A WORD FOR TODAY, December 3, 2025
Peggy Hoppes
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Blessings. Peg
A WORD FOR TODAY, December 3, 2025
Lectionary Scriptures for December 7, 2025, Second Sunday of Advent: Isaiah 11:1-10; Psalm 72:1-7; Romans 15:4-13; Matthew 3:1-12
“It will happen in that day that the nations will seek the root of Jesse, who stands as a banner of the peoples; and his resting place will be glorious.” Isaiah 11:10, WEB
We make judgments all the time, often without even realizing it. I think I am at my worst when I am behind the wheel of my car. I was on a highway some time ago when a semi, disobeying all the rules, was weaving in and out of traffic. He used the left lane, which was prohibited for that type of vehicle on that stretch of the roadway. He cut off multiple cars, including mine. He didn’t get much farther than me because the traffic was dangerously slowed by something ahead. His antics were frightening, so much so I slowed significantly to let him get far ahead. I might be behind the accident he was certainly going to cause, but I didn’t want to be in it.
I made a judgment. It was probably a good judgment. It may have been a lifesaving one. Sometimes we have to make judgments to remain safe. Sometimes, however, we make judgments because we are annoyed or inconvenienced. I confess that my grumbling in the car is usually based on some minor infraction that I have judged as brainless (even stupid), and sometimes I even get nasty even though they will never hear me. I make judgments about public figures who don’t live up to the standards I think should be kept, often angry because they won’t keep the promises they have made. I make judgments about the people I hear on the news or see on the streets. I even make judgments about fictional characters in movies or books. “I can’t believe they would do it that way,” I think to myself.
We all make judgments, both good and bad. We make judgments that are helpful and others that are not so helpful. The judgment from a court of law can bring transformation, though sometimes they cause people to rebel or retreat. Our judgments can help or they can hurt. That’s why we are warned to be careful about how we judge our neighbors.
We make our judgments based on our biases and our experiences. I judged that truck driver because I knew that dangerous driving could hurt others. However, some judgments just aren’t right. When we judge someone just because they are different than us, we harm them in ways we might never see or expect. All of us make judgements every day based on what we see and hear.
When we moved into our house in California, we walked around the lot to plan our landscaping. We talked about which bushes to plant and where to put flowers. We talked about pruning the trees and removing the old, dead plants. There was a perplexing plant in a very prominent spot in the front corner. It was a stick, a single branch sticking straight out of the ground. It looked ridiculous. We thought about removing it, but since we didn’t know what it was, we decided to leave it there until the spring to see what it would become.
We were so glad we did. By the next spring we realized that we had a treasure. It was a white lilac bush. Lilacs are not typically found in the Sacramento valley, and white lilacs are even rarer. By the time we left that house, our lilac bush had spread and was so beautiful that many of our friends begged us for cuttings to plant in their own gardens. Lilacs propagate by spreading the root system, sending shoots through the surface of the earth. We were able to dig down and cut through the root system, pulling out each shoot which could be replanted anywhere. For a moment our friends had a single stick somewhere in their yards, but they too ended up with big, beautiful white lilac bushes. Sadly, the people who bought our house saw no value in that bush. We heard from a neighbor that they parked an old car on top of it. Thankfully, the lilac was not lost forever because we were able to share those shoots with others.
In our first lesson, Isaiah describes the perfect leader, the shoot that would come. That leader would have wisdom, understanding, counsel and might, knowledge and fear. Perhaps this sounds redundant, after all, isn’t wisdom, understanding, and knowledge the same thing? No: a good leader has all three. Wisdom is the ability to discern between right and wrong, good and bad. Understanding comes from the heart, being able to identify with the circumstances. A person with knowledge has the facts. A good judge has all three. A good judge also accepts counsel, heeding the advice of those who might have a better grasp of the situation. Might, or strength, means authority and power, and when used appropriately can provide justice. Fear is not to be understood as being afraid as you might when watching a bad horror movie; it is a state of awe for the One who truly rules. A good leader fulfills all these characteristics.
Isaiah said, “He will not judge by the sight of his eyes, neither decide by the hearing of his ears.” Human judges have limitations. We do judge by the sight of our eyes and decide by the hearing of our ears. We also make mistakes. We are not always as wise, understanding, or knowledgeable as we should be. We fail to listen to good advice; we take advantage of our power in inappropriate ways. We don’t always fear God as we should.
A good leader is righteous. This means he (or she) will have a right relationship with God, having a heart to do what God would do. And a good leader is faithful. He keeps his promises. Can you imagine what the world would look like if we had leaders that are wise, understanding, and knowledgeable, who accept right counsel and rule with proper authority. What if we had leaders who truly feared God? Can you imagine if we had leaders that were righteous and faithful in all things? Throughout history we have had leaders that displayed some of those characteristics, but all fell short of being a truly good leader. Only one fit the bill: Jesus Christ is the perfect leader.
