Glory to God! Praise God that He blessed us with another week in our life to extol His name on earth and fulfill His purpose in and through our life for His glory. The specialty of this  new week is that this week begins with Resurrection Sunday – a glorious day in the history of humankind (Matthew 28:5-6; Mark 16:5-7; Luke 24:6-7) [the darkest day in human history was none other than the day Jesus was crucified for the sins of the world – Matthew 27:35, 45; Mark 15:24, 33; Luke 23:33, 44; John 1:29, 36; 19:18; 1 Peter 2:24; 1 John 2:2]. Jesus died on a Friday [usually known as Good Friday] and resurrected on the first day of the week, which is Sunday [known as Resurrection Sunday] (Matthew 27:62, Mark 15:42, Luke 23:54, John 19:42). The whole purpose of Jesus’ life and ministry on earth was fulfilled on the day He defeated death and resurrected from among the dead (Isaiah 25:8; Hosea 13:14; Acts 2:24; 1 Corinthians 15:14b-15; Colossians 2:15; 1 Thessalonians 4:14). All that had been spoken about Jesus in the Old Testament regarding His birth, life, ministry, suffering, death on the cross, burial, resurrection, and ascension to heaven has been fulfilled so far and now we are waiting for His return – the second coming (Matthew 24:42-44; Acts 1:10-11; Revelation 1:8; 3:11; 22:12, 20). He assured the saints that He is coming back to take them to be with Him forever and ever (1 Thessalonians 4:17; Revelation 22:5). Currently, He is interceding for us before the Father ([John 17:1-26]; Romans 8:34; Hebrews 7:25; 1 John 2:1). This week, let us focus on Jesus’ life and ministry, particularly His suffering, His death on the cross, burial, and His resurrection from the dead. He went through such excruciating sufferings on behalf of you and me. If He did not go through it, we would have been at His place and going through such agony, which we might have not been able to withstand. We are alive today because He is alive (Mark 16:1-13). Just think, what can we do for Him in response to all the good that He had done for us!

