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Wheelersburg Baptist Church 10/28/01 Brad Brandt Isaiah 53:7-9 "Silent to the Last Breath"** Main Idea: When Jesus died He exhibited and experienced three things, as revealed in Isaiah 53:7-9. I. In His death we see submission (7). A. Here’s what happened to Him. 1. He was oppressed. 2. He was afflicted. 3. He was led to His death. B. Here’s how He responded. 1. He didn’t protest. 2. He accepted the injustice. II. In His death we see separation (8). A. Here’s what happened to Him. 1. He was taken away. 2. He was cut off. B. Here’s what it meant for Him. 1. He died alone. 2. He died for the sin of others. III. In His death we see sadness (9). A. He was treated with disdain. 1. They intended to bury Him with the wicked. 2. They ended up burying Him with the rich. B. He deserves to be treated with devotion. 1. He didn’t get what He deserved. 2. He got what we deserve. Make It Personal: How should we respond to Jesus’ death? 1. We must accept His sacrifice. 2. We must follow His example. 3. We must proclaim His accomplishment. John Wesley preached his last sermon of Feb 17, 1791, in Lambeth on the text "Seek ye the Lord while He may be found, call ye upon Him while He is near" (Isa 55:6). The following day, a very sick man, he was put to bed in his home on City Road. During the days of his illness, he often repeated the words from one of his brother's hymns: I the chief of sinners am, But Jesus died for me! His last words were, "The best of all is, God is with us!" He died March 2, 1791. How a person dies reveals a great deal about the individual. It’s especially interesting to take note of the words that come from their lips as they prepare to leave the earth. When Martin Luther came to the end of his life, it is said that his final words were, "Our God is the God from whom cometh salvation: God is the Lord by whom we escape death." For John Knox it was, "Live in Christ, live in Christ, and the flesh need not fear death." When John Calvin came to his moment of parting he is said to have prayed, "Thou, Lord, bruisest me; but I am abundantly satisfied, since it is from Thy hand." As Charles Wesley prepared to leave this world, he uttered, "I shall be satisfied with Thy likeness--satisfied, satisfied!" Yes, a person’s parting words are often indicative and highly significant. This morning we’re going to consider how Jesus died. In recent weeks we’ve been examining The Sacrifice of the Savior in the prophetic text of Isaiah 53. It’s intriguing that from Isaiah’s perspective, what made the Savior’s death so astounding isn’t what He said. It’s what He didn’t say. Indeed, as we’ll see in Isaiah 53:7-9, He was silent to the last breath. C.H. Spurgeon, the well known Baptist preacher in London a century ago, attracted such huge crowds that they constructed a large, new facility to accommodate the assembly. It’s recorded that the following were some of Spurgeon’s first words spoken from the pulpit of the Metropolitan Tabernacle: "I would propose that the subject of the ministry of this house, as long as this platform shall stand, and as long as this house shall be frequented by worshipers, shall be the person of Jesus Christ. I am never ashamed to avow myself a Calvinist; I do not hesitate to take the name of Baptist; but if I am asked what is my creed, I reply, ‘It is Jesus Christ.’ My venerated predecessor, Dr. Gill, has left a [theological heritage] admirable and excellent in its way. But the [legacy] to which I would pin and bind myself forever, God helping me,...is Jesus Christ, who is the arm and substance of the gospel, who is in Himself all theology, the incarnation of every precious truth." May it be so for us today. The subject of the ministry of this house shall be the person of Jesus Christ. We’re going to invite Isaiah the prophet to teach us about the Savior, namely, about how He died. If Jesus’ life was unique—and it was for He lived a perfect life—surely His death puts Him in a category all by Himself. He died unlike any other person. How so? According to Isaiah 53:7-9, when Jesus died He exhibited and experienced three things. I. In His death we see submission (7). "He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth." In the eighth century B.C., Isaiah predicted that the Messiah was coming. His prophecy, recorded in Isaiah 52:13-53:12, is comprised of five sections of three verses each. In section one (52:13-15) Isaiah described the honor of The Servant. In section five (53:10-12) he again returns to the theme of the Messiah’s honor. But in between, in sections two, three, and four, Isaiah describes in vivid language the humiliation of the Messiah. He would be the Suffering Servant. He begins the fifty-third chapter, in verses 1-3, with a portrayal of how the Messiah would be treated. "He was despised and rejected by men (3)," he writes. Next in verses 4-6 the prophet tells us why the Messiah endured such treatment—it was for "our transgressions" and for "our iniquities," as we saw last time. But in the section before us today, verses 7-9, Isaiah depicts how He died. What stands out first about His death? In His death we see submission. If you take a pen and circle the verbs in this section, you’ll quickly notice something. It’s full of passive verbs, that is, verbs that communicate activity performed by someone else against the Savior. He was oppressed. He was afflicted. He was led. He was taken away. He was cut off. He was stricken. He was assigned a grave. These aren’t activities the Messiah did. These are activities that others did against Him. Let’s take a closer look… A. Here’s what happened to Him. Ponder the first three verbs, as stated in verse 7. 