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Good morning. Good morning. My apology for the Lord's Supper this morning. I spoke out of turn. My hearing aids, they're wonderful sometime. Please turn to Isaiah chapter fifty three. We'll be reading the first five verses of Isaiah chapter fifty three.
I wanted to cover the whole of the chapter, which are twelve verses, but I found that there's so much material in the first five verses that we're going to have to make it kind of a series. Isaiah chapter fifty three, and we'll be reading the first five verses. Who hath believed our report? And to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed?
For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground, he has no form nor comeliness. And when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him. He is despised and rejected of men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. And we hid, as it were, our faces from him. He was despised, and we esteemed him not.
Surely he hath borne our grief and carried our sorrows, yet we did has esteem him s- stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions. He was bruised for our iniquities. The chastisement of our peace was upon him, and with his stripes we are healed. This is the very word of God.
One of the principles of studying the scripture is the Christocentric interpretation. They call it hermeneutics, don't worry about that. It's simply the rules to follow if you're going to accurately understand the scriptures. And one of those rules, and I place this at the very top, Christocentric is what the officials call it.
It simply means Christ in all the scriptures. It doesn't make any difference whether you are studying in Isaiah, whether you're studying in the book of Genesis, or whether you are studying in the book of the Revelation. Christ is the central theme of the Word of God. And if you're going to understand the scriptures, you're going to have to follow that basic rule of hermeneutics, Christocentric. Christ is the central theme of all of the scriptures, including Isaiah fifty three.
Isaiah fifty three, That's the gospel according to Isaiah. You want the gospel? Read Isaiah chapter fifty three. You won't find it any more beautiful. This is the John three sixteen of the Old Testament. It's interesting to learn that Orthodox Jews avoid reading this chapter. Why do you think they avoid it?
Because it's so clearly speaks of their Messiah and our Savior, that too many of them are getting converted to the Lord Jesus Christ. They avoid Isaiah fifty three. I'd like you to notice the question in verse one. Who would believe such a report? Who would believe it? I can tell you now, no natural mind is going to believe the report of Isaiah chapter fifty three.
Only a spirit convicted, converted, and surrendered believer is going to understand the meaning of Isaiah chapter fifty three. A beautiful example of this, you probably are ac- acquainted with the Ethiopian eunuch in, um, in Acts chapter eight. The Ethiopian eunuch had just returned from Jerusalem, where he was involved in some of the Jewish celebrations in the s- in the temple in the city of Jerusalem.
But there seemed to be something about it he wasn't satisfied. He was reading Isaiah chapter fifty three. The account is in Acts chapter eight. beautiful account. And he didn't really understand what he was reading. But the Lord came to the rescue. Remember what the Lord did? He sent Philip the Evangelist to the desert.
There the Ethiopian eunuch was riding in the chariot back home to Ethiopia, and he was reading Isaiah chapter fifty three, and he wasn't understanding very much of it. And Philip was called by the Spirit of God to join him. He got up into the chariot, and they had a Bible study in the chariot that day. And the topic was Isaiah chapter fifty three.
And you remember the question that Enoch asked of Philip? We've got it here in verse one. Who? Who is the prophet talking about? Is he talking about himself, or is he talking about some other person? That's exactly what Philip wanted him to ask, because that's what Philip was going to answer. You remember what Philip's answer was to the Ethiopian eunuch? Jesus.
He preached unto him Jesus. This one that the prophet is talking about, he comes to us first unnoticed. Unnoticed by man, but a tender plant in the eyes of his father. That's verse two. Unnoticed by man, unrecognized by man, but the father noticed him as a tender plant.
Plant in scripture contains life. Growth, potential fruit, all of that is found in a plant, and that's what the Father saw in the Lord Jesus Christ. Tender. The Lord Jesus was always tender, wasn't he? You remember when it came to the little children, the disciple says, get rid of them, they're bothering the master.
