Quick Summary:

Advent began last week with Isaiah—the great poet/prophet of the Scriptures—announcing God’s dream for the world. A dream grounded in four texts from four chapters: Isaiah 2, Isaiah 11, Isaiah 35 and Isaiah 7. Last week we learned of the power and reach of God’s dream for SHALOM; how the gravity of this dream pulls people and nations to its center; and how at that center old techniques for waging war are transformed into new ways of cultivating peace. This week, the dream continues to be revealed, a dream that begins with a STUMP.
“A shoot shall come out from the stump of Jesse and a branch shall grow out of his roots.”

Zooming in tight on this one stump is Isaiah’s way of asking the question: Do God’s threatened, remnant people have a future? The unequivocal answer is YES.

This sermon goes on to speak of the multivalent nature of prophetic texts. This attribute allows us to see how God's living word is fulfilled both in Jesus and also in our own time. Nelson Mandela becomes an example in our own day.