Read the transcript from today's video devotional.
There's a famous song by Frank Sinatra called "My Way," and the message behind that song is he decided to do life his way. I thought about that when I read this text, because there's a part in all of us that doesn't like to be told what to do and how to live. In our text today, the writer tells us that all of us, like sheep, have strayed away.
The Suffering Servant
Let me give us some context here. Isaiah 53 is a chapter about Jesus, who's known as the suffering servant. It talks about how Jesus would die a death that you and I deserved. He would take the punishment that you and I deserved. He begins by saying, "All of us, like sheep, have strayed away." That means all of us have decided to do life our way. The Bible is the standard for our lives as believers. Here's the truth of the matter—the world will do life the way they want to do life because they reject the Bible. But as believers, we need to understand that when we do life God's way, when we live according to the Word of God, it leads to life. The writer of Isaiah is telling us this.
Straying and Being Rescued
We're all like sheep that have strayed away. Think about this—when a sheep strays, it's now in a place of danger. It needs to be rescued, right? That's why we have the Good Shepherd. Here's the good news: "Yet the LORD laid on Him the sins of us all." Even though we've strayed away, even though we've left God's path to follow our own, even though we decided to rebel against God and do things our own way—here's where the good news comes in. "Yet the LORD laid on Him"—that's Jesus—"the sins of us all." I'm so thankful that God kept pursuing me when I kept rebelling against Him. The good news of the Gospel is this: when Jesus went to the cross, He absorbed the wrath that you and I deserved. When the writer says "the LORD laid on Him the sins of us all," that means our sins have been pinned to the cross.
The Hope of the Gospel
For the person who has said yes to Jesus, who has repented of their sin, we have a hope. Yes, we've strayed. Yes, we've sinned. Romans chapter 3, verse 23 would tell us that all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. We're all sinners by birth and by choice. But thank God for sending His one and only Son to die on the cross for us, because that's the hope of the Gospel.
I don't know where you're at today. Maybe you've strayed. Maybe you're rebelling against God. I want to encourage you to do life God's way, because God's way always leads to life. Here's God's way: it's living according to the Word of God. When God gives us a command in the Bible, He's not trying to make our lives miserable. No, no, no—He's saying, I want to invite you into a life of joy. That life is only found in Jesus Christ.