The tune is Moxon 757. When on my beloved I gaze, So dazzling his beauties appear, His charms so transcendently blaze, The sight is too melting to bear. When from my own vileness I turn, To Jesus exposed on the tree, And with wonder I burn to think what he suffered for me.

Let us read together from the Holy Word of God in the prophecy of Isaiah and chapter 53. We'll commence our reading at the 13th verse in chapter 52. Isaiah 52 verse 13, reading to the end of chapter 53.

Behold, my servant shall deal prudently. He shall be exalted and extolled and be very high, as many were astoned at thee. His visage was so marred more than any man, and his form more than the sons of men. So shall he sprinkle many nations. The kings shall shut their mouths at him, for that which had not been told them, shall they see? And that which they had not heard, shall they consider?

Who hath believed our report, and to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed? For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground. He hath no form nor comeliness. And when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him. 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.

Surely he had borne our griefs and carried our sorrows, yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God and afflicted. but he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities. The chastisement of our peace was upon him and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray, we have turned everyone to his own way and the Lord had laid on him the iniquity of us all.

He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth. He is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is done, so he openeth not his mouth. He was taken from prison and from judgment, and who shall declare his generation? For he was cut off out of the land of the living. For the transgression of my people was he stricken, but he made his grave with the wicked and with the rich in his death, because he had done no violence, neither any deceit in his mouth.

Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him. He hath put him to grief. When thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days. and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand. He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied. By his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many, for he shall bear their iniquities. Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoiled with the strong. because he hath poured out his soul unto death, and he was numbered with the transgressors, and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.

May the Lord bless the reading of his own precious word and grant unto us a spirit of real prayer. Almighty, most merciful, and eternal God of heaven. We pray for grace to bow before thee. We pray for grace to confess our sins and our wanderings and our backslidings and our unworthiness of the least of thy tender mercies. But we come to thee in that wonderful name of Jesus Christ. We pray that we may be favoured this afternoon to feel what we've read together.

He was wounded for our transgressions and bruised for our iniquities and the chastisement of our peace was upon him and with his stripes we are healed. May we see your lovely man. May we worship at Emmanuel's feet. and may the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God our Father and the sacred fellowship of the Holy Spirit rest and abide upon us.

O thou blessed, holy, divine Spirit of truth, we do pray for thy heavenly power. We pray to be led and guided and directed by thee and that the word may be a living word that shall be applied into our hearts by thy heavenly power. May there be some poor soul here this afternoon that the word of the Lord shall enter for the first time into their heart. Do hear us, Lord.

Thou hast said in thy word, blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection. On such the second death hath no power. Oh, we do thank thee, most gracious God, for Jesus, the way, the truth, and the life. We do thank thee for all thy tender mercies, thy loving kindnesses. We thank thee for free grace.

Oh, most gracious Lord, we pray that thou wouldst fill our hearts with grateful praises unto thee, Our Triune Jehovah, we do thank Thee for the eternal love of our Heavenly Father, who laid upon His Son the iniquities of us all. We do thank Thee for Jesus Christ, who took our sins and now add them to His cross. And we do thank Thee for the Holy Ghost, who proceedeth forth from the Father and the Son, and pray that thou wouldst quicken souls and make them cry, give me Christ or else I die.

We pray, most blessed Spirit, that thou wouldst bring those that are in darkness into light and those that are in bondage into liberty and those that are far off, make them nigh. We do humbly beseech thee, make us more spiritually minded, set our affections on things above, Draw my soul to Thee, my Lord, let me love Thy precious Word, and may Thy Word be a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path.

We do humbly beseech Thee, guide us, O Thou great Jehovah. We're pilgrims in a barren land, we are weak, but Thou, Almighty, hold us with Thy powerful hand. We do humbly beseech Thee, For Lord, without Thee we can do nothing, we are nothing and we have nothing.

Lord, we pray for those in affliction among us, that Thou wouldst be with them at home and grant restoring mercy and above all grant renewing grace. We do humbly pray Thee. And now is the case of each one, the needs of each one, the concerns of each one, and we pray that thou wouldst be gracious and that thou wouldst be Jehovah Rophi, I am the Lord that healeth thee. We pray most gracious Lord that thou wouldst hear prayer for the little ones and the children, each one of them, that the word of the Lord may reach into their hearts that the fear of the Lord, which is the beginning of wisdom, may be given unto them. And we pray for the young friends, each one of them, that they may be blessed of thee, taught of thee, guided by thee, or do hear us in heaven, thy holy and thy blessed dwelling place.

