A Meditation on Jesus, The Ultimate Servant
When the Father sent His Son, He had already described the manner in which He would come—-meek, lowly, poor; intentionally weak and outwardly ordinary. Jesus would come as a Servant.
Isaiah 40–55 contains four distinct poems about the Lord as Servant. He would have the ministry of the Word in His mouth and the Spirit on Him. He would bring salvation not only to Israel but also to the Gentile nations, something unheard of in Isaiah’s day. He would tune His ear to the Lord morning by morning. From hearing, He would know the Lord and know how to minister to others. Many of the things He would hear would be difficult to do. He would offer his back to beating and His face to mocking. Eventually He would be led to give His life as a once-and-for-all sacrifice that would ultimately remove sin and evil forever. However, before removing sin, He had to become sin.
Who could have guessed that the One who dwelt in a High and Lofty Place would wash feet, hang around the sick and subject Himself to misunderstanding? This is the heart of the Father——ultimate LOVE demonstrated through service. When I meditate on Jesus humility, I realize I am still more comfortable to be served than to serve; to live to be seen by others versus live to be seen by Him; to lean on my own plans, versus rely on the Lord’s still-small voice. When the Lord Jesus came as a Servant, He showed us how much He is devoted to the Father, but also how much we can devote ourselves to Him.
(Isaiah 42:1–7; 49:1–6; 50:4–9; 52:13–53:12)