1. He was oppressed. The Hebrew term means "to press, to drive, to exact, or to treat harshly." We live in a world full of oppression, where people are forced to do and endure things to their own harm. The Afghan people are being held hostage in their own country by the Taliban. Believers in China can’t meet publicly to worship Jesus. Women are treated like property in many Middle-Eastern countries. Yes, all around the world people are being oppressed. Isaiah says the Messiah was oppressed. 2. He was afflicted. The word means "to be bowed down, to put down, to become low." Again, this was done to Jesus. How so? He was ridiculed by Jewish leaders, mocked by civil authorities, and then scourged by Roman soldiers. They smashed a thorny crown on His head. They forced Him to carry His own cross through the streets in public humiliation. They drove rusty nails through His hands and feet. Yes, He was afflicted. And then… 3. He was led to His death. Isaiah says, "He was led like a lamb to the slaughter." Question. What’s true of a lamb being taken to slaughter? It’s helpless. It’s defenseless. It may be aware that danger is coming, but it’s powerless to stop it. Jesus experienced that. He was like a lamb being taken to the altar. In addition, Isaiah says He was like a sheep before her shearers. What part does a sheep have in the shearing process? The sheep doesn’t clip its own wool. The act of shearing is done to it. Once again, the emphasis is passive. Interestingly, in verse 6 Isaiah says we are like sheep, for we are wayward. We’re prone to go our own way and get lost in the process. But in verse 7 he says the Messiah is like a sheep, not because He is wayward for He certainly is not. The Messiah is like a sheep in that He became defenseless. Psalm 22:12-18 speaks of the unjust treatment to which He subjected Himself: "Many bulls surround me; strong bulls of Bashan encircle me. 13 Roaring lions tearing their prey open their mouths wide against me. 14 I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint. My heart has turned to wax; it has melted away within me. 15 My strength is dried up like a potsherd, and my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth; you lay me in the dust of death. 16 Dogs have surrounded me; a band of evil men has encircled me, they have pierced my hands and my feet. 17 I can count all my bones; people stare and gloat over me. 18 They divide my garments among them and cast lots for my clothing." So there’s what happened to The Servant. He was oppressed, afflicted, and led to death. B. Here’s how He responded. Isaiah highlights His twofold response. 1. He didn’t protest. "He did not open His mouth," the text says. In fact, Isaiah repeats that statement twice in verse 7. Though subjected to horrendous treatment, He did not open His mouth! He didn’t scream, "Stop the oppression! It’s not fair!" He didn’t call on His Father, "God, please intervene!" He could have. He could have called 10,000 angels—as the song says. And who could have blamed Him had He opened His mouth and objected to such abuse? It would have been a natural reaction. But Jesus never reacted. He responded—with intention and purpose. When He experienced the mistreatment of wicked men, He didn’t protest. Inpositive terms… 2. He accepted the injustice. The Israelites were well aware of the submissive nature of sheep. That’s how Jesus died. He quietly submitted to His death. Philippians 2:8 says, "He humbled himself and became obedient to death—even death on a cross!" I’ve never shorn sheep. I have sat in the barber’s chair. I learned early on as a child a simple lesson that makes the experience more pleasurable. When a person is coming at you with some sharp scissors, it’s best to be quiet and sit still. It’s almost instinctive. Here’s how the New Century Version puts it, "He was quiet, as a sheep is quiet while its wool is being cut." In the New Testament, all four gospel writers emphasize Jesus’ silence:
You ask, "Why didn’t Jesus say something? Why didn’t He defend Himself before Pilate, Herod, and the others?" He certainly could have. He was innocent, a truth Isaiah will make perfectly clear in verse 9. Yet if He had no guilt, why then the silence? Here’s the reason. There was guilt, but it wasn’t His guilt. It was ours. John Calvin explains, "This was the reason of his silence at the judgment seat of Pilate, though he had a just defense to offer; for, having become answerable for our guilt, he wished to submit silently to the sentence, that we might loudly glory in the righteousness of faith obtained through free grace." He did not open His mouth. Usually a person demands his rights. Or at least he objects to injustice. But Jesus did neither. He in no way tried to stop the crime. To the contrary, He invited it and submitted Himself to it. In His death, we see submission. II. In His death we see separation (8). "By oppression and judgment he was taken away. And who can speak of his descendants? For he was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgression of my people he was stricken." In what sense do we see separation in Jesus’ death? Isaiah tells us in verse 8. A. Here’s what happened to Him. The prophet utilizes two more passive verbs. 