Surely he has borne our griefs
and carried our sorrows;
yet we esteemed him stricken,
smitten by God, and afflicted.
But he was pierced for our transgressions;
he was crushed for our iniquities;
upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,
and with his wounds we are healed.
All we like sheep have gone astray;
we have turned—every one—to his own way;
and the LORD has laid on him
the iniquity of us all.

Isaiah 43:4-6

Isaiah’s prophecy of the circumstances and meaning of the crucifixion of Jesus stands apart from other passages. In these verses we read some of the details we read in the Gospels. We know he was pierced with nails and with the spear after His death, but without the meaning of what happened, we are just as lost as before.

“He was pierced for our transgressions.” “He was crushed for our inquiries.” “We have turned—every one—to his own way;” And so the “LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.”

One of the biggest challenges today is convincing people in our world that each one of us is in need of a Savior. Part of that reason, I think, is that the message of the Gospel in many parts of the modern west is one that is afraid of offending the larger culture of our day and so people are left wondering why there is a need for a Savior? Some say, they are fine just the way they are because compared to others their life is on the plus side of the ledger with their goodness outweighing the bad.

I am reminded of the lyrics from the hymn, “Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing”

Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it,
prone to leave the God I love;
here’s my heart; O take and seal it;
seal it for thy courts above.

I identify with those lyrics, how about you? Left to our own devices, we are prone to wander and go our own way. How grateful we should be for what Christ has done for us.