Mission of the Servant

The most classic example of a modern servant leader was Sam Walton. He despised corporate fat cats. He could, and would, handle the cash register as well as stock the shelves in any of his Wal-Mart stores. He drove an old, rusty, dented pickup not to prove a point but becau … More

Servant

In this passage we find the first of four “Servant Songs” in Isaiah, referring to God’s servant (vv. 1-9). The other songs can be found in (Isa. 49:1-6; Isa. 50:1-11; and Isa.52:13-53:12). The “servant..mine elect” is none other than Christ Jesus Himself (v. 1). As God’s Servant, Jesus did what Israel could never do. He perfectly carried out the will of the Father so that people every where may believe in Him. Because of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, one day there will be a glorious kingdom; and God will “bring justice to the nations” (vv. 1-4). The simple point of this passage is that the Messiah will come, not as a worldly king or conqueror, as the Jews had expected him to do, but as the humble Servant of the Lord. His work will not be limited to Israel, but will extend to the whole world (v. 4).

God promised to assist the Servant in His mission, which only God can do because He is the creator of the heavens and the earth (v. 5). Speaking to His Servant, God assured him that he had been called to perform the will of God (vv. 6-7). His purpose will be to “open the blind eyes” and to “bring out the prisoners from the prison” (v. 7). Spiritually unredeemed, Israel and the Gentiles are blind and they are captured “in darkness.” Isaiah was affirming that God, unlike idols, can tell the future, and this divine ability adds to His glory (vv. 8-9). In view of all that God had already done for Israel, “the former things” of which He had been speaking would certainly happen. Jesus would fulfil the task and show God himself to the world.

Application

In order to be a true servant of Christ, I must first seek His righteousness (Matt. 6:33). Then I must be a light myself before I can shine to others (Matt. 5:15).

Isaiah 42:1-9 (English Standard Version)


Warning: MagpieRSS: Failed to parse RSS file. (Space required at line 39, column 24) in /var/www/html/familytimes/includes/magpie6-1/rss_fetch.inc on line 230

Warning: array_slice() expects parameter 1 to be array, null given in /var/www/html/familytimes/includes/rss/esvLookup.php on line 15

View this passage in NIV (Bible Gateway) »