“but they who wait for the LORD
shall renew their strength;
they shall mount up with wings like eagles;
they shall run and not be weary;
they shall walk and not be faint.”
Isaiah 40:31

The promise – that those who put their faith in God will never grow weary – was made to faithful Jews long before Jesus was born. How much easier, therefore, should it be for us Christians to achieve the same promise after Jesus acted as the sacrificial Lamb of God to intercede on our behalf?

We thank You, Lord, for that amazing promise, made in the Old Testament and fulfilled in the New Testament. May we always remember it and lean on it for Your strength and endurance. Amen.

“As many were astonished at you –
his appearance was so marred,
beyond human semblance,
and his form beyond that of the children of mankind…”
Isaiah 52:14

This verse is found at the beginning of the last of four Suffering servant song in Isaiah (Is. 52:13-53:12). Here we see a prophetic glimpse into the future; a vision of the battered and bruised Jesus Christ at His crucifixion.

There are many verses in the Bible that we just skip over and don’t really pay much attention to. One such verse is Mark 15:15, which reads, “and having scourged Jesus, he delivered Him to be crucified.” Most of us do not know what scourging is, so we lightly pass over it without giving it much thought. But scourging was commonly administered before one was crucified. The prisoner would be stripped naked, bound to a post with his arms above his head, and beaten with a flagellum. This was a whip with leather thongs plaited with bits of bone, lead or bronze, The lashes would cause deep contusions as they would literally rip off ribbons of flesh. At this time, there were no prescribed number of lashes, and often this procedure would kill the prisoner.

Jesus was also dressed in a purple robe as the soldiers spat on Him and battered Him with their fists. A crown of thorns was fashioned and beat down around His ears with a reed. At the conclusion of this flogging and mocking, Jesus was forced to carry His cross beam out of Jerusalem, causing Him to collapse under it. Finally, He was nailed to the cross and forced to suffer the humiliation of this most heinous of deaths.

Truly His body was marred beyond recognition. But these wounds were not merely the stripes of cruel injustice; no, Isaiah continues by saying “he was wounded for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace” (Is. 53:5). His punishment was my punishment. And it is His suffering and death that brings me peace and healing.

So now we too are “astonished at You”, for You, Jesus Christ, did this willingly for me. Truly Your grace is “astonishing”; Your cross is “astonishing”; and Your forgiveness is “astonishing”.

Still not sure? Gaze up at His scourged, beaten, and crucified body hanging on the cross.

Lord Jesus, You were scourged, beaten, mocked, and crucified because of my sin. Forgive me, and always cause my eyes to look to You and Your cross for my peace and salvation, Amen.

“And one called to another and said:
‘Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts;
the whole earth is full of his glory!’”
Isaiah 6:3

The above passage is found in the Divine Service setting one, in the Sanctus part of the Service Of The Sacrament. It helps prepare us for holy communion. We sing this in praising our Lord God for His power and might. Heaven and earth are full of His glory. “Hosanna, Hosanna”, the Hebrew word of praise meaning save us now. We are blessed by Jesus Christ who comes in the name of the Lord. Glory in the highest.

We pray: Heavenly Father we praise You in Your Glory. In Jesus Christ, Amen.

“The crowd watched, and the leaders laughed and scoffed. ‘He saved others’, they said, ‘let him save himself if he is really God’s Chosen One, the Messiah.’” Luke 23:35

I sometimes wonder what it must have been like, being there at that time where Jesus was on the cross. Since the beginning of time, man only ever knew about sacrificing the flock, a new-born lamb and even his own children to keep the ‘gods’ happy. Since the beginning of time, man knew that there was a greater power and force on which the plantations depended, i.e. wind, sun and rain. In Roman times, man would bring sacrifices in order to be made right with God, but then Jesus came to the temple and drove the people out saying, “The scripture declares, ‘My Temple will be called a place of prayer’ but you have turned it into a den of thieves!” (Matthew 21:13). Jesus is the light of the world and He came at just the perfect time to be our Lord and Saviour. Jesus also said, “The stone rejected by the builders has now become the cornerstone. This is the Lord’s doing, and it is marvellous to see” (Matthew 21:42).

