Peace at Last - Isaiah 11:1-10 (Advent 2A)

 

There was this giant tree in my parents’ backyard when I was growing up. It was probably the height of the two-story house we lived in, and I climbed that tree so much, although - not really ever very high. After I moved out for college, it was dying, and so they had to have it chopped down. When I came back, it was weird having this empty space where the mighty trunk with long branches stood. Then, after a couple of years, I saw a little shoot popping up out of the middle of it. I thought that was amazing! From this mighty tree, in its weakened state, there can be life coming out of it once again.  

This is kind of what Isaiah is talking about in the scripture today. God promises that there will be new life given to a stump, representing the kingdom of Israel through Jesse, who is the father of King David.

There are kind of two parts to this scripture today, verses one through five, and then six through ten make the other. The first part is about the reign of God and how there will be a new king, made in line with the Holy Spirit and through the line of David. The second half promises that the reign of God transforms creation and the peace that comes with it among all creatures, both predators and prey. It emphasizes how everything is God’s creation. 

In verse 2, the Holy Spirit is said to rest on who? God’s chosen king. This spirit is also described as fill of wisdom and understanding, counsel and might, knowledge and fear of the Lord. That line “fear of the Lord” - has created great misunderstanding over the centuries in perverse and beautiful ways. The perverse way is that God is a being to be scared of - that people have taken pleasure in obtaining power by exciting a crowd into a frenzy because there is something about God and how he will judge you righteously so be afraid and do what the preacher says. That is gross pastoral misconduct right there. We can see here if we read on - that God shall judge with righteousness the poor and decide WITH EQUITY for the meek. When have the poor and meek been given righteousness or equity outside the walls of a building like this? They are granted mercy, fairness, and justice by the Lord. 

Returning to this stump though, even though it was part of God’s creation, is a symbol for death as well. There once was life, but no more - that’s not a great Christmas message. But the stump has roots, and from those roots, there is a possibility of something new. David was given a promise by God that his descendants would rule forever (you can read about it in 2nd Samuel chapter 7). But since the nation of Israel is not following God’s rules, the tree was cut down. 

Tadj has a giant green thumb. I feel like she’s become an amateur botanist, and has overtaken our house with plants. Don’t get me wrong, green stuff is nice to look at and some of the other colors when they flower and such. After we first were married, she started bringing more and more plant cuttings home. I was like - where are these coming from? She would tell me friends or coworkers or whoever… she likes the beauty and grace of growing things. Anyway - she told me one day that she really needed to propagate this new plant she picked up, and I was like, you’re gonna what? Propagation is rejuvenating a plant, creating a new plant from just the roots or other cuttings. So it almost seemed like she was trying to make a Frankenstein plant in our house! 

But no, it’s amazing that we’ve figured out that God created new ways of offering life to what seems to be waste. The Holy Spirit will give life to this new thing - it’s not just for plants! Our scripture shows that God is righteous and just in finding ways to transform creation back to life!    What a beautiful image of how the powerful treat the powerless - like they matter. The weapons used are from the mouth and lips, words not s-Words.

This transformation really takes over the second half of our scripture. We look at these animals that are mentioned, and it can really feel like we’re watching the animals depart Noah’s ark or something. Wolves and lambs, leopards and young goats. Normally these pairs would be at odds, the powerful making dinner of the weak, but with the Earth filled with the knowledge of the Lord, as it says in verse 9, it creates a space for all the people, and on this stump will be a signal to all people; no one is kept away from, and it shall be glorious. But how? This is all pointing to Christ. And in Christ can change human nature, changing our aggressive nature into joy, hope, and peace - harmony with others.

Peace comes when the transformation from the Lord happens. Imagine how much more peaceful this world would be if instead of highlighting where the world is at odds, we could shine light on where the world is coming together.  I thought Isaiah would at least put together the lions and lambs, but that’s now how the vision went. But who else could be put together? Charlie Brown and the football? Lucy always gets the last laugh. Vegetarians and Hunters? Not a chance. Democrats and Republicans? Not in this political climate. Corporate boards and union members? Only at a pizza party - paid for by the company, but no one would be happy. 

Our differences can seem overbearing, aren’t they? The canyon of understanding is too deep - right until we can focus on something else, a higher truth maybe, or something universally human - then all those things that separate us disappear. Momentarily. Imagine having the hope that Advent could lead to monumental change. Like - bringing together like it’s a restoration of the garden of Eden from Genesis. God’s vision through Isaiah is promising a new order of creation. 

But some cynics would point out that this is just the fairy tale of the holy book we cling to. Only in our holiday imaginations, along with the Grinch and Rudolph. 

To make it work though, we need to have people who are willing to work for the sake of the community; to stand as a signal, like the stump, of the peace that we claim to have. But we don’T have anyone like that here, do we? That’s hard and a big dream. One could almost say that’s bigger than Dr. King’s dream. 

One the one hand, Isaiah prophesying about death and this stump, a dream ended and destroyed would have been really hard for God’s people to hear. At the same time, we have hope that there is life in the roots of that stump. This is what Advent is for - not just a festive time to spend with family and friends, but to strenghten those roots that we have, and that through those strong roots, hope out of despair is possible - life out of death is real. A dream of a way of living that honors both God and neighbor both is not only possible but within reach. We need to set aside what puts us apart, though, those differences only invite suspicion and doubt. If we connect on a human level, we are all the same, and we need to love our neighbors just as we are - whoever they may be, however they sound, act or pray differently, we are still called to love.

When we love, when we welcome, when we share our Emmanuel - God with us - in our world today, then we will stand as a signal to the nations that there is a God among us and there is a way to know peace, and there is hope in the midst of despair; there is even joy in brokenness. Advent is a reminder of that call, and peace can be the result, at last.