Isaiah 53:3-6

Isaiah 53:3-4, He was despised and rejected by men, a Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief.   And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him; He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.  Surely He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed Him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted.

1. despised and rejected

1. by family – Matthew 12:46, even mother, John 2:4, brothers, John 7:5
2. by town – neighbors, synagogue – tried to cast Him over a cliff, Luke 4
3. by peoples he served - John 6:66
4. by friends – followers and disciples fled when He was arrested
5. by His religion – “Away with Him” – declared to be a blasphemer, have a demon
6. by government – Rome of courts and justice failed
7. by God – “My God, My God - Why have you forsaken me?

2. of sorrows and acquainted with grief

1. Lived among death – He of Heaven now among dead flowers, dead youth, dead neighbors, cemeteries
2. Lived among those sick, damaged, deformed, homeless and destitute
3. Lived among those with mental health issues, with Satan ruling and influencing and controlling
4. His father, Joseph, at some point prior to His going public as the Messiah, died - Mary was a widow
5. At the tomb of a dear friend, Lazarus, He wept
6. He wept when seeing Jerusalem and knowing their rejection and coming destruction, Luke 19:41
7. He groaned seeing the people without Godly leadership, Mark 6:34

3. we hid our faces (despised - not esteemed)

1. We considered Him a revolutionary, radical and wrong
2. We saw Him was a liar, loony, loser, weak, odd, strange, fringe or other
3. He did not fit the criteria for a good leader - He was from Nazareth, from Galilee of the Gentiles and without a valid heritage or genealogy
4. He was not recognized by priests, the Pharisees, or the Sanhedrin; but rather considered dangerous and bad
5. He was considered a fringe or wayward rabbi with a rag-tag group of followers

4. He bore our griefs and carried our sorrows (He entered into our pain, loss, troubles, fears, struggles)

He was with tax collectors, publicans and street women
He served lepers, the blind and beggars
He was with Galileans and Pereans
He gave attention to widows, women and children
He went to Sidon and Decapolis
He was at Caesarea Philippi - an evil place to be avoided
He dealt with demons and demonics in cemeteries
These all foreshadow the cross - He would take such upon Himself in order to pay the price for adoption.

5. we esteemed Him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted

As He was thought out of bounds, over the line, odious to God, so God had to deal harshly with Him.  We saw Jesus’ death as God’s righteous hand of punishment and discipline on Him.

But,

53:5-6, He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities;  The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed.  All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned, everyone, to his own way; and the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.

BUT! BUT! BUT!  WE WERE WRONG!  WE MISSED IT!  It was JUST the Opposite!

The reason for the cross was (v. 5) our, our, our, we!

It was our transgressions – law breaking, and our iniquities – sins against God and others.

He suffered for our peace, healing and rescue from our waywardness, selfishness and lostness.

Jesus endured all the rejection, sorrows, dishonor, brokenness and false accusations for others – for me!

Jesus took the brutality of man and the wrath of God for sinners like you and like me!

What a Savior!