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Speaker: June 18th 1978, Faith Evangelical Church, Dr. Dallas Willard, Preaching, Subject, The Satisfaction of the Savior, Isaiah 53: 11, Hebrews 12:2.
Dallas: From two verses, and if you have your Bibles, please turn to the 52nd chapter of Isaiah and I will be reading three verses from that and then from the end of the 53rd chapter, and then finally some verses from Hebrews chapter 4 beginning at verse 14.
Isaiah 52, verse 13, Behold, my servant shall deal prudently. He shall be exalted and extolled, and be very high, as many were astonished at thee. His visage was so marred more than any man, and is formed more than the sons of men. Yet shall he sprinkle many nations. The king shall shut their mouths at him. For that which had not been told them shall they see, and that which they had not heard shall they consider.
And now skipping to 53, 10. Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him. He hath put him to grief. When thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand. And he shall see the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied. For by his knowledge many shall, shall my righteous servant justify many, for he shall bear their iniquities. Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoiled with the strong, because he hath poured out his soul unto death. And he was numbered with the transgressors, and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.
Now from the book of Hebrews in the New Testament, beginning at the 14th verse of the fourth chapter, and continuing with the same thought of the satisfaction of the Redeemer. Hebrews 4, 14. Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feelings of our infirmities, but was on all points tempted, like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need. For every high priest taken from among men is ordained of men in things pertaining to God, that he may offer both gifts and sacrifices for sins, who can have compassion on the ignorant, and on them that are out of the way, for that he himself also is compassed with infirmity. And by reason hereof he ought, as for the people, so also for himself to offer for sins. And no man taketh this honor unto himself, but he that is called of God, as was Aaron. And so also Christ glorified not himself to be made a high priest. But he that glorified him said unto him, Thou art my son, today have I begotten thee, and he saith also in another place, Thou art a priest forever, after the order of Melchizedek. Who in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications unto him that was able to save him from death, and was heard in that he feared, though he were a son, yet he learned the obedience by the things that he suffered. And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all that obey him. Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them.
Thank God for the blessing which is in the reading of his word. Just remind the children that it is time to leave, and Joan thank you so much for that blessing in music. I’m taking two texts this morning, one of which I’ve already read to you from the 53rd chapter of Isaiah and the 11th verse, and the other from the 12th chapter of Hebrews, and if you would like to look at those with me for just a moment.
As I come to speak to you the last time on the Sunday morning, I want to try to draw together much that I have said to you in a very simple message, to the effect that God offers to each of us a life of holiness and power, such that we can live it in the following of Christ and complete confidence before God because of Christ and because of his death for us and his life in us. We can live it with complete confidence that all is well and that our race is not run in vain. Paul said that we should be steadfast and unmovable, all was abounding in the work of the Lord, because we know that our work in the Lord is not in vain.
And I want to direct your attention to the expression in the Old Testament of the Messiah as he looked back over the work that he had done. The prophet finds it necessary in this 53rd chapter, perhaps, to say that the Messiah himself was satisfied in his work, because the general context of this passage is one in which all who looked at his work was astonished. And we have to remember that, first of all, the intent of this passage applies to the people of Israel. The people of Israel had hoped to be a great nation on the face of the earth, and they had set their course to be such, and they had made themselves a king. And in the time of Isaiah, they had seen all of their hopes completely dashed. And the prophet Isaiah and the other prophets understood what the end would be. And they knew that the scheme which had been raised up in the fleshly hopes of the people of Israel could not be realized. And yet beyond that, beyond that, the eye of the prophet saw a fulfillment, dimly but surely, on completely different principles than this fallen world could ever understand. And that is why in those verses I read a moment ago from the 52nd chapter of Isaiah, it says all of the kings shut their mouths. Some of you are students of political science. Political science is supposed to tell us something about how government works. But let me tell you something about political science. Political science works only within a very narrow set of boundaries, and can tell you what government might work under certain conditions given certain characteristics of certain people. But it does not tell you of anything else. Government lives by force and death, and the threat thereof, and anytime it meets a group of people who are ready to die, it has no power over them. That is why your terrorists are such a terror to government. Government has the power of death, but they do not fear to die. They’re ready to die. A government that lives by force and death is what we know. This is what the kings know. And now they see this weak, miserable entity of Israel, and the prophet looks at it, and he says, a root shall come forth out of dry ground. It doesn’t look like much, like many of us. And the kings look upon it and they say, huh, what is Israel? Doesn’t even have a government. And the prophet looks at it and says, a root shall come forth out of dry ground. It shall sprinkle many nations. The Gentiles shall come to trust under it.
