Hope Amidst Devastation (Isaiah 11-12)

The Hope in Ruins

I want you to do something with me. Close your eyes. Imagine a dense, lush forest, teeming with life, filled with the sounds of birds singing and leaves rustling in the wind. Now, imagine that forest suddenly wiped out—leveled to the ground, nothing but charred stumps and ashes. A forest fire has ravaged it all.

Open your eyes. What you just pictured is a vivid image of loss and devastation, right? But, even in that barren landscape, from one of those charred stumps, a tiny sprout emerges. A sign of new life, uncontainable and unstoppable.

Today, we're diving into Isaiah chapters 11 and 12, and man, oh man, are these chapters brimming with the vibrant life of that tiny sprout! These chapters are a mixture of promise, prophecy, and praise, and they bear witness to the uncontainable nature of God’s redemption. Even when everything seems bleak and cut down, God is in the business of making all things new.

See, Isaiah's not just talking in abstract philosophy or divine wishful thinking; he's hammering home something intensely practical and infinitely majestic. Although God promises to cut down His people in judgment, as seen in Isaiah 6:11-13, He also promises to lift them up again. How? By bringing forth a New David, a Messiah who will establish a reign so gloriously right that even the lion and the lamb would hang out together without the lamb ending up as lunch!

You might think this is all “Bible talk” that doesn’t apply to your life. But oh, it does. The words of Isaiah are more relevant than your morning news, and they speak directly to the core of our human condition. And I believe, by the time we walk through these chapters, you'll be drawing water from the springs of salvation with joy.

Redeeming The Broken (11:1-10)

Isaiah 11:1–5 (ESV) — 1 There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit. 2 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 the fear of the Lord. 3 And his delight shall be in the fear of the Lord. He shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide disputes by what his ears hear, 4 but with righteousness he shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; and he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked. 5 Righteousness shall be the belt of his waist, and faithfulness the belt of his loins.

You ever wonder how God could use something small to do something massive? You remember David, right? A shepherd boy, the least of his brothers, yet he slays a giant and becomes king. What about Moses? A stuttering, self-doubting runaway who leads an entire nation to freedom. In the same vein, Isaiah 11 opens with this imagery: "A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots, a Branch will bear fruit."

Ah, let’s not rush past that too quickly! Jesse here is the father of David, and in Isaiah’s time, the house of David looked more like a stump than a towering tree. It's been cut down, forgotten, and left for dead by the Assyrians and eventually by the Babylonians. To the eyes of the world, it's insignificant. It's over.

But God says, "Watch this!"

From this stump, this place of death and insignificance, comes a shoot, a sprout. Now, you might think, "A sprout? Really? How can a sprout change anything?" But don't dismiss the smallness. This isn’t just any sprout; this is God’s Sprout. This is the Messiah—Jesus—who emerges from a lineage that seemed doomed and broken.

This sprout becomes the one true king of Israel. He has the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, counsel and might. He judges with righteous judgment and creates a society where righteousness reigns. Listen to what else he will do!

Isaiah 11:6–10 (ESV) — 6 The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the young goat, and the calf and the lion and the fattened calf together; and a little child shall lead them. 7 The cow and the bear shall graze; their young shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. 8 The nursing child shall play over the hole of the cobra, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the adder’s den. 9 They shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain; for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. 10 In that day the root of Jesse, who shall stand as a signal for the peoples—of him shall the nations inquire, and his resting place shall be glorious.

Isaiah paints a picture that defies imagination: "The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, the calf and the lion and the yearling together." No, Isaiah's not auditioning for a Disney movie. He's saying this sprout brings peace that transcends nature itself. Justice that even creation longs for. Righteousness that heals and redeems.

But let's take this from the pages of Isaiah to your living room. Maybe you feel like that stump. Cut down by life’s disappointments, by your failures, or maybe by things beyond your control. You look at your life and think, "What good can come out of this mess?"

Hear me: God specializes in bringing life from death, significance from insignificance. The very areas of your life that look dead and cut off could be the ground from which God brings forth new life. Your struggles aren't the end of your story; they might just be the soil for your sprouting.

So, whether you're in a season where you feel cut down to the stump or you're witnessing the tiny sprouts of new beginnings, take heart. For from what appears to be insignificant, God is capable of bringing about an immensity that defies imagination.

Don't underestimate God’s Sprout in your life.

Gathering The Outcast (11:11-16)

Isaiah 11:11–12 (ESV) — 11 In that day the Lord will extend his hand yet a second time to recover the remnant that remains of his people, from Assyria, from Egypt, from Pathros, from Cush, from Elam, from Shinar, from Hamath, and from the coastlands of the sea. 12 He will raise a signal for the nations and will assemble the banished of Israel, and gather the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth.

Isaiah 11:11-16 talks about a "second remnant." Now, for context, the first remnant is the group of Israelites who return after the Assyrian and Babylonian captivities. They're a shadow, a foreshadowing if you will, of something much larger—of a second remnant that God would gather, not just from Assyria, Babylon, or Egypt, but "from the four corners of the earth."

Let's unpack that because it’s monumental. This second remnant isn't just about geographic locations; it's about every kind of distance you could imagine: cultural, social, and spiritual. Isaiah is saying God's redemptive reach is boundless; it's not just for one tribe, one tongue, one nation. No! God is in the business of bringing in the outliers, the outcasts, the "not supposed to be heres."

