Reflection: The Perfect Servant

A reflection of Matthew 12:15-21, passage titled "God's Chosen Servant".

Matthew made it a point to capture Jesus' withdrawal from the Pharisees, his healing of the people, and his ordering them to keep his identity secret. Why was this so? Well, what follows is an explicit reference made to the prophecy of Isaiah in Isaiah 42:1-3. There, comparisons were made to Jesus' gentle nature, his zeal for justice, his mercy for people, his meek and lowly spirit, the significance of his name to the people.

Essentially, this was what Matthew was saying:

Look no further. God's chosen servant, the Messiah, the one who will liberate us and bring justice to victory is here. Jesus is the one!

Matthew was fully aware that the Jews were still looking around for their Messiah. Surely they'd pay heed to the words of their prophet, Isaiah. And while Jesus fulfills numerous other prophecies throughout the Old Testament, in this particular one, a few key points were made known.

1. Jesus is a servant, chosen by God Himself.

What an honour! That Jesus was chosen by God personally to be His servant. However, one will quickly realize how this honour comes with unbearable burden, as we learn that Jesus, while chosen to proclaim justice upon the world, has also been chosen to bear the brunt of injustice of the world. 

There is no other more worthy to proclaim justice than the one who is just. There is no other judge more qualified to judge than the one who was judged and deemed perfect. Jesus was all of them. And what a scandal it is, that the one who is all of these things should come before us to serve us! (Mark 10:45) 

2. Jesus is gentle, he lifts us up.

Matthew describes the character of Jesus through the prophet's words. Jesus takes the route of the meek and gentle. He withdraws himself from the Pharisees to avoid angering them further. Even as he left, he continued all that he sought to do: he healed the people who followed him. He restores them in justice, yet ordering them to keep him from being known. When others were conspiring to destroy him, Jesus was conspiring to save others.

Far from breaking a bruised reed, Jesus will strengthen it. 

Far from quenching a smoldering wick, Jesus will ignite its flames.

Matthew makes his point fully clear here: Jesus, being the servant that he is, seeks to restore people and lift them up. That is the justice he has come to proclaim. Let the one who doubts come before Jesus and behold, that indeed his spirit is one that is gentle and lowly, and brings rest to any weary soul.

3. Jesus is the name that brings hope.

Interestingly, verse 21 is not an explicit reference from the Isaiah passage. "And in his name the Gentiles will hope" cannot be directly lifted from Isaiah 42. However, if one reads the entirety of the chapter, the message becomes clear:

Jesus is the hope that God pronounces upon His people.

Without going into any analysis of Isaiah 42, I'd like to contemplate the implications of this point. Taking the above as a statement of truth, what then, is an appropriate response from us? Matthew says that Jesus is the name that we shall all hope in: what does that mean?

I'd like to borrow a thought here:

"Unfathomable oceans of grace are in Christ for you. Dive and dive again, you will never come to the bottom of these depths. How many millions of dazzling pearls and gems are at this moment hid in the deep recesses of the ocean caves! But there are unsearchable riches in Christ. Seek more of them. The Lord enrich you with them. I have always thought it a very pitiful show when great people ornament themselves with brilliants and diamonds; but it is truest wisdom to adorn the soul with Christ and His graces."

- Robert M'Cheyne

How true, then, if Christ is the name that we hope in, that we give all we have to pursue him and all that he has in store for us. He who gives up all he has for that which he cannot lose is no fool. Let us seek Christ, his wisdom, his grace, his mercy, and his ways. Till eternity comes upon us.

Here's my heart, oh, take and seal it. 

Seal it for Thy courts above.

Sola Deo Gloria,

Matt