The passage for this week’s Scripture for the Week meditation is taken from Isaiah 53:10-12 (mentioned above). As we begin this week’s meditation, we will briefly look into Jesus’ life and ministry from both the Old and New Testament perspectives. We read much on Jesus’ life and ministry in the New Testament, especially Jesus’ earthly life, but the Old Testament also talks a lot about Him from a prophetical perspective. As followers of Lord Jesus Christ, we who live in the twenty-first century AD, we must understand that what is recorded in the New Testament about the life and ministry of Jesus Christ is the fulfillment of what was prophesied about Him in the Old Testament. There are numerous prophecies recorded in the Old Testament (the Hebrew Scriptures) regarding the incarnation of Christ – who took the form of a human being and dwelt among people in order to redeem sinful humanity from eternal condemnation, which was the purpose of His coming in to this earth. The prophecies regarding His redemptive ministry began in the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3:15). There are numerous prophetical passages with reference to Christ’s life and redemptive ministry which are recorded in the Old Testament and a few of those prophecies and their fulfillment are noted in here for our reference (due to space and time limitations, all references might not be included in here and references for the fulfilled prophecies are in blue letters [kindly read these passages as per your convenience]): Genesis 3:15 [1 John 3:8]; 12:3 [Acts 3:25-26]; 49:10 [Luke 3:33]; Exodus 12:5 [Hebrews 9:14]; 12:21-27 [John 1:29; 19:30; 1 Corinthians 5:7]; 12:46 [John 19:31-36]; Leviticus 17:11 [Matthew 26:28]; Numbers 21:9 [John 3:14-18]; Deuteronomy 18:15-19 [John 5:45-47; 6:14; 7:40; Acts 3:18-22]; 1 Samuel 2:35 [Hebrews 2:17]; 2 Samuel 7:12-13 [Matthew 1:1], Job 19:23-27 [John 5:24-29]; Psalm 8:5-6 [Hebrews 2:5-9]; 9:7-10 [Acts 17:31];  16:9-11 [Acts 2:31]; 22:1 [Matthew 27:46]; 22:7-8 [Matthew 27:39-43]; 22:15-16 [John 19:28-29, 36-37]; 22:18 [John 19:23-24]; 31:5 [Luke 23:46]; 31:11-13 [Matthew 27:1; Mark 14:15]; 38:12-13 [Matthew 27:12-14]; 40:6-9 [Matthew 4:17; Hebrews 10:5-10]; 41:9 [John 13:18]; 68:18 [Ephesians 4:7-16]; 69:21 [Matthew 27:34; John 19:28-29]; 78:1-2 [Matthew 13:34-35]; 118:17-18 [Luke 24:5-7]; Job 19:23-27 [John 5:24-29]; Isaiah 6:9-10 [Matthew 13:13-15]; 7:14 [Luke 1:35]; 8:14 [1 Peter 2:7-8]; 9:1-2 [Matthew 4:12-17]; 11:10 [John 12:18-21]; 22:22 [Revelation 3:7]; 25:7-8 [1 Corinthians 15:54]; 35:5-6 [Matthew 11:2-6]; 40:3-4 [John 1:23]; 42:1-4 [Matthew 12:15-21]; 44:3 [John 16:7]; 50:3-7 [Matthew 27:27-31; Mark 15:15-32]; 53:1-12 [Matthew 27:13-14, 57-60; Mark 15:27; Luke 4:28-29; 23:41]; 61:1 [Luke 4:16-21]; Jeremiah 31:31 [Matthew 26:28]; Daniel 7:13-14 [Luke 1:31-33]; 9:24-26 [read the gospel account of Jesus’ life and ministry; Galatians 1:3-5]; Hosea 11:1 [Matthew 2:4-15]; Amos 8:9 [Matthew 27:45]; Micah 5:2 [Matthew 2:4-6]; Zechariah 9:9 [Matthew 21:8-10]; 11:2-13 [Matthew 27:6-10]; Malachi 4:5-6 [Matthew 11:10-15].

In fact, the entire message communicated in the Old Testament, which consists of the Law, the Prophets, and the Psalms, revolves around the life and ministry of God’s only begotten Son whom the Scripture introduces to us as Jesus Christ. During His earthly ministry, Jesus Himself testified about it to His disciples: This is what I told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms (Luke 24:27, 44-53; John 5:39-47). The Old Testament saints were looking forward for the coming of the Messiah – their redeemer and savior (Isaiah 7:14; 9:6; Matthew 1:23), but we, the New Testament saints, are looking backward to Him about whom the Scripture affirms that in the fulness of time God sent His One and only Son who took the form of a human being and lived among the people and did everything He could, including His atoning sacrifice on the cross (1 John 4:9-10 [also refer to: Luke 19:10; 1Timothy 1:15; 1 John 3:5) to save sinful humanity from eternal death and give them eternal life – a life never-ending, as Apostle Paul wrote to the church at Galatia:

4 But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship. 6 Because you are his sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba, Father.” 7 So you are no longer a slave, but God’s child; and since you are his child, God has made you also an heir (Galatians 4:4-7 [also refer to: John 3:16; 1 John 4:9-11])

Through His Son’s [Jesus] life, ministry, and His atoning death on the cross, the Holy Father in heaven made a New Covenant with humanity (Jeremiah 31:31; Luke 22:20; Hebrews 8:13; 12:24; 13:20); and we the New Testament believers [the Church] became part of the New Covenant/Testament. Currently, both the Old Testament saints as well as the New Testament saints (that is, all the saints from the beginning of human history), look forward for His second coming, so that we all will be fully restored unto His likeness and live with Him for ever and ever (Galatians 3:7-9, 23-29; 1 John 4:9-10).