The nation of Israel was falling apart when Isaiah spoke these words. They had no power or authority. Assyria threatened their safety and their peace. They had turned from God and His word. They were not living faithfully. The line of David had become corrupt. The story of Israel’s kings reads like a broken record – there was a king that followed God’s heart whose son turned away. By the third or fourth generation, the king did evil in the sight of the Lord. Then a new king was found that followed God’s own heart who would rule for a time and there would be peace until subsequent generations turned from God. A human king would never bring about the kind of peace that God was promising because the royal line was made of sinful human beings.
It would take something, someone, much greater to bring about the restoration and peace that God promised to His people. The peace that brings harmony between all creatures has to come from God himself. The anointed One will bring righteousness and right judgment. The poor and the meek will be lifted up while the wicked will be destroyed. This king, this Messiah, will not come from the line of David, but rather from his father Jesse. He will be a new David, not a son of David. It is through wisdom, understanding, knowledge, authority, righteousness and faithfulness that peace is possible. The fear of God leads to justice and righteousness. Where there are justice and righteousness, there is peace.
There was something about John. The people saw him as the fulfillment of the promise. He drew huge crowds and had many followers. Masses of people were baptized in the Jordan by this man who seemed to be Elijah reincarnate. His clothing and diet were similar to the Old Testament prophets. He was obviously a holy man by his rejection of the outward facades of the day. He could have been a priest, wearing fancy robes and eating fine food. Instead he chose to live in the desert and to eat the barest necessities to stay alive.
John the Baptist came to prepare the way for the promised Messiah. Though many followed him, listened to him, and were baptized by him, John was never the one they were seeking. He was simply the messenger sent to prepare the way. He knew that his purpose was not to be the Messiah; he was chosen to point toward the one who would bring salvation to the people of Israel. He had a wide following, yet he knew that he was not even worthy to touch the sandals of Jesus. John was the greatest among prophets, but he was nothing compared to the One who would follow.
One of my favorite Advent traditions is the Jesse Tree, which comes from the passage from Isaiah. The Jesse Tree is a daily remembrance of the roots of Jesus’ life and heritage, from the beginning of time to His birth. He is the shoot that comes out of Jesse. Though different scriptures and people are used in different traditions, the stories include the creation of the world, the patriarchs, judges and kings, the prophets, and the people who were present at Jesus’ birth.
It seems odd that it would be called a Jesse Tree. Why wouldn’t it be called a Jesus Tree, since it is his family tree? Or why not be a David Tree, since Jesus is the fulfillment to the promises made to King David? The prophet reminds us that the promise was made to David long before Jesus was born. David was the son of Jesse, the first in the line of kings that would last forever. “He will build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.” (2 Samuel 7:13) David was imperfect, but he was loved as a son by God, and the promise was irrevocable. Though the Kings of Israel and then Judah failed to live up to God’s expectations, Jesus Christ was the fulfillment of that promise.
God had a plan from the beginning, constantly pointing toward the promise of salvation throughout the story of His people. Isaiah said that the shoot would come out of the stump of Jesus because Jesus’ roots go much deeper than David, back to the beginning of time. Jesus was there in the beginning. He was the Word that was spoken when God created the sun and the moon and the stars. Jesus was there in the promise of the baptism that came after the flood of Noah. Jesus was in the hearts of the patriarchs, judges, and kings as God guided them. The righteousness of those in the Old Testament who trusted God was theirs by faith, and Jesus is in the midst of any faith that focuses on the Father. Jesus was in the words of the prophets who proclaimed that one day there would be a King who is Lord over all. Jesus was with them all even though He had not yet been born. The Jesse Tree not only shows us the story of God; it shows us the character of Jesus, the one who is, was, and will be forever.
We live in a broken world; it is not as God intended it to be. So, He promised that He would provide a Messiah who would make all things right. The images in today’s Old Testament lesson seem unbelievable to us. The lion will lie with the lamb? Impossible! I have a friend who has gone on safari in Africa several times and he has captured some amazing photos of what lions do: they kill their prey, and they eat whatever they catch. A lamb could not possibly survive a lion encounter.
This image is one of the most common religious Christmas card designs. This beautiful image brings to mind the ideal peace for which we hope during this special season. It is a peace without violence and fear, where the strong stand with the weak. This is what it will be like during the reign of the Messiah. The lamb will lie with the lion, the bull and the bear will eat together. The world will be at peace; there will be no more enemies, no more hunters and prey. This is a world we long to experience, but it is a world that will not come by means of human will or flesh and blood. Only Jesus can fulfill this promise. As we wait the coming of the Christ child, we are reminded that we also await a second coming, for only in that advent will everything be complete. That time is not now.
During Advent we wait for His coming. As Christians we know He was born more than two thousand years ago, but even as we prepare to celebrate the Nativity, we are called to live in the hope of His second coming. During Advent we await the shoot of Jesse that was promised by God through the prophet Isaiah and live in the hope that He will come again so that we will know forever the peace of God.
