Christmas, The Gift, The Peaceable Kingdom
Scripture: Isaiah 11:1-10, Matthew 1:1-17
The Christmas season has many wonderful traditions. Does everyone here know of the "tradition" of kissing under the mistletoe? The history of kissing under the mistletoe is from ancient Scandinavian customs and Norse myths. If enemies met beneath mistletoe, they laid down their arms and maintained a truce until the next day. You see, for the Norse, the Mistletoe was a symbol of love, peace, and goodwill.
Throughout the Bible, we repeatedly find this idea of love, peace, and goodwill. Isaiah is a fine example. If there is a fifth Gospel, it is the Book of Isaiah. That is because Isaiah talks so much about Christ. Isaiah predicts that, because of the sins of its people, the Davidic dynasty will end, and all that remains will be the stump of its family tree. Isaiah then speaks of the genealogy of Jesus and states that out of the stump of Jesse’s family tree a “shoot,” a fresh stem will emerge. That stem, that stump, is the birth of Jesus. Further, Isaiah says that the church will emerge and reach out to the Gentiles. He also prophesizes that love, peace, and goodwill come when Christ rules the earth.
Isaiah 11:1-10, “1 There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots. 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 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 smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips, he shall slay the wicked. Righteousness shall be the girdle of his waist, and faithfulness the girdle of his loins. 6 The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid, and the calf and the lion and the fatling together, and a little child shall lead them. 7 The cow and the bear shall feed; their young shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. 8 The sucking child shall play over the hole of the asp, 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.”
As we read this passage from Isaiah, it is important to understand that Isaiah describes the birth of Christ and His thousand-year reign. Then the wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, and the calf, lion, and the yearling will live together.
Jesus, the Prince of Peace, is the source of everlasting peace every human heart desperately wants. In a world torn by war and economic hardship this season, how can we find the kind of peace that Isaiah predicts can be ours? We feel the Prince of Peace in three ways.
The first way of knowing the Prince of Peace is, "A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots, a Branch will bear fruit.” The prophet Isaiah lived during the eighth century B.C. That is a significant date because it marks the time of the fall of the ten Northern tribes of Israel to the Assyrian Empire, the world’s only superpower at that time. We find in the first ten chapters of Isaiah that Israel was facing God's judgment because of her unfaithfulness in serving the gods of the nations around her. Isaiah prophesies that the Assyrians would invade Israel and carry her into exile.
In chapter 11:1, Isaiah says that the “stump of Jesse” is the LORD. Jesse was the father of King David. This is the only time in the Old Testament that David’s line is called by His father’s name.
Wood was precious in the dry land of Israel. The Assyrian invaders chopped down this resource. The only thing left were the stumps of trees. By the time the Messiah arrived, seven hundred years later, the house of David was nothing but an insignificant stump in Israel. "Then a shoot will spring from the stem of Jesse, and a branch from his roots will bear fruit." God would raise a tender branch, a baby named Jesus.
When I was a boy, we had an Oak tree that grew between our driveway and our neighbor’s. We cut that tree down to a stump. A fresh shoot grew from the stump and grew until it once again towered over our neighbor's property line. That is like what Isaiah says here. Regardless of the destruction of David’s family tree, the Messiah will come as a small shoot. That shoot will grow into a mighty Branch and Christianity will fill the world.
The beginnings of the Messiah were exceedingly small, “a baby warped in swaddling clothing.” Jesus came at a time when the descendants of David had reached the deepest humiliation and obscurity. However, this lowly shoot did bear fruit; that was the purpose of its growth. The house of David had become so insignificant, unimportant. The name of David has fallen to the level at which it stood when his father Jesse bore the honor of the family name before David's glory as king.
Isaiah portrays to the people of Israel a message of hope. That is what God has cut off and what He restores. That the One who judges His people for their sins is also the One who forgives them and restores Peace. Isaiah’s message to Israel is that they know this coming Prince of Peace.
Missionary Don Richardson served many years among the primitive tribes in Papua New Guinea and wrote a book about his work entitled The Peace Child. He wrote how in translating the Scriptures into the native tribesmen's language, he could find no words to express how Jesus came to give His life so that we might have peace with God. In his book, he relates how he finally found the answer in the culture of the native people themselves. Two tribes in Papua maintained a blood feud between themselves for several generations. Each generation fought and nursed their wounds only to fight again killing and maiming more and more people. It was like the Hatfield's and McCoy's. Finally, after years of struggle, the two tribes realized that they must stop fighting or nothing would be left of their people. What could they do to end years of warring between the two tribes? The chiefs of the two tribes came together and brought a child they called “the Peace Child”. This child was the son of one of the opposing chiefs that he gave for adoption into the family of the other chief. As long as that child lived, the two chiefs promised to cease fighting so all could live. Don Richardson had finally found a perfect picture of God’s love for us in sending His Son, the Prince of Peace.
This morning, you may feel like the people of Israel. Perhaps something you suddenly feel “cut off”. Your, dreams, hopes, and aspirations seem to have disappeared like so much smoke. All that is left is the stump of unrealized expectations. The Good News of the Gospel, God wants you to know that He is the Restorer of dreams, He is the Restorer of hope, and He is the Restorer of your aspirations. Jesus is still the “Peace Child”, the “Prince of Peace” who longs to come afresh into your life and work the miracle of his peace in your heart.
