Loving God, you call us to live as your children, led and empowered by your Spirit. Help us to hear your call and to answer, even as we make our way through the wilderness of this world; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

It seems to me that today’s first reading from Isaiah is one of the richest and most hopeful passages in all of Scripture. It includes a vision of the peaceable kingdom, where the wolf and the lamb lie down together “and a little child shall lead them” (Isa. 11:6). It includes a vision of a time when people will not hurt or destroy, for all will know the Lord. It includes a description of the coming Messiah – one who will be spirit-led, righteous and faithful. It begins with the stump of Jesse and proclaims new life.

Now, this is one of those instances where we will not catch the full meaning of this passage without knowing a bit of history. First of all, it is helpful to know who Jesse is and why his “stump” would be mentioned! Jesse is the father of King David, considered by many to be the greatest king in the history of Israel. And one of God’s promises to David is that there would never cease to be one of his descendants ruling as king in Israel (2 Sam. 7). Yet, at the time when Isaiah was written, Israel had no king. The last of David’s descendants who had ruled in Israel, and then in Judah, had died in captivity in Babylon. And so, David’s family tree – Jesse’s family tree – seemed much like a stump without much new growth.

Thus, Isaiah’s words are truly words of hope! Isaiah points to a coming king – a coming Messiah – who would come from both the roots and the stump of Jesse’s family tree. Of course, when we think about Jesus, he seems to fit this promise. In human terms, he is a descendant of David through his father, Joseph (Mt. 1). Although our modern minds might have some difficulty with this concept, the gospel of Matthew makes it clear that God is the actual Father of Jesus, but Jesus still would have been considered a descendant of Joseph. This is because Joseph claimed Jesus as his own by agreeing to take Mary as his wife and raise Jesus as his son (Interpreter’s Bible, Vol. 7). As far as anybody in the first century would have been concerned, Jesus was a descendant of David.

Yet, at the same time, the Scriptures make it clear that Jesus in his divine nature had always existed and that all things were created through him (Heb. 1:2). Thus, Jesus could also be considered as the “root of Jesse” (Isa. 11:10) - i.e. the root of David’s family tree. It’s a concept that Jesus himself plays around with as he poses a question to the crowd. He asks them how the Messiah can be both the Son of David, as well as David’s Lord (Mk. 12:35-37). Of course, it’s a question that the crowd cannot answer.

Now, all of this news about a coming Messiah would give us little reason to hope if it weren’t for the description that follows. You see, this won’t be your usual kind of king – you know: the kings that are greedy for gain and take what they want from their subjects and go to war all the time. Instead, this king will be absolutely directed by God’s Spirit. He will have unusual wisdom and insight. He won’t simply judge by appearances or listen to hearsay. Instead, he will uphold the cause of the poor and will actually pursue righteousness and justice. It will be the wicked who will be slain by his words, and not the meek and the poor and the unpopular.

Yet, even this would not give us any reason to hope if the Messiah was to be only for the Jewish people. Isaiah makes it clear that this ideal ruler will be for all people. He will be for the peoples - the nations - the Gentiles. As Paul puts it in Romans: “In him the Gentiles shall hope” (15:12). In Jesus was to be found the hope of all people, as he came once for the salvation of all.

At the same time, we find in Isaiah a vision of hope which has not yet been fully realized. It is the vision of the peaceable kingdom, where all creation lives in harmony – even the wolf and the lamb, the cow and the bear, the nursing child and the venomous snakes! It is the kingdom where neither people nor animals hurt or destroy any more. It is the kingdom where all people know God intimately and live in God’s love.

This is a vision that helps us to know what it is like in the kingdom of God. It is also a vision that helps us to know God’s will for us and for all of creation. It is a stark contrast to the many claims that we hear these days about God apparently telling people to hurt or destroy. If God is telling people such things, then it is a false god, and certainly not the God who is revealed to us through Jesus Christ. Our God wants all people to know him and to live together in harmony, peace and justice!

Our God also calls us today through the Scriptures to live by the Holy Spirit and to bear fruit that is worthy of repentance. This is the call that goes out to us here and now and comes from two prophets: Isaiah & John the Baptist. Hopefully at least some of you were reminded of baptism when you heard the words, “the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord” (Isa. 11:2). There is a prayer that is part of both the service of Holy Baptism and the confirmation service that uses these words from Isaiah. It is the prayer for the Holy Spirit – the Spirit of Jesus – the same Spirit that is given to us in Baptism.

God’s call to us today is to remember the covenant of our Baptism – to live by the Spirit of Jesus – to follow the example of the one who came in love for the sake of the world. As children of God, we are called to imitate our big brother, Jesus, allowing the Holy Spirit to lead us into righteousness, justice, and faithfulness in our lives. We are also reminded to seek the truth with wisdom and insight, rather than making hasty judgments based on appearances or on things that we have heard. We are called to seek justice for all people, and not simply cater to the rich and the popular.

All of this is part of bearing fruit – something that simply doesn’t happen without the power of the Holy Spirit. John the Baptist’s words to the Pharisees and Sadducees might just as well be words to us: “Bear fruit worthy of repentance” (Mt. 3:8). You might recall that the fruit of the Spirit includes things like love and joy and peace and faithfulness and gentleness. It strikes me that many people could use such fruit this time of year.

In a world where many people are simply having the life sucked out of them by all of the things that we think we “should” be doing, the image emerges of a tree bearing fruit in the midst of the wilderness. In the midst of a season that has actually become quite insane, John the Baptist appears – perhaps not quite our picture of sanity, but calling us back to the things that really are important. Are we aware as Jesus comes to us again and again? Do we recognize him each time that we meet him?

“The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control” (Gal. 5:22-23). May each one of us produce more and more of these fruits as we bloom and grow, nurtured by God’s Spirit in the wilderness of this world. Amen.

Advent 2(A) Isaiah 11:1-10
December 9, 2007 Matthew 3:1-12
St. Luke’s Zion Lutheran Church
Pastor Lynne Hutchison Moore

© 2007 Lynne Hutchison Moore All Rights Reserved