SERIES: Advent
TEXT: Isaiah 53:1-4; John 1:10-11
MESSAGE: “Beholding Jesus in a Weary World”
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“…even though every text does not name or refer to Jesus, He is implied in every text since the events and people of every text are part of His plan of redemption.” – David Murray (Jesus on Every Page)
“…O Holy Night! The stars are brightly shining
It is the night of the dear Saviour’s birth
Long lay the world in sin and error pining
Till He appeared and the Spirit felt its worth
A thrill of hope the weary world rejoices…”
“He was, and is, the joy of all those weary of their sin, weary of this fallen world, weary of being apart from him. Jesus, the King we could never imagine — Jesus, the King worthy of all of our worship — came. Anointed of God, needed by man, his reign is still life and peace for all who trust in him and wait for his return. Come, let us adore him!” — Greg Morse
“Behold, my servant shall act wisely; he shall be high and lifted up, and shall be exalted.” – Isaiah 52:13
“…the command to (‘behold’) brings us into the realm of accomplishment: watch the Servant and what He did.” – Alec Moyter
It’s beholding Jesus’…(1. Suffering 2. Simplicity 3. Substitution)
1. Suffering (52:14;53:1)
“As many were astonished at you— his appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance, and his form beyond that of the children of mankind…Who has believed what he has heard from us? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?”
“The Servant’s suffering brought such a disfigurement that those who saw said not only, ‘is this he? but ‘is this human?” — Alec Moyter
2. Simplicity (53:2-3)
“For he grew up before him like a young plant, and like a root out of dry ground; he had no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not.”
“When you sell yourself, when you’re promoting yourself, when you’re doing interviews, whatever, you have to show people in your résumé indicators of future success, don’t you? People are looking for predictors.“Look at where I went to school. Look at what I’ve done. Look at my talents. Look at my scores. Look at this. Look at that. These are indicators of future success.” Well, I want you to know Jesus had none of them. None of them! He didn’t have looks. He didn’t have money. He didn’t have connections. He didn’t have credentials. He didn’t have cultural power…Nothing! He was utterly unimpressive.” – Timothy Keller
3. Self-sacrifice (53:4)
“Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted.”
Psalm 38:4…“For my iniquities have gone over my head; like a heavy burden, they are too heavy for me.”
TAKEAWAYS: How do we behold Jesus in a weary world?
* Remember what He’s done daily
* Remember the simplicity of Jesus
* Remember that sacrifice is the heart of Christmas
“The principle runs through all life from top to bottom, Give up yourself, and you will find your real self. Lose your life and you will save it. Submit to death, death of your ambitions and favourite wishes every day and death of your whole body in the end submit with every fibre of your being, and you will find eternal life. Keep back nothing.” – C.S. Lewis (Mere Christianity)
“He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. 11 He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him.” — John 1:10-11