Sunday After Christmas
Dear friends in Christ! We have experienced yet another politically Christmas season as people celebrated around their “holiday tree” their non-descript early winter holiday. This all makes perfect sense, since, there are only 2 offensive things about the word “Christmas”—Christ and the Mass, that is, Blessed Sacrament of our Lord’s true body and blood. “Christ” is offensive to the unbelieving world. The fact that there is a Christ means we sin and there is a just and holy God to whom we are accountable; that we deserve eternal damnation for sin; that we are not “good enough” for heaven; that we are not saved by our works. All this is an affront, rebuke, to the unbelieving world. And then there’s the “mass,” the sacrament in which Christ comes to us giving us His body and blood in, with and under the bread and wine and giving us the forgiveness of sins and eternal life. Such a great mystery with such great blessing is an affront to the sensibilities of the “modern person,” i.e. the sinful corrupt person of all ages.
Christmas stands and is a rebuke to the sinful unbelieving world—the Son of God has taken on human flesh and blood, born of the virgin, to be our Savior. The world may change the name to “X-mas,” thinking it has eliminated Christ; but X is the also the Greek letter “chi”, the first letter in Christ. The world may call Christmas “the holidays,” but holidays mean what—the holy days.
There’s also something similar in Scripture. In Scripture, Jesus is called Jesus of Nazareth. This distinguishes Him from others with the same name. Often, though, of Nazareth was said is disgust or in mocking. When the future disciple Nathanael, heard of Jesus, he asked [Jn 1. 46]: Can anything good come out of Nazareth; Nazareth, that little insignificant town. The servant girl who accused Peter of being Jesus’ disciple said mockingly [Mt. 26.71]: This fellow also was with Jesus the Nazarene; of course, who could miss the ridicule of the titulus Pilate put on the cross: Jesus of Nazareth King of the Jews? After His resurrection, though, the title of Nazareth, the Nazarene became a title of honor. Peter [Ac 2.22] preached that Jesus of Nazareth, whom the Jews put to death, was raised by God; the apostles healed people in the name of Jesus of Nazareth. Even at Paul’s conversion [Ac 22.8], Jesus identified Himself as Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus, the Nazarene, despised by His people, was gloriously shown to be the Savior and the Son of God. Jesus’ enemies gave the Christians the name of contempt: the sect of the Nazarenes. Even today, in their Talmud, the Jews still refer to Jesus, their Savior, as the son of Nazareth, as the cursed Nazarene.
What does all this have to do with our text? Just as today people try to get Christ out of Christmas and cannot, also people ridiculed and mocked Christ calling Him the Nazarene. But what they were really doing—against their wishes and intent—was confessing that He is the Messiah. How was that? After Mary, Joseph and Jesus returned from Egypt after fleeing from Herod trying to kill Jesus we read [Mt. 2.23]: And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, “He shall be called a Nazarene”. What does that have to do with our text? If we scour all the prophets’ writings, we never see that phrase: He shall be called a Nazarene. But what we do find is verses like our text: There shall come forth a Twig from the stem of Jesse, And a Branch of his roots shall bear fruit. The word “Branch” is the Hebrew word nezer, from which comes the name Nazareth. Our text tells us Who that Branch growing from the stump and roots of Jesse is.
1. The Branch shows us Jesus’ lowliness. The great tree of the mighty kings of David, the son of Jesse, and Solomon is no more. That line of kings had been ended. The house of David was in a humble and poor condition. All hope Israel placed in it for a mighty king and for any rescue was cut down. What do we find at the time of Christ? When Caesar gives the order for everyone to return to their city of ancestry, Mary and Joseph—both descendants of David, go to Bethlehem; but so do so many others so that there is no room for them in the inn. Yet these many descendants of David are God’s grace! He had not forgotten His promise to David that one of his descendants would be the Savior. He had preserved the line.
But as we read in today’s Gospel the prescribed sacrifice that Mary and Joseph were to offer 40 days after Jesus’ birth was the meant one for the poor: A pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons. That is the humble and poor condition of the family of David; it was cut down; for all purposes, gone—mere stump and roots. But from a dried up stump comes a Shoot, a Twig and it bears fruit! This is a miracle!
Yes, God is faithful to His promise—from that stump and root of the tree of Jesse, David, Solomon, etc.— that is, from Mary, a poor descendant of David, He takes on human flesh and blood and becomes also true man. What Isaiah prophesies in our text is a glorious description of Jesus’ human nature—He is true man, born of the Virgin Mary; He is a physical descendant of David—just as God promised David. Jesus, the Shoot, the Branch—the nezer—is the long promised Savior. This is the Christmas miracle—God became man being born of the virgin.
The image of the shoot and the branch is one of weakness, something delicate. How easily it could be broken off or even wither up! If the Messiah is described as being like a shoot or branch, doesn’t it raise of question in our minds if He can even carry out His work as Messiah? Doesn’t it imply weakness and shouldn’t we doubt whether Jesus the Nazarene, the nezer, the Branch could and actually did accomplish His saving work, after all He’s a man? Let us not be in doubt, dear Christian. For right after describing the Messiah as “Shoot,” Isaiah then says of the “Branch”: And a Branch of his roots shall bear fruit. The promise of victory is given; the Messiah, even though He is true man, He will successfully carry out His work.