And they say, what is this talking about, you see? Now it is in the face of that that we find verse 11 of Isaiah 53. He shall see the travail of his soul and shall be satisfied.
I have said to you over and over in these Sundays as I preach to you that a key to understanding the person and teachings of Jesus is his oft repeated statement that the first shall be last and the last shall be first. This is not some little thing which he throwed out so that later-day politicians could take it up and use in their campaign. It isn’t something which is just supposed to tease your mind. It’s a fundamental principle. It goes to the root of everything. When Jesus says the meek shall inherit the earth, the king, the politician, says, huh, the meek shall inherit the earth. I once heard it put this way that they will inherit as the foot of the strong pushes their mouth into the dust. That’s the way they’ll inherit it.
And when Jesus came they would like to have made him a king, but he turned it all down. He knew what they wanted. He knew that someone who could produce bread from nothing would be able to fit into the plans of fallen people as they plan to dominate other fallen people. He could produce arms. He had power to do whatever he wanted to. He could tell the waves to be still. Think of what that would happen in our world today, what that would mean in our world today. A person who could still the waves could certainly cause them to rise, could he not? Think of all the power that lay in his hand, and they wanted him to be king, and he said no. And they would almost, they would came to take him by force to make him king at one point, and he had to put on his disappearing act as a way of avoiding them.
You see, what happened to him in his great temptation when Satan came to him and offered him all of the kingdoms of the earth, continued to happen to him repeatedly up until the very final night when he had to teach his disciples to put up their sword, or they that take the sword shall perish by the sword.
See, now he looks back and he sees the travail of his soul. He sees the work that he has done, and he’s satisfied. And hence in Hebrews chapter 12 we read these words, tying us in now with him, wherefore seeing we also, Hebrew 12 one, seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight in the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus the author, the beginner, the originator, and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of God.
Let me ask you very simply two questions. What was it when Jesus looked back over his ministry, when he looked at all of the days that he spent in simple ways with simple people, when he looked back upon the choice of his father to send him into the body of a little baby, of a woman yet unmarried, but betrothed to a carpenter, the first son who would be raised up to be a simple carpenter with his hands full of splinters and calluses, and perhaps his fingernails blew from hitting them with a mallet, this simple man looked back at that, and he saw how he was called away, and how he was led to face all of the established forces of religion from this simple manner, where they could call him illegitimate, they could say he was a half-breed because he was from the direction of Samaria, they could say he was crazy, he was demon-possessed, and his own family sometimes would come to lead him away because he was so taken up in the work that they thought he had lost his mind. What made him looking back at all of that, and seeing how it ended, and remembering the pain of the cross, what made him be satisfied with all of that?
I give you a very simple answer. Jesus understood the reality and force of sacrificial love. He understood it fully. He knew that the only lasting work is the work which relates itself directly to God moment by moment in sacrificial love. He said, he that is greatest among you shall be the servant of all. He took a little child, as in the 18th chapter of Matthew, and put them before him and said, this little child is the model of greatness in the kingdom of heaven. And Jesus believed in the reality and the power of gentleness, of kindness, of accessibility, of faith in God.
There’s a marvelous passage in James contrasting the two wisdoms, the wisdom of the world and the wisdom that is from above. In James chapter 3, contrasting the world wisdom, in verse 14, if you have bitter envying and strife in your heart, glory not, and lie not against the truth. This wisdom descendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual, and devilish. For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work. Where envy and strife is, there’s confusion and every evil work.
Now contrast that with the wisdom which is above and read in these words the ministry of Christ. But the wisdom that is from above is first pure. It is first pure. Then it is peaceable. Then it is gentle. And somehow I’m always struck with this next word. It is easy to be entreated. And I see somehow in Christ more of that or perhaps more of Christ in that one trait than in any other. He was easy to be entreated. You remember that upon one occasion he was trying to get away for a little holiday in Mark the seventh chapter. He was trying to get away. He needed a rest and took his disciples with him and went up the coast roughly into the area where Lebanon is today. Verse 24 of chapter 7 says he could not be hid. Mark 7 24. He could not be hid. That was a part of the confidence of Christ. You see he knew that if he had the power of God and the purity of God residing in him he could not be hid. He didn’t need a public relations man and an advertising campaign. His problem was to get away sufficiently just to rest. And now in this situation if you wish he’s up at the tire inside in Hilton trying to get away hiding in a room just trying to rest and all of a sudden there comes a knock on the door and he opens the door and here is this Greek as she is called in verse 26 this Gentile Syrophoenician woman and she besought him that he would cast forth the devil out of her daughter. Jesus didn’t want to start a campaign in Syrophoenicia. He didn’t want to have to bear the burdens which crushed him. He was in his incarnation in his limitation. He wanted so badly to rest and teach his disciples and he knew that a few years later Peter and Philip and Paul and Barnabas were going to be going up and down this country anyway. Oh he wanted to rest. He was tired. And so he says to her let the children first be filled. Many people don’t understand this you see they think he has some kind of hardness of heart. No he just simply is worn out. He if he heals this woman what’s going to happen? Do you think she’s going to keep it a secret? She’s not going to keep it a secret. She’s going to go tell everyone she meets. And in his weariness he says let the children first be filled for it is not meet to take the children’s bread and cast it unto the dogs. And she answers you see she entreats him and he’s easy to be entreated. Yes Lord yet the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs. And he said to her for this thy saying go thy way the devil is gone out of thy daughter. And when she was come to her house she found the devil gone her daughter laid upon the bed and it’s no accident that the next verse says and again departing from the coast of Tyre and Sidon he found no rest there. But you see he was so gentle and he was so easy to be entreated. He was so accessible.