Although Isaiah chapter 53 gives insights about Jesus’ life (v.2a), and ministry (v.4-6, 12b); the prophetical utterances of Isaiah expound much on His sufferings (v.2b-3, 5, 7-9), His death on the cross (v.10a), and His resurrection from the dead (v.10b-12a). Since we do not have much time and space in this regard, let us briefly analyze the passage we chose for our meditation, that is Isaiah 53:10-12 [mentioned above]).

• • It was the Lord’s will to crush Him [Jesus] (v.10a)
  • It was the Lord who caused Him [Jesus] to suffer (v.10b)
  • It was the Lord who made His [Jesus’] life an offering for sin (v.10c)
  • The Lord God Almighty will let Him see His [Jesus’] redeemed ones (v.10d)
  • It was the Lord’s will to prolong His [Jesus’] days (v.10e)
  • The will of the Lord will prosper in His [Jesus’] hand (v.10f)
  • He [Jesus] will see the light of life (v.11a)
  • He [Jesus] will be satisfied (v.11b)
  • The righteous servant [Jesus] will justify many (v.11c)
  • The righteous servant [Jesus] will bear their iniquities (v.11d)
  • The Lord God Almighty will give Him [Jesus] a portion among the great (v.12a)
  • He [Jesus] will divide the spoils with the strong (v.12b)
  • He [Jesus] willingly poured out his life unto death (v.12c)
  • He [Jesus] was numbered with the transgressors (V.12d)
  • He [Jesus] bore the sin of many (v.12e)
  • He [Jesus] made intercession for the transgressors (v.12f)

The Old Testament prophecies like Psalm 22:1, 8, 15-18; 31:5, 11-13; 38:12-13; 41:9; 69:21; Isaiah 50:3-6; 52:13-53:12 (only a few references mentioned here), reveal to us the kind of sufferings and excruciation Jesus Christ would have to go through during His earthly ministry. When we read these prophecies in comparison with Matthew 26:47-27:50; Mark 14:43-37; Luke 22:47-23:46; John 18:1-19:30 (the sufferings Jesus literally went through during His earthly life and ministry), we can understand the kind of suffering Jesus endured between His arrest at the place called Gethsemane (Matthew 26:50) and His death on the cross as He surrendered His spirit into the hands of the Lord God Almighty (Matthew 27:50). The excruciating pain Jesus went through was more than anyone else could bear, and it was for your sake and mine. We are responsible for all the wrong we have had committed before our Holy Father in heaven. Apostle Paul wrote that Jesus, being God Himself, humbled Himself and took the form of a human being and suffered and died on a cross to redeem sinful humanity from eternal condemnation:

6 [Christ Jesus] Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; 7 rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. 8 And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death—even death on a cross! 9 Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father (Philippians 2:6-11)

