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Personal Perspectives

Here are some personal notes that I (Jared) have taken over the past few weeks:

The person that I knew before is gone now and forevermore. Man I wish I knew then what I know now. My past was so painful, terrible, and mostly depressing. My present is now filled with a new wind of life. All of the things I make in the present will not only be just my past; these things that will be will also make my future person. Everything that I do now is all for one reason, for the God I love and serve today.

The pills that I took only numbed what I truly felt; essentially sadness wanting joy. The dope I smoked only let me forget for a little while; all of which was my pain wanting happiness. The alcohol I drank only let me laugh for a short time; all of two hours, followed by being sick. All the cocaine I snorted made me happy for a very limited time; all of ten minutes, what was I thinking?!? All the friends I thought I had were all deceived the same exact way from the drugs they bought. All of these things eliminate all forms of true logical thought. So in all reality, I was completely lost. But thanks to Jesus Christ, Never Again!!!

If I had some cool friends, I knew I would be okay. Well, actually if cool to you is people who party, talk about you and others badly, try to run you over, steal from you, talk irrationally, hate other people, taking advantage of everything, then you are WRONG. Sometimes the best friends in life are right in front of you. Don’t separate family and friends. They can sometimes be the same thing. And if you cannot find one in a million in this world, there is one who sees everything you say, do, and go through. God is your best friend! Bless your enemies!

What makes a person better than me? Well, actually nothing does. One might look at me by the clothes that I have on and complete my life’s story. So if I had on clothes too big or cheap, would that mean I’m lazy and have no job? To some it would, but I hope that it wouldn’t. Some of the best treasures in life are hidden within. That very person you judge could be the best friend you ever had. And most of the time I find that the people we choose to call our friend (that passes our judgment test) do not even come close to what we thought they would, should, or could. And when it comes to God, there is no judgment. And if we strive for God, don’t judge!

A Place For Me

The word “place” can be defined as an area set aside for a particular purpose, a stead, a location, a home, a space, a position, a dwelling or a room.  Some examples of usage are:  A place where I can go, He took my place, He made a place for me at the table, and this is my place………..

My heart was stirred by the testimony and scripture that was given by Brother John Vanover.  He talked about a special “place” that was made for Moses.  And the LORD said, Behold, there is a place by me, and thou shalt stand upon a rock: (Exodus 33:21) He said this place was not just for Moses but exists for all of God’s children.  It is a secure place, on a solid foundation.  A place of refuge.

I have been so blessed by this scripture over the last several days.  I thought about the place that God has made for me to stand in.  It is a place that was given to me without money and without price.  And he bearing his cross went forth into a place called the place of a skull, which is called in the Hebrew Golgotha:  (John 19:7) Jesus took my place so I could have a place.

Not just any place, not stuck back in a corner, or in a dard basement but I have a front row seat.  Hallelujah!  I can’t help but get excited when I start to describe my place.  I know I don’t deserve to be here but I am so very glad to be right beside my Father.  If I need something to eat, I can just reach out to the table that is spread with the very best.  If I need to talk to my Father, I just have to turn toward Him and He inclines His ear to hear what my petitions are.  If I am hurt or sick or down hearted, He is so close by that He can just wipe my tears away, touch me with His healing hand, or just reach out and lift up my head so that I can see all of His goodness.  Again I have to say Hallelujah how wonderful it is to be part of God’s family.

If you are reading this and thinking I would like feel that way, I have good news for you.  You have a “place” right beside God, too.  When God gave His only begotten Son to die on Calvary he made a “place” for whosoever will.  In my Father’s house are many mansions:  if it were not so, I would have told you.  I go to prepare a place for you. (John 14:2)

If you turn aside the place that Jesus made for you then you will have to go to a place that was made for the devil and his angels. A place called Hell.  A place of eternal torment where the fire is not quenched.  Choose that good “place” that was made for you.

