If you are listening to this episode the week of its airing, it is what is known as Holy Week. Christians all over the world focus on Jesus' last week on earth and his preparation for his offering of himself to make a way for us to stand before God wholly.
For our meditation today, we will slowly soak in a messianic prophecy from the book of Isaiah that foretells the suffering of Jesus.
Before I read, breathe in deeply, quiet your mind, focus on the Lord, and listen for the imagery of the suffering servant.
Isaiah 53
Who has believed our message
and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?
2 He grew up before him like a tender shoot,
and like a root out of dry ground.
He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him,
nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.
3 He was despised and rejected by mankind,
a man of suffering, and familiar with pain.
Like one from whom people hide their faces
he was despised, and we held him in low esteem.
4 Surely he took up our pain
and bore our suffering,
yet we considered him punished by God,
stricken by him, and afflicted.
5 But he was pierced for our transgressions,
he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was on him,
and by his wounds we are healed.
6 We all, like sheep, have gone astray,
each of us has turned to our own way;
and the Lord has laid on him
the iniquity of us all.
7 He was oppressed and afflicted,
yet he did not open his mouth;
he was led like a lamb to the slaughter,
and as a sheep before its shearers is silent,
so he did not open his mouth.
8 By oppression[a] and judgment he was taken away.
Yet who of his generation protested?
For he was cut off from the land of the living;
for the transgression of my people he was punished.[b]
9 He was assigned a grave with the wicked,
and with the rich in his death,
though he had done no violence,
nor was any deceit in his mouth.
10 Yet it was the Lord’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer,
and though the Lord makes[c] his life an offering for sin,
he will see his offspring and prolong his days,
and the will of the Lord will prosper in his hand.
11 After he has suffered,
he will see the light of life[d] and be satisfied[e];
by his knowledge[f] my righteous servant will justify many,
and he will bear their iniquities.
12 Therefore I will give him a portion among the great,[g]
and he will divide the spoils with the strong,[h]
because he poured out his life unto death,
and was numbered with the transgressors.
For he bore the sin of many,
and made intercession for the transgressors.
What did the Holy Spirit highlight for you?
Focus your thoughts on this for a moment.
Jesus bore our sins on the cross. Take a moment to let that really sink in. He took your place in forever death. Pray about this or whatever else the Spirit brings to mind.
Let's pray. Father, Son, Holy Spirit, one and only true God, Thank you for dying on the cross. Thank you for paying for our transgressions. Thank you for being the suffering servant Messiah so that we can have forever life. We praise you and we thank you. In Jesus's name, amen.
Thank you for joining me today on the WellSoul Podcast. For links to the study of the last week of Jesus' life, see the show notes.
Subscribe to the WellSoul Life on Substack and never miss a post on living with a well soul and gain access to bonus content. See the link in the show notes. In closing, I remember my late friend Brian Vasquez who helped make this podcast possible. God bless you and I pray that you have a well soul.