Look at My Servant: Ashley Palmer
Look at my servant, whom I strengthen.
He is my chosen one, who pleases me.
I have put my Spirit upon him.
He will bring justice to the nations.
He will not shout
or raise his voice in public.
He will not crush the weakest reed
or put out a flickering candle.
He will bring justice to all who have been wronged.
He will not falter or lose heart
until justice prevails throughout the earth.
Even distant lands beyond the sea will wait for his instruction.
(Greek: And his name will be the hope of all the world.)
Isaiah 42: 1-4, NLT
The words of Isaiah are rich with prophecy about Jesus. Early in the book, we get prophecies about the Messiah’s virgin birth (Isaiah 9) and royal lineage as the root of David (Isaiah 11). In Isaiah 11, we also hear that he will “give justice to the poor and make fair decisions for the exploited” and that “the earth will shake at the force of his word, and one breath from his mouth will destroy the wicked.” That last part is pretty intense.
Throughout Isaiah, there’s a lot about God’s justice. Later in Isaiah 42, we hear that “the LORD will march forth like a mighty hero” and “shout his battle cry and crush all his enemies.” With this type of imagery all around, it’s no surprise that the first-century Jews, from the common people to the most learned scholars, believed that the Messiah would be a military leader who overthrew Caesar or another oppressive king. That the Messiah’s eternal reign of justice and peace, where the lion lies down with the lamb, would have to be preceded by violence. And indeed, the revolution that formed the United States was a violent one, as have been most of the revolutions in history. In this world, the reign of an oppressive king ends only through violence or death.
But instead of overthrowing Caesar, Jesus was executed by the means of Caesar’s empire.
Luke 24 tells us that on the road to Emmaus, Jesus appeared to two disciples leaving Jerusalem after his crucifixion. “We had hoped,” they said, “that he was the Messiah who had come to rescue Israel.” Had hoped—because the Messiah was supposed to kill Caesar, not the other way around, and a dead Messiah is no Messiah at all. But Jesus answered them, “You foolish people! You find it so hard to believe all that the prophets wrote in the Scriptures. Wasn’t it clearly predicted that the Messiah would have to suffer all these things before entering his glory?”
One of the clearest places we see that prediction is in Isaiah 53, where the prophet says of God’s servant: “He was pierced for our rebellion, crushed for our sins. He was beaten so we could be whole. He was whipped so we could be healed.” The chapter goes on to predict Jesus’s death and resurrection, outright saying that the servant will be laid in a grave and then live again. But to be fair, there are a lot of metaphors and symbols in prophecy. We can understand that this chapter is to be taken literally in hindsight, with the context of Jesus’s life and death and resurrection. That’s the only way we can understand it.
Returning now to Isaiah 42, we hear the call to look at God’s servant, the Messiah, Jesus Christ. So let’s look. The word Christian means “little Christ,” so we are meant to be God’s servants too, following after Jesus’s example.
The first thing that’s said about him in this passage is that God strengthens him. If even Jesus, who is God himself, needs to be strengthened, then certainly so do we. Furthermore we hear that God has put his Spirit on Jesus. We know from Acts that God poured out the Spirit on all those who believed in the name of Jesus, and that’s the most obvious sign they have that being a Christian is for the Gentiles too—that the Spirit is poured out on us as well. So we need to ask for the Spirit. One of the worship songs I’ve been loving recently has a bridge that goes like this: “Spirit of God, fall fresh on us. We need your presence. Your kingdom come, Your will be done, here as in heaven.”
Isaiah tells us that the kingdom of heaven is a place of justice and peace. Three times in the passage from Isaiah 42 we hear about justice: that the Messiah will bring justice to the nations, justice to all who have been wronged, and that he will not falter or lose heart until justice prevails throughout the earth. So we too, being servants of God, must not falter or lose heart until justice prevails throughout the earth. That means we need to hold onto hope in Jesus and in the goodness of the gospel, rather than giving into despair and political infighting and hatred. It also means we need to do everything we can to act justly and to help those who have been wronged, taking up the cause of the poor, the sick, and the suffering.
And God’s servant will not crush the weakest reed or put out a flickering candle. He will not shout or raise his voice in public. We too must be gentle with both our own weaknesses and our neighbors’ weaknesses. For those of us in positions of power, we must hold that power lightly so we don’t crush the weakest reed without noticing. We must nurture the person whose fire is flickering rather than giving up on them. God loves each of us even in our weaknesses and failures, and we too should treat people with that love even when it’s difficult and frustrating.
The chosen one of God was not who the greatest scholars of the prophets expected Him to be. And sometimes, even with two thousand years of hindsight, we don’t see Jesus as He is either. So we must answer God’s call to look at His servant. And by looking at Jesus, by doing what He does, we can become servants of God who others can look at and see the reflection of their Savior. Only then can Jesus’s name be the hope of all the world.
Ashley Palmer (a LA Tech graduate of Computer Science and English) is a huge blessing to our ministry. As she continues to live in Ruston, she works as a remote Software Developer for Praeses, LLC in Shreveport. She is also a fantasy novelist currently editing her first novel: Among the Skies. In addition to writing, Ashley enjoys making attractive websites and apps, digital art, reading, and good food. She is kind, knowledgeable, and devoted to her relationship with the Lord. She is also a member of our ACF Discipleship Team. We love her and are thankful to have her in our community!