It is plain to see how lost mankind really was but Jesus stepped right in! When the people asked this question saying, “He saved others, let him save himself if he is really God’s Chosen One”, I can see that yes of course He could save Himself but that was not part of God’s will. Jesus chose to drink the cup of suffering and became the ultimate sacrifice for us. The most powerful thing to see here is that Jesus died on the cross for our sin so that we don’t have to! That is so mind-blowing and powerful: that God gave His one and only Son to die on the cross in our place. The wages of sin is death and yes, it should be us on that cross, but God has given us a gift so amazing through His Son Jesus Christ and it is so marvellous to see. Hallelujah! No-one can come to the Father except through Jesus; He is the light of the world who has brought heaven to earth.

Dear Lord, Heavenly Father, thank You for Your Son Jesus Christ. You are the God of love; You came to this earth not to condemn it for all our sin but to serve us. Thank You for being our Lord and Saviour and teach us to be more like You! Amen.

“Later, knowing that all was now completed and so that the Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, ‘I am thirsty.’” John 19:28

The scene is the gruesome one of the crucifixion of Jesus.

The Roman soldiers had taken charge. John, whose gospel we are reading, was there with Mary, Jesus’ mother and some other women. Jesus, even in His anguish, shows love and care of His mother, that she be looked after by John.

When Jesus says,”I am thirsty” who is He talking to? Is He asking the soldiers for a drink, speaking to His friends or to His Father in heaven? Apart from physical thirst due to dehydration Jesus thirsted for the completion of His work on earth and the fulfillment of His Father’s plan, foretold in Scripture.

This is very nearly the end of Jesus’ life on earth. He died to destroy the power of death; to reconcile us to God, bring us into a relationship with Him and gain for us the resurrection of the body.

Dear Lord, thank You for Your amazing grace. Amen.

“Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.’” John 14:6

ESCAPE FROM A DARKENED VALLEY

This valley of disgrace,
What is it we all choose to embrace?
Is it the fellowship with one another,
Breaking bread and drinking wine,
Worshiping the Lord Jesus Christ,
Who had victory on earth,
To save all our lives.

Or do we drown in that valley,
And only live our lives for our own demise?
Following our own footsteps,
And using the clouds to hide,
But knowing there’s a higher power,
But petrified of dedicating our own lives.

I once was that person,
And only cared for lies,
And deprived others of my love,
So my own cravings would suffice.

But one day I was seeking,
For an answer to the question of life,
And found myself asking the stars up in the sky;
But when I asked I found I received,
And through seeking I did find,
The answers were standing before my own deluded eyes.

There was a door,
And it’s one I had seen plenty of times before;
But I just walked past it,
And chose to ignore.

But this time I knocked,
Didn’t expect what I was to find;
A man with wide opened arms,
And an invitation to paradise.

He didn’t want no money,
Just for me to accept graciously;
And start to tell His truth,
Which only leads to being rewarded,
With eternal youth.

So what I ask you all;
Is when you’re looking for an answer,
Don’t deny what you find,
There is a God in heaven;
Don’t be stupid enough to think that you can hide,
Cause the day you don’t expect,
Will come and you’ll be left behind.

Amen.

“Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called and about which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.” 1 Timothy 6:12

In the preceding verses of Chapter 6, we are told in verse 6 to, “flee from the temptation of the love of money”. In verse 11 we are told how we can do this. As children of God to be free from all this we should, “Pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness.” In verse 12 we are told to, “Fight the good fight of the faith”. I think all of us fight the daily battle against sin. Our prize and ultimate goal is the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ and eternal life. We are told to, “take hold of the eternal life to which you were called”. We are called individually and by name when we, “make a good confession in the presence of many witnesses”. In verse 13 it follows on by saying, “in the sight of God, and of Christ Jesus who while testifying before Pontius Pilate made the good confession”.

In this devotional verse God instructs us in what to do, how to do it and tells us why we need to do it. If we look and pray to God and study God’s Word carefully, we will find the answers to our questions. Although remembering it is in God’s time not necessarily ours. But the answer is always the same when we ask the question we need to ask: ‘How do we inherit eternal life?’. This is by confessing our faith in the sight of God and He will grant us Eternal Life.

May God keep us always in His arms, care and protect us and keep us as His children. Amen.

“He gave his back to the smiters, and his cheeks to them that plucked off the hair; he hid not his face from shame and spitting.” Isaiah 50: 6

Familiar words from Handel’s Messiah – for many of us – but what is involved in these words of humiliation?

