Brothers,
We profess as Christians that we are made in the image and likeness of God. That is not a metaphor or a comforting idea—it is a truth that shapes who we are and what we are called to become.
When we read Isaiah 52 and 53, we encounter the Servant of the Lord, and as Christians we cannot help but see Jesus Christ. Yet this passage does more than foretell His death and resurrection. It reveals the very heart of God, and in doing so, it reveals what the image and likeness of God truly looks like when lived in the world.
Isaiah begins with the end already in view:
“Behold, my servant shall prosper;
he shall be exalted and lifted up,
and shall be very high.” (Isaiah 52:13)
What follows is not a story of power as the world understands it, but of humiliation freely embraced:
“His appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance” (52:14)
And yet this humiliation is not meaningless:
“So shall he sprinkle many nations;
kings shall shut their mouths because of him.” (52:15)
From the start, God tells us that suffering is not failure, and humility is not defeat. The Servant’s path is deliberate, purposeful, and redemptive.
Isaiah then names a truth we still struggle to accept:
“He had no form or majesty that we should look at him…
he was despised and rejected by men.” (53:2–3)
God comes without spectacle. He does not overwhelm us with force. He reveals Himself in humility, and that humility becomes the dividing line between belief and rejection.
Isaiah makes the meaning of the suffering unmistakably clear:
“Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows” (53:4)
“He was pierced for our transgressions…
and by his wounds we are healed.” (53:5)
“The Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.” (53:6)
This is not accidental suffering. It is love that chooses to bear the weight of others.
The Servant does not resist:
“He was oppressed, and he was afflicted,
yet he opened not his mouth.” (53:7)
And Isaiah is explicit about His innocence:
“Although he had done no violence,
and there was no deceit in his mouth.” (53:9)
Here the early Church saw the clearest window into the mystery of Christ.
Justin Martyr wrote to his Jewish interlocutors:
“If you read attentively, you will see that this passage refers to Christ, who suffered, was crucified, and rose again.” (Dialogue with Trypho)
Irenaeus went further, explaining why this mattered for us:
“The Son of God became the Son of Man, so that man might become the son of God.” (Against Heresies)
Isaiah does not end with death. He reveals God’s purpose plainly:
“It was the will of the Lord to crush him…
when his soul makes an offering for guilt,
he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days.” (53:10)
Death is not the last word. Obedience leads to life. Humility leads to exaltation.
And then comes a line that changes everything for us:
“By his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant,
make many to be accounted righteous.” (53:11)
Athanasius understood what this meant:
“He became man that we might become god.” (On the Incarnation)
Not that we become God by nature—but that we are filled with God’s life by the Spirit.
Israel was called to obedience, yet obedience alone was not enough. Forgiveness came again and again, but the heart remained fragile. Israel grew smaller, surrounded by nations whose gods saw humanity as expendable—gods who were immoral, self-centered, and violent. Those gods were made in the image and likenss of Satan and were filled with Satans spirit. Which meant that Men were considered weak and worthless. Created to serve the Gods.
But the true God did something different. He was forming a people capable not merely of obeying Him, but of bearing His image from the inside out. He created Man in His image and likeness and than sent the Spirit fo God to dwell in us so that we could be the sons and daughters of God, not worthless but priceless. To show how valuable He sent Jesus to humiliate Himself so we could understand that just like Jesus, we could rise again. We were redeemed, the price was paid, the sacrifice made, the adoption bound and the Spirit was given.
Jesus revealed God unmistakably—obedient to the Father, humble unto death. And when that revelation was complete, He gave us the Spirit of God, so that we would not imitate Him from a distance, but participate in His life.
This is why Isaiah 53 does not stop with Jesus alone.
If we are filled with the Spirit of Christ, then the Servant Song begins to describe our calling as well.
Augustine saw this clearly:
“Christ suffered for us, leaving us an example, that we might follow in His steps.” (Tractates on John)
To be made in the image and likeness of Jesus means:
- To forgive when it costs us
- To love in the midst of suffering
- To remain obedient when obedience is painful
- To care for others even in our own agony
At the Cross, Jesus forgives the thief.
At the Cross, He entrusts His mother to John. Even in his agony He was looking outward not inward.
At the Cross, He loves to the very end.
That is what divine love looks like in human flesh.
I recently heard the story of a priest who had been abused for years as a young man ( Fr Dan Reehill). He walked away from faith, built a life of success and wealth, yet carried unbearable pain. When he encountered God, everything changed. He left his old life, became a priest, and was eventually sent to minister to prisoners—many of whom carried the same wounds he did.
When asked if he would change his past, knowing how many lives God healed through his witness, he said no.
Not because suffering is good.
But because God does not waste suffering when it is offered in love. Becasue God took the pain of his suffering away, but left him with the joy of being part of the salvation story of hundreds of others. Jesus says look at my hands and feet, look at those nail holes, you were worth it.
That is Isaiah 53 lived out.
Brothers, to be sons of God is to walk the path of the Servant:
- When the Servant bears His back to be struck, we are called to bear ours
- When a crown of thorns is placed on His head, it is placed on ours
- And when Christ rises from the dead, so can we—into new life, even now
Isaiah 52 and 53 are meant to lead us into a deeper understanding of who God is, precisely because we are created in His image.
The more fully we accept that truth:
- God becomes closer
- We become holier
- Not because we fear Him
- But because we love our Father
That acceptance, taken seriously, cannot help but change our lives.
With love and gratitude,
The musings of Peter 