What He Did

What God’s Servant Did for Us Has anyone believed us or seen the mighty power of the Lord in action? Like a young plant or a root that sprouts in dry ground, the servant grew up obeying the Lord. He wasn’t some handsome king. Nothing about the way he looked made him attractive to us. He was hated and rejected; his life was filled with sorrow and terrible suffering. No one wanted to look at him. We despised him and said, He is a nobody!” He suffered and endured great pain for us, but we thought his suffering was punishment from God. He was wounded and crushed because of our sins; by taking our punishment, he made us completely well. All of us were like sheep that had wandered off. We had each gone our own way, but the Lord gave him the punishment we deserved. He was painfully abused, but he did not complain. He was silent like a lamb being led to the butcher, as quiet as a sheep having its wool cut off. He was condemned to death without a fair trial. Who could have imagined what would happen to him? His life was taken away because of the sinful things my people had done. He wasn’t dishonest or violent, but he was buried in a tomb of cruel and rich people. The Lord decided his servant would suffer as a sacrifice to take away the sin and guilt of others. Now the servant will live to see his own descendants. He did everything the Lord had planned. By suffering, the servant will learn the true meaning of obeying the Lord. Although he is innocent, he will take the punishment for the sins of others, so that many of them will no longer be guilty. The Lord will reward him with honor and power for sacrificing his life. Others thought he was a sinner, but he suffered for our sins and asked God to forgive us. Isaiah 53 Contemporary English Version (CEV) Isaiah was a prophet of God who foretold this plan of God and what must happen to save mankind from sin. As we approach this horrific event in remembrance, we realize we have much to be grateful for and still much more to come as we believe God's Word. Jesus was guilty of nothing but submitting to the Father's will. How often do we fail to follow suit?Because Christ willingly gave His life for our transgressions, let us who believe always remember that but for God's grace, it should be us who would suffer and die on that cross. As we reflect on what Jesus did to save us, let us be thankful that we can move pass that cross and follow Him all the way to the Kingdom God has planned for those who believe in His plan for the ages. Because of what Christ did for us, we will never have to do it for ourselves and that's a good thing because we are incapable of ever doing it for ourselves, much less anybody else. Yet, by believing that God gave His only begotten Son for our sin, we will reap the rewards of His suffering once and for all. We are now able to look forward not only to a Good Friday, but give thanks to God for a Great Friday! This is a day in which our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ declared with His last breath: "It is finished!" What's next for those who believe in Christ and all He did to save us from the certain death of sin? We will receive new life and forever in His Kingdom as we follow Him. And in just a few days, we will be reminded of how He got up and proved Himself to be our one and only Lord and Savior.