Mensa Otabil - A Man of Sorrows
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As we think about the events leading to the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus, we go back in time to the prophecies that spoke about this moment: the prophecy of Isaiah in chapter 53, verse 3. He is despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows acquainted with grief, and we hid, as it were, our faces from him. He was despised, and we did not esteem him.
Jesus is prophesied by the prophet Isaiah to be a man of sorrows, and the prophet said that he would be despised and rejected. That was the prophecy of the Messiah: that he would not be someone who would be embraced, loved, and accepted, but he would be despised and rejected. There are treatments that none of us wish for ourselves; none of us want to be despised, and none of us want to be rejected. We are so careful to protect ourselves from people who treat us like that.
But in the Bible, Jesus Christ actually allowed himself to be treated that way. It wasn’t against his wish; he had the power to prevent this from happening, but he chose it. If you look at the statement, it says he is acquainted with grief, so he had to be acquainted; he had to get to know human suffering. He had to understand human pain; he had to know what we go through.
The unique thing about Jesus Christ as Savior is that he’s not removed from the rest of human behavior; he is acquainted with it. He knows what it is to be betrayed; he knows what it is to be despised; he knows what it is to be mistreated. He knows what it is for people to turn their backs on you. Jesus knows the mischief that humans can visit on other human beings. When you read world history, it’s amazing the kind of treatment human beings can mete out to others, and Jesus is acquainted with it. He was treated that way so he can share our burden and so he can have compassion for us.
Not only does he feel our suffering, but the Bible says that as he was doing that, we hid our faces from him. Isn’t it amazing that this happened in the life of the Lord Jesus Christ? While he was being mistreated, while he was despised, he was suffering; his disciples hid their faces from him. Of course, one betrayed him, but those who were left denied him or ran away from him. Sometimes, we’re going through pain, but people hide their faces from us; they turn away, and they don’t even value what he is doing, and that’s what happened to the Lord Jesus Christ.
In all of this, he doesn’t get bitter; he doesn’t get angry; he doesn’t seek vengeance; he doesn’t call down fire and brimstone; he doesn’t speak violence to his disciples or anybody. Even for the people who denied him, he still has compassion for them. For those who nailed him, he still has compassion for them. Jesus is acquainted with the worst of human behavior, and yet he still has love for all human beings. That is the uniqueness of our Savior.
If there is something we want to imitate from him, these are some of the things we should think about when we reflect on Jesus. When people despise us, reject us, betray us, and do all sorts of horrible things against us, we should think of Jesus and his response. As he is, so we become in our world. I trust that this sacred week, as we reflect on the Lord Jesus Christ, his attitude through suffering will guide each one of us in the way we treat people who mistreat us and despise us. Let us pray. Say with me, «Heavenly Father, deliver me from all sorrows and griefs. Help me to live victoriously as your child. In Jesus' name, Amen.»
Well, I’ll catch you again tomorrow. I’m Pastor Mensa Otabil. Shalom, peace, and life to you.