Easy to be entreated. Are you easy to be entreated? Am I easy to be entreated? Am I approachable? Many times the hardness of our heart is seen most clearly in our lack of approachableness. Can someone come to us and simply lay their burdens upon us? Easy to be entreated and the verse in James continues full of mercy and good fruits without partiality without hypocrisy and the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace of them that make peace.
This is the wisdom that is from above and when Jesus looked back upon his ministry he saw it filled full of these things. He saw the readiness to suffer vicariously. It’s true that sometimes when he was with his disciples and they pulled some act of unfaith he would say or perhaps even snort a bit, oh ye of little faith how long must I bear with you? But he bore with them. He continued to be accessible and easy to be entreated and peaceful and full of righteousness and mercy and he went to his death in that confidence.
I wonder if you’ve thought about how he thought about death and how he thought about dying for the world. Let me tell you we make a great mistake if we don’t understand that Jesus was a highly intelligent person. You would expect the Son of God to be so who understood what to do and why it worked and consequently said I if I be lifted up will draw all men unto me. He knew that they wanted to kill him and he would not allow them to kill him until the time was right and he said no man taketh my life from me I lay down my life and I take it up again.
And he knew exactly how he should die and he took great care not to be killed in the manner that Stephen was. There were many occasions upon which he was on the verge of this in fact in his own hometown. At the opening of his ministry they almost gave him that treatment they gave Stephen.
You see the Jews could not legally take a man’s life but they had a rule in their religion which was that if any individual was guilty of what they called a high-handed or presumptuous sin they could stone him on the spot and Jesus took great care not to die that way. There were several occasions in which he was on the verge of it but he knew the power of vicarious innocent suffering and he was willing to assume it. In the arena of the world by the government of the known world to be placed upon a cross and there to die and he knew that those people with deaf ears and hard hearts who were trying to follow them he knew that Peter he knew that John he knew that Paul coming along when they realized that it was for them that he died they would never be able to stop them. They would never be able to turn again and they would live in the light of that death and the light of his life never forgetting never again needing to be turned. Their minds would be so stung with his death for them that they could never again stoop to anything less than following him wherever he was.
Think for a moment a friend comes to you and does something that hurts you and you become impatient with them and perhaps you hurt them back. I’ll guarantee you that if you understand the death of Christ you’ll never be able to do that. I’ll guarantee you that if that death is marked in your mind so that you know it like the back of your hand and it is ever before you you will find that you have the power to love. You will find that you have the power to be kind to those who are unkindly to bless those who curse you
because of what he was and Jesus looked back down the history of the world and he saw all of the process of God’s work and then he saw his entry and he realized the magnificent force let loose upon the world in his own person and he saw the travail of his soul and he said I am satisfied with that. Jesus knew the power of love.
I want to read just a word from a letter which appeared in the Times yesterday. This is about a Father’s Day, and some person had written a letter, and the Times gives it the title, The Second Father’s Day Without Father. And this is a letter from a young lady who has recently lost her father, and most of it is a letter of praise, of thankfulness, of gratitude, because she loved her father and was able to express that while he was here. And the final passage says, I am so glad I appreciated Daddy while he was alive, a loving, caring parent and grandparent. I loved him and told him so. We always used our words of endearment at times of happiness, so there could be no regrets at times of sadness. But how I wish that I had one more Father’s Day to kiss him again and to see him loving mother, see him playing with the children, and just to see his beautiful face.
