The sufferings of the Savior - Isaiah 53:5

Turn with me please to the book of Isaiah, chapter 53. There's one verse I want to read with you, and it's been quoted a number of times in our meeting already this evening, verse number 5 of this great chapter. And we read, but he was wounded for our transgressions.

He was bruised for our iniquities. The chastisement of our peace was upon him. And with his stripes we are healed.

God will bless the reading of his word. I want us to think just for a few minutes at the end of our gospel meeting this evening about the greatest sufferings that this world has ever seen. Mind you, that's quite a claim to make.

Because when we think through the history of humanity, we have to acknowledge this, that it is a sad and it is a sorry history, and it's marked by suffering. Some of it that's almost impossible for us to comprehend. But no matter where we look, and across the bloodstained pages of history, never, will we find sufferings that compare with those that we have read of this evening.

These sufferings are unique because of the one who suffered. We have read this evening words that would be remarkable if they were written about any man. But the thing that fills our hearts with wonder as we consider them is this, that they weren't written about just any man.

These words were written of the Lord Jesus Christ. These words were written of the Son of God. More than that, these words were written of the Creator, the One who made all things, and without whom was not anything made that was made.

These words are written of the One who dwelt in light unapproachable, of the One who from eternity past was with God and enjoying the presence of God, the One who was God. And it's concerning Him that we read these words. But He was wounded for our transgressions, and He was bruised for our iniquities.

And the greatness of the person, the greatness of our Lord Jesus Christ, the greatness of the One that we want to present to you in the Gospel this evening, the greatness of His person means that these are sufferings beyond anything else that this world has seen. When we think of these sufferings, we are thinking of course of the crucifixion of the Lord Jesus Christ. And it is a very solemn thing to think of those pains, to think of those agonies, to think of those physical sufferings that were connected with crucifixion.

If I were to ask you for a word to describe the very worst physical pain that you can imagine, very likely the adjective that you would come up with is excruciating. Literally that is a word that means it comes from a cross. And so as we think of physical pain, and we want to describe the very worst physical pain that we can imagine or conceive of, the standard that we use to compare it to is the pain that comes from a cross, excruciating pain.

And you know when we think of the crucifixion of the Lord Jesus Christ, there were physical agonies that He endured that are dreadful to contemplate. You know they took Him. And as they subjected Him to every indignity that they could think of, they beat Him in the face.

They plucked the hair from off His cheeks. They crowned Him with thorns and then they took a rod and they beat those thorns into His brow. They would have taken Him and they would have tied Him to that flogging post and they took the Roman lash.

And says prophetic scripture, the plowers ploughed upon my back and they made long their furrows. And the back of the Saviour was transformed until it was like a ploughed field. And they let Him out and they nailed Him to the cross.

And they lifted that cross up and they let it drop into its socket and prophetically it says every bone was out of joint. And beneath the heat of the sun He would have hung, suffering the agonies of crucifixion. The sufferings are dreadful to contemplate.

We cannot really comprehend what it must have meant. But you know the thing that should touch our hearts and I trust it will speak to your heart this evening, is that as the prophet here speaks by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit about these sufferings. He is not speaking about the piercing of the nails.

And He is not speaking about the wounding of the lash. And He is not speaking about the crushing, bruising weight of the cross that He bore forth to Calvary. Because these sufferings went far beyond the sufferings just of crucifixion.

And listen friend, the One who created all things, the eternal Son of God who had come from heaven and into earth, He went to the cross. Man did their worst to Him. But as He hung there, lifted up between heaven and earth, He was wounded.

For our transgressions. He was bruised for our iniquities. And the chastisement of our peace was upon Him with His tribe.

We are healed. I want us just to grasp this evening something of the reality of the sufferings that He endured. And I say it again.

That in all the sufferings that have filled the history of this world, there is no sorrow to compare with His. And there are no sufferings like these. And when we think of suffering so great, when we think of a person so great, enduring sufferings like these.

We ask, well what is the reason? What reason could there be? What reason could there be that would explain sufferings like this? You see, we can perhaps account and explain for something of the sufferings that He endured at the hands of man. And there was those different motives that were concerned. The motives of the nation, the leaders, the rulers, they saw Him as a threat.

And He revealed what was wrong in them. And they wanted to be done with Him. They cried away with Him.

We will not have this terrain over us. There were motives as far as the Romans who actually crucified Him were concerned. They saw Him as a potential political troublemaker.

And to nail Him to a cross was to bring Him to an end and to make an example of Him. And to ensure that no one would follow one who endured such sufferings as this. But the hatred of man cannot explain, cannot account for the sufferings that He endured at the hand of God.

