Isaiah 11:1-5
Like a branch that sprouts from a stump,someone from David’s family will someday be king. The Spirit of the Lord will be with him to give him understanding, wisdom, and insight.
He will be powerful, and he will know and honor the Lord. His greatest joy will be to obey the Lord.
This king won’t judge by appearances or listen to rumors. The poor and the needy will be treated with fairness and with justice.
His word will be law everywhere in the land, and criminals will be put to death. Honesty and fairness will be his royal robes.
Scripture taken from the Contemporary English Version © 1991,1992, 1995 by American Bible Society, Used by Permission.
There was a plum tree at my grandparents’ farm that stood near a rock building we called the “dry house”, and it produced wonderful plums for eating by the handful…and for making delicious plum jelly. By the time that Greg and I moved to the farm, this tree was in bad shape. So Greg reluctantly cut it down. But from the stump, a “shoot” grew…and now – more than 20 years later - the “new” tree once again produces fine fruit.
You would never have thought to look at that stump that anything good would ever come from it again…but I have eaten the plums. I have tasted the jelly made from their juice…and let me tell you – it is amazing - maybe even better than that of the original tree! And the yield is abundant!
Greg filled the bird feeders in our backyard, and the songbirds are everywhere…cardinals, finches, woodpeckers, wrens, chickadees and more. On the bluff at the edge of our yard, buzzards perch on tree branches…looking for food along the riverbank that curves below them. As I watch these birds, I keep hearing the words of John 6:11, where Jesus blessed the fish and the loaves, and everyone had “plenty to eat.”
I’ve also noticed that there is enough food to go around…that one bird is not favored over another. Well, okay, the blue jay seems to bully his way to the feeder on occasion…but everyone eats - from the stateliest cardinal to the tiniest junco or wren. Even the squirrels pick up the dregs that fall to the ground…and the buzzards feast like kings on dead carcasses.
Because of Jesus, we ALL have “plenty to eat”. Don’t misunderstand me…I’m not saying that people will never go hungry – that their bellies won’t rumble and ache with starvation for tangible food. But those who trust in Jesus will NEVER be hungry in a spiritual sense. They will never be judged on appearance and deemed unworthy. They will never be treated as less than equal to every other believer – in any manner. We WILL be judged someday – but not on these things.
As we celebrate Jesus’ birth this week, let’s revel in the amazing Blessing that came to us “from the root of Jesse”. Let’s remind ourselves to live as He did…to treat all people with fairness and kindness…to turn a deaf ear to rumors and judgments…to look to GOD for guidance and answers. Share the Good News with others this week…Jesus has come…there is “plenty to eat” - for everyone!
©2014 Debbie Robus
No comments:
Post a Comment