Second Sunday of Advent - Devotion

A shoot shall come out from the stump of Jesse,
and a branch shall grow out of his roots.
The spirit of the Lord shall rest on him,
the spirit of wisdom and understanding,
the spirit of counsel and might,
the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.
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;
but with righteousness he shall judge the poor,
and decide with equity for the meek of the earth
— Isaiah 11:1-4a

So begins today’s reading from Isaiah, a prophet’s vision of the coming of Jesus from “the stump of Jesse.” Jesse was the father of King David, and his lineage was nearly gone when the prophet described it as a stump, destroyed by war and infighting. Many thought that a direct ancestor would be found to lead Israel again. But we know that Jesus was the one who was coming, God as mortal, to be a new judge.

The prophet describes this coming king as having the spirit of the Lord upon him. So too was David described when chosen as king: “Then Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the presence of his brothers; and the spirit of the Lord came mightily upon David from that day forward.” (1 Samuel 16:13a) One who would rule not by power or force, but with wisdom and caring for the poor and meek.

Jesus was empowered not by the hereditary legacy of Jesse and David, as many suspected, but by the legacy of advocating the wisdom of God. He came, as it says in Romans, to “become a servant to the circumcised on behalf of the truth of God.” (Romans 15:8) Romans even calls back to Isaiah, reminding us that Jesus was the king that the world needed, not the one expected.

We are also encouraged to act with the spirit of the Lord that is with us, to not judge by what we see or hear, but to work for the goodness of all. John the Baptist said to “Bear fruit worthy of repentance.” (Matthew 3:8) We do the good work of the spirit not to earn repentance, for Jesus has already died for our sake, but instead as something “worthy of repentance,” as a way to uphold those values in our world.

So as you go through your week, think about how you can embody those ideals. Get to know those around you before you judge them. Seek wisdom and understanding over power and control. Work for equity for the meek of the earth. Bear the fruit of goodness, so that all may see the spirit of the Lord.