After a two year desire to get into the book of Isaiah (Chapters 40-66) I am finally waist deep in study! I wanted to share a little about this morning’s meditation on Isaiah 53:3 concerning Jesus Christ: “He is despised and rejected by men, a Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief.”
He IS despised, not “was” despised; He is continuing to be despised and rejected, not just in the time of His life spent on earth, but even today. Jesus you are so humble to endure this hostility! To “despise” means- to not esteem, to think vile of, to scorn, ridicule or disrespect. Despised is said twice of Him, and really it was an understatement.
In His greatest act of humility, Jesus was greatly rejected and not esteemed, He was forsaken by men. John 1:10, “He came to His own and His own did not receive Him.” This is more than He was unlikeable: God was manifesting Himself in the flesh, coming into created world as the Creator by becoming like His creation, and the people’s response was, “Yeah we just don’t like you.” This shows the real face of humanity’s state.
The Father knew they would be disgusted and disrespectful of His Son, yet They both agreed it was fitting for Christ to suffer emotionally in this way. (We usually see His suffering as just physical.) He knows what it feels like to be rejected, but He did not fall prey to a spirit of rejection; He was regularly communing with His Father, and found acceptance in Him as His source.
He boldly, knowing He would triumph, took on sorrows and wasn’t afraid of grief. He knows what it is like to be wrought with grief. The older I get I realize life is full of grief and pain, and I’ve felt a full share of it already it seems! As a source of comfort, we need to regularly view Jesus as One who knows grief and pain. Not only for comfort, but to learn how to overcome as He did. As it says in Hebrews 4:14-16 “Seeing then that we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. 15 For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”
Yes He is mainly a happy God, but He feels pain and did not self-protect Himself (even though as God He could have) from human-ly sadness. Thank you Lord that you are so near to us and we lift up our eyes to You who triumphed over rejection and pain!
-Bethany