Handel links these words with the famous words of Isaiah 53, “He was despised and rejected of men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief” in the second item of part two of the Messiah. Part one deals with the coming of the Messiah, part two with the passion and part three with the lasting significance and glory of the Messiah. The first item of part two of the Messiah quotes John the Baptist’s words, “Behold the Lamb of God, that taketh away the sin of the world” (John 1.29). Handel saw Isaiah’s words as a clear prophecy of Jesus’ sufferings on our behalf.

Verse 5 of Isaiah 50 speaks of the Suffering Servant’s obedience. Verse 6 gives three details of his humiliation. Firstly, he willingly offers his back to those who would strike and lash and whip him. Secondly, he “turns the other cheek” to those who pull his hair or his beard. 900 years of English-Irish animosity date back to King John pulling the beards of Irish nobles. Thirdly he offers his face to the disgrace and shame of spitting. To spit at someone is humiliating. Today in football it is regarded as seriously as deliberately kicking another player. Jesus endured all these humiliations. Matthew and Mark both record two cases of people spitting at Jesus. In front of the high priest, “some began to spit on him and to cover his face and strike him” (Mark 14.65). Then the Roman soldiers “were striking his head with a reed and spitting on him and kneeling down in homage to him” (Mark 15.19). In these days when people stand up for their rights, are we willing to suffer these humiliations for Jesus’ sake – if that is needed?

Modern scholars recognise four Servant Songs in Isaiah 42, 49, 50 and 53. Our verse is in the middle of the third Song in verses 4-9 of Isaiah 50, which is probably the least well-known of the four Songs. It is remarkable that Handel linked two of these Songs before scholars had identified them. Perhaps this is another indication of the inspiration of the Messiah.

How does Jesus the Messiah inspire you? Are you willing to suffer the humiliations that Jesus suffered – if that is necessary? We are fortunate in our land, but many of our brothers and sisters around the world suffer today just as Jesus did.

Lord God, please teach us to follow where you lead, even into suffering or danger. Amen.

“…saying with a loud voice, ‘Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honour and glory and blessing!’ And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, saying, ‘To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honour and glory and might for ever and ever!’” Revelation 5:12-13

Let’s have a little imagination here – and my word, we will need imagination at full throttle – to grasp this one! The preceding verse to this tells us that there were gathered around the throne the living creatures and the elders, and the voice of many angels numbering myriads of myriads and thousands and thousands was saying with a loud voice… Try and picture this scene in your mind (bet you can’t) and then tune in with the sound. Loud as a football match crowd? Loud as Status Quo on stage and you are standing near the amplifiers? Nah…. Try and think of the pure joy and love that these beings wanted to communicate in their praise and worship of the Lord. They were, by the look of this verse, in pure rapture (and so they should be – they were, after all, in Heaven!). Two verses later, it tells us that the elders fell down and worshipped. I should think they would fall down, confronted by such a force of joy and power emanating all around them. And what was all it about? The Lamb – Christ, a pure and clean innocent thing, being slaughtered without thought or care by men in their own struggle for power. Now Christ reigns supreme in Heaven and over us, having saved us all from our own sins. What joy that His gift gives us – doesn’t it make you want to cry out at your loudest in praise? It should…..

Dear Heavenly Father, forgive us our quiet worship of You despite that You give so freely to us with Your love and care and the ultimate sacrifice of Your dear Son. We know that one day we will join the multitude that surround You, giving true praise as only You deserve. May we be ready in our hearts, minds and souls for that glorious day! In Your Son’s name we pray. Amen.

“But He kept silent and did not answer. Again the high priest was questioning Him, and saying to Him, “Are You the Christ, the Son of the Blessed One?” And Jesus said, “I am; and you shall see the son of man sitting at the right hand of power, and coming with the clouds of heaven.” Mark 14 v 61 – 62

At first, Jesus does not speak. If His actions and words so far were not enough to silence His critics, then what difference would more words make? Jesus was able to stop it all there and then, but He chose not to defend Himself. Jesus was completing the fulfilment of Gods will, in a manner somewhat incomprehensible to His audience.

What person wouldn’t save themselves from the fate of death if given the choice? If this was a battle of wills, Jesus was not going to dignify them with a confession of guilt or a plea for mercy. He had nothing to prove. He was choosing to suffer and be humiliated. He continued further in belittling the power his judge and jury presumed to have over Him. For He knew that His power was so much greater, and His purpose so much more important.

Thank You God for the Gift of Jesus Christ, who saved us from our sins. Amen.