students of jesus

He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.
He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain.
Like one from whom people hide their faces he was despised, and we held him in low esteem.

These words come from Isaiah 53:2-3). He’s telling us about Jesus. When Isaiah sings the Suffering Servant songs he paints a picture of someone who has experienced the worst in life: rejection, disappointment, even abuse. This, too, is part of the Bible’s revelation about Jesus.

Jesus’ suffering on the cross is well known, but Isaiah is also pointing to the anguish of heart, the Lord’s heart, the feelings he experienced among his own people. Like John said in the opening of his gospel, “He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him.” This, too, is suffering. Soul suffering.

And here is a mystery, one perfect during these 30 Thankful Days: we might have many pictures of Jesus—the majestic Jesus, the suffering Jesus—but rarely would we describe him as “sad.” How is it that the Man of Sorrows, the one acquainted with grief, is the same one who invites us to enter his Master’s joy?

Ask Yourself: Where are my springs of joy and gratitude?

Live Into It: Even through difficult times, we do not see Jesus give in to sadness. Yet we live in a world that avoids sadness the way previous generations avoided disease. If I think happiness is my highest good, I’m in for disappointment. If the love of God is my highest good, I’m in for inexpressible joy.