3 ATTRIBUTES OF JESUS IN ISAIAH 42 (To inspire and encourage us)
The book of Isaiah gives some prophecies about Jesus, the Messiah. The most popular is in chapter 9, verse 6.
“For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.”
But there is another passage in the book of Isaiah that tells us some interesting things about our Redeemer that can serve not only to strengthen us but are worthy of emulation. That passage is Isaiah 42:1-4:
“1. Behold my servant, whom I uphold; mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth; I have put my spirit upon him: he shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles.
2. He shall not cry, nor lift up, nor cause his voice to be heard in the street.
3. A bruised reed shall he not break, and the smoking flax shall he not quench: he shall bring forth judgment unto truth.
4. He shall not fail nor be discouraged, till he have set judgment in the earth: and the isles shall wait for his law.”
3 ATTRIBUTES OF JESUS TO INSPIRE AND ENCOURAGE US IDENTIFIED
1. God calls Jesus, “my servant … in whom my soul delighteth.” (v. 1)
Jesus was given a very tough ministry: to preach reconciliation to God and die to bring that about, his blood being the price for our redemption from sin. And he did this so wholeheartedly he described it as his meat.
“Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work.” – John 4:34
“Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you” – 1 Peter 1:18-20
How well are we serving God? Are we considering anything He has asked us to do too much of a sacrifice? God said of Jesus, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” – (Matthew 3:17) I believe it was Christ’s willingness to take on a physical body to suffer and die for humanity that informed that declaration.
“Consequently, when Christ came into the world, he said, ‘Sacrifices and offerings you have not desired, but a body have you prepared for me; in burnt offerings and sin offerings you have taken no pleasure. Then I said, ‘Behold, I have come to do your will, O God, as it is written of me in the scroll of the book.'” – Hebrews 10:5-7 (ESV)
[bctt tweet=”Are we considering anything God has asked us to do too much of a sacrifice?” username=”edithsmusings”]
The Bible clearly explains how we can excite God in scriptures such as the two below.
“The LORD delights in those who fear him, who put their hope in his unfailing love.” -Psalm 147:11 (NIV)
“… to this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at my word.” – Isaiah 66:2
How submissive are we to God? How obedient are we to His word? Bear in mind that His grace is available to enable us live according to His commands.
“For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works. – Titus 2:11 -14 (ESV)
[bctt tweet=”How submissive are we to God? How obedient are we to His word?” username=”edithsmusings”]
2. Jesus is described as tender and sensitive: “A bruised reed shall he not break, and the smoking flax shall he not quench.” (v. 3)
Jesus was compassionate in the way he dealt with sinners and outcasts. He visited tax collectors, confounded those who wanted to stone the woman caught in adultery, cleansed lepers through touch, etc. When the hardhearted Pharisees protested about what they saw as his fraternisation with sinners, he told them:
“They that are whole need not a physician; but they that are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” – Luke 5:31-32
This is a big source of encouragement to us to come to God, not run away from Him, when we have sinned. Sin brings its own punishment: sicknesses, addictions, impoverishment, etc. For example, AIDS is linked to sodomy (as one of its causes), cirrhosis of the liver to alcoholism; drug addictions to recreational drug use, sex addictions to pornography reading or viewing; impoverishment to gambling, ostentatious and wild living above one’s means, and so on. People so afflicted are already bruised and battered. Jesus comes into their lives not to crush them further or extinguish hopes of rescue. He brings deliverance. Above all, he heals their rift with God so that they can leave this life with the confidence they will be with Him forever.
No matter how low we have sunk, Jesus can lift us up. No matter the evil we have done, He can cleanse and pardon us and make us brand new. He will not look down on or turn up his nose at us.
[bctt tweet=”No matter how low we have sunk, Jesus can cleanse and lift us up.” username=”edithsmusings”]
What then is our attitude if we have been saved and restored? Do we discriminate against those who haven’t had that privilege? Do we pummel them with the idea that we are better than them? Are we harsh in judging others? Or are we as loving as Christ, thereby drawing many to salvation? Many of the tax collectors Jesus ate in their homes repented. Matthew, one of the 12 apostles, was one example. While we shouldn’t compromise on holiness to accommodate sinners, showing kindness unconditionally can open doors for the gospel that we can’t by expounding precepts alone.
