Sharing Thankfulness

HIGHLIGHT: Isaiah 11:1-9

A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit. 2 The Spirit of the Lord will rest on him— the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of might, the Spirit of the knowledge and fear of the Lord— 3 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; 4 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. 5 Righteousness will be his belt and faithfulness the sash around his waist.

6 The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, the calf and the lion and the yearling[a] together; and a little child will lead them. 7 The cow will feed with the bear, their young will lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox. 8 The infant will play near the cobra’s den, and the young child will put its hand into the viper’s nest. 9 They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain, for the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.

EXPLAIN: This is known as a Messianic passage. A passage that points to a good leader that will come about, that God will send to His people. This leader will lead them into the ways of God and the betterment of life.

He writes some important things to know about the messiah. 1) The messiah will come through the lineage of King David - as a continuation of the promise God made to David. 2) Notice the wisdom, understanding, counsel, might, knowledge and fear of the Lord (the beginning of wisdom) comes from God. 3) This leader/king will delight in obeying God, not judge by appearance, bring about justice and wear righteousness for everyone to see. These are three ways the leader will live out their commitment to God.

What happens because of their leadership? There will be peace that is evident for everyone to see. It is listed as predator and prey. It is important to know, however, that Isaiah is speaking to people. Therefore, this peace will be for the people. it also points back to a time of creation, where things worked the way they were supposed to work.

APPLY: As Christians, we believe this prophecy has been fulfilled in Jesus the Christ. He has come to this earth and brought the Kingdom of God through his fulfillment of who God is and wants to be in our lives.

When Jesus came, we know that 1) he was from the lineage of King David, 2) He often spent time in prayer seeking the Father's wisdom, 3) and Jesus did everything to obey and bring His Heavenly Father glory by loving everyone and helping his followers to seek justice.

When Jesus returned to sit at his Father's side, he empowered the Church to live out these things. He sent the Holy Spirit to empower us, lead us, and even correct us so that we would continually move in the direction of living out the life of Jesus.

This was not just for our sake, however, but for the sake of those around us. We are his workmanship that through us we might bring God's justice into the world by seeking and living by the wisdom of God.

This makes a difference in our families, companies, neighborhoods and throughout life. We are called to be peace makers, not peace keepers. We are here to bring the wisdom of God, and the peace of Christ, into this world for the sake of those around us. God has changed our lives for the better, and as we live in step with His Spirit, we are able to help others see Him, know Him and grow in Him for their sake and the sake of those around them.

RESPONSE: Lord, you have done a great work in my life. Your presence brings me peace, continually, and for that I am thankful. Let my thankfulness move me to action in bringing you into the lives of those around me.