By Francis Frangipane
Slandered and rejected by men, Jesus appeared to be a failure. Suffering unspeakable pain, He remained true to redemption. He prayed the mercy prayer, the veil in the temple was torn in two, and the debt mankind owed to God was paid in full as mercy triumphed over judgment.
Let us now consider the reach of God’s grace. Christ not only secured the pleasure of God for us but also God’s power, which is strong enough to cleanse and turn nations to God. Isaiah 53 is preceded by a grand announcement that heralds the effects of Christ’s victory. It reads:
“Behold, My servant will prosper, He will be high and lifted up, and greatly exalted. Just as many were astonished at you, My people, so His appearance was marred more than any man, and His form more than the sons of men. Thus He will sprinkle many nations, kings will shut their mouths on account of Him; for what had not been told them they will see, and what they had not heard they will understand.” (Isa. 52:13–15)
What does it mean that He will “sprinkle many nations”? Under the old covenant, priests would take the blood of a sacrificed animal and, with it, sprinkle the temple and its furnishings. By so doing, they cleansed and made holy what was otherwise common and unclean.
In the New Testament, every believer serves as a priest before the throne of God (Rev. 1:6). Our quest is not merely to cleanse the temple, but also to see this promise fulfilled: the Lamb will sprinkle many nations; kings will see and understand.
Wounded Intercessors Follow the Lamb
Our call is to follow the Lamb through our personal woundedness into the triumph of love and redemption. In the area of woundedness, we do not ask for wrath, but for mercy. Whatever injustice is hurled against us—slander, unfaithfulness, desertion, rejection, racism, or abuse—we render ourselves to God as the guilt offering. The greater the pain in releasing and forgiving the sins against you, the purer your love becomes. Remember, the prayer of the wounded intercessor holds great sway upon God’s heart.
What we become in our individual conformity to Christ may be, in its own way, even more important to God than the revival for which we are praying. Listen, my friends. Just as mankind will look upon Him whom they pierced, and Christ’s wounds will be with Him forever (Zech. 12:10), so our wounds will be recognized for what they are: entry points through which Christ’s “eternal weight of glory” (2 Cor. 4:17) flows through us.
In speaking both of the sprinkling of the nations and the manifestation of the Redeemer’s life, Isaiah presented a question. He asked, “Who has believed our message? And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?” (Isa. 53:1). I write as one who has believed the report. Christ is “the Lamb…who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29). I am committed to seeing His blood sprinkle and cleanse many nations; I am willing to follow the Lamb wherever He goes.
Let Mercy Triumph
The Scriptures tell us that love “bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails” (1 Cor. 13:7–8). If you will, in truth, hope and believe all things, you will also be called to bear and endure all things. Yet our hope is that love never fails. Yes, when Christ is revealed through the church, the power of redemption will prevail for our land, and mercy will certainly triumph over judgment.
Lord Jesus, for You I live; to be like You, may I be willing to die. Let redemption exult through me! Let mercy triumph through me! Do not allow me to withdraw from the fire of conformity to You. Create me in Your holy image; let love prevail through me!