[bctt tweet=”Are we harsh towards others or are we as loving as Christ, drawing many to salvation?” username=”edithsmusings”]
Remember the Parable of the Pharisee and the Publican. The Pharisee who trusted in his own righteousness and looked down on the other man was condemned.
“Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican. The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican. I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess. And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner. I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.”- Luke 18:10-14
Sometimes, we condemn other Christians with as much vehemence as the unsaved. So I’m sharing this great quip I saw on Humour from a Pentecostal Pew recently. It read something like this:
“I had a conversation with God the other day. He didn’t ask me what Joel Osteen was doing. He asked me what I was doing.”
When we refuse to extend mercy and grace to others, we make the gospel unattractive to unbelievers and prevent ourselves from effectively correcting and restoring erring Christians.
3. Jesus is committed to ensuring divine justice on earth. “He shall not fail nor be discouraged, till he have set judgment in the earth”. (v. 4)
The enemy fights God’s salvation plan in the lives of people. He also fights the fulfilment of God’s promises to us. But Jesus does not give up on our case. It is injustice to be bound by addiction and other afflictions when Jesus has bought our freedom. It is injustice to be buffeted by sin when we have confessed Christ. Jesus is mindful of our weaknesses and trials and is working on our behalf.
“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.” – Hebrews 7:25.
[bctt tweet=”Jesus does not give up on us in our weaknesses and trials.” username=”edithsmusings”]
If God delivered you once and you suffered a relapse, don’t resign to that evil fate. Deliverance with Jesus is continual.
“Who delivered us from so great a death, and doth deliver: in whom we trust that he will yet deliver us” – 2 Corinthians 1:10.
The day is coming fast when the tempter will be forever defeated.
“The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.” – Romans 16:20
Hallelujah! If Jesus is committed to bringing us out and destroying our tormentors, dare we give up?
“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 feeling of our infirmities; but was in 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.” – Hebrews 4:14-16
Hang in there, child of God! Because our all-encompassing redemption is nearer now than when we first believed (Romans 13:11).
Amen in Jesus’ name.
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The scriptures used in this post are from the King James Version of the Holy Bible except where otherwise stated.
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Woww, you are so right with this post. I enjoyed reading it! A lot of times people don’t understand how God works. No matter what we do in this lifetime, He will never give up on us. I saved this blog post…Love it! God Bless
Blessed by your comment. Thank you for your encouragement. May God multiply the fruit of your ministry, dear sis, in Jesus’ name.
Amen, God Bless You
Powerful and insightful Word! thank you for sharing the revelation of the Word from what is obviously a deep well in your life.
Blessings Suzanne
Halleluia! Thank you for reading, Suzanne, and for your kind words. May God uphold and sustain you and your family in all your ways in Jesus’ name.
Beautiful discussion to remind us of who Jesus was, but also the mercy and gentleness that we should desire to emulate as from Christ in us! Thank you.
Glory to God! May we be worthy ambassadors of Christ on earth in Jesus’ name.
Taking the time to really let your message and all its wisdom soak into my heart was a blessing to me today, Edith!
What a gift you are. Such a wealth of valuable truth to decipher and digest and pray about in transforming our own hearts for Christ. I SO appreciate your teaching the Word in this way. Isaiah is such a complicated book to understand for me- so I hold special value in the guidance you offered here and the additional scripture references as well.
So delighted to have you here, Chris! Glory to God! I am thoroughly blessed by the warmth and insight in your posts too. Your life illustrates vividly the tenderness and sensitivity of Christ described in this post and His other qualities as well. May God continue to enlarge the coasts of your ministry in Jesus’ name.
Edith, I enjoyed how you explored this passage in Isaiah and connected it with other scriptures. I especially like the fact that Jesus is tender and sensitive.
Oh yes! He is altogether lovely! Thanks for dropping by, Deb. Abundant blessings on your family and ministry in Jesus’ name.
May God give us the grace to live for him and the willingness to help, teach or bring others closer to him.
Meanwhile, I love you Lord, you are my everything. ?
Beautiful! Bless you, Gloria!