1. He was taken away. The term signifies the act of taking life. It can be translated "to take away so as to deprive," or even "to take away life." The KJV puts it this way, "He was taken from prison and from judgment." That’s what happened to Jesus. After a rigged trial He was escorted by Roman solders—in reality, he was taken away—to be killed on a hill called Golgotha outside the city of Jerusalem. In addition… 2. He was cut off. Specifically, "He was cut off from the land of the living." The Hebrew word is revealing. Elsewhere it refers to cutting something in two. It’s the word used to depict the parting of the Red Sea in Moses’ day. Symbolically, to be "cut off" means to be excluded from or separated from something. It’s what happened to a leper. A leper was not allowed to rub shoulders with people in society. He was ostracized. He was isolated. He was cut off from society. That’s what Isaiah said would happen to the Messiah. And that’s exactly what did happen to Jesus. He was taken away and cut off. He experienced ultimate separation. But why? And how did it affect Him? Isaiah tells us. B. Here’s what it meant for Him. Notice the question Isaiah poses in verse 8, "By oppression and judgment he was taken away. And who can speak of his descendants?" "Who shall declare his generation?" is how the KJV renders it. Why does Isaiah raise that question? Just who are "his descendants," and why can’t they be "spoken of?" The point seems to be this. When The Servant died… 1. He died alone. Jesus never married, and thus had no biological children to carry on his name. He truly died alone. It’s a terrible thing to be alone—I mean all alone. But know this. No one has ever experienced aloneness like Jesus did. Remember His cry from the cross? "My God, my God, why have you forsaken Me?" Think about those verbs again. He was "taken away" and "cut off." Those terms speak not only of a death that was violent and premature—which Jesus’ death certainly was—but also of the judgment of God. Why did He die alone? Isaiah tells us why… 2. He died for the sin of others. Verse 8 concludes, "For the transgression of my people he was stricken." Why was He stricken? He died, Isaiah says, for the transgression of my people. He died vicariously. He died a substitionary death. When Jesus died, a transfer occurred. God placed on His own Son the transgressions of His people. Though Jesus had committed no sin, God treated Him as though He had. He died for our transgressions, and God judged Him with the penalty we had coming to us. That’s why He died alone. Do you know what hell is? It’s a real place where people will be alone forever, totally cut off from God and each other. That’s what Jesus endured. The fact is, He died alone so that we would never have to be alone again! In His death He experienced separation. But there’s more… III. In His death we see sadness (9). "He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death, though he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth." There’s incredible sadness in these words. He whom angel hosts adore was not only sentenced unjustly, and treated mercilessly, and killed brutally, but beyond that was subjected to injustice in His burial. In short… A. He was treated with disdain. According to Isaiah’s prediction… 1. They intended to bury Him with the wicked. "He made his grave with the wicked," is how the KJV puts it. The NIV states, "He was assigned a grave with the wicked." In the first century, the bodies of executed criminals were sometimes thrown into the Valley of Hinnom (Gehenna) on the outskirts of Jerusalem to burn. But that didn’t happen to Jesus. Rather than being thrown on the trash heap, His body was buried—just like Isaiah predicted. But wait. Buried with whom? Though they intended to bury Him with the wicked… 2. They ended up burying Him with the rich. It’s somewhat of a sidelight, but worth mentioning at this point. The rich die, too, don’t they? You can have a bank account of a billion dollars or more, but you can’t escape this. You will die, and there’s no buying your way of out that fact. In Isaiah’s prediction, though Jesus was assigned a grave with the wicked—perhaps He was supposed to be buried with the other two criminals—they ended up burying Him with the rich. There’s an interesting feature in the Hebrew text, as Herbert Wolf explains: "The word ‘wicked’ is plural (which fits the two thieves who died with Christ), but the word ‘rich’ is singular. This is an unexpected change in number because the words are in parallel lines. An interesting confirmation of the change from plural to singular is seen in the Saint Mark’s Isaiah Scroll, one of the Dead Sea Scrolls. The scribe started to write the plural form of the word ‘rich,’ ‘asirim, realized that he made a mistake, and scratched out the last two letters, leaving the singular ‘asir." Warren Wiersbe remarks, "Verse 9 should read: ‘And they appointed His grave with the wicked, yet He was with a rich man in His death.’ Were it not for Nicodemus and Joseph, the body of Jesus would have been buried in a "potter’s field" or thrown on a garbage heap." Do you see the sadness in all of this? He was assigned a grave. Though He is the author of life, others took His life and decided where He would be buried. Just as Isaiah predicted, Jesus was treated with disdain. What makes it even worse is this… B. He deserves to be treated with devotion. Why? Notice the end of verse 9, "He was assigned a grave…though he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth." He was sinless. As the Union Pacific Railroad was being constructed, an elaborate trestle bridge was built across a large canyon in the West. Wanting to test the bridge, the builder loaded a train with enough extra cars and equipment to double its normal payload. The train was then driven to the middle of the bridge, where it stayed an entire day. One worker asked, "Are you trying to break this bridge?" "No," the builder replied, "I'm trying to prove that the bridge won't break." That’s why Jesus subjected Himself to temptation. The temptations the Lord faced weren't designed to see if He would sin, but to prove that He couldn't. He did no violence. He had no deceit. Hebrews 4:15 states, "For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet was without sin." The apostle John makes the same point in 1 John 3:5, "But you know that he appeared so that he might take away our sins. And in him is no sin." My friend, Jesus deserves to be treated with devotion. He deserves your devotion and mine. But know this. When He came the first time… 1. He didn’t get what He deserved. Instead… 2. He got what we deserve. That’s grace. Most people know and cherish the song Amazing Grace. And a lot of people know the story about its author. John Newton, born 1725, was a slave trader before God rescued him from his sin and shame. What you may not know is that Newton penned some other amazing works filled with theological depth. Here’s a poem that tells his story: In evil long I took delight, Sure never till my latest breath, Alas! I knew not what I did! Thus, while His death my sin displays In Jesus’ death, we see three things: submission—He subjected Himself to horrid abuse; separation—He experienced aloneness so we can enjoy God’s fellowship; and sadness—He didn’t get what He deserved, but what we deserve. Make It Personal: How should we respond to Jesus’ death? The story is told of a fictitious meeting in which the devil and his cohorts met to devise plans to get people to reject the Gospel. "Let's go to them and say there is no God," proposed one. Silence prevailed. Every devil knew that most people believe in a supreme being. "Let's tell them there is no hell, no future punishment for the wicked," offered another. That was turned down, because men obviously have consciences which tell them that sin must be punished. The concave was going to end in failure when there came a voice from the rear: "Tell them there is a God, there is a hell and that the Bible is the Word of God. But tell them there is plenty of time to decide the question. Let them 'neglect' the Gospel, until it is too late." All hell erupted with ghoulish glee, for they knew that if a person procrastinated on Christ, they usually never accept Him. In responding to Jesus’ death we must do three things… 1. We must accept His sacrifice. To benefit from Jesus’ sacrifice, you must believe in the Lord Jesus. He who died on the cross triumphed over the grave three days later and gives forgiveness and eternal life to all who call upon Him. But you must call. You must repent of your sins and accept His sacrifice. You must accept Him. Oswald Chambers is right, "We trample the blood of the Son of God if we think we are forgiven because we are sorry for our sins. The only explanation for the forgiveness of God and for the unfathomable depth of His forgetting is the death of Jesus Christ. Our repentance is merely the outcome of our personal realization of the atonement which He has worked out for us. It does not matter who or what we are; there is absolute reinstatement into God by the death of Jesus Christ and by no other way, not because Jesus Christ pleads, but because He died. It is not earned, but accepted. All the pleading which deliberately refuses to recognize the Cross is of no avail; it is battering at a door other than the one that Jesus has opened. Our Lord does not pretend we are all right when we are all wrong. The atonement is a propitiation whereby God, through the death of Jesus, makes an unholy man holy." So response #1 is this. We must accept His sacrifice. 2. We must follow His example. In 1 Peter 2:20-22, Peter quotes Isaiah 53:9 and applies Jesus’ example to us. There Peter encourages believers who were suffering unjustly by reminding them what the Savior did: "But if you suffer for doing good and you endure it, this is commendable before God. 21 To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps. 22 ‘He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth.’" If you want to live a life that pleases God, you must be willing to follow Jesus’ example. You must be willing to suffer injustice without retaliating. You must reject the world’s notion of responding to evil with evil. Are you willing? Are you following Jesus’ example in the way you treat your family members? How about your boss or the person who wrongs you at work? There’s one other response. Having learned what happened when Jesus died, we must accept His sacrifice. We must follow His example. And… 3. We must proclaim His accomplishment. We need to get the word out! There is a Redeemer, a Savior, and the world needs to hear of Him! Will you resolve to proclaim His accomplishment?
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