Now I want to ask you a question. Is this not power? The beauty of a father’s face, the beauty of a mother’s face, of a friend, the tears of a little child.
Jesus knew that this was the power which would destroy the kingdoms of this world until they have become the kingdoms of our God and of his Christ. Jesus knew that he had set loose upon the earth a stone cut out without hands that would crush the kingdoms of this world.
And that’s why he was satisfied. You see, God is love. And he that loveth not, knoweth not God, because God is love. And he that loveth knoweth God. And that’s the whole secret of Jesus’ satisfaction.
That is something you can enter into. And you can see satisfaction in Christ not only because of the means, but because of the results.
I’d like to read just one verse from Ephesians. Ephesians 1, 18. Paul is praying with the eyes of your understanding, being enlightened, that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what is the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints. That’s the phrase I want you to grasp. The riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints.
When Jesus looked back down the path, he remembered how he had to despise the shame of the cross. He remembered so much that it was unpleasant. But then he looked, let us say he looked again at that hopeless bunch of not-headed fishermen and tax collectors that he had called to him. And he saw them standing in the power and in the purity of his own spirit. And he saw it actually working. And he saw them going forth into the world, preaching the gospel. And he saw others responding and coming together in a community of love. And he said, that’s what it’s all about. That’s what the earth is for. The earth is designed to create a loving community of people who understood and loved and served one another and received God into their midst. And that is the riches of the glory of the inheritance in his saints. Not just glory, but the riches of the glory of the inheritance in his saints.
The most precious thing in this world is another human being. And the source of constant joy is to live in that confidence and to approach everyone we deal with in that way.
And when we come into the church now, within the society of the redeemed, we begin to enjoy and love the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints. You see, I don’t know what you think of yourself, but as one who has received faith into your heart and has committed yourself to Christ, from Christ’s point of view, you are God’s gift to him. That’s why it’s called an inheritance here. You are God’s gift to Jesus Christ, and he’s thankful for you. And he rejoices over you as he looks back down the road. And you are one of the reasons why he sees the travail of his soul and is satisfied.
And he invites us to come into that same ministry. There’s a lovely word in the 15th chapter of 1 Corinthians and the 16th verse. I wonder if you’ve seen that. Paul concluding this letter says, I beseech you, brethren. 15th verse of the 16th chapter of 1 Corinthians. I beseech you, brethren. And there’s a little parentheses there. He says, you know the house of Stephanas, that it is the firstfruits of Achaia, and that they have addicted themselves. They have addicted themselves to the ministry of the saints. They’re addicted to it. They’re caught up in it. They’re hooked. They live on it. They are addicted to the ministry of the saints. What does it mean? It means that that’s the very greatest and best and happiest thing they could find to do. Can you find something better to do? They’re addicted to the ministry of the saints. In the 12th chapter of Matthew, we find Jesus saying a word which I believe we don’t put enough weight on. I’m sorry, the 10th chapter of Matthew in the 42nd verse. Here we find him saying, he that receiveth a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive the prophet’s reward, and he that receiveth a righteous man in the name of a righteous man shall receive a righteous man’s reward. And now look at this, please. And whosoever shall give a dream unto one of these little ones shall receive a cup of cold water as a disciple. Verily I say unto you, he shall in no wise lose his reward.
In that last day, Jesus will ask us whom we have served. He will ask us whom we have loved. It does us very little good to know all of the right doctrines about God if in our behavior we do not please God. And to please him is to follow Christ and to do his commandments. And that means more than anything else that we realize that our constant contacts with people around us are the main things in our lives. It is there that we show forth the gentleness and power of Christ. It is there that we can see the results of redeemed souls. If we are too busy winning souls to love others, we have lost the point. If we’re too busy running the church to take time for the little one who needs the cup of cold water, we have missed the Spirit of Christ.
We can go forth today to do this work. We can do it as we fellowship afterwards, as we listen to the Holy Spirit. We can do it as we fellowship afterwards, as we listen, as we pay attention to one another, as we look at one another and genuinely love one another. And when we do that, you will hear the knock on the door of the community who is starving for the life of Christ. And you’ll be able to minister to them also. But only if we come the way of Christ, only if we walk in His path, and then we can see the travail of our souls and be satisfied ourselves.
We’re going to sing number 254, I believe it is. Jesus keep me near the cross. This is an invitation for those also who perhaps have never been to the cross to come at this time. There’ll be those of us here to meet you and counsel with you. And if you say in your heart, I can’t find anything better to do than to follow the Christ which you’ve explained today, then now is the time to make that move as we pray and as we sing. And if there are other needs of counseling that can be met, we urge you to come for that also.