Devotion: Not What We'd Expect (Isaiah 11:1-10)

1 There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit. 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 disputes 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 strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked. 5 Righteousness shall be the belt of his waist, and faithfulness the belt of his loins. 6 The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the young goat, and the calf and the lion and the fattened calf together; and a little child shall lead them. 7 The cow and the bear shall graze; their young shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. 8 The nursing child shall play over the hole of the cobra, 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. 10 In that day the root of Jesse, who shall stand as a signal for the peoples—of him shall the nations inquire, and his resting place shall be glorious.
Isaiah 11:1-10

Things often turn out differently than we'd expect them to end up. This is especially true when a great disaster or disappointment takes place in our lives. We have a hard time trusting that God is actually at work in such situations to bring about a good result for us. We expect that things will end up being bad for us.

Though we shouldn't be, we're often surprised when God doesn't do what we'd expect.

God has a long history of telling His people that He was going to do unexpected things. And God's people have a long history of being surprised when God does what He said He would do. Isaiah 11:1-10 is a great reminder of this.

Six hundred years before the birth of Jesus, God spoke through His prophet to tell His people what to expect. He told them that the greatness of the kingdom under King David would not be restored in their time. Instead their nation would become like a stump: cut-off and lifeless. But God would bring forth a greater Kingdom and a greater King from that stump.

This message was not what they expected — or wanted.

They wanted power, glory, security, peace, and riches in their lifetimes. They did not see how suffering and hardship could be of any value to them, let alone that it could work good for them.

They had expectations of worldly glory. God had a different idea about what makes for real glory.

We struggle with the same issues as God's people of old. We want things that make our lives more pleasant and much easier. We seek things that bring us worldly glory, power, security, and riches.

We surprisingly discover that God is willing to keep or take those things from us in order to give us a better future.

He wants us to experience His glory, power, security, and riches. But these things often come to us in the ways that we don't expect. It's when we are broken, hurting, desperate, and hopeless — like trees that have been cut down to stumps — that we are most likely to receive what God is offering us.

And it's in these things that we gain insight and understanding of what Jesus meant when He called us to live under the Cross with Him. When we join Him there we discover that what His Cross brings to us is much different and far greater than whatever it is that we would — or could — expect.

Reflection: Answering Our Shamelessness (November 30, 2014)

9 And Jesus began to tell the people this parable: “A man planted a vineyard and let it out to tenants and went into another country for a long while. 10 When the time came, he sent a servant to the tenants, so that they would give him some of the fruit of the vineyard. But the tenants beat him and sent him away empty-handed. 11 And he sent another servant. But they also beat and treated him shamefully, and sent him away empty-handed. 12 And he sent yet a third. This one also they wounded and cast out. 13 Then the owner of the vineyard said, ‘What shall I do? I will send my beloved son; perhaps they will respect him.’ 14 But when the tenants saw him, they said to themselves, ‘This is the heir. Let us kill him, so that the inheritance may be ours.’ 15 And they threw him out of the vineyard and killed him. What then will the owner of the vineyard do to them? 16 He will come and destroy those tenants and give the vineyard to others.” When they heard this, they said, “Surely not!” 17 But he looked directly at them and said, “What then is this that is written: “ ‘The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone’? 18 Everyone who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces, and when it falls on anyone, it will crush him.” Luke 20:9-18

We are not people who are offended by shameful behavior. Instead, we tend to take the news of people doing shameful, reprehensible, and shocking things in stride. We've become numb to the shame of others and, as a result, unaware of our own shamefulness. The shocking behavior of the tenants in the parable Jesus told doesn't shock us in the way that it did the people who first heard this story. If if did -- or if we'd let it -- we'd be moved to action. Fortunately, our Savior answered our shamelessness for us. Freed from the shame that we tend to deny, we can live radical new lives in Christ that may even shock or shame the world around us.

Click here to listen to the sermon "Answering Our Shamelessness" (or right-click to download the MP3 file).

Reflection: A Question Worth Considering (November 18, 2014)

6 “With what shall I come before the LORD, and bow myself before God on high? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old? 7 Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousands of rivers of oil? Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?” 8 He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?  Micah 6:6-8

Click here to listen to the homily "A Question Worth Considering" (or right-click to download the MP3 file).