"Behold! My Servant whom I have chosen, My Beloved in whom My soul is well pleased! I will put My Spirit upon Him, and He will declare justice to the Gentiles. He will not quarrel nor cry out, nor will anyone hear His voice in the streets. A bruised reed He will not break, and smoking flax He will not quench, till He sends forth justice to victory; and in His name Gentiles will trust."
Those words, originally found in Isaiah 42, were spoken by God the Father in reference to the Messiah--the one and only Jesus! Some have called these verses a "photograph" of the Lord. He would fulfill all of these qualities and noble characteristics. Those who would truly "see Jesus" will find Him to be:
1. THE OBEDIENT ONE - "Behold! My Servant."
Jesus' ministry was characterized by His obedience to His Father in heaven. "I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me" (John 5:30). "But that the world may know that I love the Father, and as the Father gave Me commandment, so I do" (John 14:31). "Though He was a Son, yet He learned obedience by the things which He suffered" (Heb. 5:8). Ultimately, Jesus "obeyed to the point of death, even the death of the cross" (Phil. 2:8).
2. THE CHOSEN ONE - "My Servant whom I have chosen."
Jesus was chosen from before the foundation of the world to fulfill the plan of redemption (cf. Rev. 13:8). And He did accomplish such flawlessly (cf. Heb. 4:15).
3. THE BELOVED ONE - "My Beloved in whom My soul is well pleased!"
Jesus delighted the Father because of His willingness to humble Himself, obey, and give His own life. The Father confessed His love at least a couple times. At His baptism, the Father declared - "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased" (Matt. 3:17). At His transfiguration, the Father again spoke from heaven - "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear Him!" (Matt. 17:5).
4. THE ANOINTED ONE - "I will put My Spirit upon Him."
Jesus was anointed with the Spirit at His baptism in the Jordan River. "When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him" (Matt. 3:16). "And John bore witness, saying, 'I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and He remained upon Him'" (John 1:32). This seems to be when God the Father "set His seal on Him" (John 6:27).
5. THE JUST ONE - "And He will declare justice to the Gentiles."
Jesus, although His focus was upon "the lost sheep of the house of Israel" (Matt. 10:6), came with the intent to "seek and save the lost" (Luke 19:10)--no matter what their gender, social standing, race, or educational level (cf. Gal. 3:28; John 10:16). Jesus' kingdom, the church, would take the gospel to all the world and preach to every nation of people under heaven (cf. Matt. 28:19,20). Those of Jewish descent would no longer be God's favored ones merely because of their physical ancestry (cf. Rom. 2:28,29). The gospel--with its message of hope, grace, and justice--would be declared to the Gentiles.
6. THE LOWLY ONE - "He will not quarrel nor cry out."
Although there are some recorded activities of Jesus that show Him to be righteously indignant (e.g., John 2:13ff), He was not sensationalistic. He was not loud or overbearing. He did not hunt down His detractors to engage in verbal battles with them. Jesus was "gentle and lowly in heart" (Matt. 11:29). He was full of humility.
7. THE SYMPATHETIC ONE - "A bruised reed He will not break, and smoking flax He will not quench."
Our Lord was also known for His kindness, compassion, and tenderness (e.g., John 11:32ff and His many other miraculous works). Although He would do what was right and proper to encourage those with a good heart and love for the truth, He would nevertheless come down very hard on the self-absorbed hypocrites (e.g., Matt. 23).
8. THE CONQUERING ONE - "Till He sends forth justice to victory."
Ultimately, Christ and all His faithful followers will be victorious (cf. I Cor. 15:25-28). Those who endure to the end will receive the crown of life (cf. Rev. 2:10).
9. THE TRUSTWORTHY ONE - "And in His name Gentiles will trust."
The Father trusted Jesus and so should everyone else. He is faithful and always keeps His word. The wise, whether they are Jew or Gentile, will follow Him and trust His promises.
Jesus is amazing! Are you following Him and imitating His noble behavior? "Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved" (Acts 4:12).