And remember the young and rising generation Instead of thy fathers shall be thy children, whom thou mayest make princes in all the earth. We pray, Lord, that it may be so.

We pray for the prodigals that have wandered away, that thou wouldst stretch out thy almighty arm, that thou wouldst cause them to be in wonder, cause them to return, and to come and tell to sinners round what a dear Saviour they have found, and point to thy redeeming blood. and say, behold the way to God.

Be with our young friends in all their concerns and all those things that burden them and that exercise their hearts. Lord, remember those that would seek a partner in life's journey and graciously hear prayer for them. And thou art that great God that did bring a Rebecca to Isaac and of Ruth to Boaz, and they are able to do abundantly more than we can even ask or think. We lovingly commend each one to thee and pray that thou wouldst hear prayer.

Lord, we pray that the glory and light of the gospel may shine among us, and may it shine in our lives, in our walk, in our conduct, in our conversation. Oh, do hear us, Lord, we humbly beseech thee and grant that we may be as lights in the world, that we may do good unto all men, especially unto the household of faith.

Lord, we pray for thy servant, Roland Wheatley, and his dear one in hospital. We commend her to thee and to the word of thy grace. Pray for thy healing hand, thy restoring mercy, and that thou wouldst be with thy servant this day especially.

And Lord, we do pray for all thy servants as they labour in word and doctrine upon the walls of Zion, that thou wouldst grant that they may dip their foot in oil and be made acceptable unto thee, brethren, and that the word preached may be in power in the Holy Ghost and with much assurance.

Lord, we pray that thou would be with us as we gather round the table of the Lord this afternoon, grant thy sacred presence, grant that the bread of life may be broken, and we may indeed spiritually drink of the wine of the kingdom, and that the Lord Jesus may be made exceedingly precious. We pray that there may be those in the congregation that should know in their very souls those beautiful words with desire, have I desire to eat this Passover with you, and we pray that thou wouldst constrain them by thy love to do so.

Lord, we pray for grace to lay aside every weight and the sin that doth so easily beset us, that we might run with patience the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame thereof, and is now set down at the right hand of the majesty on high.

Lord, we pray that the wonderful power and glory of gospel grace may shine forth from us here as a church and congregation into this village, in the surrounding villages and hamlets, many precious souls may yet be gathered in, the Lord Jesus exalted as a Prince and a Saviour, for to give faith and repentance and remission of sins. Lord, there's nothing too hard for Thee, none are beyond the power of Thine everlasting love, and we pray that we may see that love shed abroad in the hearts of poor sinners, so that the dumb may speak and the deaf may hear and the blind may see. O do hear us, we humbly beseech thee. Let thy work appear unto thy servants and thy glory unto their children. O Lord, we do humbly pray thee.

We pray most gracious Lord that thou wouldst graciously guide us by thy blessed spirit and remember us with the favour that thou bearest unto thy people and visit us with thy great salvation. We remember thy servants at this time, a number of them to serve three months in the beginning of the coming year. We pray that thou wouldst gird them with all sufficient grace and that thou wouldst especially grant signs to follow the preaching of the word. that it may be down to the great honour, glory, and praise of thy holy name, that precious souls may be gathered in, and there may be an establishment in the truth.

We do humbly pray thee that we may grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. Lord, remember, we pray thee the little hills of Zion up and down the land, and return to Jerusalem with mercies, we do humbly beseech thee. We pray that thou, in thy great mercy, wouldst hear us in heaven, thy holy dwelling place. And when thou hearest, O Lord, forgive. We do humbly pray thee.

We thank thee for Jesus Christ, God's unspeakable gift. We thank thee for the glory of his person, and the fullness of his grace, and the wonders of redeeming love, and the glories of Calvary, and the wonders of the law fulfilled, honored, and magnified in his glorious person. We thank thee that he died for our sins and rose again for our justification. Oh, we thank thee that he has ascended up on high, and we have a great high priest sitting at thy right hand. Gracious God, fill our hearts with gratitude, with thanksgiving for these wonderful mercies.

