Three Short Sermons: A Shoot will spring up… among the ordinary things of the earth, in Jesus Christ Sunday 18th. December, 2005

A shoot will spring up

In the summer there, it seems a long time ago now, but in the summer there, during the holidays, we did a lot of work in the garden – it was long overdue. It was only when we starte work that I discovered how quickly the elm trees had grown. Anyhow, with an axe, and a saw and much toil and sweat, the elm trees have been cut back, right down to the stump. Now, I’m not much of a gardener, so my surprise was great when a couple of months later. On one of the bigger elm tree stumps – there, fresh, green, strong, growing – were new shoots, new leaves, with that bright, fresh light green that new leaves have. The trees were growing just as strongly as before !

The prophet Isaiah uses just this picture in prophecy to say – A shoot will spring from the stump of Jesse…………..

What does he mean ?

Well, the reference to Jesse tells us that he is speaking about King David’s family. For Jesse was David’s father. The promise was that David’s dynasty, David’s line would last forever. But when Isaiah was speaking – this looked anything but certain. The kings of Israel had been taken away into exile or had died. Nevertheless – this is the prophecy. – A shoot will spring from the stump of Jesse…………..

When things looked like they had been levelled, when all the expectations of the people were crushed and flattened, when things looked at their grimmest

here is the Word of the Lord – a shoot would spring new, new life all unexpected would burst forth and a branch will bear fruit. In One who was to come……….

Here is how the Word speaks of the One who was to come

Isaiah 11

2 The Spirit of the LORD will rest on him- the Spirit of

wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of

power, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD-

3 and he will delight in the fear of the LORD.

with righteousness he will judge the needy, with

justice he will give decisions for the poor of the earth

5 Righteousness will be his belt and faithfulness the sash

round his waist.

In the midst of human life, when the light fails, when courage ebbs, in desolation – lift your eyes to the heavens, says Isaiah.

Your saviour comes.

AMEN.

A shoot will spring up ……… among the ordinary things of the earth

Those of you who enjoy watching archaeological programmes on the television, like Time Team, or Meet the Ancestors, might be intrigued to hear that in the 1930s a lot of interest was aroused when archaeologists went to where the old town of Corinth lies, half buried. They went to sift carefully through the rubble, to get an idea of what the old city was once like, to and catch a glimpse of life there 2000 years ago when it was a busy sea port. A lot of things were found, cobbled streets, pottery, mosaics, pillars and columns of important buildings. And then, on one narrow side street, underneath the layers of rubble they found a stone lintel. With a word carved on it – no – not by a stone mason, or by a monumental sculptor. But by someone who had taken a sharp point and scraped into the stone in a very uneven way, the word synagogue in Greek. This, then was not the door lintel of a great public building, but a small humble gathering place in a side street.

We may pause for a moment…. Was this the synagogue the apostle Paul visited ? this humble small gathering place ? did he remember that stone lintel when he wrote to the Church at Corinth and said………. You know, not many of you were wise, or influential, or of noble birth when God in His grace called you through Jesus Christ. As far as the city round about, the folks in that synagogue were nobodies. But, declares the apostle – this is the way the Lord works – Paul declares – God chose the weak things to shame the strong.

The writer N.T. Wright says :

We live in a world full of people struggling to be, or at least to appear strong,; but we follow a gospel which says that when I am weak, then I am strong. And this gospel is the only thing that brings healing…….

Sometimes we think ourselves and our work to be so little and so small. But the Lord is the One who makes the greatest things spring from the lowliest beginnings. Think of the birth of that child in a stable in Bethlehem………..

AMEN.

A shoot will spring up…… among the ordinary things of the earth, in Jesus Christ !

At one of the Christmas lunches through the week, I was speaking to a man who had been to Israel during the summer. He has many friends and contacts in Israel, and so, travels around. Anyway, driving northwards in his car past the Dead Sea, heading north, he stopped and went into a coffee bar, or restaurant for something to eat. The young waitress came out took his order, and bringing it back she asked him, by way of conversation, where he was going. Nazareth, he said. Nazareth ? she replied. Where’s that ?

Though only 80 miles to the north of where she lived, she had never heard of Nazareth – though it is known and remembered throughout the Christian world, by millions upon millions – she had never heard of it the town didn’t even feature for her.

It is, of course, from Nazareth that Joseph, descendant of David, came. Probably it was an insignificant sort of place even then. But here in Luke’s gospel, we have the most earth shaping, moving thing taking place near the town.

The announcement of the birth of Jesus to a young girl.

Here we do not know whether to marvel at her gentle lowliness, or at the gentle power of the living God at work here. But whatever, here in the weak things, the lowly things, the living God is moving. Here, is the age old prophecy of Isaiah coming true. Here in this insignificant place is the turning point of the world. God working, as always, in the weak and lowly things. The Lord of glory who comes near and enters into human life, in Jesus.

In this Advent season...........that’s exactly what we celebrate - the fact that in Jesus of Nazareth, God the living God, the everlasting Lord, has come near…….

has come near to us. In Jesus of Nazareth He has come among us as a

human being like ourselves, born as a baby of a human mother!

The Eternal Son who dwelt with the Father in heaven........ has taken on himself, our life, become a human being, born among us. In this way, the living God has taken up our human life, our ruined human life……..

and in and through Jesus He has recreated it, and restored it, recreating us and restoring us in Christ !

AMEN.