Paul wrote about the harmony that exists in a kingdom where God rules. Like the promise in Isaiah, the people join together as one voice, glorifying God. We can’t do it without God’s help. Jesus came at Christmas as a down payment on the promise, to give us a glimpse of what it will be like in the day when He rules over everything. Until that day we dwell in the tension of Advent. We know Christ has come. We know the Kingdom of God is near. But we still long for Christ to come again. We are still waiting for the king who will bring peace to the earth so that the lion will lie with the lamb and the powerful will lie with the powerless. We live in this hope even though we see the disharmony that surrounds us each day, the disharmony of which we are a part. That disharmony comes because we do not judge righteously. This is why we need to continually repent, because we fail to live according to God’s Word.
I repent whenever I realize that I, too, make mistakes. When I am afraid of dangerous drivers and judge them with harshness, and when I grumble about others on the road, I see my own sin and seek God’s grace. I am sure that many of my neighbors grumble when I make the same minor infractions that make me judge them. I pray that God and my neighbors will have patience with me, and I ask God to help me do better the next time. I don’t know joy and peace when I’m judging and grumbling. It is only found in God’s grace and forgiveness. Paul echoes the promise from Isaiah. “Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope, in the power of the Holy Spirit.” This joy and peace won’t come from our work or our own righteousness. It is a gift of God. When we live in this hope, we can even find harmony where there is disharmony.
There will come a day when the entire world is in harmony again. The wolves and the leopards will lie with the sheep and the goats. There will be no need for animals to kill, for they will be satisfied by God’s provision. In that day even human beings will live in harmony with one another. No longer will men and women harm others. There will be no need for war or hatred. We will be restored to our God and will live in His presence for eternity; we won’t need anything because God will provide everything. Our work will be to praise God, and our joy will be everlasting. It is no wonder that we sigh with anticipation, especially since our human leaders so often fail us.
In the Gospel lesson from Matthew we hear his voice, the voice of one calling in the wilderness, “Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!” John the Baptist knew that the Pharisees and Sadducees who were the leaders of God’s people were not taking care of God’s people. Israel’s history was filled with leaders who sought their own righteousness, their own power, their own glory. They were called to rule with justice and peace, but they failed. Nothing was different in John’s day. John spoke to those that had followed him into the wilderness and asked, “Who told you to come here?” The Pharisees and the Sadducees had their history, the same history that we read in the Old Testament prophecies, but they did not understand.
John promised the coming of the One would have the wisdom, understanding, knowledge, authority, righteousness and faithfulness that Isaiah described. He would also have a humble relationship with His Father. He would come and He would make all things right. He would baptize with more than water and feed His people with more than bread and wine. He would give His Spirit and remove the imperfections that bring His people down.
It won’t happen overnight. It won’t happen in the next few weeks. It’ll take a lifetime for each of us and it will happen in God’s time. It won’t be until Christ comes again that everything will be restored to the perfection that God intended when He created the world.
The Pharisees and the Sadducees went to the river because they were curious about the ministry of John. They wanted to know if he was claiming to be the Messiah. They wanted to squelch his ministry before it got out of control. They wanted to destroy him. John was talking to them when he said, “You offspring of vipers,” but this word cuts to our hearts too. We have our facades, our masks, our sins from which we must repent. We are arrogant and haughty. We do not bear the fruit worthy of repentance. We judge according to what we see and hear rather than according to God’s Word. This is why we remember John’s call for repentance each year, inviting us to prepare the way of the Lord. Though Christ has already come, we are still longing for the fulfillment of the promise of a world fully restored to God. We remain sinners even while we are saints. We have been baptized with the Spirit, but we still need daily repentance.
We dwell in the time between the already and the not yet. We know that the Christ child has come, but we wait for Him to come again as King. We know that Christ has died, but we long for the day when the forgiveness that came with His blood is fully realized. We wait for that which already is but is yet to be.
The psalmist prayed that God would give the king justice, that he would dwell in God’s righteousness. Every good and perfect thing that can come to a nation and a people begins with the goodness of the king. Today’s psalm was written by Solomon, and during his reign the nation of Israel did prosper. He had a heart for God and a desire for wisdom. He pursued justice and brought a golden age to the land. The world sought Solomon’s wisdom and the kingdom benefitted because Solomon stood as a leader and the people followed. They did what was right. They listened to his wisdom, experienced his understanding, sought out his knowledge. They respected authority and had a healthy awe of the Lord. Together they lived in God's blessing.
But even Solomon was not perfect, and his kingdom didn’t last forever. The offspring of Jesse - David, Solomon, and the kings that followed - failed to be all that God intended for His kingdom. Only Jesus could fulfill the promise. Only when Jesus truly rules will peace abound and righteousness flourish. Until that day, however, we can try to be wise, understanding, knowledgeable, seeking counsel and might, fearing the Lord. Perhaps, just maybe, we’ll experience a little bit of that promised peace.
The world as God created it to be will not be restored until Jesus’ second coming. Until that day, the lion will not lie with the lamb. However, in Christ we can live in harmony with one another, the powerful with the powerless. We still live in an age of repentance as we wait for the coming of our King. In the meantime, we can work for justice, caring for the poor and the weak. We can be heralds of God’s grace, proclaiming the coming of the kingdom so that others might prepare their hearts to receive Him now. Through our witness, God will be glorified in this world.
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