SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 11/28/2013
9:29 AM
My Worship Time Focus: Startled at
the Servant’s Appearance
Bible Reading & Meditation Reference: Isaiah 52:14
Message of the
verses: In order for us to
understand these three verses better we need to look at them in a different
order than what they are in the Scripture.
Verse 14 speaks of the people being shocked by the way the Lord Jesus
looked, and then verse 13 speaks of His exaltation, and finally verse 15 speaks
of His message. We see then in these
verses the Lord’s suffering that takes place on the cross, His resurrection and
ascension, and then the world wide proclamation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Startled at the Servant’s Appearance (Isaiah 52:14): “14 Just as many were astonished at you, My
people, So His appearance
was marred more than any man And His form more than the sons of men.” “14 But many were amazed when they saw him. His face was so disfigured he seemed hardly
human, and from his appearance, one would scarcely know he was a man.” (NLT)
It seems that when I look at these verses that I truly
have a hard time wanting to look deeper into them, for when I do try to look
deeper into them it causes me great grief, knowing that the Lord did all of
this for me, and not only for me but because of me, as He was beaten beyond
even looking human being. The Romans
seemed to take great pleasure in their job of the execution of their prisoners,
and I suppose it was because they knew who Christ claimed to be, that they took
even more pleasure in beating Him. They
may have even been surprised that He did not die before they got Him to the
cross, but Jesus had to die at the same time that the Passover lambs died, for
He was the Passover Lamb. Let us look at
Isaiah 50:6 “I gave My back to those who strike Me, And My cheeks to those who
pluck out the beard; I did not cover My face from humiliation and spitting.” All of these things happened to our Lord
before He was crucified. When we read the
account of His crucifixion in the Gospels we do not read about the graphic description
that is found in the prophecies of the OT, which describe it. Psalm 22 speaks of the crucifixion of Jesus
Christ as if David was standing at the foot of the cross, and yet crucifixion
was not even heard of in David’s day. It
is in this Psalm that we see these words “14 I am poured out like water, And all my bones are out of joint;
My heart is like wax; It is melted within me. 15 My strength is dried up like a
potsherd, And my tongue
cleaves to my jaws; And You lay me in the dust of death. 16 For dogs have surrounded me; A band of
evildoers has encompassed me; They pierced my hands and my feet. 17 I can count all my bones. They look, they
stare at me; 18 They divide my garments among them, And for my clothing they
cast lots.” In verse six we read: “6 But
I am a worm and not a man.” I have
mentioned this in two different SD’s, but I think that it is worth mentioning
again as I quote from an earlier SD on the 22nd Psalm which is a
quotation from another source.
“Henry Morris Writes this about the “Scarlet Worm:”
Bible & Science tape series
Henry Morris
Henry Morris
Look at the 22nd Psalm. This is the great Psalm of
the crucifixion of Christ written 1,000 years before it was fulfilled. It
describes in great detail the sufferings of Christ on the cross. "My God,
my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" he cries out. Then down in verse
6...he says "But I am a worm (08438), and no man; a reproach of men, and
despised of the people." What did he mean by saying "I am a
worm"?...This particular worm is different from other kinds of worms.
There are different kinds of worms, different varieties, but this is a
particular worm. It means more than just he is not a man. Isaiah 52 says,
"his visage was so marred more than any man and his form more than the
sons of men." He was literally made corruption personified; he didn't even
look like a man there on the cross*; it is talking about more than that here.
He says "I am a worm and no man." This is a scarlet worm and the
reason it was called that was because it had the ability to secrete a scarlet
fluid which was used in making the scarlet dye that they used in ancient days.
As a matter of fact, when you find the word "scarlet" in the bible,
it's the same word. "Though your sins be as scarlet," it's the same
word exactly. The worm was identified with the crimson color. The life cycle of
that worm is something like this: when the mother worm was ready to give birth
to the baby worms, she would find the trunk of a tree, a post or a stick
somewhere and then she would plant her body in that wood and she would implant
her body so firmly in it that she could never leave it again. And then the
young would be brought forth and the mother's body would provide protection for
the babies as long as they needed before they could get out and take care of
themselves. Then the mother would die, and in the process, the scarlet fluid
would stain her body and the body of the young and the tree and so on. The Lord
Jesus said "I am like that scarlet worm." He's making peace through
the blood of his cross; he's bringing many sons into glory through the
suffering. And this is a graphic testimony of the fact that eternal life comes
out of the suffering and death of the Son of God. “
Spiritual meaning for my life today: I am having a hard time wrapping my arms
around all of this as I think of what my Lord did for me. Grace, love, justice, power, are some of the
things that I think of when I think of the cross of Christ. I know that I should have been the one on
that cross, but because of the great love that God has for me He sent His son
to take my place on that cross and I will be eternally thankful for this.
My Steps of Faith for Today: Today,
being Thanksgiving day I want to think about the thing that I am most thankful
for, and that is the salvation that was purchased for me on the cross of Calvary.Answer to yesterday’s Bible Question: “Galilee” (John 4:46).
Today’s Bible Question: “Who became angry when God spared Nineveh?”
Answer in our next SD. 11/28/2013 10:35 AM
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