Read Isaiah 53:1-6
All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; And the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all (v.6).
Isaiah portrays for us one of the most graphic, and yet most beautiful, scenes in holy writ. Where would we be had Christ not suffered humiliation and death for our sins? He became the spotless and perfect Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world (Jn. 1:29).
When Christ was here on earth, He also likened the multitudes to scattered sheep having no shepherd. Revealing His compassion through His sacrificial death, He became our Good Shepherd – thus providing meaning and direction to our lives.
Because sheep naturally tend to stray, they become lost and defenseless. This makes them vulnerable prey. Just so, humanity is without Christ. God, the Father, willed that His Son become our substitute – to be sin for us, who knew no sin (II Cor. 5:21). Certainly, we can join with John the Beloved, BEHOLD, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us… (I Jn 3:1a). (Shirley Gordon)
Man of sorrows, what a name
For the Son of God, who came
Ruined sinners to reclaim!
Hallelujah! What a Saviour! - Philip P. Bliss
How can it be that Thou, my God, shouldst die for me?
This devotional is the Monday, March 7, 2016 entry of Opening the Word.