Advent Devotion: Isaiah 11:1-10

Isaiah 11:1-10

There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse,
    and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit.
2 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.
3 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,
4 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.
5 Righteousness shall be the belt of his waist,
    and faithfulness the belt of his loins.

6 The wolf shall dwell with the lamb,
    and the leopard shall lie down with the young goat,
and the calf and the lion and the fattened calf together;
    and a little child shall lead them.
7 The cow and the bear shall graze;
    their young shall lie down together;
    and the lion shall eat straw like the ox.
8 The nursing child shall play over the hole of the cobra,
    and the weaned child shall put his hand on the adder's den.
9 They shall not hurt or destroy
    in all my holy mountain;
for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord
    as the waters cover the sea.

10 In that day the root of Jesse, who shall stand as a signal for the peoples—of him shall the nations inquire, and his resting place shall be glorious.

The picture that Isaiah paints of a future peace and perfect harmony of the whole creation is one that we long for each day. What a wonderful world it would be if we didn't have to worry about the next shooting, bombing, rape, break-in, or stolen identity. If we could trust everyone we met and know they had our best interests at heart, and we had theirs. If we didn't have to cringe every time we turned on the television  news and saw another senseless massacre of life. If we didn't check out Facebook just to see what our pals are doing and look at pictures of their kids only to be bombarded with political rhetoric of the nastiest sort. If we could simply agree to disagree without taking pot shots at one another! If we knew our children were safe as we put them on the bus each day. If dogs didn't attack, and if there was enough food for every person, and each precious child of the world had access to education. 

If, if, if.

That's a lot of ifs.

Isaiah proclaims a future time when God's kingdom will reign in this way, where his righteous branch of Jesse will be govern with equity and holiness. Where the impossible is possible and the unheard of is not a dream. In this Advent season we await that time as we look for the return of Christ. It is nothing to fear, but every thing to look forward to with hope and faith. In the meantime we see glimpses of this peaceful kingdom - they are fleeting to be sure, but they are there if we use the eyes of faith to take a look. 

Where have you seen the inbreaking of this peaceful kingdom of God in your midst? 

Holy God, bring forth your righteous rule over the creation. Bring a lasting peace and unity amongst all races and nations. Come Lord Jesus to reign over us in holiness and love. Amen.

Photocredit: kopfjaeger (Morguefile)