And you remember how the Lord Jesus responded? He picked them up into his arms, and he blessed them. He was tender with little children. He was tender with lepers that were actually outcasts. You weren't supposed to come near a leper in those days. The leper had to, had to go off into a distant place and not allow anybody to get near to him, excepting the Lord Jesus.
He drew near to the lepers and healed them. The brokenhearted. How often we find the Lord Jesus tenderly reaching out to the brokenhearted, to the sinful. Of all things that he reached out to the sinful. This was something that the Pharisees could not understand. How could he have fellowship with sinners? He did.
Because that's why he came into the world. Observe the tender tears of the Lord Jesus. Standing at the graveside of Lazarus? Because his friend was dead?
I don't think so. Because in a few minutes he was going to raise him from the dead and prove that he was the resurrection and the life. I don't think the tears at the graveside of Lazarus were because Lazarus was dead. You know why he wept? He saw two sorrowing sisters. Their names were Martha and Mary. And their eyes were filled with tears, and tears were rolling down their cheeks.
And no one can shed tears in the presence of the Lord Jesus without him shedding tears. Then Jerusalem. The Lord Jesus was approaching Jerusalem, and he thought about the inhabitants of the city of Jerusalem and the advantages that they had, and they rejected the word of God, they rejected God, they rejected the gospel. You know how the Lord Jesus responded to that?
Jesus wept. Unnoticed by man, but a tender plant to the Father. Number two, unlikely, a root out of a dry ground. You don't expect much growth, you don't expect much fruit when the root is in a dry ground. The Lord Jesus Christ is the root, and he has life and potential fruit.
Israel was the dry ground. That root was in dry ground, and you just don't expect much with a root in dry ground. The Lord Jesus had a very unlikely ancestry in the nation of Israel. They despised the gospel. They stoned the prophets. They rejected their message. They disobeyed God, and they were scattered throughout the world.
And they, as a nation, became outcasts, scattered through the world. They still are, but don't hold your breath, they're going to be regathered. You believe that? In Jerusalem, in Palestine. Unnoticed a man, a tender plant to God, unlikely as a root out of a dry ground. Unlovely. No form nor comeliness.
Verse two. No regal pomp or majestic glory associated with the Lord Jesus Christ. The Lord Jesus was born to a poor family in a manger, not in a palace. You see, it was because Israel expected a king on a throne.
That's what Israel was looking for. They were not expecting a suffering savior on a cross. Do you remember the time when the Lord Jesus entered Jerusalem, riding on a donkey. That was very humbling. That was very humiliating. A donkey? Not a mighty steed coming victorious into Jerusalem.
I've conquered the world. That wasn't the Lord Jesus. It says that there's no beauty to desire him. A mutilated body of a criminal on a cross is not too attractive, is it? That was our Savior. No beauty to desire him. You see, the carnal Jew had no discernment to see the real beauty of the Lord to faith, he's altogether lovely.
Even with the mutilated body of Calvary, he is altogether lovely. But the Jews were unable to see that. I think we see this point illustrated in the tabernacle in the Old Testament. As you know, the tabernacle very beautifully illustrates and pictures, typifies the Lord Jesus Christ. You check it out, you'll find that the external of the tabernacle was very drab.
Nothing to look at. No beauty that anyone would desire it. You had to get to the inside of the tabernacle before you saw the real beauty. The Holy of Holies. The table of showbread. The lampstand. Beautiful, costly pieces of furniture that pictures the inner beauty of the Lord Jesus Christ.
The external, very drab. Nobody would be impressed. But I tell you, when you enter the tabernacle and you see the beautiful furniture and all that it means, it's going to thrill your heart. I'd like you to notice in the last part of verse one, the arm of the Lord, to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed? What does that mean? Arm in scripture illustrates power, Strength.
