probably each could benefit from frequent reminders!
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