But how, Isaiah next tells us: 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. Jesus, the Savior, would carry out His work in and by the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit, with all of His gifts would rest upon this humble Man, this Shoot, this Branch. Only of Jesus would this ever be true.
Here is the really fascinating thing in all this. Jesus is both true God and true Man: as true God, He, the Son of God, is one divine essence with the Holy Spirit and the Father—the Triune God; but as true Man the Holy Spirit rests upon Him and is poured out upon Him without limit.
With the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, in His preaching Christ would perfectly reveal to us heavenly wisdom,since He and He alone fully and rightly knows the things of God, Himself being God; with The Spirit of counsel and might Jesus knows how to help us in our difficult distress of sin and mightily brings us the salvation we so need and long for; The Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD, for here the Father perfectly knows the Son, the Son perfectly knows the Father and is obedient to Him for us and our salvation and so now we have peace!
We don’t see this at Jesus’ birth—He looked and seemed just like any other baby. But at Jesus’ baptism we see the Holy Spirit coming down on this lowly Man, this Branch, the nezer. Of Jesus’ baptism, John the Baptizer said [Jn. 1.33], I saw the Spirit descending from heaven, like a dove, and He remained on [Jesus]…He who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘Upon whom you see the Spirit descending, and remaining on Him, this is He who baptizes with the Holy Spirit. Jesus’ baptism was the fulfillment of this prophecy—the Holy Spirit visibly coming to this Man, this Branch, and by this marked for all to see that He is the Messiah and equipped Him for His Saving work. The Christmas miracle is that God became man, born of the virgin in Bethlehem but by looking at Jesus, people couldn’t tell He was the God-Man; but here, at Jesus’ baptism, God made it clear that Jesus is indeed the Immanuel, the God-with-us, who would save us from our sins. Although according to His human nature, Jesus is the most lowly Branch, He is equipped with the Holy Spirit and would fully carry out His saving work and bear fruit.
2. Successful in His work of carrying out our salvation, in bringing about for us the forgiveness of sins and eternal life by reconciling us sinners to the Holy God, Jesus, the Nazarene, the nezer, the Branch is most exalted. Isaiah prophesies the Branch’s, Christ Jesus’, most exalted, kingly work. His delight is in the fear of the LORD. Jesus delights when there is true faith and devotion to God in people’s hearts.
Now Christ, sitting on His throne in glory, having completed His saving work pours out His Holy Spirit, that Spirit with which the Father anointed Him according to His human nature. And by His Holy Spirit creates faith in the hearts of people, that is, true fear and love of Him, of the true God, the Triune God in our hearts.
What a glorious message this is to us this 6th day of Christmas when Isaiah tells us of the most highly exalted King, the Branch, Christ Jesus: His delight is in the fear of the LORD, And He shall not judge by the sight of His eyes, Nor decide by the hearing of His ears. What does this tell us but that faith—not works—saves us! He does not judge us according to our outward actions where there is nothing but sin; instead He looks at the heart and examines that and delights when He finds there true faith—faith that He created there by His Holy Spirit’s work in the word and sacraments; faith that receives His holiness and righteousness; faith that receives the forgiveness of sins He brought us. He does not see our sin and wickedness but only the perfect righteousness and forgiveness given to us and which faith receives. Jesus, born the lowly Branch, born of the virgin can do that because He is also the true God, the most exalted.
Now that Jesus carried out His work, He, the Branch of the stump and root of David, sits on the throne of God and reigns as King. He bears fruit, that is, He now justifies and gives grace to His dear Christians, to those He gave the gift of faith to fear the Lord. Again, Isaiah prophesies: But with righteousness He shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth. To the penitent and repentant, who feel the affliction of the Law and know they lack the holiness God demands but look to Christ, to them He gives grace and every comfort and blessing; He gives the peace, forgiveness, life and salvation He brought about by His life, suffering and death. The lowly Branch now reigns as the most exalted King—the true God, and reigns giving us peace and every heavenly and spiritual blessing.
His reign is a glorious reign as He protects His Kingdom, His Church, His dear Christians and subjects. He shall strike the earth with the rod of His mouth, And with the breath of His lips He shall slay the wicked one. Righteousness shall be the belt of His loins, And faithfulness the belt of His waist. He sets His righteousness and faithfulness in motion as He hinders and restrains the enemies of His Church, strengthens and mightily protects and preserves His Church. We can rely on Him and His faithful guardian care of His Church. He faithfully carries out His promises and rules us in His kingdom of peace, the Church.
That’s who was born that first Christmas—Jesus, the Branch, the nezer; true man born in lowliness. In the power of His Holy Spirit He carried out His work and now eternally reigns as the exalted King, the God-man, ruling and guiding all things. How joyfully we then sing and confess: Behold, a Branch is growing—though He is most lowly He is the most exalted. Truly the Christmas miracle! INJ Amen