We pray, O Lord, for our dear beloved friends in Holland, that thou would bless them there and be gracious unto them for thy great namesake. Be with us now, Lord, as we turn to thy holy word. Come and open thy word to our heart and to our understanding. and make up in giving where we do so fail in asking, as we ask for Jesus Christ's sake. Amen.

Let us now sing together hymn number 168 to the tune Horsley 853.

I sing my Saviour's wondrous death,

He conquered when he fell,

Tis finished said his dying breath,

And shook the gates of hell,

Hymn 168, Tune Horsley 853,

Greatly feeling to need the Lord's gracious help, I'll direct your attention to Isaiah chapter 53, and we'll read verse 10 for our text. The prophecy of Isaiah chapter 53, verse 10. Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him. he hath put him to grief. When thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand.

What a fullness of divinity there is in this verse. And what a display of the infinite love, grace of our eternal God, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost. Yet it pleased the Lord. As you notice, it's Jehovah. Yet it pleased Jehovah to bruise him, his only begotten Son. from all eternity. He bruised him. Why did he bruise him? The holy, the sinless, the spotless one. He that did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth. It pleased the Lord to bruise him. And the purpose of him bruising him You'll find it in verse 5. For he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities. The chastisement of our peace was upon him and with his stripes we are healed.

He was wounded for our transgressions. We've many times explained to you the meaning of the word transgression. The idea is a boundary. God has set a boundary around mankind. That boundary is the holy law of the Ten Commandments. And he demands perfect obedience to those Ten Commandments. And if we break one of those commandments, whether it's in thought, word or deed, then we transgress. The boundary is broken and we transgress God's holy law. And that is what sin is. It's when we transgress or break the boundary that God has set around us.

We're born sinners. and we transgress from our very birth, born in sin, shaped in iniquity. But then we have this beautiful gospel of Jesus Christ set before us. He was wounded for our transgressions. He was bruised for our iniquities. I remember reading Stephen Sharnock, the Puritan, on iniquities and he explained that the idea behind the word iniquity was original sin. Original sin, which means every one of us was born in sin, was shapen in iniquity. We're unrighteous by our birth, we're unholy by our birth.

Since Adam by transgression fell, he ruined all his future race. The seeds of evil once brought in increased and filled the world with sin. But then eternal wisdom has devised a means whereby those that were chosen by the father would be redeemed by the son. and that the Son of God would come to this sin-cursed world as a man. We're coming up to Christmas time when we remember especially the birth of Jesus Christ. And we need to remember, he said just before he was to suffer, bleed and die, to this end was I born. For this cause came I into the world.

What cause to be bruised, to be put to grief? Did it please the Lord to bruise him? He that is his heavenly Father hath put him to grief. When thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin. I should never forget reading one of the old Puritans, Thomas Brooks, the Puritan. and he has a whole sermon regarding the person of Christ and especially he highlights the fact that he had a human soul. He was a real man. He had a body and soul. It's our soul that motivates our body, that animates our body. as James says in his epistle, the body without the soul is dead, without the spirit is dead, being alone. And that is what makes us living beings, we have a soul.

And it's said in the Genesis, how that God created man, he formed the body of man from the dust of the ground and then we read, and God breathed into him the breath of life and man became a living soul. That's true of every human being. That is what distinguishes us from the beasts of the field and the birds of the air. We have an immortal soul. A soul or a spirit that will never die. Will never die. But we're polluted by sin. So God in his infinite love, mercy and grace sent his son. in our nature. It says in scripture he became bone of our bone and flesh of our flesh. He took our nature, body and soul.

And here there's a very important statement when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin. In other words, the sacred offering of Jesus Christ on the cross of Calvary was a complete offering. He was a real true man with a body and a soul, same as every one of those he was to redeem. And he offered his body and soul as a sinatonic sacrifice unto his Holy Father. How willing was Jesus to die. He willingly did this.

Peter tried to hinder this when he took the sword and cut off the ear of the servant of the high priest. Jesus said, put thy sword up into its sheath, the cup that my father hath given me, shall I not drink it? It was a cup of suffering, a cup of sorrow, a cup of agony, a cup of grief, beyond what we can even begin to comprehend.

