“For he grew up before him like a young plant and like a root out of dry ground; he had no form or majesty that we should look at him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him… But he was wounded for our transgressions, crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the punishment that made us whole, and by his bruises we are healed.” Isaiah 53:2, 5

I find pain and suffering unflattering. When I am in pain I never feel at my best, which means I don’t come off looking so good. In pain, the well-hidden poisons of my soul seem to escape like noxious gases. I am offensive, difficult and not a pleasure to be with. This is not the image I desire to project and it takes so much energy to manage. Energy is less available when I’m in pain and suffering, no matter what the cause. So when I’m in pain I don’t want to be around people and socialize or minister, because they might see something a bit more real and vulnerable. They might not see the well-maintained image. My hair’s a mess, my general appearance is un-kept and it is not a flattering picture. But it is in this very condition of unflattering pain that Jesus loves me. He holds me close and still takes delight in me even though I am not delightful. This is love that goes far beyond what I understand or can offer. It is God’s faithful and ever-present love displayed in Jesus Christ. But I also realize that Jesus, marred and disfigured by pain, doesn’t seek to be flattered, but seeks instead to still offer Himself to me completely. As I realize that He comes, not with a flattering appearance, but instead with compassion and love for my unflattering demeanor, I am relieved to be accepted as I am, and not as I think people expect.

As the season of Lent comes to a close we find ourselves at the apex of suffering and rejection; the cross. There on the hill called Golgotha Jesus hangs naked and exposed on a cross. He suffers, for the sake of humanity, the humiliation and pain of public execution as a criminal. There is nothing flattering in His death. He chooses to give up His last breath and His last ounce of strength for the sake of love. He entrusts Himself to His Father and dies. But His death is not the end. Though He has, for the sake of love, carried the weight of the world’s brokenness and sin, including my own, His journey is not over. Death is just the doorway through to the new life of the resurrection. He has provided, in His own sacrifice, the forgiveness of sin and now in this Easter moment, the new life of the resurrection awaits us all. As I follow Him through this winter of suffering and pain, where my brokenness is exposed and my appearance is so unflattering, I now follow Him into the spring of new life initiated and sustained by His power and grace. I rely no longer on my own energy to maintain the flattering appearance of this world, but on the energies generated by His resurrection power to transform me into the likeness of the Son of God. I am a new creation in Christ.

May your heart be filled with gratefulness each day for the supreme gifts of forgiveness, assured by the sacrifice of Jesus, and the new life of the resurrection, which He offers to us all. And may you find in Him all the resources of grace and power to be transformed into His glorious and perfect likeness. Here is a song for further reflection as you prepare to celebrate Easter.