Day 95: December 31, 2025 – Isaiah 52-55 and Matthew 16

Both of our Scriptures today contain verses that are very familiar and very popular. The Isaiah Scripture not only reminds us that God will bring his people back out of captivity, but it provides us with the suffering servant image to remind us of what the Messiah will look like. Unlike the popular depiction of the Messiah as a conquering king who rides on a horse and mows down anyone in his way, this suffering servant, this Messiah, is one who is comfortable in his position as the least of these. This was not a common, nor a popular depiction of the Messiah which is why so many people missed who Jesus truly was.

In our Matthew Scripture we see Peter proclaiming the confession of faith that has been ours since then to now. You are the Messiah, Peter says, the son of the living God. This witness, this testament, this declaration has been ours since the church began.