And why was He there? And why did He suffer? Well, you know, it's just to do with that problem that our brother has been telling us about already this evening. And it's brought before us so clearly in this verse that we've read together. He was wounded for our transgressions.

And He was bruised for our iniquities. Mind you, He could not suffer for His own sins. For He was senseless.

But He went to the cross in order that He might meet your greatest need and mine. And we all have many needs. But I don't care what other needs you may face this evening.

I still can say without fear of contradiction, if you're not saved, no matter what other problem you may have, there is no problem that is so great as the problem of your sin. And mind you, you've been reminded already, it's a problem that affects every one of us. The writer here, he speaks about transgressions.

And there are those lines that God has drawn. Those bounds that He has set over which we must not pass. And every single one of us, we've been reminded already.

We've transgressed God's command. And we've broken His law. There are those iniquities, those evils within us.

Old society doesn't like to think of this. And Satan would have us redefine the word sin until it's something that we can laugh at. And we've reduced the word to nothing more than eating too many chocolates when you're on a diet.

But that's not how God sees sin. And if you want to understand what your sin is really like, look this evening to Calvary's cross. And see the creator of the universe nailed to the center cross and suffering under the hand of God.

And understand this, friend, that your sin is obnoxious in the sight of God. Your sin is a dreadful thing. And it's your greatest problem.

Because it will separate you from God. It separates you from Him now. And if you die without having the question of your sin dealt with, if you die without having this problem addressed, then friend, you'll be separated from Him.

And you'll be under the wrath of God for all eternity. But God wants to bless you. And it's a wonderful thing that as we take to the gospel platform, we speak about a God who is righteous.

And we speak about a God who must judge sin. But thank God we can remind you that God is a God who loves you. And that God has commended His love.

That God has put His love on display for us by giving His Son. And so that your sins might be righteously forgiven, so that you could be justified with God, He sent His Son to Calvary's cross. And He was wounded for our transgressions.

And He was bruised for our iniquities. The chastisement to make our peace was upon Him. That's a lovely word, isn't it? That word peace.

We can only have peace, mind you. Only have real peace when our sins have been dealt with. We can only have peace with God.

We can only be at peace within ourselves. We can only breathe that sigh of relief that our brother has been speaking about when sin has been dealt with. And in order for sin to be dealt with, the chastisement, the judgment, the punishment that we deserved, it fell on Christ at the place called Calvary.

I want to ask you, friend, this evening, do you know what it is to have peace? As you think of the righteousness of God, do you have peace? As you think of eternity that never ever will end and which you will spend either in heaven or in hell, friend, do you have peace? And if you think of that moment when your lungs will fill with air for the last time and your heart will beat for the last time and your soul will leave your body and you'll go out into eternity, when you think of that moment, friend, do you have peace? That's why He suffered. That's why He bore those unimaginable, unparalleled, unequal sufferings. It was so that He might give us peace.

Wounded for our transgressions and bruised for our iniquities, the chastisement to make our peace was upon Him. And with His stripe, we are healed. Again, that's a lovely word.

But it reminds us that there's something that has gone wrong. It reminds us of a problem. You see, the difficulty is not just that we commit sins.

The difficulty is this, that we are sinners. And by a congenital defect that we have from our forefather Adam, we have this problem. We have this disease.

The worst of all diseases, the Hemrider says, is light compared with sin. And so it is. And yet the wonderful truth is this.

That on Calvary's cross, a Savior died. And He suffered. And He bore the stroke of divine justice.

And He did it so that we might have peace. And He did it so that we might be healed. And I'm glad we can think this evening not just of the reality of these dreadful sufferings that the Savior bore.

But we can think of the reason for it. Wounded for our transgressions. Bruised for our iniquities.

The chastisement of our peace upon Him with His stripes. We are healed. But if we can think from this lovely verse of the reality of His sufferings.

And if we can think of the reason for His sufferings. I want to ask the question this evening. What is the response to His sufferings? Mind you, I want you to notice what God's response is.

Listen to the verses that we have just at the end of the preceding chapter. Behold, my servant shall deal prudently. He shall be exalted.

And extolled. Be very high. What's God's response to the sufferings of His Son? Well, it's this.

It's satisfaction. We've been reminded already of that victorious cry from the cross. And the Savior.

He had hung there. The hours of darkness had covered the scene. He had been forsaken by God.

These sufferings that we've read about. They had rolled over His soul. And such was the greatness of His person.

That the moment came when the work was finished. And with a loud voice. Not with an expiring gasp.

But with a cry of authority. He cried, it is finished. And that was no idle boast.

And I know it was no idle boast. Because on the third day they came to the tomb. And they found that the stone was rolled away.

And I rejoice every time I read the words of the angels to those who came. He says, why seek ye the living among the dead? And up from the grave He arose. In a mighty triumph for His foes.

