Isaiah 11
The Reign of a Righteous King
The Righteous Ruler vs. 1-5
The Ideal Kingdom vs. 6-9
The Gathering of Nations vs. 10-16
Intro:
God gives us glimpses into his future plans
We see that this morning in Isaiah 11
He is once again giving us a Messianic prophecy
But this time we get little information about his birth and a bunch of info on his rule
We see what life will be like when Jesus rules on the earth
It is such a contrast to what we see today where there is no peace
During the reign of Christ peace will rule for 1000 years
As you look back over history you start to realize how amazing this is
My two oldest are studying California history right now
They are learning how California because part of the USA
Right now we are in Mission stage
That means they are learning everything about the Missions and what purpose they served
In fact we are having to construct two different missions
I spent the whole weekend cutting styrofoam
The methods of the Catholic priests during that time was to bring in the Native Indians and convert them by making them Spanish looking and acting
It didn’t work because the Indians went back to their old lives as soon as the missions closed
We never bring peace when we try to convert people to be like us
But when the Holy Spirit works in someone’s heart and they come to Christ… peace resides
That peace will be forever when Jesus comes back for a second time
This morning we are going to see the righteous reign of the King of Kings
Read
Transition: From the Line of David
For anyone to be considered a messiah or ruler in Israel they had to fulfill prophecy
First and foremost was that they had to be from the blood line of David
Matt 1 shows us the lineage of Jesus and how his father was part of that
Many scholars believe that Mary was actually from the blood lines as well
So Jesus descended from David
Acts 13:22-23 I have found in David the son of Jesse a man after my heart, who will do all my will.’ 23 Of this man’s offspring God has brought to Israel a Savior, Jesus, as he promised.
So a savior was to come out of the branch of Jesse
This provides credibility because there is nothing the Israelites want more than to return to the glory days
They want a king in the image of David
Jesus fulfilled that but not in the way the Jews expected
Jesus came to save us from our sins before he comes to save the church from the world
The Righteous Ruler vs. 1-5
So let’s look at this righteous ruler who is coming
We see three things that will set him apart
Full of the Spirit
The first thing we see is that He will be full of the Spirit
Jesus was full of the Holy Spirit
Matt 3:16 And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him; 17 and behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.”
This is what allowed him to minister by teaching and doing signs and wonders
He wasn’t humanly capable before that
But once he was filled he went about doing amazing things
Is 61:1 The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound;
We could recount story after story of how Jesus accomplished all of these
He preached the Gospel to everyone, he healed those who were sick, cast out demons
All of this was through the power of the Holy Spirit
But here is the thing he also said that the Spirit would be available to us
John 7:37-39 On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. 38 Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’ ” 39 Now this he said about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were to receive, for as yet the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.
The Holy Spirit in our lives is like rivers of living water
It’s life that grows fruit in us and empowers us to use the gifts God has given us
Many people today are operating without the Spirit in them
We have been operating under our own power and wisdom
The Holy Spirit gives us guidance, understanding of the Word of God, and a holy reverence
This needs to come on a daily basis, we need to be filled continually
A person once asked DL Moody why they needed to be continually filled with the Holy Spirit
His simple reply was that we leak
Are you full of the Spirit? Or are you dry and feeling thirsty
If you are feeling that thirst it is the Holy Spirit working on your heart
Delight’s in the fear of the Lord
The next characteristic we see in Christ is that He delighted in the fear of the Lord
That seems like a contradiction
Who delights in fear?
What kind of parent would treat their child this way?
Fear means to have a dread of an impending distress or misfortune
This doesn’t seem like a loving God and anybody who has a delight in that is kind of masochistic
Why would Jesus delight in an impending distress?
We have to remember that God is holy and nothing that is holy can be in his presence
What Jesus feared was not retribution for some kind of sin but in separation from God
He so delighted being in the presence of God that he feared being out of it
Any sin would exclude him from the wonderful presence
Do you want to know why parents can’t get their children to listen or obey?
