Daily Devotional: Friday, March 20, 2020
Scripture Reading
Isaiah 53:3 (KJV) “and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.”
and we hid as it were our faces from him;
Isaiah says God’s people would hide their faces from the Messiah. You’ve heard people say, “I don’t want to see your face!” People would be disgusted by Jesus and not want to see his face.
he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
Isaiah began this verse saying “he is despised.” Now he ends it saying “he was despised.” You remember what “despised” means?
It means people hated Jesus.
he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
To esteem someone is to look up to him. To respect him. To want to be like him.
Isaiah is telling God’s people they would not look up to Jesus. They would not respect Jesus. They would not want to be like Jesus.
Note that Isaiah includes himself, writing “we.”
The Jews would not think their Messiah was handsome. They would not be impressed by Him. They would not want to spend time with Him. They would not want to see his face. The Messiah would be nothing to the Jews.
The Messiah would be like the short-order cook in the back of the restaurant. Like the custodian. He’d be like your trashman. Like the man who stocks the shelves of your grocery store. Like the maid at the hotel who cleans your toilet.
Jesus’ whole life was pain and sorrow and humiliation. He suffered these awful things for you and me. Why?
Because of His Father’s great love for sinners. “For God so loved the world.”
QUESTIONS
- Do you think trashmen and custodians and maids get tired of people not looking at them? At having people treat them like dirt?
- Again and again and again, the prophet Isaiah is telling us, what? That His people, the Jews, would treat their Messiah like dirt.
- If you came to save someone’s life and he spit on you and turned away from you, would you still save his life?
SONG OF THE WEEK
Jesus Paid It All
I hear the Savior say,
“Thy strength indeed is small,
Child of weakness, watch and pray,
Find in Me thine all in all.”
Refrain:
Jesus paid it all,
All to Him I owe;
Sin had left a crimson stain,
He washed it white as snow.
Lord, now indeed I find
Thy pow’r and Thine alone,
Can change the leper’s spots
And melt the heart of stone. [Refrain]
For nothing good have I
Where-by Thy grace to claim;
I’ll wash my garments white
In the blood of Calv’ry’s Lamb. [Refrain]
And when, before the throne,
I stand in Him complete,
“Jesus died my soul to save,”
My lips shall still repeat. [Refrain]
PRAYER FOR THE DAY
We thank You, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because You are pleased to hide things from the wise and intelligent while revealing them to infants. Give us in this house the eyes and hearts of little children, so that we may see and come to possess the infinite treasures of wisdom and knowledge hidden in Jesus. Amen.
OTHER PRAYER REQUESTS
- Spiritual renewal and awakening in America
- Wisdom for our leaders
- Cheerfulness and joy in our homes
SCRIPTURE MEMORY THIS WEEK
Isaiah 53:5-6 (KJV)
5 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.
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.