WHAT A WONDERFUL WRITE UP! I DERIVED JOY READING THIS PORTION OF THE BIBLE.
Praise the Lord!
This is an encompassing piece. Every believer needs to read this. Good one, ma! You could write a daily devotional and it would be a best seller. May the Lord truly help us to be obedient and not see everything as too much of a sacrifice
My Aunty Edith!
The best Gift God gave our generation!!
Sounds a bit too much, don’t you think! All glory to God!
“People so afflicted are already bruised and battered. Jesus comes into their lives not to crush them further or extinguish hopes of rescue. He brings deliverance.” Amen!
You are highly blessed in Jesus’ name, Susan!
A servant totally compassionate and committed – Jesus! What a revelatory post. The Lord bless you.
Glory to God and may God’s goodness surround you and yours always in Jesus’ name.
The three attributes of Jesus in the book of Isaiah show that Jesus as the son of God is the hope of our salvation. The bible said that there is no condemnation to those who believe in Christ Jesus. Christ is the hope of my glory. Amen.
Solo, He is indeed! But I’m just wondering if you actually looked at the post.
No wonder he said, let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus. Our Lord Jesus had a humble character, I work to attain such heights.
By God’s grace you will, my dear!
The above attributes as portrayed by Isaiah have just summarised Jesus’ mission here on earth. He is our Messiah and it is only through HIM that we are redeemed. Thank you Jesus.
He is my Redeemer. Who came to serve and not to be served.
If Jesus the son of God was a subject to his father who are we not to be totally submissive to God our creator ? He belittled himself for our sake, went through shame that we might be save. I praise thee for u are great.
Jesus, give me the grace to love you more and more and always remember you came to this world for my sake. Help me to learn how to be humble as you, Lord. Thanks a lot, ma. This piece just reminded me of the sole purpose of Christ’s mission.
This piece is awesome.
Thank you ma for constantly reminding us of the amazing love of GOD.
Jesus is great. He is the redeemer of the whole world. His humility brought salvation to those who believe.
Isaiah is one of the Prophets to describe the coming of Jesus in the bible and also paved a way for his coming. Where he said “And his name shall be wonderful” really gave people the impression that it is not a mere Human that we’re about to witness but a supernatural being who made heaven and earth. God is wonderful and may his name be praised now and forever. Amen
Christians need to understand how important it is to worship God in truth and faith. It’s not all about going around preaching against others. The Pharisee who prayed was not justified, not because he didn’t pray but because he ended up criticizing and comparing himself with others. When we pray, it’s good to ask for forgiveness after appreciating God before we ask for our needs.
I pray God help us to worship him and do that in the right way…. Amen
Jesus is such an example of God both in character of God and lifestyle. His ways are straight and direct and such he teaches us as his followers. His attributes in Isaiah, I can say are but a miniature of his entire fullness. I pray that we shall be like he is.
The wonderful names and characteristics of Christ is inestimable. He alone has those qualities as Isaiah reveals, honour to his name.
Isaiah the man of God reveals what I see as a miniature of what qualities Christ posses. Our lord is more than we can define him. I bless his name for that.
Jesus is a great judge and captain of our soul. He is our defence and shield, our hope of salvation. Am glad to have him be my Lord.
We should always praise him because he endured the condemnation placed on him because of his love for us. His humility proves it all, his love for us is eternal.
In Grace of God we live and by the same grace and faith we are called children of God. Ma may the lord strengthen you in sharing his word and winning soul for Christ through this medium.
If our eyes are open to see what this God has done for us we will shiver in fear, so many spiritual battles he has fought for us. He is Awesome
“How submissive are we to God? How obedient are we to his words”
This particular line touched me,is not only calling him God God all the time but do we even obey him,are we even submissive to him….it baffles me how we obey ordinary president and governors but the greater ruler in the world we dnt see him as anything.sometimes we don’t care how he will feel wen we don’t obey his words,when we don’t give him that respect he deserves,a while Jesus always humble to his father then what about us,who are we that we can’t obey God will……..we should all reflect in this message, if truely you are proud to have God as your father always have it in mind to be doing those things that will make him happy……o lord your grace is all I need…
Jesus will surely bring divine judgement on Earth. May Go Help us not to consider anything God has asked us to do too much of a sacrifice. More Power, Ma.