So he gave his life ransom for all. It's that beautiful word in Timothy that the apostle writes to his son Timothy in the faith, there is one God and one mediator between God and man, the man, notice the emphasis, the man, Christ Jesus, who gave his life of ransom for all to be testified in due time.

And when we when we see and have a view by faith of that precious Saviour, suffering and bleeding and dying. May we remember the love of our Eternal Father.

It says here in verse 6, And the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all, yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him. Why? Because he laid upon him the iniquity of us all. He suffered, he bared and died for our sins, yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him. He hath put him to grief. When thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, an offering for sin, a perfect, sinless offering, a pure and a holy offering, The Apostle says in Hebrews chapter 10, for by one offering he hath perfected forever all them that are sanctified. That one glorious offering of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him. He hath put him to grief, when thou shalt make his soul offering for sin. I just mentioned Thomas Brooks, a Puritan, and he dwells quite extensively in that sermon on the soul of Christ and how needful and necessary it was that the soul of Christ was a part of this holy offering and he put it in this way. He was speaking of the doctrine of substitution, so that Christ suffered in the room placed instead of his people as a substitute in our room in our place and in our stead and Thomas Brooks put it this way if Jesus Christ never had a human soul then our soul has never been redeemed He said the sacred doctrine of substitution. It was essential that he was a real man. He not only just had a body, but he had a human soul. And then he offered that body and soul as a perfect, holy, spotless sacrifice unto his father.

Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him. He hath put him to grief, when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin. An offering for sin.

You know, that's very beautiful how, of course, when Paul was writing to the Hebrews, he expounds very beautifully on the doctrine of the high priesthood of Christ but also on the offering because it's an integral part.

It says in Hebrews 9 verse 11 but Christ being come and high priest of good things to come by a greater and more perfect tabernacle that's his human nature not made with hands that is not to say not of this building, neither by the blood of goats and of calves, but by his own blood. He entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.

He says, with the blood of bulls and of goats and the ashes of an heifer, sprinkling the unclean, sanctified to the purifying of the flesh, how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal spirit, that's his divine nature, who through the eternal spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God.

In chapter 10, again, he dwells upon the wonderful sacrifice of our Lord Jesus Christ. It says in verse 7, he's quoting from Psalm 40. Then said I, this is Christ speaking, lo I come, in the volume of the book it is written of me, to do thy will, O God.

Above when he said sacrifice and offering, and burnt offering, and offering for sin, thou wouldest not, neither has the pleasure therein which are offered by the law. Then said he, lo I come, to do thy will, O God. he taketh away the first, that he may establish the second, by the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

For every high priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices which can never take away sins. Not all the blood of beasts on Jewish altars slain, could give the guilty conscience peace or wash away the stain but Christ the heavenly lamb bears all our sins away a sacrifice of nobler name and richer blood than they but this man after he had offered one sacrifice for sins forever sat down on the right hand of God from henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool, for by one offering he hath perfected forever them that are sanctified.

This one glorious offering of the sacred person of the Son of God. You know, he offered his holy humanity on the altar of his divinity. It's one sacrifice. The altar represents the divinity of Christ. The sacrifice on the altar represents the humanity of Christ. It's a one offering, a perfect offering.

Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him. He hath put him to grief when thou shalt make his soul offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand. See not only do we have the perfect holy sacrifice of our Lord Jesus Christ but we have here also the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

He shall see his sin. The grave could not hold him. The apostle says in the Acts of the Apostles, he says it was impossible that death could hold him. He died for our sins. He rose again for our justification. He shall see his seed. What seed? The seed that was given to him. The whole church of God was given to him in that eternal covenant ordered in all things and sure. And the father took their sins, the sin of the church. It was an elect people, a chosen people. He took their sins. you know to take an opposite view and to say that Christ died for everyone it would mean that all those who do not come to faith in Jesus Christ and are sent to eternal damnation will be punished forever even though supposedly Christ died for them and that is completely wrong It was a specific people and the Father took their sins and lifted their sin off of them and laid their sin on Jesus Christ. And when he suffered and bled and died, he delivered those people from the curse of the law, from the bondage of sin and corruption, and brought them into the glorious liberty of the people of God.

