Satisfaction

TO READ: Isaiah 53:1-12

When he sees all that is accomplished by his anguish, he will be satisfied. And because of his experience, my righteous servant will make it possible for many to be counted righteous, for he will bear all their sins.

Isaiah 53:11

The scriptures tell us that Jesus found satisfaction after his sufferings. For some of us it will be the same. Death, which has been described as the last step of faith, will see us through the door to daylight’s delight. Satisfaction, as the world understands it, may never come to some of us in this life. But one day after it is over, we will be met with the Savior’s “Well done,” and we will be satisfied.

What is satisfaction? Hollywood insists that it includes “beauty” and must be pursued by all means and to all ends. We are asked to believe that to be truly satisfied with ourselves we must be truly beautiful. Yet in Isaiah 53, we read about Jesus: “There was nothing beautiful or majestic about his appearance, nothing to attract us to him” (Isaiah 53:2). Apparently, in God’s value system, appearance is not all that important! It’s what people do because of who they are that matters in the highest place, not how they dress it up or paint it on. Jesus, contrary to popular opinion in his day, was a divine success and gained satisfaction from knowing that “the LORD’s plan will prosper in his hands” (Isaiah 53:10).

The one who concentrates on pleasing him before death discovers that after the crushing and the cross there will be the crown! So be it.