Advent Day 4. The Root Of Jesse. Isaiah 11:1-5, 10
Music By:
Allswell, Intro/Arise 
Simon Wester, Encounter 
Tree of Jesse
You may have seen the Orthodox Icon of the Tree of Jesse in passing.
This beautiful icon depicts the ancestors of Jesus Christ, shown in a branching tree which rises from Jesse of Bethlehem, the father of King David. It is the original use of the family tree as a schematic representation of a genealogy.
The Tree of Jesse originates in a passage in the biblical Book of Isaiah, which metaphorically describes the descent of the Messiah and is accepted by Christians as referring to Jesus. The various figures depicted in the lineage of Jesus are drawn from those names listed in the Gospel of Matthew and the Gospel of Luke.
Some versions of the icon depict the tree growing up out of a sleeping man—Jesse, the father of King David and the predecessor of the Davidic line. The hero, known as the "Tree of Jesse," is derived from our Advent scripture reading for today.
Isaiah begins the root of Jesse's poem with a description of a branch bearing fruit coming up from an old dead stump.
An image of a stump that used to be a great tree, filled with the promise of Justice and righteousness, now is an old, rotten remnant of what was once beautiful. What was once filled with the promises of prosperity, Justice, and hope is now a shadow of what was promised.
Somehow and someway, there will be the life that comes from the once great kingdom that has since fallen. Only Three Generations removed from King David did the genealogy begin its descent into darkness, and now, 300 years later, the once great tree, filled with the fruit of righteousness and Justice, is but an old, dead stump.

Take a moment to imagine this dead, dried and forgotten stump.
You can see it off in the distance as you approach it.

As you approach it, you see something forming in the centre. You see a small branch beginning to emerge.

As this branch immerges and reaches for the skies, you see other branches form out of it. As they form, green leave form on the ends of the branches.

Now imagine the dark and dry places in your life that only the freshwater of the spirit can revive. Ask him now to fill those places and bring life from death.

Ver todos los episodios