Your arm is probably the strongest part of your body. And the Lord is using that as an illustration to whom the arm of the Lord is revealed. Power. What's the real power? The gospel is the power of God unto salvation. That's infinite power, beloved. The work of the Lord Jesus Christ through the Spirit is infinite power, and every sinner who repents and believes in the Lord Jesus Christ experiences personally the infinite power of God.
It's interesting to notice in creation, God made use of his fingers. You want a verse for that? Psalm 8 and verse 3. The fingers of God threw the galaxies into space, and it came out to creation. God used his fingers for creation. When it came to deliver the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt, do you remember what he used?
His strong arm. You want a verse for that one? Exodus thirteen three. He used his strong arm for creation, just his fingers. But delivering the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt, he used his strong hand, rather. But in redeeming mankind, and that includes you and I today, in redeeming mankind, he used his mighty arm. Full strength.
And that's the power of the gospel. Number three, he's the man of sorrows. That's in verse three and verse four. You know, it's interesting that life begins with a cry, and it ends with a sigh. You believe that? They tell me when I was born, the very first noise that I made, I cried. They say the doctor was happy about it.
I don't know why. We began life with a cry, and we're ending it with a sigh. I'm already experiencing some of the sighs. Because you see, the Lord Jesus is the man of sorrows. He came to bear our sorrows. And because he came to bear our sorrows, he is now able to comfort the sorrowing. He's the comforter. The sorrow of rejection.
Do we really enter into the sorrow that our blessed Savior experienced? The sorrow of rejection. He was despised and rejected of man. It says that his own, that is his own people, the children of Israel, received him not. He was rejected by the religious and civil leaders of his day. And then, of course, he was rejected by the lynch mob at Calvary.
Away with him. We will not have this man to lay, to, uh, lead over us. There are many in the lynch mob today that are rejecting the gospel. They're rejecting the Lord Jesus. If you hear the politicians say one religion is as good as the other, don't, don't believe them. That's not true.
The Lord Jesus Christ said, I am the way. There's no other way. The sorrow of grief. He was acquainted with grief, verses three and four. Notice who the contributors of his grief are. Judas Iscariot in the Garden of Gethsemane betrayed him with a kiss. The disciple that he trusted with the treasury of the disciples.
Betrayed him with a kiss. Do you think that brought grief to the heart of our Savior? I know it did. How about Peter in the courtyard? Lord, you can't trust these disciples. You can't trust them farther than you can throw them, but you can trust me. I'll stick with you to the end. And there in the courtyard, the Lord Jesus looks over, and he sees Peter.
Peter denied him not once, not twice, but three times. The one that promised to be faithful to the Lord denies the Lord three times. Do you think that brought grief to the heart of the Savior? Pilate in the Praetorium mocked him, placed a crown of thorns upon his head and mocked him. That brought grief. Herod in the palace.
He wanted to see a magician. He didn't want to see a divine God performing miracles. He wanted to see a magician of a ma- of a magic of a magician. Acquainted with grief. We've already mentioned the tears at Lazarus' grave. He was acquainted with grief. We mentioned the tears of the Lord Jesus when he thought of the awful condition of the city of Jerusalem.
Then there was the sorrow of loneliness. That's in verse three, We hid, as it were, our faces from him. Loneliness. In Gethsemane, he prayed all alone. Well, wasn't his disciples there? They were fast asleep. Loneliness. At his arrest, his disciples forsook him and fled. He was alone at his trial before the high priest and Pilate.
But above all, he was alone at Calvary. He was alone at Calvary. Not only was he forsaken by man, not only was he forsaken by his own professed disciples, but he was forsaken by God in heaven. Talk about loneliness. Remember when he said, my God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?
Number four. He was wounded for me. Wounded for our transgressions, but I'm going to make it personal. He was stricken, he was smitten, he was afflicted, he was wounded, he was bruised, and with his stripes we are healed. That's the price of redemption, beloved. Are we able today to calculate these gaping wounds in the body of the Lord Jesus?