It’s because the child has no fear of the parent
We talk to them, threaten them, send to a time out in the corner, but rarely act on their disobedience
We have trained them so that they can act anyway they want because they have no fear of any consequence
They are going to lose something or suffer something so they keep doing what they're doing
It is only when they fear the consequences will they respond accordingly
The best thing my mother taught me about parenting was that she was not my friend
She said we could be friends after I grow up but until then she didn’t care if I liked her
Jesus feared being out of the presence of His Father
That is why he cried out on the cross “Why have you forsaken, or turned your back on me.
It was the first time Christ had not been in the presence of God
We should be so broken over our sin not just because of what we have done, but because it has separated us from the presence of the almighty God
Judge Rightly
The final righteous characteristic that we see is that he will judge rightly
Jesus will be the righteous judge
That judging won’t be by what he sees or what he hears but by the pure holiness and righteous of God his Father
We saw glimpses of this while Jesus walked the earth
When he ran into the Samaritan woman at the well
He didn’t judge her by her appearance, or by what she told him
He judged her by the Godly righteousness that the Holy Spirit bestowed upon him
He read her mail by telling her that she had been married five times and was shacking up with a guy who wasn't her husband
When we stand before God we won’t be able to explain ourselves out of our situation
He will see our lives for what they are and pronounce judgment
He will judge the poor and the meek rightly after they have been neglected and taken advantage of here on earth
He will judge the wicked of this earth and strike them down
Do you know the battle of armageddon, that famous battle to come, will consist of Jesus opening up his mouth and slaying all of the enemy?
Rev 19:11-15 Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war. 12 His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems, and he has a name written that no one knows but himself. 13 He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God. 14 And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following him on white horses. 15 From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty.
I think that is the ultimate BOOYAH!
With his mouth he will strike down the nations and rule with a rod of iron
Psalm 2:7-9 I will tell of the decree: The Lord said to me, “You are my Son; today I have begotten you. Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage, and the ends of the earth your possession. You shall break them with a rod of iron and dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel.”
The Ideal Kingdom vs. 6-9
What will be the result of this righteous ruler?
He will establish an ideal kingdom
Look at what is going to happen when Christ returns
animals who were mortal enemies will be at peace with one another
Little children will lead herds of once violent animals
Lions are going to eat straw, not other animals
Hosea 2:18 And I will make for them a covenant on that day with the beasts of the field, the birds of the heavens, and the creeping things of the ground. And I will abolish the bow, the sword, and war from the land, and I will make you lie down in safety.
It goes even further
Nursing Children will play over the holes of cobras
I don’t know about you but it would have to be a radically peaceful place for me to let my newborn play anywhere near a snake, let alone a cobra
But it gets even better
At the end of vs. 8 it says that the weaned child will stick his hand in the adder’s den
In the ESV I didn’t know what that meant at first, thought it was something like a badger
But then I looked at the NKJV and it says Viper
That just made the parenting hairs on the back of my neck stand straight up
But that is how much peace Christ is going to bring
Because we will be able to say to our child: “Leave the viper alone, he is trying to sleep.”
How is this possible?
Because the whole earth, man, beast, and plant, will be filled with the knowledge of the Lord
Hab 2:14 For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.
It will be so pervasive that it will affect every area of our lives
The Gathering of Nations vs. 10-16
The final result of this righteous ruler is that he will gather the nations
Is 2:2-3 It shall come to pass in the latter days that the mountain of the house of the Lord shall be established as the highest of the mountains, and shall be lifted up above the hills; and all the nations shall flow to it, and many peoples shall come, and say: “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob, that he may teach us his ways and that we may walk in his paths.”
Jesus is going to bring unity that has never been seen
People and nations will seek out the wisdom and knowledge of Jesus Christ
He will set his throne in Jerusalem and people will climb the mountain to get to him
They will not only submit to his role as ruler but willingly seek him out
Why? So that they can walk in his paths
After all these thousands years of rejecting his Word and walking according to their own desires the world will desire to follow him
That is what happens when we come into contact with the righteousness of God
It shows us our shortcomings and our need for him
Closing:
