DECEMBER 4TH
The Christmas Branch
Isaiah 11:1-10 A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit. The Spirit of the Lord will rest on him— the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of might, the Spirit of the knowledge and fear of the Lord— and he will delight in the fear of the Lord. He will not judge by what he sees with his eyes, or decide by what he hears with his ears; but with righteousness he will judge the needy, with justice he will give decisions for the poor of the earth. He will strike the earth with the rod of his mouth; with the breath of his lips he will slay the wicked. Righteousness will be his belt and faithfulness the sash around his waist. The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, the calf and the lion and the yearling together; and a little child will lead them. The cow will feed with the bear, their young will lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox. The infant will play near the cobra’s den, and the young child will put its hand into the viper’s nest. They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain, for the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. In that day the Root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the peoples; the nations will rally to him, and his resting place will be glorious.
If you think about it, the whole idea of a Christmas tree is strange. We go outside into the cold, cut down a tree, and drag it inside. Then we decorate this dying tree with lights and ornaments. We can’t bring it back to life, but we water it just enough to keep it green until Christmas is over and the needles begin to turn brown and drop on the floor. We then take all the decorations off and drag the dead tree outside to the curb or in some cases, burn it. It's all pretty strange, isn't it? The significance of the Christmas tree is not found in the tree itself but what it represents. The evergreen tree points to Heaven and represents eternal life. But the Christmas tree that was cut down is also dead. The stump left behind is also dead. But even though these things are dead, God has promised that from something dead, something living will spring forth. It was true thousands of years ago and it is true even now.
In today's passage of scripture, Isaiah describes a people who had rejected God. They had turned from Him and instead lived according to sinful human desires. God promised there would be a living branch that would come from this dead stump; this is a reference to the remnant or small portion of people who keep loving God and staying obedient even though they are in the minority. That living branch would lead to a shoot that would produce fruit, which is a description of Jesus who came through the lineage of Jesse, the father of King David. How incredible is that? Jesus came from the stump of Jesse. The royal authority of the house of David was dormant for 600 years when Jesus came as King and Messiah. When Jesus came forth, it was like a new green branch coming from a dead stump. The branch that comes from the dead stump isn’t just barely alive, it is full of life and full of the Spirit of the Lord. It was also promised that the Spirit of the Lord would rest on Him; a Spirit of wisdom, understanding, counsel, might, knowledge, justice, and obedience to the Father. The good news is not that a baby was born, but that a mighty warrior was born. The good news is what this baby would grow up to do:undo the damage that took place and make a way for people who were dead to also come alive again.
The evergreen tree doesn't just represent Jesus, but us as well. We were created to live forever, but in our sin, we have died spiritually. The point is that Jesus makes dead things come alive again. It is who He is! He did it physically with Lazarus but in the spiritual, any person who puts their faith in Him moves from being spiritually dead to alive in Christ. From a dead stump, something living can come again that will produce fruit. In that way, we can be like Jesus and every time we see a Christmas tree we should be reminded of the life we have in Christ.
In today's passage of scripture, Isaiah describes a people who had rejected God. They had turned from Him and instead lived according to sinful human desires. God promised there would be a living branch that would come from this dead stump; this is a reference to the remnant or small portion of people who keep loving God and staying obedient even though they are in the minority. That living branch would lead to a shoot that would produce fruit, which is a description of Jesus who came through the lineage of Jesse, the father of King David. How incredible is that? Jesus came from the stump of Jesse. The royal authority of the house of David was dormant for 600 years when Jesus came as King and Messiah. When Jesus came forth, it was like a new green branch coming from a dead stump. The branch that comes from the dead stump isn’t just barely alive, it is full of life and full of the Spirit of the Lord. It was also promised that the Spirit of the Lord would rest on Him; a Spirit of wisdom, understanding, counsel, might, knowledge, justice, and obedience to the Father. The good news is not that a baby was born, but that a mighty warrior was born. The good news is what this baby would grow up to do:undo the damage that took place and make a way for people who were dead to also come alive again.
The evergreen tree doesn't just represent Jesus, but us as well. We were created to live forever, but in our sin, we have died spiritually. The point is that Jesus makes dead things come alive again. It is who He is! He did it physically with Lazarus but in the spiritual, any person who puts their faith in Him moves from being spiritually dead to alive in Christ. From a dead stump, something living can come again that will produce fruit. In that way, we can be like Jesus and every time we see a Christmas tree we should be reminded of the life we have in Christ.