And He arose because the work was finished. And He arose because God was satisfied with the death of His Son. And the Saviour cried, it is finished.

And as He raised Him from the dead. God gave the great amen to the words that the Saviour had spoken. And the response of God is this.

That He has raised His Son from the dead. And He is exalted. And He is extolled.

And He is very high. And we preach to you this evening a Saviour who is alive. He is alive in the power of an endless life.

We've thought something of that this afternoon. And He is able to save you because He is alive. And because He is alive forever.

That's God's response. I want to ask you, friend, in the meeting this evening. What's your response? Pilate asked the question, didn't he? What shall I do then with Jesus? Which is called Christ.

And the question was asked prophetically. Concerning the sufferings of the Lord Jesus Christ. Is it nothing to you? All ye that pass by.

Behold and see if there be any sorrow like unto my sorrow. Wherewith the Lord hath afflicted me in the day of His fierce anger. And as we've sought just a little.

And so very inadequately. As we've sought just a little to think of His sufferings. I want to ask you, friend, in the meeting this evening.

Maybe having heard the message many times. And yet, time after time, you have turned away from the Saviour. And you've turned away from salvation.

I want to ask you, friend, this evening. Is it nothing to you? That He suffered and died to make your peace. And to deal with the problem of your sin.

And to justify you and to fit you for heaven. Is it nothing to you that out of love for you. He went to the cross to endure what we'll never understand.

God is satisfied. My friend in the meeting this evening. Boy or girl or man or woman.

What is your response? And what will you do with Jesus? You see, as we read through this chapter. We discover that there were people. And they responded to the Saviour in all sorts of different ways.

The verse that we read begins with a but. Because it's correcting what people thought. People thought He suffered for wrongs that He had done.

And there were those. And they saw no beauty that they should desire Him. And they saw nothing to regard Him.

But there were some that were different. Then towards the end of the chapter we read this. By His knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many.

For He shall bear their iniquities. And there were some. And their response was faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.

And I ask you again friend in the meeting this evening. Christ has suffered you. These events really took place.

Prophetic scripture was fulfilled as they pierced His hands and His feet. We've been reminded already that no bone of Him was broken. Because it had been foretold that that would be the case.

The reality of His sufferings. And He died. In the words of the old hymn.

He did die that we might be forgiven. And He died to do us good. That we might go at last to heaven.

Saved by His precious blood. He was wounded for our transgressions. And bruised for our iniquities.

And He did suffer chastisement to make our peace. And He bore that stripe so that we could be healed. And God satisfied.

Christ is risen. And I say to you again this evening friend. What will you do with Jesus? Which is called Christ.

And what will your answer be? We've been reminded already. Of the solemn tragedy of a soul that would reject the Saviour. And mark you well friend that.

Before you leave the meeting this evening. You will have done one of two things. Neutral you cannot be.

And before you leave this hall. You have made another time. Another decision.

Accept Him. Know your sins forgiven. Know peace with God.

Know that you've been healed. Or continue to reject Him. And leave here as you've come in.

A sinner bound to a lost eternity. It need not be so. Thank God for a provision that has satisfied the heart of God.

And for salvation purchased at infinite price. But offered freely to you this evening. My friend we want to commend this Saviour to you.

And to ask you again. What's your response going to be? To the sufferings of this one. Who bled.

And who died for you. Our Father. Another time we vow in thy presence.

Amazed afresh by the greatness of thy grace. By the riches of thy love. To give thine only begotten Son.

To save sinners like us. We thank thee for his sufferings. We think of what he endured.

We thank thee for the reason for it all. And for the blessing that has flowed from his finished work on Calvary's cross. We pray a blessing upon each head bowed in thy presence this evening.

And a blessing upon thy word. Very especially we pray now for those in our gathering who are not saved. As they consider the Saviour another time.

We pray our Father that they will not reject him. But that they will put their trust in him. We've been reminded of the potential.

Not just of a day but the potential of just an hour. Just a meeting like this. And we pray our Father that some of that eternal potential will be realized this evening.

As souls trust the Saviour. Another time we return thanks for all that we've received throughout the hours of this day. And for every blessing that we've enjoyed.

And we look forward to tomorrow and we pray again for thy blessing. Very especially as we will gather in thy will to remember the Lord Jesus Christ. And now we commit ourselves into thy care.

And ask for thy watchful hand upon us. And our Saviour's precious and worthy name. Amen.

I'll sing a closing hymn. Hymn number six. Alas, and did my Saviour bleed.

And did my Sovereign die. Would he devote that sacred head. For such a worm as I. Was it for crimes that I have done.

He groaned upon the tree. Amazing pity. Grace unknown.

And love beyond degree. Hymn number six and perhaps we could stand to sing.