This transcript was generated by whisper.ai.

(upbeat music) - This is day three of week seven, our look through the book of
Isaiah. We're continuing to look at Isaiah chapter 53 today, this incredible
chapter. Yesterday we looked at the prophetic fulfillment that we see in Isaiah
53.

There are many ways to look at the truth of this amazing chapter. We could study
it for a month. The next couple of days, we're going to take a look at how six of
your deepest longings are met by what Jesus did for you on the cross.

Beginning with number one, we long to understand what's happening in this world.
What's going on? What's this world all about?

What's happening? This is a longing that's met at the cross. This is a longing
for wisdom.

Actually, Isaiah chapter 52, the end of the chapter begins to talk about this
when it says, "See, my servant will act wisely. He will be raised and lifted up
and highly exalted. " That's verse 13.

And then 15 says, "So he will sprinkle many nations and kings will shut their
mouths because of him. For what they were not told, they will see. And what they
have not heard, they will understand.

" That last phrase is quoted in the book of Romans. Rather it's written, those
who were not told about him will see. Those who have not heard will understand.

Romans 15, 21. Verse 13, when we talk about the longings, the needs of our life
that are met by what Jesus did for us on the cross, it starts with the word see.
I want you to see that my servant will act wisely.

Now that word wisely in the Hebrew language, it has the idea of accomplishing
its intended purpose. My servant will accomplish the purpose from which he sent.
The greatest wisdom is actually in accomplishing God's purpose.

The reason I need wisdom and the greatest way I can live out wisdom is by
getting wisdom to accomplish God's purpose and using that wisdom to live out
God's purpose. That's what it means to be wise, is to live for God's purpose.
And that's what Jesus did.

That's what the cross was all about, accomplishing God's purpose of forgiveness
of salvation for you and I. Now, what is it that we need to see? What is it we
need to understand?

If we're going to have this longing met in our lives, we need to see what God is
doing in this world. Because in the end, it is God's will that's going to be done.
You can see what's in the newspapers.

You can see what's of interest to you today. And those are all great things, but
they're not going to last. God's will is going to last.

So what is God doing? These verses remind us God is working to bring salvation
to the people of the world. He is using every event in history, the good that he
works and even the evil that he allows to work toward bringing salvation to as
many as possible, to all that he has chosen.

So this world's history is not just about this world's history. It's about what
God is doing as he looks towards eternity. Did you notice that phrase?

He will sprinkle many nations and he will silence many kings. He will shut the
mouths of the kings. He will sprinkle many nations.

They knew, those who first read this knew that the sprinkling of blood was the
role of a priest. It was the offering of forgiveness. He will sprinkle many
nations.

He will offer salvation, forgiveness to many nations and he'll silence many
kings. The nations are surprised by the way that God works here. And wisdom, not
just for the nations, but for you and I, is knowing that you'll often be
surprised by the way that God works.

If I'm going to understand what this world is all about, I've gotta understand it's
not all about this world. It's really about what God is doing to bring as many
as possible to salvation so we can enjoy an eternity with him. That's one of the
longings of our soul that's satisfied by understanding what happened at the
cross.

A second longing is this. We long to know God. We long to be in relationship to
God.

And Jesus came so that we could know God, God in human flesh. Jesus came as God
in human flesh so that we could know God and Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. In
verse two of Isaiah 53, he, Jesus, grew up before him like a tender shoot and
like a root out of a dry ground.

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. And like one from whom people hide their
faces, he was despised and we held him in low esteem.

To know God, our first step, my first step, your first step, is humility.
Humility before God. Humility to know that I need God.

The humility to recognize that these verses that I just read, they're not about
someone else or some other time. They're also about me. They're also about right
now.

We know as we read these verses that are on the cross, they saw Jesus as
unattractive. They despised Jesus on the cross. But in humility, I have to say,
I've seen Jesus as unattractive.

