| “He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain. Like one from whom people hide their faces he was despised, and we held him in low esteem. “Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted.” |
| —Isaiah 53:3-4 |
If you are fortunate, you’ve never had to experience persistent pain—either physical pain or emotional pain. But, statistics indicate that most people, at some time in their lives, will experience pain.
Some pain is tolerable because it brings a good result. The pain of childbirth, for example, usually results in the birth of a healthy baby boy or girl. The joy of receiving this gift from God will often outweigh the relatively short-lived pain associated with the birth of a child.
Other pain comes as a result of surgery to correct some illness or defect. Again, the long term benefit of the surgery usually displaces the memory of the somewhat temporary pain of recovery.
Sadly, in other cases, even with some pain resulting from treatment, the condition cannot be corrected and the individual continues to experience chronic pain. A nagging discomfort can profoundly change the life of someone who heretofore led a more normal life.
Perhaps the worst pain is the emotional pain caused by some situation in one’s life that cannot easily be remedied or corrected. This pain cuts so deeply into one’s soul that nothing can provide relief. Far too many individuals bear the emotional scars of such an unrelenting pain in their lives.
Every human suffers from the pain caused by sin. Because we bear the sin stain of Adam, and because we sin willfully and defiantly ourselves, we bear the pain of that sin.
God in His mercy, grace, and amazing love has forgiven our sins through Christ. But often, the pain that sin has caused in our lives remains. Broken promises, broken marriages, despicable acts of abuse, and many more, all produce pain that proceeds from the consequences of our sins.
When we stop to consider the pain we must bear, we should also consider how painful it was for Jesus to bear our sins on the cross of Calvary. Notice what the Prophet Isaiah says to the people of Judah, as recorded in Isaiah 53:3-4:
He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain. Like one from whom people hide their faces he was despised, and we held him in low esteem.
Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted.
As we begin another day, even as we deal with the pain we must bear in our lives, let us not lose sight of the greater pain our sin has caused the One who loves us more than we can comprehend. Jesus bore the pain of our sin in obedience to the Father. No matter what burden pain may bring into our lives, the burden that He bore is multiplied many times over. We should remain ever thankful, even in the midst of our own pain, that Christ’s love for us prompted Him to bear the pain that only we should have borne.
Based on a blog originally posted on Monday, July 24, 2017