That if thou shalt confess with my mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raise him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. (Romans 10:8)

About Desire

So many times the wants in our life are based on our desire. We often can fill the desires on our own, but these things might not be God’s will for your life. The small thoughts that I am having today are these:

“To commit is to take action and follow through on your desire.

With no passion comes any desire.

With no desire comes any commitment.

With no commitment comes any blessing.”

With trust and commitment to God, you will build faith and strength and security in your life. Then, we can lead others to him.

Psalm 112:1-10

[1] Praise ye the LORD. Blessed is the man that feareth the LORD, that delighteth greatly in his commandments.
[2] His seed shall be mighty upon earth: the generation of the upright shall be blessed.
[3] Wealth and riches shall be in his house: and his righteousness endureth for ever.
[4] Unto the upright there ariseth light in the darkness: he is gracious, and full of compassion, and righteous.
[5] A good man sheweth favour, and lendeth: he will guide his affairs with discretion.
[6] Surely he shall not be moved for ever: the righteous shall be in everlasting remembrance.
[7] He shall not be afraid of evil tidings: his heart is fixed, trusting in the LORD.
[8] His heart is established, he shall not be afraid, until he see his desire upon his enemies.
[9] He hath dispersed, he hath given to the poor; his righteousness endureth for ever; his horn shall be exalted with honour.
[10] The wicked shall see it, and be grieved; he shall gnash with his teeth, and melt away: the desire of the wicked shall perish.

Don’t let details steal your desire. We must trust and commit to God for the blessing.

Praise Report

I wanted to share recent news on what transpired last night.

I was invited to come to the House of the Lord in Oneida, TN, to come and minister for a “Youth Night”. I brought my home church youth group from Faith Tabernacle. Jamie Adkins did a wonderful job in orchestrating the kids in practice and the singing there. There was a great amount from my home church that came to help and support, and I thank all of you for coming.

To be completely honest, I was nervous about this night, simply because in our walks through ministry we often second guess the inspiration that God has provided. Nonetheless, I trusted in the Lord to help me through it, and it was a wonderful experience.

I want everyone that attended to know that I am praying for all of your requests, and will be following up in prayer on the needs that were brought to me during the alter call.

It was a wonderful turnout and a wonderful night. This might be a spoiler, but I am anticipating a revival in the middle of May. I will post the dates as soon as I know. Heart of Grace will be involved in this part for sure! Keep us in your prayers! God Bless You!

Where have you all been?

Hello everyone! God bless each and every one of you out there who has been supportive and encouraging to our ministry. We want you all to know that these past few months getting off of the ground have been super easy with God at the forefront and the support of everyone! I personally feel encouraged each and every day from someone at some point, so it does NOT go unnoticed. We thank you all very much! You are in our prayers always.

So what has been up lately? Well, we have been here and there, visiting and supporting all of our local churches in our town. With the birth of Rebekah’s third child Maddox (YAY) we have had to sort of put the brakes on our collaborative effort as “Heart of Grace”. That’s not to say that we all haven’t been doing our individual callings, we just have a hard time putting all of our schedules together to work for each other.

I have been personally growing as a minister of the word of God, as well as taking time away from the music aspect of my ministry, to help and allow myself to grow as one of the many people out there trying to make a difference. No worries though, I am sure that when the Lord is ready to give me a new song, I will be ready!

Lately we haven’t been doing our traditional “Devotionals” theme on the radio show. Better yet, we have been starting to incorporate live material into our lineup, and has gotten great feedback. We are making it our goal to personalize our show a little more, to allow people to get to know us in a way that they never have before.

We hope in the weeks to come as things get less crazy, that we are able to take more group appointments. In the meantime, I will be doing some personal appointments, to which I will start posting on the site here.

Some new features to come:
* New featured songs
* Live messages online
* Testimonials page
* About us with personal bios
* Calendar of scheduled events

And not to put out any spoilers too early, but we will be going live on iTunes pretty soon as well! Well, okay I just spoiled it! 🙂 However, we will offer the same songs on our site for free. It will be on iTunes for download if you feel led to donate to our ministry. We do not ever want people to think it’s about the money. It never has been, nor will it ever be. It’s about helping others, and leading people to a better way of life through Jesus Christ!

Stay tuned! Love you all! Pray for us!

It Is Well

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What a blessed day it is.  I awoke this morning and all was well.  Did this mean that I had lots of money, no pain, no heartache, no trouble?  No that it is not what I mean when I say that All is Well.  In 2 Kings Chapter 4 we find the story of the Shunammite woman and her son.  Elisha, a prophet of God passed through the area of Shunem often and there was a woman and her husband who showed him kindness by providing him something to eat as he passed through.  One day when Elisha passed through, he found that they had built a little chamber on the wall and had put a bed, table, stool, and candlestick in it just for him so that he would have a place to rest when he came by.  You might ask why did they do this for Elisha?  The bible says that the woman perceived that Elisha was a holy man of God.   She wanted to make a special place for Elisha to dwell.  In other words, she made place for him.  This was a new room just for him.  Elisha was pleased that the Shunammite woman did this for him.

If you want God to dwell in your life and if you want to find favor with Him, you have to make a place for Him.  He has to be first in your life.  He needs to be lifted up in your life just like the room was high on the wall.  He called her to him and asked what he could do for her.  She said that she didn’t need anything that she lived among her own people and had what she needed.  Gehazi, Elisha’s servant, told Elisha that he had noticed that the woman and her husband did not have any children.  Elisha called the woman again and promised her that she would soon embrace a son.  She could not believe what she was hearing.  The woman soon conceived and had a son.  The woman didn’t ask for anything but God knew her heart.  He knew she desired a child.  If you are faithful to God, he will be faithful to you.  He will give you the desires of your heart.  He loves you and wants the very best for you.

Years later when the child was older, it fell on a day that he went out to the fields to work with his father.  He fell sick and they carried the lad to his mother.  The bible says he sat on her knees till noon and then died.  She went up and laid him on Elisha’s bed and shut the door.  She called her husband and asked for one of the mules so she could go to Elisha.  The husband didn’t understand why she wanted to go find Elisha.  It wasn’t the Sabbath or a new moon.  Her response was “It shall be well”.    I just love this scripture.  I find great encouragement in the faith that this little woman had.  She had just held her only child in her arms and watched him die.  How devastating this must have been.  How heavy her heart must have felt.  But she said “It shall be well”.  You might ask how could she know this?

There is a peace that surpasses all understanding that God gives when he saves you.  You have great promises that you can depend on.  You know that he will not let you go through more than you can bear and that he can work all things to your good.  Just like Job who lost all he had, he still said “Blessed be the name of the Lord”.  When great trouble comes God’s people has the assurance that they are not alone and that the God who made the Heavens and Earth is in control.  No wonder the little woman could say through tear dimmed eyes, “It shall be well”.  I know we live in depressing times right now.  Life is hard.  But if you know the Lord Jesus Christ you can say  “It shall be well”.  If you haven’t been saved, then you can’t say this because it will not be well for your soul if you do not accept the salvation that Jesus has so freely given.

We find that the woman and her servant headed out to find Elisha not stopping for anything.  When she came to Elisha, he saw her afar off and recognized her.  He sent his servant to meet her and to inquire of her.  Is it well with thee?  Is it well with thy husband?  Is it well with thy child?  And she said “It is well”.  I have often thought why she changed it from “It shall be well” which means at some point in the future things would be better to “It is well”.  She was now with Elisha the man of God.  She was in his presence.  When she came to Elisha, she caught him by the feet.  Gehazi, the servant, came near to thrust her away but Elisha said let her be for her soul is vexed and the Lord has not revealed to me what the problem is.  She then said to Elisha, did I not desire a son of my lord and did I not say, do not deceive me?  The Shunammite woman had reached the person that could help her.  That is why she said “it is well”.  When we take our problems to the Lord in faith believing and not giving up, God will move on the scene.  He will not push you away but rather He cares for you and wants to help you.  He said to cast all your care upon him for he careth for you.

Then Elisha sent his servant ahead to take his staff to lay on the face of the child.  He spoke to the woman and said, “I will not leave thee”.  He arose and followed her.  When Elisha came to the house he found the child dead and laying upon his bed.  He went in and shut the door and prayed unto the Lord.  He stretched himself upon the child face to face, hand to hand.  The relationship that God has with us is personal.  He knows our very thoughts, every move we make.  His love and strength makes us strong.  His grace covers the multitude of our sins.  Soon the child came back to life.  He called for the Shunammite woman and said take thy son.  God is still able to work miracles.  No matter what the circumstances of your life are, if you know Jesus, you can say “It shall be well”.  If you don’t know Jesus as your Savior, please call on him.  He will answer you and you too can find this blessed assurance that “It is Well”.

Make The Effort

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I would like today’s message to be simple, and to just be the exact statements that God has put on my heart. I tried to figure out a way to say it that it would be not offensive or provocative, but there is no real way to get around the truth other than to just say it. I come to you today with a very heavy heart. I have been broken inside from the things that I have sat around and pondered on.

You see, the reality of everything that I know is that my life would have never had the wonderful transformation without the intervention of God and its people. In other words, I would still be addicted to drugs and alcohol, would still be bound in that old depression and confusion, and more than likely would not be alive today. I will never be able to get around this, and will always remember where I have come from. I say all of that because every single day, I see and think about people that I know could have that same change done in their lives, but it doesn’t seem to happen like it did for me.

So in that, I am seeking and looking for myself as to which why I might be the holdup with that. And when I began to seek, the scriptures I am about to read came to mind.

1 Peter 5:1-11

1 – The elders which are among you I exhort, who am also an elder, and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that shall be revealed:

2 – Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy Lucre, but of a ready mind;

3 – Neither as being lords over God’s heritage, but being ensamples to the flock.

4 – And when the chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away.

5 – Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble.

6 – Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time:

7 – Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.

8 – Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:

9 – Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world.

10 – But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.

11 – To him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.

There are so many present sufferings all around us, to which most of them seem to not have a solution. Rather than trying to be of help in most cases, we join in with the popular opinion, simply because it is easier on you and I to not get involved and help anyone. I know that this sounds so harsh even now, but I am one to not hide the truth. The truth is that people need our help every single day, without wavering. So many people are on the brink of suicide that we cannot even see, and yet, with our obedience could save them. There are others that just need a good friend, and yet, with our disobedience could lead them to a deeper depressed state.

If there is anyone around you that you know NEEDS your help, I urge you to get out of your comfort zone and reach out to them. It is never too late to lend a helping hand. It is never too late to lead someone to Christ. Don’t let the enemy devour up any more of our people. Don’t let the enemy let people be persuaded in these horrible mental states, which put themselves in a pit, ready to be taken from us and this world. Make the effort to win hearts to Christ, just as someone did for you. Show the same love and kindness. Never give up on the fight to see them saved. I encourage you this day.

Leaders Arise!

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There have been so many times in my life where I have felt so out of place and lost with no direction. During those times of confusion, I always turn to God to show me the right way out, for God provides the way of escape through anything that we are going through. I could not tell you the amount of times in recent days that I have heard from people that tell me that they feel “lost” in their calling. So if you need this today, this message is for you.

By our instinctive nature, it is our natural ability to follow those around us when we feel as though we are lost. There will be times when your friends and family will be able to bail you out of a situation that is bigger than you. And in that case, that’s all good by all means, don’t get me wrong. Unfortunately though, there are going to be times that the people that you are following are just as lost as you are.

As God has shown me as of late, there comes a point in your individual ministry where you stop being the follower and start becoming a leader. I’ve now realized that as time has went by that there are many that are watching my every move, listening to my every word, and are keeping track of just how close that I am staying to God. One thing is for sure, there is no greater pleasure to someone that likes to persecute your beliefs than to point out your shortcomings.

