Man of Sorrow
Today’s Verse:
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. ~Isaiah 53:3
When we think of our Lord Jesus we think of so many wonderful ascriptions given of Him. He is the Light of the World, the Bread of Life, the Water of Life, the Good Shepherd, the Prince of Peace, Savior and of course, God. In our devotion this morning, we pause to examine a description that is very sobering: “a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief.” Sorrow is the emptiness and extreme hurt we feel when we have experienced the loss of someone we love. Three times in Isaiah 53 reference is made to the grief and sorrow our Lord experienced for every sinner.
We see the reason for sorrow.
Isaiah 53 is called the chapter of the Suffering Servant of God. It describes Jesus’ vicarious death on the cross for us. First, Jesus is grieved for our ruin. The entrance of sin brought sorrow on the human race. God told Eve, “I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children.” God’s heart was broken when Adam and Eve sinned. God carries this same grief because of our sinful nature. Jesus is grieved for our rejection. He is despised and rejected of men. Rejection brings sorrow. Can you imagine the Creator of the world rejected by His own creation? Rejection is our refusal of another person. It is turning away and saying no to the love God has for us. Jesus was grieved for our redemption. The Bible speaks about strong crying and tears that Jesus made, Hebrews 5:7. As He hung on the cross as the payment price for our sin, He was grieved with the suffering He had to endure.
We see the remedy for sorrow.
God does not want us to carry our grief by our self. He tells us to cast all of our care upon Him, for He careth for us. The burden of sorrow is to be placed on Lord. He understands all about our grief and sorrow. While we cannot escape sorrow, we can share our sorrow with the Lord. As we shed our tears, God uses the trial to help us experience God as the God of all comfort. Jesus sustains us even when we have no strength to go on. “We should be thankful for our tears; they prepare us for a clearer vision of God.” (William A. Ward). Sorrow can bring us closer to the Lord. Sorrow helps us to sort out our true priorities in life. Give your sorrows and grief to the Lord!
We see the relief from sorrow.
“And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.” (Revelation 21:4). One day in Heaven there will be no more tears and no more sorrow. This will be a peaceful relief. No more heartaches and grieving. This will be a permanent relief. Sorrows will be passed away. It will be a thing of the past. Only God Himself can take away all sorrow. What a relief that one day sorrow will no longer plague us. We will be free from all sorrow!
Jesus was a man of sorrow. He understood what every sinner has to experience. He carried our grief and sorrow all the way to the cross. Let us remember today that our Lord knows all about the sorrow and hurt we have. Don’t keep it bottled up inside of you. Give it to the Lord!
Have a comforted God morning!
Bible Reading Schedule: Genesis 43-45