Jesus Satisfied & Righteous

[Read Isaiah 53:1-12]

Palm Sunday is all about celebrating King Jesus. That’s what his triumphal entry was all about. The people had heard that Jesus was coming into Jerusalem, so they ran out of the city with palm branches and coat to lay in front of him as he approached the city. 

This wasn’t a new practice. This was the way they typically celebrated a king entering their city. When a city knew that a king was coming to visit their city, they would send a delegation out to meet him as he approached the city. The goal of this delegation was to join the king and celebrate with him as he entered the city. As the king approached the city, he would be surrounded by people who were dancing and shouting for joy. 

That’s what happened with Jesus. They heard he was coming to Jerusalem. So, they ran out to meet him as he approached the city. They waved palm branches and placed them and their coats before him as he approached the city. It was a celebration. They shouted, ““Hosanna!” “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!” “Blessed is the king of Israel!”” (John 12:13, NIV). As Jesus approached the city, it was repeatedly shouted that he was one who was sent by God, that he was one blessed by God, and that he was the King of Israel. 

Yet, they also shouted “Hosanna,” which is translated, “Save us, please!” So, in the midst of the celebration of Jesus as the blessed king sent from God, the people were also yelling for him to save them. Repeatedly, they were shouting, “Save us! Save us! Save us!” 

Jesus also made sure to enter the city in a particular way. He wanted the crowds to know that he was a different sort of king. So, he didn’t come riding in on a great white steed. He came riding in a lowly donkey—the type of animal a lowly servant would ride. He wanted the people to know that He was a king, but a different king of king. He was coming to save them, but he was coming to save them in a different way than they expected. 

You see, Jesus KNEW all of this as he approached Jerusalem. He KNEW what was going to happen. He KNEW what needed to be done in order to truly be the King of Israel. He KNEW what type of salvation he was going to bring. That’s what this morning’s passage says. It says, “…by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant, make many to be accounted righteous, and he shall bear their iniquities.” (Isaiah 53:11, ESV). It’s saying that Jesus KNEW what he was doing and he did it all intentionally to bring about true salvation. 

The people cried out to Jesus as Blessed, but he knew that God’s blessing was different than they expected. The people cried out to Jesus as King, but he knew that his Kingdom and Kingship were different than they expected. The people cried out that Jesus was sent by God, but he knew he was sent by God to suffer and die. The people cried out for Jesus to save them, but he knew that the salvation he was bringing to them was much deeper than a physical salvation—he was there to save their souls. 

That’s what this morning’s passage tells us. “…by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant, make many to be accounted righteous, and he shall bear their iniquities.” (Isaiah 53:11, ESV). Jesus knew that he would be the Righteous Servant—the one who lived a perfect and sinless life. He knew that he would be able to make many righteous through his righteous life. He also knew that he would have to suffer and die in order to bear the sins of his people. That’s the salvation that King Jesus brought into the world. That is the blessing that King Jesus has to offer to us.

The people shouting to Jesus as he entered Jerusalem were looking for a physical salvation and blessing. They wanted that salvation and blessing in this world. Yet, Jesus says, “What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul?” (Mark 8:36, NIV). What good would it do these people if Jesus brought about some type of physical deliverance, but left their souls to rot? What good would it do us for Jesus to bring us some physical deliverance and leave our souls to rot? What good is it for us to gain the whole world, yet forfeit our soul?

For our soul to be saved we need two very important things: we need forgiveness and we need righteousness. 

We need forgiveness because we are deeply in debt. Each time we sin, we find ourselves deeper in debt. Each time we sin, we swipe our credit card on more time, racking up a bill that we can never pay. In order for our souls to be saved, we need that debt paid—forgiven. So, for those who turn to Jesus in faith and trust, he pays that debt, forgives our sins, and cleanses us completely of all our sins. Our “bank account” has been brought to zero. 

Yet, we need “money in the bank” in order for our souls to be saved. We need to have righteousness. That’s why it’s so important that Jesus is the Righteous Servant who will make the many righteous. When we put our faith and trust in Jesus, he not only cancels our debt, forgiving our sin, but he also takes his perfect righteousness and credits it to our account. Our “bank account” is full and we have everything we need for our souls to be completely saved through Faith and Trust in Jesus Christ.

I don’t want to say this lightly—or to downplay the current crisis we are in—but I want to say this honestly. What does it profit us to be protected from the Coronavirus, yet for our souls to perish and rot? What does it profit us to seek blessing and salvation in this physical world, only to find our eternal soul without salvation and without blessing? Look to Jesus, put your faith and trust in Jesus, the one who cleanses you from your sin and makes you righteous, the one who can truly save your soul. 

