Sunday Snippets: The Perfect Fulfillment

Isaiah 11:1-4 "And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots: And the spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD; And shall make him of quick understanding in the fear of the LORD: and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of his ears: But with righteousness shall he judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the earth: and he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked."

I love this passage for so many reasons. It is a prophecy, written hundreds of years before the birth of the Saviour, and yet so precise and accurate in every way. I just want to lay out a few pieces of this Scripture, and compare them to how Jesus Christ was when He was on the earth.

1. "The spirit of the LORD shall rest up him..."

In Matthew 3:16-17, after Jesus was baptized by John, it says that the Spirit of God descended on him. There is a fulfilled prophecy right there. 

2. "...the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD."

All of these things fit the description of Christ perfectly! Every single person Jesus talked to, He knew exactly how He should deal with that person specifically. With the angry, spiteful Pharisees, He answered them with incredible wisdom; so much so that they usually ended up just having to shut up in shame. They didn't have answers to His knowledge of God. When He talked with the woman who struggled with the issue of blood for thirteen years, how did He treat her? He was so gentle, so loving in the way He interacted with her! 

3. "...and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of his ears: But with righteousness shall he judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the earth:..."

Think about the story of the woman taken in adultery. Did Jesus excuse her sin? Absolutely not. However, He didn't judge after the hearing of His ears and simply blast into her: He used that opportunity to teach an incredibly valuable lesson to the woman's accusers--that they were just as bad, just as lost if they had not been cleansed from sin. He used every circumstance in His life to further the kingdom of God.

You know what my favorite part of all is in Isaiah chapter 11 though? I didn't list it with the above passage because I wanted to put special emphasis on it. :) It's found in verse 10.

"And in that day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign of the people; to it shall the Gentiles seek: and his rest shall be glorious."
(emphasis mine)

Whenever I see a verse that has promises concerning the Gentiles, I always perk up, because (if you didn't know), I happen to be one! ;) This verse is precious to me, because that root of Jesse, that Saviour promised to the world as an ensign, was promised to the WHOLE world! Me included! Jews and Gentiles, black and white, old and young, every person created in the image of God is welcome to seek after Him! And the best part of all? His rest is glorious. In Matthew 28, Jesus says, "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls." Yet another prophecy fulfilled, at least in part, because when Christ returns to earth again, the rest He brings will be even more glorious. Praise The Lord for His mercy to us! As we go into Thanksgiving week, let's not get so caught up in the scurry and flurry of Thanksgiving and Black Friday craziness that we forget the One who we should be thanking with all our hearts for the rest that He gives to His sheep. Let's keep our hearts focused in an attitude of praise! :) Have a blessed week with friends and family!
Mykaela