Year 6, Day 37: Isaiah 53

Theological Commentary: Click Here

Discipleship Focus: Character

• Character: Having the interior life that is necessary to support the work that God sets before a person.  It is hearing from God and obeying.  It is doing the right thing when nobody is looking.

Isaiah 53 is a great lens to look at the idea of character.  This is one of the most famous passages about the person of Jesus Christ.  If we look deeply, we can find a rich source of text about the true character of God.

What I love about these kinds of texts is the sharp contrast to the natural human character.  What do humans do when they have all the power or all the knowledge?  They usually look to dominate the scene and set themselves up as king, leader, or ruler.  They usually seek to take all the advantage for themselves and life a life of luxury.

But what does God do?  What does the servant of God do?  The servant of God looks to the character of God and imitates God’s character.  He is wise.  He is willing to be bruised and beaten for the sake of others.  When the world around him is dry – that is, faithless – he shows true character and does not conform to the low standards around him.  He accepts being despised by those who are not him.  He does not retaliate or even speak against those who would attack him.

This is the character of God and the character of godly people.  God has all of the power, yet He doesn’t feel the need to flaunt it.  God looks for the benefit of others.  God’s character is sacrificial.  It is the character to which we should aspire.

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