The Scripture states that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23 [also refer Psalm 14:2; 53:2). The consequence for the sins one commits against God by disobeying God’s commandments is death, as it is mentioned in Romans 6:23a that the wages of sin is death, and the sentence is already decreed. We, being sinful, neither can save ourselves nor others; at the same time, others, who are sinful, can save neither themselves nor anyone sinful. This means, no human being can save other human beings because we are all sinners (Psalm 49:7-8 [14:2; 53:2). Nevertheless, Jesus, being descended from heaven, is the only One could save sinful humanity from being punished for their sinful actions because He was the only One who was without sin (1 Peter 1:17-20). God, being forgiving and merciful, does not want to destroy mankind whom He created in His image and likeness rather He intended to give them an opportunity to correct themselves and return to Him, so that He can forgive them and reconcile and restore them to their original state, which means, they will be a new creation without sin (2 Corinthians 5:17). That was the reason why He raised and sent His saints from time to time (ever since the mankind committed sin against the Lord God Almighty by disobeying His commandments) to lead sinful humanity back to Him, so that they can escape from the punishment decreed upon sinners. In all such attempts, sinful humanity failed God and His saints by distancing themselves from God and becoming more and more conformed to the pattern of this world, which was against His commands (Romans 12:1-2). Yet, God, being compassionate and loving, sent His only Son (Jesus Christ) to the world to redeem/save the humanity from their fallen state and give them eternal life, which is the gift of God (John 3:16; Romans 6:23b). The world that persecuted God’s saints who were sent prior to the coming of Jesus, persecuted Jesus also. They persecuted Him so severely to the extent of nailing Him to a tree (cross) until He handed His life over to His Father in heaven. The Old Testament Scriptures give clear hints about the excruciating suffering that Jesus had to go through during His earthly ministry. For instance, prophet Isaiah foretold the kind of suffering and death Jesus will go through during His earthly ministry in order to save/redeem the sinful humanity (Isaiah 52:13-53:12). In reality, Jesus was rejected and left alone (Matthew 26:56) and He was all alone even during His trials before the Sanhedrin, which is the Jewish religious court (Matthew 26:57-27:2), and before the Roman court that functioned under the regional court of Pilate (the governor) as well as king Herod (Matthew 27:11-26; Luke 22:66-23:25). Ultimately, Jesus went through so many sufferings (physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually, and in every possible way one could suffer) throughout His lifetime, especially from the time He was arrested till His death on the cross (Matthew 26:36-27:56; Luke 22:39-23:49). The reason why God the Father did not deliver Jesus from the agonizing pain He had been going through, nor answered His prayer from the place called Gethsemane: My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me (Matthew 26:36-42), was because that was the only way to redeem sinful humanity without us going through agonizing punishment in our lives. When Jesus Christ suffered and died on the cross, He was paying off all the debts that we have caused. When the payment for our wrong doing and wickedness was made in full, God, being a righteous judge, was satisfied and forgave us (sinful humanity) and declared us as righteous:

When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the charge of our legal indebtedness, which stood against us and condemned us; he has taken it away, nailing it to the cross (Colossians 2:13-14)

Jesus did not go through such heart-throbbing and excruciatingly painful situations in His life to save Himself or any heavenly beings but for the sake of you and me, who were once alienated from God and were enemies in our minds because of our evil behavior as Apostle Paul stated in the Epistle to the Colossians:

Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. But now he has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation—if you continue in your faith, established and firm, and do not move from the hope held out in the gospel. This is the gospel that you heard and that has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven, and of which I, Paul, have become a servant (Colossians 1:21-23 [also refer to: Romans 5:6, 8; 1 Corinthians 15:3)

Now, our debts are paid in full and God declared us as righteous, what do we do next to obtain the salvation that is available through Christ’s death on the cross? It’s easy – the Scripture states everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. This means, everyone who declares with their mouth that Jesus is Lord, and believes in their heart that God raised Him from the dead will be saved, as Apostle Paul stated:

9 If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. 11 As Scripture says, “Anyone who believes in him will never be put to shame.”[e] 12 For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, 13 for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved (Romans 10:9-13)

The Resurrection Day of Jesus is celebrated on the first day of the week (Matthew 28:1; Mark 16:1-2; Luke 24:1; John 20:1), which is on Sunday, ever since Christ was resurrected from the dead. As we celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, let us examine some of the very significant events that took place during Jesus’ last week on earth as a human being:

• • His triumphal entry in to Jerusalem, which is normally known as Palm Sunday (Zechariah 9:9; Psalm 92:12-14; Matthew 21:1-11; Mark 11:1-11; Luke 19:29-44; John 12:12-19)
  • Cleansing of the Temple (Matthew 21:12-17; Mark 11:15-18; Luke 19:45-47; John 2:14-16)
  • Jesus’ final teachings and instructions to His disciples (Matthew 22:1-25:46; Mark 12:1-13:37; Luke 20:1-21:38; John 14:1-16:33)
  • Jesus anointed at Bethany (Matthew 26:6-13; Mark 14:1-11; John 12:1-11)
  • the Passover meal with His twelve Disciples (Matthew 26:17-28; Mark 14:12-16; Luke 222:7-15; John 13:1ff)
  • Jesus initiated and instituted the Lord’s Table (Matthew 26:26-30; Mark 14:22-26; Luke  22:14-20; 13:1)
  • Jesus washing the feet of His disciples during the Lord’s Table (Matthew 26:14-39; John 13:1-17)
  • His prayer at the place called Gethsemane (Matthew 26:36-46; Mark 14:32-42; Luke 22:40–46; [John 17:1-18:1])
  • Jesus’ arrest (Matthew 26:47-56; Mark 14:43-52; Luke 22:47-53; John 18:1-14)
  • His trial before the Jewish religious court and Roman courts (Matthew 26:57-27:44; Mark 14:53-15:32; Luke 22:54-23:43; John 18:12-19:27)
  • His crucifixion and death on the cross (Matthew 27:32-56; Mark 15:21-42; Luke 23:26-49; John 19:16-37)
  • Jesus’ burial (Matthew 27:57-66; Mark 15:42-47; Luke 23:50-56; John 19:38-42), and
  • His resurrection from the dead (Matthew 28:1-10; Mark 16:1-8; Luke 24:1-12; John 20:1-10)

In a nutshell, the coming of Jesus to this earth as a human being marked the beginning of a new era in human history, and the resurrection of Jesus from the dead marked the beginning of a New Covenant relationship between God and humanity. As a New Covenant/Testament people, despite all our failures up until now, let us try to know Him more and more in our relationship with Him, let us place our trust in Him more and more as we grow in our spiritual pilgrimage, and let us love Him and obey His commandments more than ever before. In addition, let us try our best to live a life that is worthy of Jesus’ resurrection from the dead and from now on let us make Him to be the Lord of our life (if we haven’t fully done so) as He is the head of the church as Apostle Paul wrote:

15 The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 16 For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. 17 He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18 And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. 19 For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross (Colossians 1:15-20)

Dear friends, Jesus came to this world to reveal/display God’s love for us, He gave up His life on the cross to pay off the debts of our sins, He resurrected from the dead to give us life – in fact, to give us life abundantly (John 10:10b). So, God has highly exalted Him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name (Philippians 2:9), and He has made Him the Lord of all (Acts 10:36). If we live a life honorable to God, our life will be like the tree planted by the water as it is stated in the Scripture:

Jeremiah 17:7-8

Blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him. 8 They will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit

Psalm 1:2-3

[Blessed is the man] whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night. 3 That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither—whatever they do prospers

Psalm 52:8

But I am like an olive tree flourishing in the house of God; I trust in God’s unfailing love for ever and ever

Psalm 92:12-15

12 The righteous will flourish like a palm tree, they will grow like a cedar of Lebanon; 13 planted in the house of the Lord, they will flourish in the courts of our God. 14 They will still bear fruit in old age, they will stay fresh and green, 15 proclaiming, The Lord is upright; he is my Rock, and there is no wickedness in him.

As the chosen people, the royal priesthood, the holy nation, the special possession of God (1 Peter 2:9), let us declare the praises of him who called us out of darkness into His wonderful light and spread the message of the resurrected Christ to everyone who haven’t received Him as the Lord and savior of their life. Also, as the dearly loved children of the Most Holy God (Ephesians 5:1-2), let us be encouraged one another with the promise of the hope that we have in Jesus Christ as Apostle Peter stated:

3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, 5 who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. 6 In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials (1 Peter 1:3-6).

As we meditated upon these verses, let us rededicate our lives and everything we have for the glory of God! Let us be faithful to Him for He is faithful to us and He will remain faithful to us (1 Thessalonians 5:24). Let us invite our resurrected Lord into our life and keep Him in the center of our life! He will surely bless us and make our life a blessing to everyone else – near or far. Let God’s name alone be glorified in and through our life! May the Lord God Almighty bless us all! Amen!