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| A close-up of the background figure in Michelangelo's Isaiah fresco |
The Servant of the Lord
“Here
is my servant, whom I uphold,
my
chosen one in whom I delight;
I
will put my Spirit on him,
and
he will bring justice to the nations.
He
will not shout or cry out,
or
raise his voice in the streets.
A
bruised reed he will not break,
and
a smoldering wick he will not snuff out.
In
faithfulness he will bring forth justice;
he
will not falter or be discouraged
till
he establishes justice on earth.
In
his teaching the islands will put their hope”
(Isaiah
42:1-4 NIV).
It
is evident that only a servant can be a savior for the essential
ingredient in both is humility. And, in the unrelieved landscape of
selfishness and prejudice that can afflict humanity, the grace of
humility is the only balm. As Saint Paul said, such a conclusion is
utter foolishness to those infatuated with earthly power, but becomes
abundantly obvious to those seeking enlightenment, divine redemption,
and practical good. With the flourishing of democracy (and demise of
regnant rule by a few) a way is open for servanthood to be broadly
based providing significant roles of responsibility for everyone,
even making service an instituted commodity. Lurking in the shadows
to poison this well of promise is our long-identified enemy—hubris.
When it commandeers democracy, the grotesqueness of results can
easily equal if not exceed other social/political arrangements. It
brings to mind the Scripture (which applies equally to persons and
nations):
“When
an impure spirit comes out of a person, it goes through arid places
seeking rest and does not find it. Then it says, ‘I will return to
the house I left.’ When it arrives, it finds the house swept clean
and put in order. Then it goes and takes seven other spirits more
wicked than itself, and they go in and live there. And the final
condition of that person is worse than the first” (Luke 11:24-26
NIV).
The
challenge as always is to influence human perception opening it to
the vistas of divine will. The crucifixion of Jesus makes it for all
time clear that this is not an easy task. Nevertheless up to this
point there has proven to be no substitute for amazing grace
implemented by the disciplines of sacrificial love. (Is there—can
there—be any other ethical way to transform a person's or nation's
perception of preferred governing principles?) The hope is that—for
individuals and nations—the destructive passions of the human mind can be subdued before time runs out.
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