Friday, February 19 – Written by Pattie Aitchison

The Lord’s Chosen Servant – Isaiah 42:1-7

“Behold my servant…he will bring justice to the nations…to open the eyes that are blind.”

Did you know that “blindness” and injustice go together? Let’s think about it. If we “see no evil” then we don’t have to respond to the plight of the oppressed or the systems that support oppression. If we have beliefs or values that hold others in lower regard than ourselves, our ‘blindness’ allows us to continue living in ways that deny their basic human rights. Unconscious bias/blindness/ignorance is no excuse but at least it isn’t blatant cruelty; whereas deliberate or willful expressions of racism, sexism, ageism, homophobia, classism, anti-Semitism, Islamophobia, etc. perpetrate the worst kind of “blind” injustices.

When anyone is put or kept down for the benefit of another’s ego or pocketbook, the heart of our Creator breaks. That is why God anointed Jesus to be his Servant to heal the broken and raise up the weak; to love the sinners and the outcasts. In other words, Jesus’ light shone on those who were suffering and forgotten by the powerful. Through His eyes we begin to see that the structures that support oppression must be revealed and the tables turned. We must ‘see’ to participate in the work of justice-making.

While the Israelites of Isaiah’s time were anticipating a political Saviour, the prophet proclaims that God’s chosen servant will not bring attention to himself, or raise his voice or even bruise a reed. Rather, He will faithfully bring forth justice and not grow weary until it is established throughout the world.

Prayer: O Loving God, heal our blindness and help us see how we are either part of the injustice problem or part of the justice solution. Amen