Not only is he able to save our soul, but he finds a great joy and satisfaction in saving our soul. Isn’t that incredible? Our passage says, “Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see and be satisfied…” (Isaiah 53:11, ESV). 

Take a moment to understand what this is saying. Picture Jesus as the cross approached. Picture Jesus as the weight of the world’s sin began to bear down upon him. Picture Jesus as he was beaten, mocked, and bruised. Picture Jesus as he hung on the cross and died. Throughout all of this he was in “anguish of soul”—he was in tremendous pain. But, in the midst of that anguish of his soul, he saw something and was satisfied. In the midst of all that pain and agony, Jesus SAW the purpose for his pain and suffering. He SAW the salvation that would come as a result of his pain and suffering. He SAW the people that he would save. And He was SATISFIED. He was SATISFIED to suffer and die in order to bring about your salvation.

In thinking about this truth, Calvin says, “This is full of the sweetest consolation; for Isaiah could not have better expressed the infinite love of Christ toward us than by declaring that he takes the highest delight in our salvation, and he rests in it as the fruit of his labors, as he who has obtained his wish rests in that which he most ardently desired…” (Calvin, 127). 

Think about the last time you sat down, rested, satisfied in what you accomplished. Maybe it was a long day of splitting wood, or painting a house, or raking a yard. Maybe you had a massive project at work that you finally wrapped up. And when you finished the project, you sat down in your seat with that kind of exhaustion that only comes from accomplishing something great—that good kind of, satisfied exhaustion—and you look at what you accomplished and proudly say, “I did that!”

That’s what this passage means when it says that Jesus saw and was satisfied. Even while he was suffering in the midst of anguish, he saw what he was accomplishing and was satisfied. He saw that he was fulfilling God’s plans and purposes, and was satisfied. He saw that he was bringing salvation to all who put their faith and trust in him. Then, as he hung on the cross he said, “It is finished!” The job is done. And after three days he rose again and ascended into heaven where he is SEATED at the right hand of God. He’s seated there, looking at all those who have been saved and adopted into God’s family, and he is SATISFIED. That’s how much he loves His people. 

To be honest, we can learn a lot from this. If Jesus finds so much satisfaction in our salvation, don’t you think we should find satisfaction in our salvation? For some of us, we’ve been living out the Christian life for so long, it’s become something we don’t think about. We don’t really think about the fact that we’re saved. We take it for granted. 

We even end up placing our satisfaction in the things of this world that can be taken away from us. Then, when they’re taken away, we are no longer satisfied. Right now, we’re living in a time and season where many things are being taken away from us. For a while there, it seemed like every day we were finding out about something new that was taken away from us. As more and more things are taken away from us, we find dissatisfaction welling up within us. We need something deeper in which to place our satisfaction, something that cannot be taken away—our salvation. 

Jesus said, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.” (Matthew 5:6, ESV). Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness. Why are blessed? Because they WILL be satisfied. There’s a powerful, unshakeable satisfaction that comes from hungering and thirsting and resting in our salvation. It cannot be taken away from you. You may be separated from friends and family, you may be separated from your church family, you may be separated from your job, but if your satisfaction rests firmly in your salvation—the righteousness that comes from Christ—you will be satisfied, and NO ONE can take that satisfaction away from you. It’s unshakeable and unmovable. 

When we find satisfaction in our salvation, what was said about Jesus can be said about us: Out of the anguish of our soul, we will see and be satisfied. In the midst of pain and suffering, we will see our salvation and be satisfied. In the midst of crisis and pandemic, we will see our salvation and be satisfied. While we are “quarantined” in our homes, we will hunger and thirst for righteousness, and we will be satisfied. Anguish of soul and satisfaction are NOT fighting against one another. In the midst of our anguish of soul, we can see our salvation and be satisfied. 

That’s the kingdom that Jesus is ushering into this world—a kingdom that cannot be shaken. That’s the king that we celebrate on Palm Sunday—a King who brings a salvation that cannot be taken away from us, no matter the circumstances. This King that rode into Jerusalem on a donkey, suffered and died on the cross, rose again from the dead, and sat down satisfied at the right hand of the Father. And because He did all of this for us, we can also find satisfaction in the midst of our own struggles, and we can look forward to the day when we will be raised again from the dead, and we will enter into the eternal rest and satisfaction of heaven.