"And whosever will be chief among you, let him be your servant: Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many." MATTHEW 20:27-28 KJV

Jesus Understands

Begin by reading the Old Testament description of The Son of Man, found in Isaiah 53:2-4, which says,

"For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him. He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely, he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted."

There are many Messianic prophecies in the Old Testament. Some speak of the crucifixion and the torment the Savior would suffer. Others speak of the character of the Messiah. They tell us that He is Wonderful, Counselor, Prince of Peace, the Lion of the Tribe of Judah, Immanuel. However, what I love about Isaiah 53 is that it describes the humanity of Jesus, not just the divinity of Jesus.

Jesus came as a man. He was 100% man and 100% God. He had no "form nor comeliness," which tells us that He did not appear as something unique or beautiful. To look at Him, He did not stand out in the crowd, I believe God intentionally designed Jesus so that He would not look like what the people imagined. The Jewish people had a list of requirements they expected the Messiah to fulfill. Jesus did not meet that list. As far as they were concerned, He was a criminal, "Despised and rejected of men..." But He was also "a man of sorrows, acquainted with grief." Sorrows(Greek: sicknesses), Grief (Greek: pain, both physical and mental). I cannot help but be reminded that Jesus understands how I feel when I am sick or when I feel sorrow or grief.

Why would The Son of God become The Son of Man? The answer is simple: The Son of God became The Son of Man so that the sons of men could become the sons of God. He did not come to us in obvious splendor or beauty ("no beauty that we should desire him..." Isaiah 53:2). Instead, he came as one of us so we would know beyond doubt that Jesus understands us. He walked the earth as The Son of Man to build the bridge between man and God, to fix what Adam's sin had broken.

FOR FURTHER STUDY READ: ACTS 7:54-60 - Stephen, SPEAKS JESUS before his own death.

If you would like to be able to do a complete study of Chapter Three, order a copy of Speak Jesus by contacting Empowered Women's Ministry at empoweredwomen@pcg.org or 817.554.5900 ext. 371. Available also at pcg.org/resources or Amazon.