Has anyone believed us
or seen the mighty power
of the Lord in action?
2 Like a young plant or a root
that sprouts in dry ground,
the servant grew up
obeying the Lord.
He wasn’t some handsome king.
Nothing about the way he looked
made him attractive to us.
3 He was hated and rejected;
his life was filled with sorrow
and terrible suffering.
No one wanted to look at him.
We despised him and said,
“He is a nobody!”
4 He suffered and endured
great pain for us,
but we thought his suffering
was punishment from God.
5 He was wounded and crushed
because of our sins;
by taking our punishment,
he made us completely well.
6 All of us were like sheep
that had wandered off.
We had each gone our own way,
but the Lord gave him
the punishment we deserved.
7 He was painfully abused,
but he did not complain.
He was silent like a lamb
being led to the butcher,
as quiet as a sheep
having its wool cut off.
8 He was condemned to death
without a fair trial.
Who could have imagined
what would happen to him?
His life was taken away
because of the sinful things
my people had done.
9 He wasn’t dishonest or violent,
but he was buried in a tomb
of cruel and rich people.
10 The Lord decided his servant
would suffer as a sacrifice
to take away the sin
and guilt of others.
Now the servant will live
to see his own descendants.
He did everything
the Lord had planned.
11 By suffering, the servant
will learn the true meaning
of obeying the Lord.
Although he is innocent,
he will take the punishment
for the sins of others,
so that many of them
will no longer be guilty.
12 The Lord will reward him
with honor and power
for sacrificing his life.
Others thought he was a sinner,
but he suffered for our sins
and asked God to forgive us.
Scripture taken from the Contemporary English Version © 1991,1992, 1995 by American Bible Society, Used by Permission.
A post appeared on Facebook with a link to a story about a company who set up online job interviews for the “World’s Toughest Job”. The “interviewers” spoke via the Internet with dozens of applicants. Some of the criteria for the job included: working up to 135 hours per week (at least one person was told, “Basically, this is a 24/7 position.)…no scheduled breaks…you must be able to stand most of the time, bend and stretch – and lift approximately 75 pounds…a psychology degree was preferred, but a pleasant disposition and the ability to solve problems and act as a mediator were a necessity. You had to be able to work in a chaotic environment…possess a valid driver’s license and be able to drive a mini-van…and be proficient in coordinating schedules, multi-tasking, and handling surprises.
Applicants had to have a good grasp of finance…and medicine. At least one candidate was told, “It would be nice if you had degrees in medicine, finance, culinary arts, and psychology.” Most importantly…there was NO PAY for this position! The majority of the applicants folded pretty quickly. But a few asked questions and stuck around to hear more. At the end of the “interview”, the applicant was told that there really was no job vacancy. I’m sure some of you have already guessed that this was the position of being a mom…and the interviewers suggested to each applicant that he/she might want to give Mom a call and thank her!
There are conflicting views about who is referenced in Isaiah 53, but I believe that this is a prophecy of Jesus and His crucifixion. Scriptures in the Gospels that reference this passage seem to confirm this. And as I read the verses and thought of Jesus, I thought of this mock interview by comparison. What if these were among the criteria on the interview:
- You must appear simple and ordinary…no flashy clothes or jewelry…you cannot drive a nice car or live in a fancy home.
- You must walk everywhere (and there is a lot of walking!)…or occasionally ride a donkey.
- You must be willing to share meals and lodging with perfect strangers…even the poor, prostitutes, drunkards and lepers.
- You must be able to accept ridicule and persecution without flinching.
- You must heal the sick, raise the dead to new life, and feed the masses…even when there is no food available.
- You must resolve conflicts without violence or showing your temper.
- You must be able to endure physical, mental and emotional abuse of the most wretched kind.
- You must be willing to be beaten to a pulp, flogged in public, crowned with thorns, stripped naked and nailed to a cross.
- You must be able to carry a wooden cross weighing between 80 and 110 pounds for about 1/3 of a mile – after you have been beaten and mutilated.
- You must be willing to take the blame for the sins of the world at large, even though you are totally innocent.
- You must be willing to be put to death for any and all accusations…even though every one of them will be false.
- You must remain loving, compassionate, merciful and forgiving of all who have mistreated or betrayed you…and you must encourage others to do the same.
- You must do everything your boss (our Heavenly Father) tells you…without question.
Who among us could handle these criteria? We might make it past the first two…maybe even the third and fourth items. But it wouldn’t take long for us to fall by the wayside. We are not up to this! In the “mock interview”, the person in charge told those who applied that millions of people were already doing the “World’s Toughest Job”. But I can assure you, not even a dozen people would line up to try to fill Jesus’ shoes! And any who say they could are liars…or delusional…or both!
None of us could ever for even one minute consider coming close to Jesus. And yet, everything He did was for us. Every supernatural act of stamina, love, mercy, grace, compassion, forgiveness, endurance, tolerance, healing, and nurture was for you…and for me…and for everyone else. As we inch closer to the cross, think of all that Jesus did for you…all that He DOES for you each and every day. Because you see, Jesus is still with you. He left His Holy Spirit to be your companion and comforter. Some of us don’t recognize the Holy Spirit, but He is available...He desires to help you with every single aspect of your life.
Yes, Mom’s have one of the world’s toughest jobs. But Jesus holds the title of World’s Only Savior. He is the only One who could have done such things. He is the only One who will ever love us to this extent. It turns out that the whole gimmick with the “World’s Toughest Job” was created by a card company… http://cardstore.com. Mother’s Day is coming, and this was a fairly effective way to get people thinking about their moms! Several in the video publicly thanked their mothers, while others said they were going to call “Mom” right away.
What will it take to get you to think about Jesus and the cross? Will this criteria and scripture passage be enough to make you think of Him and the sacrifices He made on your behalf? Will it be sufficient to make you fall to your knees and thank Him…to ask, “What can I do for YOU in return?” Don’t you think it should? Jesus was the ONLY One who could have done what He did. Now what will you do for Him?
©2014 Debbie Robus
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