Jesus is being portrayed in this article as a humble, tender and just son of God. He condescended to present himself as the suffering servant of God, “he was oppressed and was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is dumb, so he opened not his mouth” (Isaiah 53:7). It takes a merciful and compassionate heart to do what Christ has done for mankind. Christ did all these for us in order to reconcile us with the Father and bear on our behalf the punishments we deserve for our sins. Jesus did not do these as an inferior being to men but as the King of the universe. This has been negated by the present day political leadership whereby some politicians ascend to the political offices only to make lives miserable for the poor masses instead of rendering selfless services to them. We are meant to be compassionate to one another and also consider the interests of others in our daily activities.
This is a piece that just made things clear to me about Jesus Christ, may God see us through, I love this.
Most times we consider what God has asked us to do too much of a sacrifice, but we do all earthly things with too much ease and pleasure, we have fallen short of the glory of God, but we take solace in God because he is merciful…. May the lord help us to keep his commandments and hold on to his word, for he his the way, the truth and life, no one commeth to the father except through him.
Jesus is the best role model for any life to emulate. His life is what christians should follow and display wherever they dwell. Jesus attributes can be vividly seen through this well written piece. His act of servant-hood to the God which He consider to be served before any other. His love and compassion to all human; that we were yet sinner Jesus loves us without condition. He desires mercy and not condemnation. And all power in Heaven and Earth has been given to Him by God; He will therefore bring judgement on earth when He pleases. This is a piece that teaches us and reminds us to think again the attributes we carry about.
WOW! this so wonderful and a source of encouragement and inspiration to us Christians, it depicts how God loves us personally and considers us worthy enough to be called his friends and servant…this post simplfied the book of Isaiah in such a way we can appreciate the love of God…Thumps up ma’am
Oh yes! prophet Issiah was able to highlight the attributes of Jesus Christ. We saw his humble nature as He put Himself down and accepted the trials and affliction given to Him for our sake and also His tender heart that even at the point of death he still pleaded to His father for our forgiveness
All encompassing post. I love the part which reminds us of sharing our grace with others in order to correct the erring ones amongst us. Many Christians forget to do and try to distinguish themselves from the termed “sinners” forgetting the fact that Jesus Christ is indeed humble. nice one ma.
For one to fully follow GOD or to become a born again Christian, we must forget the things of this world because they bring so much distraction to us, but we see it that it is too much to do for the ONE THAT GAVE HIS LIFE FOR US. We forget that the greatest enjoyment one can have is in HEAVEN. God does not give up on us but we do by following things that does not glorify HIM. I pray that his grace will never depart from all of us
I enjoyed reading every bit of this piece… One has to be submissive to God, he I the king of all Kings and he should be worshipped faithfully.
Most often we feel the burden God often call us to carry for Him is too much, it could be in term of preaching the gospel, caring for theneedy or helping the poor…A good example as illustrated in the bile is that of Jonah, Jonah was sent by God to preach to the people of Nineveh but because he became too strong headed-and-hearted he ran away not knowing there is an effect to his action. Humbling yourself to acknowledge that which you did and is not right in the sight of God is one step to redemption.
He is our Messiah,our Lord and our Saviour.Only through him can we gain eternal life and be saved..this is inspiring ma,God bless you.
Jesus is the lord over everybody, we should learn to adore him as our saviour, we should never feel that God’s will is a burden to us.
What a friend I have in Jesus!!! I believe in you, I strongly do. Words are not enough to describe who you are to me! Thank you Jesus?
i got three solid lessons from this post, one that Jesus was submissive to the will of God and did not come on earth to pursue his own will but that of his father. secondly, Jesus is tender and sensitive he was the kind of person who did not despise sinners and go to the repentant only. he welcomed everybody and preached the word to them. thirdly, Jesus is determined to bring justice to the world and i am hopeful that it will be the remedy the earth need.