Not only did Israel need to know the Prince of Peace, but Isaiah also says people needed to know and understand the Source of Peace, “The Spirit of the LORD will rest upon Him. ... and he will judge the needy with righteousness, with justice he will make decisions for the poor and faithfulness will be the sash about his waist.”
Israel needed to understand the Source of Peace. Israel was a nation that stood on the brink of war and devastation. They lived in the shadow of a cruel and repressive world superpower that was poised for a land grab. Yet the people continued to live in debauchery all the while wondering why they had no lasting sense of peace. Isaiah cried out to Israel that the source of peace of lasting peace is none other than the Branch of the LORD. He enumerates His qualifications in verse 2, “the Spirit of the LORD will rest on Him. And He will be filled with the spirit of wisdom and understanding” making him wise. He would have understanding that would enable Him to make decisions based on their quality, not on what was expedient. The spirit of counsel that he alone is qualified to "give" counsel or advice they so desperately needed. The Prince of Peace will have the strength of heart and purpose shall enable Him to carry out His decisions. Of knowledge, He will know the plans and will of God. And of the fear of the LORD that He would have reverence for God’s commands.”
Isaiah implores Israel to follow the Messiah for He is the Source of Peace. In verses 4-5, Isaiah indicates the four characteristics of Messiah’s rule:
1. “He will judge the needy with righteousness” or rightness of decision, deciding rightly on their behalf. No longer will they suffer the oppression of the rich.
2. Isaiah says, “With justice, he will make decisions for the poor.” Justice and fairness will characterize His reign.
3. Verse 4, “With the rod of his mouth he will slay the wicked.” The “rod of His mouth” is better translated as “the scepter of His mouth”. That by the words of His mouth He will pass sentence on the wicked.
4. In verse 5, “faithfulness will be the sash around His waist.” Firmness and stability will characterize His rule. The Davidic Messiah’s rule is completely contrary to the way people were behaving in Israel. The Israelites had perverted justice. God revokes His blessing. The result was the people lived in constant fear of the neighboring nations. In their Nation, they had no sense of peace. Isaiah assures them that there is a way to find peace and he calls them to repentance.
We need to understand the Source of Peace. Our world longs for peace. We live in a world of continuing wars and conflict in a society where injustice and unrighteousness abound. In one form or another this has victimized each of us. If we admit it, we too are sinners and not only have we been sinned against, but we have also sinned against others. We need to repent so that we may find peace. This is why we pray, “Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.” Peace, all of us long for it, yet for some reason stubbornly we refuse to yield to Him whom “the Spirit of the LORD Rests upon.” We long for wisdom yet we fail to ask for it. We lack understanding yet do not go to Him who possesses it. We need counsel and advice but choose not to listen. We beg to know God’s will for our lives yet fall short of asking Him who knows it in detail.
Peace is easy to spot. When Quakers broke the food blockade on Germany and Austria during World War I, the motivation was not an emotional love toward the German cause; their motivation was a higher call, the call to peace. They seem to have been correct. In the late 1930s and early 1940s, Quaker relief groups, and they only, were allowed to rescue Jews inside Germany even at the height of the war. Because the Quaker's Christian commitment to peace made an impression on the good German people who, like the Jews, Hitler's lies had also trapped. Good German's were able to use the past good works of the Quakers to allay Nazis fears of this relief group.
Do you need peace this season? Then come to the manger, come to Christ; He is the Prince of Peace. Have you been victimized by unrighteousness, have injustice and unfaithfulness cut a swath across your path? Then come to Christ. He will vindicate you, He will make the wrong right, and He will be faithful to you even when others are not.
Not only did Israel need to know the Prince of Peace, the Source of Peace, but Isaiah said they needed to experience the restoration of peace. Isaiah 11:6-10, “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.”
Israel Needed to Experience the Restoration of Peace. In verses 6-10, Isaiah’s prophecy goes far beyond the immediate context of Israel’s time and even beyond the birth of Christ. Isaiah refers to the time that has not yet come, a wonderful time. In these verses, Isaiah looks far into the future and predicts the establishment of Christ’s millennial Kingdom and universal peace. Isaiah predicts three ways in which we will experience the Messiah’s peace.
1. Verses 6-8, there is the restoration of peace in nature. “The wolf will live with the lamb, the lion will eat straw like the ox, and an infant will play near the hole of the cobra.”
2. Verse 9, there is also the restoration of peace over the earth and natural elements. “For the earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea.”
3. Verse 10, There is the restoration of peace over the nations. "In that day the Root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the peoples; the nations will rally to Him.”
In this picture of the Messiah’s kingdom, Isaiah looks beyond the scope of Israel’s sin and her judgment. The people learn that even when God speaks of judgment, he also offers hope to His people. Did God mean to destroy Israel and forget her? No. The day is coming when sin will cease to prevail, when judgment gives way to forgiveness and restoration gives way to peace and instead of violence, peace will cover the earth.
We need to experience the Restoration of Peace. Isaiah predicts a beautiful vision, but we who read will not take full shape until Jesus comes again in all his glory. There is just not enough righteousness and faithfulness available in this world, and not enough people who are committed to practicing peace instead of violence. In the meantime, in this Christmas season of preparation and the days beyond, we can graft our lives to the Shoot that has emerged from the stump of Jesse and pray for his peace to fill us and transform us. Isaiah's prophesies rest in peace this Christmas knowing God is in control. He promises a time when “The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid, and the calf and the lion and the fatling together, and a little child shall lead them.”