Can we calculate the cost of our redemption? The scourges, the thorns, the nails, the spears. By the way, his heel was bruised, but Satan's head was crushed. That's the victory. You want a verse for that? Genesis three fifteen. The heel of the Lord Jesus was bruised, but the head of the enemy Satan was crushed, defeated for good.
How severe our sins. How cruel his suffering. How immense his love. These open wounds, he was wounded for our transgression. These open wounds. What do they do for the believer? I'll tell you what they do. They inspire worship.
That's what the Lord, Lord's Supper is all about, where we medi- meditate upon the wounds of the Lord Jesus, the body that was broken, the precious blood that was shed. Inspires worship now at the Lord's Supper, every day in our life, for eternity. That's the theme in heaven, beloved. The wounds of the Lord Jesus are going to be visible, and it's going to inspire worship.
Number five, He was chastened for our peace. The chastisement of our peace was upon him. That is peace at a price, isn't it? We speak of the soldiers that gave their life for freedom, for our peace. We're thankful for that.
It's peace at a price, and the price that he paid was his precious blood. The biblical term for that is reconciled. The enmity has been removed. We now have peace with God. We are at peace with God. God was never out of peace with us. We were the ones that moved. We were the ones that sinned. We were the ones that lost that fellowship and that peace. But now there's reconciliation.
I tell you what this peace is all about. Paul talks about it in Philippians chapter four. It's a peace that passes understanding. What do you think Paul meant by peace that passes understanding. He simply meant that the natural mind cannot fully comprehend the price that was paid for our peace. Such agonizing love should melt our eyes to tears and our hearts to worship.
Isaiah chapter fifty three is the John three sixteen of the Old Testament. You're going to get the complete gospel in this passage of scripture, and we've only covered the first five verses. There's twelve verses altogether. Lord willing, in the future we may continue the study here. But this is the John three sixteen of the Old Testament. And how would we sum up what we've talked about today?
Infinite love. Infinite love. Isaiah fifty three has been called the holy of holies into God's presence, and I'm happy with accepting that, that idea. It's the Holy of Holies. You remember in the temple and in the tabernacle, there was the holy place, but it was only for certain people. But then there was the Holy of Holies.
That was the very presence of God, and only the high priest, once a year, was allowed into the Holy of Holies with the blood from the sacrifice that he sprinkled on the altar and before the altar. It's the Holy of Holies. You want to get into the holy presence of God? Study Isaiah chapter fifty three. You'll be there. It's interesting that there are eighty New Testament references.
Eighty references in the New Testament that come from Isaiah fifty three. You see, the Spirit of God considered it very important, didn't he? So, Lord willing, in the future we'll continue a study here, and the theme is going to be, we are the sheep, and he is the lamb led to the slaughter. Let me repeat that. That's the theme for the rest of the passage. You and I are the sheep that have gone astray, and the Lord Jesus Christ is the lamb that was led to the slaughter.
I wonder if we, there's a couple minutes, well, at least one minute, Two hundred and eighty seven. Two hundred and eighty we'll, we'll sing. Wounded for me. He wounded for me. There on the cross he was wounded for me, on my transgressions, and now I am free, all because Jesus was wounded for me.
Dying for me, dying for me. On the cross he was dying for me. Now in his death my redemption I see, all because Jesus was dying for me. Written for me. Of God our God, he has risen for me.
Now evermore from testing I am free, all because Jesus has risen for me. Paving for me, paving for me, up in the skies he is paving for me. Daily he's weeping and praying for me, all because Jesus is willing for me.
Coming for me, coming for me, one day to earth he's coming for me, then with what joy is he Let us pray. Wounded for me. How can that be?
That he was willing to go to Calvary to be wounded for me. Father, if there is someone here today that has never responded to the gospel, we pray that this beautiful John three sixteen of the Old Testament will touch their hearts, that they will realize that they need to be saved. Lost, condemned, on the way to a lost eternity.
But provision has been made. He was wounded for me. He was wounded for us. Amen.