Root

Isaiah 11:1-5 (NIV)

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 power,
the Spirit of knowledge and of the 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.

Sometimes, life may look lost...only to return when we least expect it.

Have you ever seen an old stump, the remains of a once tall tree...send up a new shoot?

I can think of a sweetgum tree that I once cut down. I didn't like where it was and the prickly balls it produced each fall were an annoyance in our yard.

The tree didn't care. It grew back. It's what they do.

Often, a tree that grows back from an old stump will be even stronger and more vigorous than the original.

In the south, each spring we see crape myrtles pruned back severely. The new growth comes rapidly, with wonderful blooms in the summer.

"Jesse" was the father of King David. He was the ancestor of the royal line of Judah. By the time Isaiah wrote these words, that proud tree had been brought low.

God's people lived in exile, but still held hope that one day the old, seemingly dead stump might yet spring to life.

Christmas, then, as well as Easter, is a celebration of life in the face of death.

Before Jesus rose from the tomb on Easter morning, he was born...like the first green shoot that rises from its ancient roots.

He is the anointed one, the messiah, the Lion of the Tribe of Judah, a King in the line of David...from the "stump" of Jesse.

"From his roots, a branch will bear fruit." As that branch bears fruit, may we learn to also be "branches," connected to Christ the vine.

Prayer: May the roots of Jesse give life this Advent season, and bear fruit in the life of Christ all around us.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be. World without end. Amen.

Tomorrow's Scripture: Romans 15:4-13