December 28th

The Lion of Judah

Isaiah 53:3 He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.

The Suffering Servant

Isaiah chapter 53 is a prophetic depiction of an event that would take place hundreds of years after the prophet Isaiah spoke it. And that event was the crucifixion of Christ at Calvary.

It illustrates the sufferings of Christ, as He played out His role as the Lamb of God Who takes away the sins of the world. Some refer to it as the account of the suffering servant. And from our perspective, that is what it was. He was despised and rejected, and we esteemed Him not.

Defeating the Enemy

But, from a spiritual perspective, there was much more taking place. Unbeknownst to the devil and his evil spirits, Jesus was defeating principalities and powers, and making an open show of them.

1 Corinthians 2:8 which none of the rulers of this age knew; for had they known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.

No One Takes it From Me

It is true that Jesus suffered at Calvary, but He was not overwhelmed by wicked men, as the account seems to indicate. No, Jesus went to the cross voluntarily, with purpose and resolve. He did it out of obedience, not compulsion.

John 10:18 No one takes it [My life] from Me, but I lay it down of Myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This command I have received from My Father.

In Control

Calvary was a voluntary act that the Lord Jesus submitted to, in obedience to the Father. He was not forced to do it. In fact, He was in control at all times, as indicated by His words to Peter in the garden of Gethsemane.

Matthew 26:53 Or do you think that I cannot now pray to My Father, and He will provide Me with more than twelve legions of angels?

The Lion

The truth is that Jesus was not only playing the role of the Lamb of God, He was also playing another role, the role that heaven saw Him performing, and that was the role of the Lion of the Tribe of Judah.

Revelation 5:5 And one of the elders saith unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Juda, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof.
Revelation 5:6 And I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been slain . . .

The elder in heaven told John that the Lion of the tribe of Judah had prevailed, but when he turned to look, He saw a Lamb, as though it had just been slain.

The Heavenly Reality

Heaven saw the reality of Calvary. We saw the suffering servant seemingly overcome by wicked men, as the devil made his best effort to destroy the Son of God. But from heaven, they saw the Lion of the Tribe of Judah, roaring in battle and conquest. And that Lion, in the process, overcame every enemy, and took back the authority that Satan had taken from Adam, defeating the devil’s power over men’s lives.

Take time today to give Him thanks for His awesome victory of Calvary, the victory that He won with purpose and determination, when He submitted not only to the role of the Lamb of God slain from the foundation of the world, but also to the role of the Lion of the tribe of Judah, Who roared in awesome conquest and victory over our enemies forever.