All of us, like sheep, have strayed away. We have left God's paths to follow our own. Yet the Lord laid on him the sins of us all. Isaiah 53:6
Many of us have unintentionally created a hierarchy of sins. We often put sins into categories and rank them from "not-so-bad to "truly terrible" and everywhere in between. This is not how God looks at sin, however. You see, God is heartbroken by every sin, even the seemingly little white lie because all sin separates us from Him. All sin is costly because it requires the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross in order to rescue humanity from sin.
We read throughout Scripture that humanity has had a sin problem since the beginning of time. This begins in Genesis, the very first book of the Bible. In the third chapter, Adam and Eve, the first people ever created, directly disobeyed God and invited sin into the world. They were tempted by Satan, who came to them as a serpent, to eat from a tree that God specifically directed them not to eat from. As a result, God declared punishment for Adam, Eve, and the serpent. As God talked to the serpent, He said, "Because you have done this, you are cursed more than all animals, domestic and wild. You will crawl on your belly, groveling in the dust as long as you live. And I will cause hostility between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring. He will strike your head, and you will strike his heel." In other words, there was going to be tension on this earth where humans would struggle with sin. Make no mistake, my friend, sin is costly.
Sin is so costly that God ultimately sent Jesus, His only Son, as a sacrifice to rescue us and pay the price. As soon as sin entered the world, God promised a Savior who would come. We read about the promise of this coming Messiah, Jesus, who would rescue His people from sin in Isaiah 53. In this chapter, Isaiah talks about the fact that although humanity battled, and still battles, with sin, a Savior was coming. Here is what he wrote, "All of us, like sheep, have strayed away. We have left God's paths to follow our own. Yet the Lord laid on Him the sins of us all" (verse 6). Jesus paid the ultimate, most costly price for our sins. He gave up His own life for us.
Our sin is great. Our Savior, however, is infinitely greater than any power that sin may have. May we never underestimate the price He made on the cross for our sins. Praise God for the gift of Jesus!
Pray a prayer of thanksgiving to God. Thank Him for Jesus' sacrifice on the cross. Acknowledge the price that Jesus paid for sin and confess the times that you did not take sin seriously. Commit to taking all sin seriously and commit to challenging others to take sin seriously as well.
Isaiah 53:1-12.
1Who has believed our message? To whom has the Lord revealed his powerful arm?2 My servant grew up in the Lord’s presence like a tender green shoot, like a root in dry ground.There was nothing beautiful or majestic about his appearance, nothing to attract us to him.3 He was despised and rejected— a man of sorrows, acquainted with deepest grief.We turned our backs on him and looked the other way. He was despised, and we did not care.
4 Yet it was our weaknesses he carried; it was our sorrows[a] that weighed him down.And we thought his troubles were a punishment from God, a punishment for his own sins!5 But 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.6 All of us, like sheep, have strayed away. We have left God’s paths to follow our own.Yet the Lord laid on him the sins of us all.
7 He was oppressed and treated harshly, yet he never said a word.He was led like a lamb to the slaughter. And as a sheep is silent before the shearers, he did not open his mouth.8 Unjustly condemned, he was led away.[b]No one cared that he died without descendants, that his life was cut short in midstream.[c]But he was struck down for the rebellion of my people.9 He had done no wrong and had never deceived anyone.But he was buried like a criminal; he was put in a rich man’s grave.
10 But it was the Lord’s good plan to crush him and cause him grief.Yet when his life is made an offering for sin, he will have many descendants.He will enjoy a long life, and the Lord’s good plan will prosper in his hands.11 When he sees all that is accomplished by his anguish, he will be satisfied.And because of his experience, my righteous servant will make it possiblefor many to be counted righteous, for he will bear all their sins.12 I will give him the honors of a victorious soldier, because he exposed himself to death.He was counted among the rebels. He bore the sins of many and interceded for rebels.
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