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Prediction
of Suffering
If
Jesus did not come to be crucified, why then did Isaiah predict his
suffering?
Who
has believed what we have heard? And to whom has the arm of the Lord
been
revealed? . . . He was
despised and rejected by men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted
with grief; . . .
Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we
esteemed
him
stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. (53:1-4)
We
must understand that the purpose of God is fully accomplished only
when men
cooperate
with Him. Therefore, if man does not wholeheartedly obey Him, God's
will
cannot
be fulfilled.
God's
will is not automatically fulfilled by the coming of the Messiah. His
purpose can be
accomplished
or delayed, depending upon the attitude of the people to whom the
Messiah
is
sent. If the Jews unequivocally received the Messiah, God's will could
be fulfilled and
His
kingdom established on earth. On the other hand, if the people
rejected the Messiah
in
disbelief, Jesus could only suffer at their hands.
God
foresaw these two possible responses to the Messiah. The prophecy of
the Lord of
glory
recorded in Isaiah 9 and 60 would have been fulfilled if the Jews had
responded to
the
Messiah wholeheartedly. God desired the fulfillment of this prophecy.
The prediction
of
the suffering servant recorded in Isaiah 53 was one which God never
wanted to see
fulfilled.
He gave this prediction only to warn the Jews not to despise him, in
which case
he
would have to suffer.
Jesus'
parable clearly shows that he did not come to die:
There
was a householder who planted a vineyard, and set a hedge around it,
and dug a
wine press in it, and
built a tower, and let it out to tenants, and went into another
country.
When
the season of fruit drew near, he sent his servants to the tenants, to
get his fruit; and
the tenants took his
servants and beat one, killed another, and stoned another. Again he
sent other servants,
more than the first; and they did the same to them. Afterward he sent
his son to them,
saying, "They will respect my son." But when the tenants saw
the son,
they said to
themselves, "This is the heir; come, let us kill him and have his
inheritance."
And
they took him and cast him out of the vineyard, and killed him. When
therefore the
owner of the vineyard
comes, what will he do to those tenants? They said to him, "He
will put those
wretches to a miserable death, and let out the vineyard to other
tenants who
will give him the
fruits in their season." . . . Therefore I tell you, the kingdom
of God will
be
taken away from you and given to a nation producing the fruits of it.
(Matt. 21: 33-43)
In
this parable the householder is God. The son He sent is Jesus. God
expected the Jews -
-
the tenants in the parable -- to receive His son with respect and
love. Killing him was an
outrageous
transgression. Jesus' death certainly was not predetermined! If Jesus
had not
been
crucified, he would have fulfilled his mission and restored man in
both spirit and
body.
Despite God's preparation and warning, the Jews frustrated His primary
intent.
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The
Cross: A Secondary Choice
Since
Jesus could not establish the physical kingdom, the realization of
God's will was
delayed.
Since the fall of man, the heart of God has been filled with grief.
Jesus came to
relieve
the divine sorrow, thus comforting the Father. Unable to succeed
completely in
this
mission, Jesus must have been sorrowful.
The
patriarchs and prophets of the Old Testament Age had laid the
foundation for the
Messiah.
These forefathers in the spirit world were eager to see the
completion of the
works
they had started and the glorious fulfillment of God's will.
Israel
had undergone repeated trials and had suffered long in preparation
for the Messiah.
By
rejecting him, she lost God's blessing and her long suffering became
meaningless.
Jesus,
who deeply loved his people, felt heartbroken at their bleak
destiny.
He
foresaw that his followers would suffer as he had suffered. Their
suffering must
continue
until the Lord comes again. Furthermore, since the establishment of
God's
kingdom
was postponed, humanity's suffering in this Satanic world must also
continue.
Filled
with thoughts of these things, Jesus must have felt desperate
anguish.
And
taking with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, he began to be
sorrowful and
troubled. Then he
said to them, "My soul is very sorrowful, even to death; remain
here,
and watch with
me." And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed,
"My Father,
if it be possible,
let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as thou
wilt."
(Matt.
26:37-39)
If
the crucifixion were God's predetermined course of saving mankind,
why was Jesus so
sorrowful
in accepting it? Why did he pray that the cup of suffering pass from
him?
Numerous
martyrs courageously persevered through severe suffering, praising
God.
Could
Jesus, the Savior of mankind, have less faith than others when he
prayed to have
the
cup taken from him? Certainly not. He desperately prayed, even three
times, because
he
knew his death on the cross was not God's will. In his agony he
sought some possible
way
to fulfill the divine mandate.
If
Jesus' crucifixion had been God's predetermined plan, the role of
Judas Iscariot, who
betrayed
Jesus, should have been vital in God's sight. If Judas' action had
helped to
accomplish
God's will, why did he hang himself afterwards? The action of Judas
was
rebellious,
and Jesus clearly displayed his anger at Judas' treachery:
But
woe to that man by whom the Son of man is betrayed. It would have
been better for
that
man if he had not been born. (Matt. 26:24)
It
is now clear that the crucifixion was imposed by man; that it was
intended neither by
God
nor by Jesus. Even St. Paul didn't recognize the Messiah and vowed
to persecute this
new
religious sect, but he was dramatically arrested in his path.
Now
as he journeyed he approached Damascus, and suddenly a light from
heaven flashed
about him. And he
fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, "Saul,
Saul, why
do you persecute
me?" And he said, "Who are you, Lord?" And he said,
"I am Jesus,
whom
you are persecuting." (Acts 9:3-5)
How
shocked and grieved Paul must have been when he discovered the
truth! The
Messiah,
for whose coming Paul had prayed daily, had been crucified. Although
Paul had
lived
at the same time and in the same region as Jesus, he had missed the
precious
opportunity
of serving him directly. Having discovered the truth and realizing
what he
had
done against the Messiah, Paul cried out in self-denunciation and
declared himself
the
chief sinner. Paul expressed his deep regret at the blindness of the
people, which he
had
shared:
None
of the rulers of this age understood this; for if they had, they
would not have
crucified
the Lord of glory. (I Cor. 2:8)
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