121. Carry Griefs and Sorrows
Isaiah 53:4 Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.
Jesus Christ, the Messiah has borne our griefs on Himself, and He has carried our sorrows to the cross. The cause of grief and sorrow is sin, sin in the world and sin in our own flesh. Adam’s sin and disobedience brought about the Fall and the Curse, and every descendant thereafter suffers grief and sorrow as a result. No one escapes the curse, but Jesus became a curse for us, by taking our sins to the cross and dying the penalty for them, thereby lifting the curse from us.
To all appearances, however, it looks to us humans like Jesus of Nazareth suffered the just punishment of God for his own sin. So we thought of Him as being smitten by God. Indeed, Jesus was stricken and smitten by the hand of God; the distinction, however, was that He was smitten for our sins. Our sins were laid upon Jesus; He bore them in His own body to the cross and died for them. Why was His suffering so terrible? It was because Jesus, the Son, was separated from the Father (death is separation). This would seem to be impossible, but it is possible with God and it is true. He did it; He died; He could take on our sin and guilt and remove the curse.
“What a friend we have in Jesus, All our sins and griefs to bear! What a privilege to carry Ev’rything to God in prayer!….Carry ev’rything to God in prayer!” Because Christ carried our griefs we may carry them to Jesus. This is how it works out in real life in our present sorrow. The Hymn asks: “Why would we forfeit peace and bear needless pain?” There are several answers: 1) we do not believe it; 2) we do not want it; 3) we are neglectful 4) we are forgetful. The latter is probably the most usual reason. The answer is simple: reminders! For this reason we read the Bible, go to church, hear the Gospel, and spend time in prayer. We may apply the truth and comfort of this promise to ourselves by faith at any time.