A Victorious Soldier

 I have never been in the Marines or the Army. So I haven't ever experienced what it feels like to have been a soldier in a victorious battle. However, I can imagine that every victory comes at great costs. There has to be much blood, sweat, and tears shed before the battle comes to a good conclusion. At the end it is right to honor the victorious soldiers for all that they did to overcome the enemy for the sake of their country.

God looks at Jesus as a victorious soldier for His defeat of Satan for all of us. (Isaiah 53:12) "I will give Him the honors of a victorious soldier, because He exposed Himself to death. He was counted among the rebels. He bore the sins of many and interceded for rebels." That is a concise summary of what Jesus did for all of us and how the Father felt about His efforts to bring salvation for mankind. It will do us all good to review this verse.

Every soldier is exposed to death, even though not all of them die. Jesus is the Eternal God, but He exposed Himself to death. He died for us out of love, even though He did not have to do that for us. We should always honor Jesus for dying for us and for doing it the way He did, so God's plan of salvation could be completed. This prophecy speaks in the past tense because it was certain that Jesus would die for us some 800 years later. He would die with two rebels, two thieves, by being nailed to a cross. The people claimed He was a rebel, too, but He never sinned.

Because of His perfect life, He could take our sins upon Him and die for us. He did not deserve to die, but He wanted to help us win the victory over sin, Satan, death, and the grave. He did that perfectly fulfilling all that God had planned. He even interceded for the rebels who were nailing Him to that cross. He asked the Father to forgive them for that since they did not know what they were doing. Now, Jesus continues to intercede for all of us, as He sits at the right hand of the Father, being honored as a victorious soldier. Let's give Him all the honor He deserves, too.

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Tomorrow, I intend to read Isaiah 55-57.