The difference between the leader and the follower is where you point the finger when everything goes wrong. When you come short and you fail, who are you blaming for the failure?

When you are the follower, you point your finger at someone else and say, “Well, I thought it was okay because they were doing it” I use to try and blame everything but the kitchen sink when I would mess up, but I’m learning more and more that it is none other than me.

When you are a leader, you point the finger at yourself, and realize that you have to improve on your example so the others around you will not falter by the same mistakes. The quicker that we begin to realize this small concept, the faster that we can move forward in becoming stronger examples for people that are all around us to follow, and for others to be able to be drawn to Christ.

So where are you standing with God? Where does your mind stand during the day? Does God have to go to great measures to try and speak to you, simply just to get your attention?

There is no better time than now that we as the followers of God become leaders to the world!

Numbers 27:16-17

[16] Let the LORD, the God of the spirits of all flesh, set a man over the congregation,
[17] Which may go out before them, and which may go in before them, and which may lead them out, and which may bring them in; that the congregation of the LORD be not as sheep which have no shepherd.

As Moses was asking of God, I ask of you today, stand with me, and be those people that will help lead the people out the bondage that they face today. Stand as leaders, and be not followers of the world, but followers of Christ. Stand boldly in your calling, and don’t give up to the enemy!  God be with you, and never give up!

Go Against The Tide

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It has been very interesting lately for me to observe conversations of people that I am around to really understand the point of view from someone who walks with unbelief. Most of the time I will pray for all of the people that I am concerned for, the ones that are lost, as we all do. But as I continue to try and draw closer to God every day and learn more about what I need to do to improve, I am stirred by the thoughts that I have been given.

When we go with the tide of the world, we are as the world, and take of its appearance. When we go against the tide of the world, even though the waves crash hard on us, we become separated, and have the ability to finally stand out and be a people that can draw others to God. We often forget that we are with the Master of the sea, the very one who created the waters of the world. Let me try and break this down a little bit more.

You can go and attend all the church services, sing songs, preach messages, teach lessons, blog your ideals, and broadcast your beliefs to the world; but ultimately there is only one true representation of what people will really be drawn by. When it comes right down to it, how you live your life every single day with how you act and what you do is the complete definition of your Christian life.

In other words, there are going to be moments every single day where you will make or break someone’s decision to make Christ their Savior in their life. There are going to also be moments where someone that hasn’t been where they should be with God continues to stay that way simply because of the behavior they observe from you.

They might see you going through all of the motions of being a “Christian”, but where is the virtue that is talked about in the scriptures:

John 4:15-21

[15] Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God.
[16] And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.
[17] Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world.
[18] There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.
[19] We love him, because he first loved us.
[20] If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen?
[21] And this commandment have we from him, That he who loveth God love his brother also.

The most important thing to remember in your everyday life is to carry that virtue, to remember that while going and doing all of the things that God has called you to do, while also walking an upright life before him and setting a good example in front of others, that every bit of this must be done with LOVE.

People need to see the virtue of love in our lives, that spirit of charity. For when that love is in our hearts, it will be able to handle all of the situations where anger or impatience would normally try to come in and ruin the example that we try to show. When we go against the tide and fight things with love and patience, with the faith that we are going to make it through, they will be drawn to our belief that we serve a God that will bring us through. That is what draws people, not the fact that we attend church every single time, or that we are efficient or great in all the talents that God has given us. Everyone is good at something; it’s how people handle situations that make people be drawn to it.

Go against the tide, be a believer in God, and know that the example you show is being watched every single day, and that we are held accountable! It’s so important to remember this last scripture:

Luke 6:22

[22] Blessed are ye, when men shall hate you, and when they shall separate you from their company, and shall reproach you, and cast out your name as evil, for the Son of man’s sake.