I've despised Jesus. Despise, this Hebrew word, does not mean hated in the same
way as we think. It more has the idea of ignored.

To see something as worthless, as not worthy of our attention. So when we talk
about despising Jesus, it's not looking at the cross and being sickened by
Jesus' appearance. To despise Jesus is to walk past the cross in the midst of
your busy day, not even stopping to look.

And by that definition, I've despised Jesus. More often than I'd like to admit.
Before I was a believer, I certainly did.

Not trusting in him for salvation, walking my own way, trying to make my own
way, figure out my own way. But even as a believer, I have to admit in humility.
There was those times when I just walked right past him, trusting in my plans
instead of his will, seeking pleasures in the things that I think will give me
pleasure rather than in what he says will bring me the goodness of God in my
life.

As a believer, though this is hard to admit, anytime I choose my way instead of
Jesus' way, I'm in that moment despising, I'm seeing as unattractive, as not
worthy Jesus' offer of direction and grace. So to have this longing of my soul
to know God met, I've got to have the humility to recognize, to recognize that
sometimes I walk right past God and don't notice him, despise him. I got to let
go of my pride as the first step in beginning a relationship with God, and then
also as the first step each day in growing in that relationship with God.

The humility to recognize how deeply I need God and how many times I don't admit
that need. There's a third need we're going to look at today that Isaiah 53 talks
about, third longing that God meets. We long for the freedom of forgiveness.

And that is a longing that is met by what happened at the cross. Isaiah 53, five
and six. But he was pierced for our transgressions.

He was crushed for our iniquities. The punishment that brought us peace was on
him. And by his wounds, we are healed.

We all like sheep have gone astray. Each of us has turned to our own way, but
the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all. Pierced for our transgressions,
crushed for our iniquities.

This is the truth of the substitution of Jesus Christ, that he substituted
himself for you. When the Bible talks about Jesus' suffering, it does not mean
that he suffers with us. He does suffer with you.

He hurts when you hurt, but that's not what we're talking about on the cross. It
doesn't mean that he suffers with us. It means that he suffered for us, for our
transgressions, for our iniquities.

It was on him. He suffered for your transgressions. He paid the price.

And so he can meet this need, this longing for forgiveness, 'cause now it's not
built on what you do anymore. We long for forgiveness and we try to get
forgiveness by doing good things in our lives, but something deep in us knows
there's not enough good things that I can do. 'Cause the more layers of onion
that I peel off in my life, the more I realize, oh, there's some rotten spots
there.

Now there's some other rotten spots. Seems like I can never get to the bottom of
it. Jesus died for it all, for my transgressions, for your iniquities.

So look at the exchange that's made on the cross here. He took your punishment
and he brought you peace. He was wounded for your sin and he brought you
healing.

This is an unbelievable grace of God. Imagine Jesus coming to you and saying,
okay, here's the deal. Here's what we're going to do.

All the punishment that you deserve for your sins, I'm going to take that for you,
but you're going to have to do something. You're going to have to take this peace that
I'm offering to you. Or Jesus saying to you, you know, all the wounds that you
deserve for your sin, I'm going to take all those wounds for you, but you're going to
have to take something from me.

You're going to have to take my healing. It's so beyond belief that some can't
believe it. They just can't think that something that good could be true, but
God is a good God.

God has intended from the very beginning to bring us back to him. So of course
it's true. Of course Isaiah 53, 12 was true.

He poured out his life unto death. He was numbered with the transgressors, for
he bore the sin of many and he made intercession for the transgressors. At the
cross, Jesus meets the deepest longing of our soul.

Let's pray together. Father, we just tell you we're grateful. We're grateful for
all that was done for us on the cross.

Jesus, you gave your life for us so that we could experience forgiveness. You
were punished and you brought us peace. You were wounded and you gave us
healing.

Thank you. We're grateful for the grace you've poured out on us. In your name,
we praise you.

Amen. Tomorrow we're going to look at three more longings that are satisfied at the
cross.