Maybe it’s you

By Dean Collins

Old Testament scholars tell us  four sections of Isaiah are poems written about a servant. But Isaiah never tells us the servant’s name. Thousands of hours have been spent by the academically oriented researching and debating the identity of the servant.

Some say that the servant is the nation of Israel that has endured much suffering in exile and is now on the verge of release by King Cyrus of Persia who has taken over Babylon. Some suggest the servant is a nameless prophet. Some suggest Isaiah himself. Others say it is a description of Jesus. I’m confident that reading Isaiah 50:4-9 we can see Jesus in our minds, and that is no accident.

But what if this passage is also about you? One of the identities we take on as followers of Christ is that of a servant. We’ve heard many sermons about service. We are familiar with the popular concept of servant leadership. Even the secular business world is attracted to that approach. We can’t argue against the truth of the New Testament Scriptures and of Jesus himself who calls us to wash each other’s feet. The lesson of John 13 is certainly a lesson about service.

Learners

As Isaiah describes the servant he begins by telling us the Lord God has given us the tongue of one who is taught. This assumes we understand we actually don’t know it all. Someone has taught us. (Of course there has to be some effort on the part of the learner in order to take in knowledge.) Isaiah continued by reminding us that the Lord God also opened our ears. It is a gift of God that we can learn. It is also a gift of God that we have the privilege and ability to share what we have learned.

Isaiah seems to echo Lamentations as he reminds us that every day, morning by morning, it is God who awakens us to a new day of learning. Of course we have choices about what we can learn. Pick a subject and there is a book, a podcast, an authority on the topic ready to teach.

But Isaiah is focused on the learning and wisdom that originates from God. That wisdom is taught by the Holy Spirit and is available in abundance in the pages of Scripture. Maybe the best learning comes early, after God has awakened you, and straight from those quiet moments you have spent with him.

Isaiah reminds us that if we are taught by God, then we will not be rebellious.

In fact, we must surrender our rebellion in order to be taught. As long as I’m convinced I’m right, in the right, and defender of the right, it’s difficult to learn from God. Repentance of our rebellious nature is a must if you want the tongue of one who has been taught by God.

Sharers

Our learning and our teaching has a purpose. Isaiah says the one who is taught by God speaks words that sustain the weary. I bet if you look around as you go about your day, you can see plenty of weary faces. Life is hard in normal times. We’ve certainly experienced new levels of difficulty in our pandemic. What if the servant of Jesus is to bring little messages of hope to the people around us who are weary?

Sufferers

The servant is also aware that as we serve and encourage others, we still will walk through our own suffering. We may very well be criticized and rebuked. Some may shame us for our position as servants of God. We also may believe we’ve failed and slip into self shaming because we thought we could do more but couldn’t. It is easy to assume the role of the martyr if we aren’t careful. But Jesus has already taken on the sins of the world, and there is no indication he needs our help on that point.

Isaiah told us what God has done for us, giving us tongues that have learned and ears that are taught. But Isaiah also tells us what God will do in the current moment. “But the Lord God helps me.” And Isaiah said it twice to make sure we understand. We don’t serve alone or by just our strength. God is with us. We can’t help but remember that Jesus invited us to put on his yoke. That he said he would provide rest. We always have help from above. But before Isaiah finishes this poem he tells us we can stand up together. We stand together with God and with each other in this call to service.

Until Jesus returns, the scholars will continue to argue about who the servant is in chapter 50 . But I’m going with my best guess: I think the servant is you and me imitating Jesus. That’s my final answer. I bet it’s yours as well.

Your time with God's Word
‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭50:4-9‬; ‭Matthew‬ ‭11:28-30‬ ‭ESV‬‬

Photos by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash