Let’s talk about Jesus, the King of kings is He,

The Lord of lords supreme, through all eternity.

The great I AM, the Way, the Truth, the Life, the Door,

 Let’s talk about Jesus more and more.

These are the lyrics to a song of my youth!  It was sung often in youth group and sometimes in the church service.  The song’s catchy tune stays with you all day long.  I think of the words when I want to change my mood of being overwhelmed by our world that brings me down with gossip, unkindness, hatred and unrest.  Let’s talk about Jesus who is the opposite of world thinking and behaving.  Let’s talk about the One who saves us and makes whole.  Let’s talk about Jesus, God’s Son, who is Truth.  Let’s talk about Jesus who gifts us with His peace through all kinds of circumstances!

Isn’t He wonderful, wonderful, wonderful,

Isn’t Jesus my Lord wonderful!

Eyes have seen, ears have heard, it’s recorded in God’s Word,

Isn’t Jesus my Lord wonderful!

Isaiah is doing the same!  He is the first to talk about Jesus more and more in his prophetic message of the coming Messiah who will be King of kings and Lord of lords.  God is telling His People, through Isaiah, that Jesus, the One and Only, is coming to save them…Let’s talk about Jesus, root of Jesse, “who will bring everyone to awed attention”!

Wonderful, wonderful, Jesus is to me!

Counselor, Prince of Peace, Mighty God is He!

Saving me, keeping me from all sin and shame.

Wonderful is my Redeemer, praise His name.

Isaiah 11, The Message

A Green Shoot from Jesse’s Stump

^1-5 A green Shoot will sprout from Jesse’s stump,
    from his roots a budding Branch.
The life-giving Spirit of God will hover over him,
    the Spirit that brings wisdom and understanding,
The Spirit that gives direction and builds strength,
    the Spirit that instills knowledge and Fear-of-God.
Fear-of-God
    will be all his joy and delight.
He won’t judge by appearances,
    won’t decide on the basis of hearsay.
He’ll judge the needy by what is right,
    render decisions on earth’s poor with justice.
His words will bring everyone to awed attention.
    A mere breath from his lips will topple the wicked.
Each morning he’ll pull on sturdy work clothes and boots,
    and build righteousness and faithfulness in the land.

A Living Knowledge of God

^6-9 The wolf will romp with the lamb,
    the leopard sleep with the kid.
Calf and lion will eat from the same trough,
    and a little child will tend them.
Cow and bear will graze the same pasture,
    their calves and cubs grow up together,
    and the lion eat straw like the ox.
The nursing child will crawl over rattlesnake dens,
    the toddler stick his hand down the hole of a serpent.
Neither animal nor human will hurt or kill
    on my holy mountain.
The whole earth will be brimming with knowing God-Alive,
    a living knowledge of God ocean-deep, ocean-wide.

* * *

¹⁰ On that day, Jesse’s Root will be raised high, posted as a rallying banner for the peoples. The nations will all come to him. His headquarters will be glorious.

¹¹ Also on that day, the Master for the second time will reach out to bring back what’s left of his scattered people. He’ll bring them back from Assyria, Egypt, Pathros, Ethiopia, Elam, Sinar, Hamath, and the ocean islands.

^12-16 And he’ll raise that rallying banner high, visible to all nations,
    gather in all the scattered exiles of Israel,
Pull in all the dispersed refugees of Judah
    from the four winds and the seven seas.
The jealousy of Ephraim will dissolve,
    the hostility of Judah will vanish—
Ephraim no longer the jealous rival of Judah,
    Judah no longer the hostile rival of Ephraim!
Blood brothers united, they’ll pounce on the Philistines in the west,
    join forces to plunder the people in the east.
They’ll attack Edom and Moab.
    The Ammonites will fall into line.
God will once again dry up Egypt’s Red Sea,
    making for an easy crossing.
He’ll send a blistering wind
    down on the great River Euphrates,
Reduce it to seven mere trickles.
    None even need get their feet wet!
In the end there’ll be a highway all the way from Assyria,
    easy traveling for what’s left of God’s people—
A highway just like the one Israel had
    when he marched up out of Egypt.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

Isaiah paints a picture of what is now that of a tender shoot from a seemingly dead stump. All has been taken away in the exile.  But Isaiah was looking beyond His people’s trials to the glorious kingdom that will be established when Messiah comes to reign. David’s dynasty was ready to end, but out of his family the Messiah would come. A godly remnant of Jews would keep the nation alive so that the Messiah could be born.

Jesus’ kingdom will involve righteous rule because the Son of God and the Spirit of God will administer its affairs justly. When the Messiah-King speaks the word, He speaks with power (Rev. 19:15). This kingdom is unlike any other that has ever been.

Warren Wiersbe explains the “Highway” to God’s Kingdom for all who believe:

“The ‘root’ will become a ‘banner’ for the rallying of the people as God reaches out and gathers His people from the nations where they have been exiled. This event will be like a second exodus as God opens the way for His people to return to their land. In a limited sense, this promise was fulfilled after the Assyrian conquest and when the Jews left Babylonian captivity, but the ultimate fulfillment will be at the end of the age when the Messiah regathers His people (See also Matthew 24:31; Romans 11:25–29). The centuries-long division between Israel and Judah will come to an end, and even the Gentiles will walk on the ‘highway’ that leads to Jerusalem.”

The “highway” is one of Isaiah’s favorite images. Composers, use this image, too.  Have you heard the song, “Highway to Heaven” by Jessy Dixon? 

Isaiah reveals that those who obey the Lord have a level and smooth road to walk.  When God calls His people back to their land, He will prepare the way for them and lead them safely. He will remove obstacles so the people can travel easily. God’s highway will be called “the Highway of Holiness” (Isaiah 35:8). When Isaiah looked at his people, he saw a sinful nation that would one day walk the “Highway of Holiness” and enter into a righteous kingdom.

So, how do we respond?  Believe and be saved by the Jesus.  Walk with Jesus.  Talk about Jesus.  Point the way to Jesus who is the only Way, Truth and Life who will lead us on the right Highway to God.  I don’t like being lost, not knowing which road to take, do you? So, let’s talk about Jesus more and more—so others will know and follow. 

He is Lord. He is Lord.

He is risen from the dead, and He is Lord.

Every knee shall bow, every tongue confess

That Jesus Christ is Lord.

Lord,

Thank you for showing us the Way to Truth that gives Life eternal!  Thank you for consistently pulling us back on the road that leads all of us on the Highway to God!  Thank you for saving my soul.  Thank you for teaching us how to love God and each other.  Thank you, dear Jesus, for showing us who God is and how to relate to Him who loved us first.  May we talk about You more and more so others will know and follow.

In Jesus Name, Amen