Jesus, the Suffering Servant, has called out with a loud voice, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” With this last cry, Jesus breathes his last and dies upon the cross. Both Isaiah & Luke have repeatedly told us that the Suffering Servant is innocent. He has done no wrong. So why is it then that “it was the Lord’s will to cause him to suffer?” We know that God finds no pleasure in the punishment of the wicked, much less his Suffering Servant. So what is going on here? Isaiah tells us. “Lord makes his life an offering for sin”, “For he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.” Here Isaiah reminds us that God’s pleasure is found in the suffering servants heart of humility, his willingness to identify with the exiles, the joy of the foreknown outcome and good fruit of Christ’s suffering. What is that fruit? That our sin is washed away because “his life is an offering for sin”. That our sin is defeated because “he bore our sin” and broke its power over us. All those sheep who have gone astray have been chased down and offered redemption, rescue, and restoration through Jesus. The Suffering Servant has joined us here in our brokenness, and broken its power over us. Though on Good Friday, we can scarcely imagine how any suffering is good— we wait for the light of Resurrection to reveal the victory already won on the Cross.
Jesus, the Suffering Servant, has called out with a loud voice, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” With this last cry, Jesus breathes his last and dies upon the cross. Both Isaiah & Luke have repeatedly told us that the Suffering Servant is innocent. He has done no wrong. So why is it then that “it was the Lord’s will to cause him to suffer?” We know that God finds no pleasure in the punishment of the wicked, much less his Suffering Servant. So what is going on here? Isaiah tells us. “Lord makes his life an offering for sin”, “For he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.” Here Isaiah reminds us that God’s pleasure is found in the suffering servants heart of humility, his willingness to identify with the exiles, the joy of the foreknown outcome and good fruit of Christ’s suffering. What is that fruit? That our sin is washed away because “his life is an offering for sin”. That our sin is defeated because “he bore our sin” and broke its power over us. All those sheep who have gone astray have been chased down and offered redemption, rescue, and restoration through Jesus. The Suffering Servant has joined us here in our brokenness, and broken its power over us. Though on Good Friday, we can scarcely imagine how any suffering is good— we wait for the light of Resurrection to reveal the victory already won on the Cross.