There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit. Isaiah 11:1
While many North American Christian churches don't make much out of images and pictures, the season of Advent is actually filled with them. Sure, we get our share of words that don't really have any kind of picture with them (joy, peace, hope and the like), but we also get a good number of pictures like this one from Isaiah. The stump of Jesse having a single shoot that will spring forth from it and bear fruit.
There are a number of things about this image worthy of our reflection. First, I simply want to encourage you to picture this in your mind. Perhaps it evokes something from your past, where you have seen a stump of a tree with a branch growing up out of it. Picture it in your mind. Think about what you are seeing there.
Perhaps in your image you see the stump. It's cut off, relatively close to the ground. It could be newly cut down or perhaps is weathered and aged. Yet, no matter how you picture it, you cannot deny one thing: it has been cut down. No longer is a living, vibrant tree found there. The promise and hope of life is gone. All that is left is a sad reminder of what used to stand there, strong, tall and powerful.
Yet, even from this dead stump, there still exists the hope of life. That's what the shoot indicates. It is fresh. Perhaps in your image you see newly formed leaves, budding with a vibrant green filled with life. Life emerges where death had been found. That life grows, reaching upward and becoming strong and vibrant, finally getting to the point where it bears fruit once again.
That is the image that God gave to His people through Isaiah. There are several interesting things with this reading, as well. First is the use of the name Jesse. While the promise of an everlasting ruler had been given to David, here Isaiah mentions David's father as the stump. It's a reminder that God isn't impressed with our greatness, but with humility. Jesse pales in comparison to his son David, and yet, the stump bears Jesse's name.
Another thing is that this word spoken by Isaiah came while there was still a descendant of David sitting on the throne in Jerusalem. Isaiah lived in the time to see the northern kingdom of Israel conquered and marched off into exile, but he was not around at the time when the Babylonian army conquered Judah and Jerusalem. Isaiah spoke God's Word, that the kingly line would be cut off, appearing dead. Yet, even death would not deter God from fulfilling His promise. A shoot would arise from that stump, and that shoot would grow to become a branch that would bear fruit.
As you reflect on this image, what do you find in your life that God may be saying needs to be cut off and die? What new life is God working to raise up from the death of that? As you reflect, may you also be reminded that God's Spirit is at work to bear that fruit in your life.
While many North American Christian churches don't make much out of images and pictures, the season of Advent is actually filled with them. Sure, we get our share of words that don't really have any kind of picture with them (joy, peace, hope and the like), but we also get a good number of pictures like this one from Isaiah. The stump of Jesse having a single shoot that will spring forth from it and bear fruit.
There are a number of things about this image worthy of our reflection. First, I simply want to encourage you to picture this in your mind. Perhaps it evokes something from your past, where you have seen a stump of a tree with a branch growing up out of it. Picture it in your mind. Think about what you are seeing there.
Perhaps in your image you see the stump. It's cut off, relatively close to the ground. It could be newly cut down or perhaps is weathered and aged. Yet, no matter how you picture it, you cannot deny one thing: it has been cut down. No longer is a living, vibrant tree found there. The promise and hope of life is gone. All that is left is a sad reminder of what used to stand there, strong, tall and powerful.
Yet, even from this dead stump, there still exists the hope of life. That's what the shoot indicates. It is fresh. Perhaps in your image you see newly formed leaves, budding with a vibrant green filled with life. Life emerges where death had been found. That life grows, reaching upward and becoming strong and vibrant, finally getting to the point where it bears fruit once again.
That is the image that God gave to His people through Isaiah. There are several interesting things with this reading, as well. First is the use of the name Jesse. While the promise of an everlasting ruler had been given to David, here Isaiah mentions David's father as the stump. It's a reminder that God isn't impressed with our greatness, but with humility. Jesse pales in comparison to his son David, and yet, the stump bears Jesse's name.
Another thing is that this word spoken by Isaiah came while there was still a descendant of David sitting on the throne in Jerusalem. Isaiah lived in the time to see the northern kingdom of Israel conquered and marched off into exile, but he was not around at the time when the Babylonian army conquered Judah and Jerusalem. Isaiah spoke God's Word, that the kingly line would be cut off, appearing dead. Yet, even death would not deter God from fulfilling His promise. A shoot would arise from that stump, and that shoot would grow to become a branch that would bear fruit.
As you reflect on this image, what do you find in your life that God may be saying needs to be cut off and die? What new life is God working to raise up from the death of that? As you reflect, may you also be reminded that God's Spirit is at work to bear that fruit in your life.
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