Advent Day 15 Isaiah 11:1-5

“There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit. And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding,the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge, and the fear of the Lord. And his delight shall be in the fear of the Lord. He shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide disputes by what his ears hear, but with righteousness he shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; and he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked. Righteousness shall be the belt of his waist, and faithfulness the belt of his loins.” (Isaiah 11:1-5 ESV)

Jesse was the Father of David. David, having entered into a covenant with the Lord that His line shall have an everlasting Kingdom and Kingship. (2 Samuel 7)  Jesus is the branch that bore fruit according to this messianic prophecy.  

The intertwining of scripture is visible in these verses. “And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him.” If we examine this verse, we find something almost identical in the Gospel of John, Chapter 1, verse 32. John wrote of John the Baptist, who said,  “I saw the Spirit descend from heaven like a dove, and it remained on him.” John is speaking of the Spirit of God. We also know that the Holy Spirit provides and edifies us. All of the things that the Spirit is can be found in verses 2-5. Jesus tells the apostles something similar when He told them about the coming of the Holy Spirit and the things He (the Spirit) would provide to them. (John 14:15-26)

Isaiah goes on to tell us of the righteousness of Christ, how He shall judge with authority and wrath against the wicked. We see Jesus tell us this very thing in John 22-24, where He says,  “For the Father judges no one, but has given all judgment to the Son, that all may honor the Son, just as they honor the Father. Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent him. Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.” Jesus also said in verse 27,  ^“And he has given him authority to execute judgment, because he is the Son of Man.”

It is the fulfillment of Scripture that reveals the inerrancy of Scripture. It gives us confidence that God is faithful and true in His Word. It provides assurance of our eternal life with Christ.

All of this is found in the infant born to poverty, laid in a borrowed manger, persecuted and murdered, laid in a borrowed tomb, and raised to glory defeating sin and death, Christ Jesus.

This Advent, let us remember the true reason for the Word that became flesh. Let us wonder, did Mary have any idea how Jesus' life would progress and end? Were the words of Simeon a sword that pierced her heart as he suggested in the temple? On this side of the cross, we are thankful and have faith in our Savior. The same faith that caused three men to travel a great distance to see a child king whose birth was foretold. The same faith that saves.

Grace and Peace.

Advent Prayer Day 15

Father God,

We rejoice in the birth of our Savior, Christ Jesus.

As we celebrate this Advent, Father, help us remember the path of Christ.

Help us to consider all those He healed, the demons cast out, and those raised to life.

Those who witnessed these things are important to our understanding of the purpose of the infant Jesus.

He would change everything about the world. He whose name, more than 2000 years later, still brings hope to the faithful and fear to the workers of evil.

Help us, Lord, to be loving and merciful all the days of our lives so that we may be pleasing to You in all that we do.

We ask this in Jesus' name, Amen.