Who has believed our message?
To whom has the Lord revealed his powerful arm?
2 My servant grew up in the Lord’s presence like a tender green shoot,
like a root in dry ground.
There was nothing beautiful or majestic about his appearance,
nothing to attract us to him.
3 He was despised and rejected—
a man of sorrows, acquainted with deepest grief.
We turned our backs on him and looked the other way.
He was despised, and we did not care.
4 Yet it was our weaknesses he carried;
it was our sorrows that weighed him down.
And we thought his troubles were a punishment from God,
a punishment for his own sins!
5 But he was pierced for our rebellion, crushed for our sins.
He was beaten so we could be whole.
He was whipped so we could be healed.
6 All of us, like sheep, have strayed away.
We have left God’s paths to follow our own.
Yet the Lord laid on him the sins of us all.
7 He was oppressed and treated harshly,
yet he never said a word.
He was led like a lamb to the slaughter.
And as a sheep is silent before the shearers, he did not open his mouth.
8 Unjustly condemned, he was led away.
No one cared that he died without descendants,
that his life was cut short in midstream.
But he was struck down for the rebellion of my people.
9 He had done no wrong and had never deceived anyone.
But he was buried like a criminal;
he was put in a rich man’s grave.
10 But it was the Lord’s good plan to crush him and cause him grief.
Yet when his life is made an offering for sin,
he will have many descendants.
He will enjoy a long life, and the Lord’s good plan will prosper in his hands.
11 When he sees all that is accomplished by his anguish,
he will be satisfied.
And because of his experience, my righteous servant will make it possible
for many to be counted righteous, for he will bear all their sins.
12 I will give him the honors of a victorious soldier,
because he exposed himself to death.
He was counted among the rebels.
He bore the sins of many and interceded for rebels. Isaiah 53 (NLT)
As I continue to make the effort and time in my day to prepare to celebrate the birth of the Messiah, I am struck once again that Jesus did not have the look of a king. He did not stand out even as David was noted to be. Jesus was just an ordinary looking guy. He did not draw people to him by His eloquence but drew them with the message itself and His love that just seeped out of Him for others.
Jesus came and went with little notice by the Roman government except for Pilate and that was only a few hours in a specific week. Did Jesus even get mentioned in a report to Caesar? I don’t know, maybe some of our historians know.
I am sad as I watch the minimal attention that Jesus receives even now. We sing a few songs but pay more attention to our new Christmas dress or sweater than we do the new Spirit that is knocking at the door to our hearts. We spend time and money on electronics, toys, and food to give to those we love instead of books and music that encourages time in study and prayer of our LORD. Is my observance and celebration of the Messiah’s birth as a Believer any different than the twenty other people who live in my neighborhood? Am I more passionate about whether the employees of Wal-mart greet me with “Merry Christmas” than I am about whether we both know in our hearts this Christ Child as Savior, LORD and Friend? What are my reasons for this season? What is really in my heart?
We Are the Reason written by Warryn Campbell & Tamara Savage, sung by Avalon
