May 12

Isaiah 42

Wow! There is so much in this chapter that we could meditate upon. I could spend weeks writing upon this one chapter alone! This is one of the classic Servant passages of Isaiah that clearly speaks of the Messiah and therefore of the Lord Jesus Christ. First of all, He is the elect or chosen one of God. I remember in ninth grade going out for the basketball team. I finally had started growing, but I was growing so much that my coordination was really off. I was so bad at basketball that I was the only one who went out for the team that never even suited up for a game. I was so bad that the coach wouldn’t even let me warm the bench. During practice we would occasionally divide up into different squads and scrimmage. Coach would sometimes choose captains and let them pick the teams. I was always the last one chosen, and usually there was some grumbling that I had to be on their team. There was one time when the team asked coach if they could just play without me. I knew who would usually be chosen first (because their talent was revealed in how they played), and I knew who would always be chosen last (because my lack of talent was revealed in how I played). Jesus was chosen by the Father before the foundation of the world. Were there others that the Father could have chosen from? No, (unlike Mormon theology) there were not any others. Then how is that a choice? He could have chosen to not send Him at all. In which case, we would be forever lost. But He is God’s elect, His chosen one. Now that is glory!

Note that the Father delights in Him. His soul delights in Him. Have you ever felt that your earthly father delighted in you? You are fortunate if you did. All of us grew up craving the delight of our earthly father. Sometimes we did not feel that delight, sometimes we did. For some people we were made to feel secure in His delight. For others we were not too sure of that delight. It may because our fathers did not know how to communicate it, or it may because we did not know how to receive it, or it may be because of a combination of both. For others they knew there was no delight, and because there was no delight, they fell into various vices in order to fill the empty spot. But the Heavenly Father is infinitely delighted in the Servant, His Son. It is interesting to note that two of the three times the Gospels record the Father speaking from heaven that He expressly says, “This is my beloved Son in Whom I am well pleased!” (Matt 3:17; 1&:5; Mark 1:11; Luke 3:22; 2 Peter 1:17). Wow! God the Father is exceptionally well pleased with the Son, Jesus the Messiah. How affirming that must have been to Jesus. You know most everything that is true of Jesus, is true of those that are in Him. Are you lacking your earthly Father’s delight? Remember that if you are in Jesus, the Heavenly Father delights in you because of the Son!

Note also that the Father put His Spirit upon the Son. Everything Jesus did in the flesh, He did in the power of the Holy Spirit. Jesus was God. Why did He need the Spirit? There are several answers to that question, but the answer that I like to cling to is that, because everything that Jesus did as a man, He did in the power of the Holy Spirit, it then makes me aware that is possible that if He puts His Spirit upon me then I can do the same works as He did and even greater works. Wow, His glory takes into account the power to change me so that I can live as He did! Why do I grovel with lesser things? Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!

--Pastor john