The Whipping

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Welcome to the Heart of Grace Devotional.  Today I would like for us to think about the price Jesus paid for you and me.  I want to share a story with you today that will help us see more clearly how Jesus took our place. There was a school with a class of students that no teacher had been able to handle. Two or three teachers had been run off from this school in one year by the unruly students. A young man, just out of college, heard about the class and applied to the school.

The principal asked the young man, “Do you know what you are asking for? No one else has been able to handle these students. You are just asking for a terrible beating.” After a few moments of silent prayer, the young man looked at the principal and said, “Sir, with your consent I accept the challenge. Just give me a trial basis.”

The next morning the young man stood before the class. He said to the class, “Young people, I came here today to conduct school. But I realize I can’t do it by myself. I must have your help.” One big boy they called Big Tom, in the back of the room whispered to his buddies, “I won’t need any help. I can lick that little bird all by myself.”

The young teacher told the class that if they were to have school, there would have to be some rules to go by. But he also added that he would allow the students to make up the rules and that he would list them on the blackboard. This was certainly different, the students thought! One young man suggested, “NO STEALING.” Another one shouted “BE ON TIME FOR CLASS.” Pretty soon they had 10 rules listed on the board.

The Teacher then asked the class what the punishment should be for breaking these rules. “Rules are no good unless they are enforced, he said.” Someone in the class suggested that if the rules were broken, they should receive 10 licks with a rod across their back with their coat off. The teacher thought that this was pretty harsh, so he asked the class if they would stand by this punishment. The class agreed.

Everything went along pretty good for two or three days.  Then Big Tom came in one day very upset. He declared that someone had stolen his lunch. After talking with the students, they came to the conclusion that little Timmy had stolen Big Tom’s lunch… Someone had seen little Timmy with Big Tom’s lunch! The teacher called little Timmy up to the front of the room. Little Timmy admitted he had taken Big Tom’s lunch.

So the teacher asked him, “Do you know the punishment?” Little Timmy nodded that he did. “You must remove your coat”, the teacher instructed. The little fellow had come with a great big coat on. Little Timmy said to the teacher, “I am guilty and I am willing to take my punishment, but please don’t make me take off my coat.”

The teacher reminded little Timmy of the rules and punishments and again told him he must remove his coat and take his punishment like a man. The little fellow started to unbutton that old coat. As he did so, the teacher saw he did not have a shirt on under the coat. And even worse, he saw a frail and bony frame hidden beneath that coat. The teacher asked little Timmy why he had come to school without a shirt on. Little Timmy replied, “My daddy’s dead and my mother is very poor, I don’t have but one shirt, and my mother is washing it today. I wore my big brother’s coat so that I could keep warm.”

The young teacher stood and looked at the frail back with the spine protruding against the skin, and his ribs sticking out. He wondered how he could lay a rod on that little back and without even a shirt on. Still, he knew he must enforce the punishment or the children would not obey the rules. So he drew back to strike little Timmy. Just then Big Tom stood up and came down the aisle. He asked, “Is there anything that says that I can’t take little Timmy’s whipping for him?” The teacher thought about it and agreed. With that Big Tom ripped his coat off and stooped and stood over little Timmy at the desk. Hesitatingly the teacher began to lay the rod on that big back. But for some strange reason after only five licks that old rod just broke in half. The young teacher buried his face in his hands and began to sob.  He heard a commotion and looked up to find not even one dry eye in the room. Little Timmy had turned and grabbed Big Tom around the neck apologizing to him for stealing his lunch. Little Timmy begged Big Tom to forgive him. He told Big Tom that he would love him till the day he died for taking his whipping for him.

Aren’t you glad that Jesus took our whipping for us?  That He shed His precious blood on Calvary so that you and I can have eternal life in Glory with Him? We are unworthy of the price He paid for us, but aren’t you glad He loves us that much?

Isaiah 53:3 tells us that:

“He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were [our] faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.

Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.

But he [was] wounded for our transgressions, [he was] bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace [was] upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.

All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.

He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.”