Jesus is a humble servant and he was obedient to the will of his father, he did not do anything on his authority without consulting God. he was also sensitive to sinner and welcomed them to learn the word with him. jesus also has promised to bring justice to the world and i have learnt to be more like jesus in my deals because if i want to be with him in paradise, then my life should mirror the ideas of jesus.
the best part of this post is that trait of humility and submission in the life of Jesus Christ. he is certainly a role model i have decided to emulate. i have decided to allow my life be a living testimony to the humility of Jesus. To live a live where i don’t boast of myself but i get my meaning and worth from the word of God. the book of Isaiah is really a passage where we find many revelation about God.
This attributes not only talks about what God is but is supremercy over us all.
God was, is and will forever be.
Thank you Jesus!
He is our defence and shield, our hope of salvation.Jesus is a great judge we should all reflect in this message if God is truely our father
Ma am always touched as you continue to draw our attention to Jesus and always meditate on his scriptures. This post has made us realise and think about the 3 important attributes of Jesus and I pray that he Helps us to imitate these attributes especially his tenderness and sensitivity, that he helps us to be meek, compassionate towards others without any form of discrimination. We should learn to carry everybody along without any form of bias or class distinction. We should learn to show mercy and practice justice.
I will reflect Jesus in humility, compassion, sensitivity and everyone will know Jesus through me for he is my father today and forever, my shield and fortress. Mummy I celebrate Jesus with you ma.
These great attributes of Our Lord Jesus Christ should be reflected by in our lives,his humility,servanthood and faithfulness.
Nevertheless, we should learn to love each other at all cost, in accordance with emulating Jesus Christ as our role model.
May God give us such grace to imbibe such attitude.
This writeup made us to understand the importance of Jesus, the roles he played during his life time on earth ,how he cared for us as the good Shepherd and I pray that his grace will be sufficient enough for us to be meekv,compassionate towards our neighbors.
Im really encourage by this attributes of Jesus, for christ is just in his ways. Our many sins notwithstanding he never condems us.
I love these facts about Jesus. Most especially that he is “tender and compassionate”. Jesus has come for sinners, to restore them into righteousness and to grant them salvation. We should not feel bad because we are sinners, rather, we should change for the better bearing in mind that Jesus is always there to welcome us. I also love that he is our deliverer and gives us assurance of hope.
Jesus was also called the Prince of Peace which means that with Him, there is an assurance of divine peace in our lives. These facts about Jesus are quite encouraging. Thanks ma!
Jesus is everything good and everything we can ever hope for, that is why he is our discpler and we his disciple. He is our role yet he is so humble about it.
jesus has many attributes but the foremost two is love and compassion, it was due to love that he came down to die for humans and compassion moved him to heal the sick
Once you obey God and keep his commandments, things will get better for you.
Christ is our perfect example. Other prophets came but where not perfect. We should emulate the life of Christ on earth. Mind you, He came to world as a man not as God so that we would not give the excuse that He is God. The bible said”Be ye perfect just as you heavenly Father is perfect”. So we should strive to be perfect by imitating Christ’s live on earth like Service, Love, Humility etc.
We were actually placed on earth to become like Jesus, to be conformed into image. I pray we all learn how to be submissive, tender hearted, sensitive in Jesus name.
Jesus being described as tender and sensitive shows that He is a compassionate Christ. Also, it encourages us to come to His throne of grace whenever we’ve strayed and ask for mercy, for He is willing to forgive us.
I am personally blessed by this piece.It has reminded me of how compassionate and meek our Lord Jesus is.Bless you, good teacher of the word .long life Ma.
Edith, this is beautiful and encouraging! It is something I have been striving for, to become more like Jesus even though it hurts. I regularly reflect on how difficult and painful it can be to serve God, but that it doesn’t compare to what Jesus did to save my soul! I look forward to sharing your post this week on The Silver Lining Ministry page. I love this very much! Beautiful Jesus! God bless you, lovely Edith, in Jesus’ holy name! You are a treasure! ?
Glad to hear from you, Angela! Hope you had a wonderful Easter. Love you! ❤️
Jesus attributed that he displayed while on Earth is an example he sets for believers to follow. He was meek and humble, he did not discriminate, he gave to the poor. He visited sinners, who were known as the tax collectors and so on. He brought reconciliation between God and mankind, he is ever loving. So we should obey his words and abstain from sin.
Gods grace is abundant. His grace enables us to live up to his commands. With his grace things works out and we have so much confidence. Thank u ma