Jesus the Branch 大卫的后裔
Dexu Xia
I will make a righteous Branch sprout from David’s line; he will do what is just and right. Jeremiah 33:15
Rising among the red mountains of Sedona, Arizona, is the beautiful Chapel of the Holy Cross. Entering the small chapel, I was immediately drawn to an unusual sculpture of Jesus on the cross. Instead of a traditional cross, Jesus is shown crucified on the branches of a tree with two trunks. Horizontally, a severed, dead trunk represents the tribes of Israel in the Old Testament that rejected God. The other trunk grows upward and branches out to symbolize the flourishing tribe of Judah and the family line of King David.
The symbolically significant art points to an important prophecy in the Old Testament about Jesus. Although the tribe of Judah was living in captivity, the prophet Jeremiah gave a hopeful message from God: “I will fulfill the good promise I made” (Jeremiah 33:14) to provide a rescuer who would “do what is just and right in the land” (v. 15). One way the people would know the identity of the rescuer was He would “sprout from David’s line” (v. 15), meaning the rescuer would be a physical descendant of King David.
The sculpture skillfully captures an important truth that in the details of Jesus’ family lineage, God was faithful to do all that He promised. Even more, it’s a reminder that His faithfulness in the past gives us reassurance that He’ll be faithful to fulfill His promises to us in the future. By: Lisa M. Samra
What are other significant promises from God that Jesus fulfilled? How does their fulfillment encourage you?
Thank You, Almighty God, that You fulfill all Your promises.
我必使大卫公义的苗裔长起来，祂必在地上施行公平和公义。—耶利米书33章15节
在美国亚利桑那州塞多纳的红岩山脉之间，巍然耸立着一间美丽的圣十字教堂。一进入这间小教堂，一座耶稣被钉十字架的独特雕塑立刻吸引了我。那并不是传统的十字架，它的横轴和直轴是由两根树干和一些树枝组成的。横的是一截枯死的树干，代表旧约时期拒绝上帝的以色列支派；直的树干向上生长，还带有向外延伸的树枝，象征繁衍众多的犹大支派和大卫王的家族血脉。
这个具有象征意义的雕塑指向旧约圣经一个与耶稣有关的重要预言。在先知耶利米的时代，虽然犹大支派已经被掳，但上帝藉着先知耶利米带给百姓充满盼望的信息，说：“我必实践我向以色列家和犹大家应许赐福的诺言”（耶利米书33章14节，新译本），为他们兴起一位拯救者，“在地上施行公平和公义”（15节）。人们有个方法可以确认这位拯救者的身份，那就是祂必定是“大卫公义的苗裔”（15节），也就是大卫王的后代子孙。
圣十字教堂里的雕塑巧妙地捕捉到一个从耶稣家谱中看到的重要真理，那就是上帝会信实地成就祂所应许的一切。此外，这也提醒我们，上帝过往的信实能让我们确信，祂将来也会信实地成就对你我的应许。作者： 夏莉珊
耶稣还成就了哪些上帝重要的应许？
看到上帝的应许应验了，如何让你得激励？
全能的上帝，感谢祢成就祢所有的应许。