the shoot



There shall come forth a shoot from the stem of Jesse,
And a Branch shall grow out of his roots.
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 of the fear of the Lord.  (Is 11:1-2)

The other day I was out driving to the next town and had to stop the car on a country road to jump out and take a photo.   This is what I saw.




That's a perfectly formed holly tree growing out of a fence post.  It caught my eye and immediately reminded me of the verse about Jesus being a shoot growing out of a stump.

We all know what it means.  From a once mighty but ultimately ruined line of kings would come a new king and kingdom.  But Id never before considered the fact that the stump is of the root of Jesse, not the root of David.   Jesse wasnt a king.  Jesse was actually just a shepherd, a farmer.  His name actually means ' King' but he wasnt one.  He was the father of probably the most famous king there has ever been.  David was the King ' after Gods own heart'.   In many ways his character and attitude exemplified the sort of God-submitted reign the Messianic prophecies were looking towards.   But it's not David that Jesus is to grow from.  It's Jesse.

Interesting.   Why?

I think perhaps God is reminding His people that although the coming Messiah is going to rule and reign and sit at God's right hand, He is actually also going to be a simple, humble, earth dweller.  Jesse was born in Eprath (believed to be another name for Bethlehem  - Micha 5:2)  Like Mary and Joseph, Jesse was astounded to be chosen by God to be the parent of an anointed King.  Like them, he wasn't royal or important or significant in any way.  But God chose a simple farmer as the father of the greatest earthly King Israel would ever know, just as he chose a simple peasant couple to be the parents of the Saviour of the world.

Through the Old Testament prophets God gives His people every opportunity to recognise the coming Messiah.  And they did know these scriptures well.   But perhaps they were looking for a kingly shoot to come from the stump of David.  They didnt  understand that humble origins were part of the plan.  (Of course Jesus does come from the line of David, but I think you know what Im getting at). God never does the obvious or expected.   This Advent let's be careful not to think we know what God is saying based on our own expectations and understanding.  And let's not write off anything that might look like a lifeless stump in the ground.  The Word who is the Seed is also the Resurrection and the Life.

Heres another of those carol/praise song mixes.  Hope you love this.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l-Z2NxURQ6s

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