He shall see his sin. This is something, my beloved friends, that was divinely certain. Death couldn't hold him. He did no sin. Death had no claim on him. He died as a substitute for his people. And in that rich atoning blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father accepts the church as redeemed in that precious blood of Jesus Christ that washes them from all sin, from all iniquity. And as we looked at it this morning in the Romans, he rose again for our justification. To be justified is declared to be without sin. He left our sins in the grave. I love that hymn. Payment he cannot twice demand. First at my bleeding shortest hand. then again at mine. No, the payment has been made good.

He shall see his seed. He shall prolong his days. And the pleasure of the Lord. It was the pleasure of our Heavenly Father that we should be redeemed from sin, from the curse, from death, from Satan's power. And be brought into the glorious liberty of the people of God, and to be there eternally, to be with Christ, which is far better.

He shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand. And it's still in his hand now. It's not in your hand, it's not in my hand. It's in the hand of our Lord Jesus Christ. And it is divinely certain.

Like it says in verse 11 here, he shall see of the travail of his soul. What travail that was, wasn't it? In the garden, in Gethsemane. When he sweat as it were, great drops of blood falling down to the ground.

He shall see of the travail of his soul. Those that have been redeemed. The Holy Spirit proceeding forth from the Father and the Son enters into each one of those precious souls that have been redeemed. He quickens their soul into life. He brings them to living faith in Jesus Christ. He raises them up to a hope in him. And hence he shall see of the travail of his soul and shall be satisfied by his knowledge, shall my righteous servant Justify many, for he shall bear their iniquities.

My righteous servant. We've often drawn your attention to that beautiful chapter, Isaiah 42. In the beginning of that chapter, he says, Behold, my servant, whom I uphold, mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth. That's our Lord Jesus Christ. shall Lord Jesus Christ, in whom my soul delighted, the Father delights in Christ. The pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand. He shall see of the travail of his soul and be satisfied by his knowledge.

Shall my righteous servant, as Jesus Christ, justify many? For he shall bear their iniquities and then he goes on therefore will I divide him a portion with the grain and he shall divide the spoil with the strong because he hath poured out his soul unto death and of course this is recorded in the gospels when the lord jesus was on the cross of calvary he cried out it is finished he said father into thy hands I commend my spirit and in so saying that he commended his whole holy human soul into the hands of his eternal father and he voluntarily entered into death just like he says himself no man taketh my life from me I have power to lay down my life and I have power to take it again this commandment have I received of my father.

You see, he gave his life. It was a voluntary act of the Son of God when he laid down that life. I lay down my life for my friends. What a wonderful precious truth that is.

You see, because he had poured out his soul unto death and was numbered with the transgressors and he bared the sin of many and made intercession for the transgressors. We have a great intercessor. Even our Lord Jesus Christ, as the apostle puts it in the Hebrews, such an high priest have we, who is passed into the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God.

Such an high priest, sitting at the right hand of the Father. He sits on no precarious throne, nor borrowers leave to be. He hath a name upon his vesture, King of kings and Lord of lords. That's what Jesus is. And he will come with all his saints in that great day to judge the world in righteousness. He will come to judge the world in righteousness. And this is clearly set forth in God's holy word the second coming of our Lord Jesus Christ when he comes without sin. I should never forget, it struck me so much reading Thomas Goodwin, the Puritan, on that text. He will come without sin. He will come a second time without sin unto salvation. On that little word without sin, he said, there is your justification, child of God. He comes without sin. that your sins have been left in the grave of Christ. When he comes again, he comes without sin and he gathers all his people together unto himself without sin, clothed in that glorious everlasting robe of the righteousness of our Lord Jesus Christ, without sin, unto salvation.

We read in Revelation chapter 19, Verse 11, I saw heaven opened and behold a white horse and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. This is Christ. His eyes were as a flame of fire and on his head were many crowns and he had a name written that no man knew but he himself and it was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood and his name is called the Word of God. The armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, all the saints of God, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. And out of his mouth goes a sharp sword, that whither he should smite the nations, and he shall rule them with a rod of iron, and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

What a revelation we are given there of the exalted Saviour, of our great High Priest. I love what the hymn writer, based on that word in the Hebrews, touch with the sympathy within. He knows our feeble frame. He knows what sore temptations mean, for he has felt the same. The Lord Jesus fully understands. It's a very profound deep. He was tempted in all points like as we are, yet without sin, yet without sin. Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him. he hath put him to grief. When thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand. May the Lord add his blessing.