Isaiah 53:1--6

TEXT Who has believed? Today we read the 2nd part of a poem that spans Isaiah 52:13-53:12. We marvel at the parallels in Isaiah 53 and the Passion story. Moved by the time and distance between the book of Isaiah and the Gospels, we contemplate our Savior's suffering. But today, 53:1 arrests my attention. Peterson's puts it like this: Who would have thought God's saving power would look like this? Ask a non-believer what they think about the core story of Easter. Ask someone who isn't a big church goer, what they think about when they hear Christians talking about Jesus's back ripped apart by leather straps and shards of pottery, his nail pierced hands and his spear pierced side. If just the thought of having that conversation disquiets you, then you start to understand Paul's thoughts in 1 Cor. 1:18-25. The cross is a stumbling block to the Jews and foolishness to the Gentiles. How will we take up the cross as a thing we can't leave behind?