What does a second remnant mean for us today? Now let’s get really personal, because some of us know what it's like to be the outcast, the outlier. The good news of Jesus isn't just for your religious neighbor who seems to have it all together. It’s also for your coworker who thinks church is a joke, for your cousin who believes he’s wandered too far from God to ever return. God’s net of redemption is cast so wide that no one is beyond its reach.

Maybe you’re here today and you’ve heard the gospel preached before, but every time, you thought, "That’s great, but it can’t be for me. I’m too messed up, too far gone.”You’re wrong. It also means that you—yes, you—have a role in this grand narrative.

Hear the words of Isaiah as the words of the Lord: you are not too far for God's reach. His grace is for you. And it’s not a begrudging grace; it’s a robust, embracing grace. God doesn't just tolerate you; He celebrates your inclusion in His family.

And to my brothers and sisters who are already part of the family, I've got to ask: Are we echoing this expansive heart of God in our own lives? Or have we settled for a more truncated gospel that stops at the boundaries of our comfort zones? Are we, too, reaching out to the outliers, the marginalized, and the isolated, saying, "There's room for you at the table"?

So as you ponder the incomprehensible scale of God’s redemption, let it move you to awe, to worship, and to action. Let it stir up in you a holy urgency to be part of what God is doing in the world. And just as God reached out His hand a second time, He's calling you to extend your hand, to be part of this sweeping, inclusive plan. You may be one tile in a billion, but oh, how important each tile is for the masterpiece to be complete!

God's plan of salvation is not a closed circle; it's an ever-expanding embrace. From the first remnant to the second, from Old Testament to New, from Jerusalem to Saraland, Alabama, to the ends of the earth, God is gathering His people.

This, my friends, is a God who not only redeems but does so on a scale so massive, so inclusive, that we can only stand back and say, "Who is like our God?"

You think that's overwhelming? Well, tighten your seatbelt, because the third point is going to make your soul soar even higher. We're about to dive into the glorious springs of salvation! Are you thirsty yet?

Filling The Empty (12:1-6)

Isaiah 12:1–6 (ESV) — 1 You will say in that day: “I will give thanks to you, O Lord, for though you were angry with me, your anger turned away, that you might comfort me. 2 “Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid; for the Lord God is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation.” 3 With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation. 4 And you will say in that day: “Give thanks to the Lord, call upon his name, make known his deeds among the peoples, proclaim that his name is exalted. 5 “Sing praises to the Lord, for he has done gloriously; let this be made known in all the earth. 6 Shout, and sing for joy, O inhabitant of Zion, for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel.”

Chapter 12 begins, "In that day you will say: 'I will praise you, Lord. Although you were angry with me, your anger has turned away, and you have comforted me.'"

"In that day" is a beautiful phrase, isn’t it? Because we all have days of disappointment, days of struggle, days when we wonder if God is even there. But Isaiah is pointing us to a day—a definitive day—when we'll sing a new song because God has promised to turn away his anger and comfort us. This is what God wants to do. He was just waiting for us to humble ourselves, stop trying to save ourselves, and open up to his salvation.

Now, what's this comfort about? That sounds nice.

Isaiah 12:2–3 (ESV) — 2 “Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid; for the Lord God is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation.” 3 With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.

We have God on our side. He is our strength and song. We're drawing "water from the wells of salvation." Picture that! This isn't a stagnant pond; it's a wellspring, an ever-flowing fountain of life and redemption.

This is no ordinary water. This is living water, friends! You know, the kind of water that Jesus talks about in the New Testament, where He stands up at the Feast of Tabernacles and says, "Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink." This is water that doesn't just quench your physical thirst but gets deep down into the parched places of your soul and brings life where there was once death.

So, who gets to draw from this well? Every one of us. The tired mom, the overworked dad, the struggling student, the doubting Thomas, the prodigal son, and the elder brother. It's a well deep enough for the whole world and personal enough to meet you exactly where you are.

But, hear this, this water isn’t just for you to gulp down and move on. Isaiah says, "With joy you will draw water." It’s a joy meant to be so overwhelming, so awe-inspiring that you can't keep it in. It's a joy that turns into praise, into song, into shouts of, "Great is the Holy One of Israel among you!"

That’s the end game, isn’t it? God doesn’t just save you from something; He saves you to something—to a life of uncontainable, unceasing praise and worship.

So, if you’re still asking, "How does this all tie together?" Here it is, crystal clear: God redeems that which is broken, God gathers that which is outcast, and God fills that which is empty, all so that God can be glorified through our lives. And if that's not worth singing, shouting, and praising about, I don't know what is.

From God's sprout to a second remnant, to the wellsprings of salvation, this is our God, this is His plan, and this is our endless praise. May we never lose our awe.

Draw from Jesus’ Wellspring

If you've been following this sermon so far, you might be asking, "Okay, the wellspring sounds amazing, but what does it mean to actually draw from it?" It’s a pertinent question because, believe it or not, many of us live next to the well but never take a drink. So let’s get practical.

First off, why do we even need to draw from this well? Ecclesiastes tells us something profound about the human condition: "He has also set eternity in the human heart." Friends, we have an eternal hole in our souls that nothing temporal can fill. We try, don't we? We fill it with career accomplishments, relationships, vacations, even religious activities, but they're all, as Ecclesiastes aptly puts it, "a chasing after the wind."

Now, don't get me wrong, there’s nothing inherently wrong with enjoying the good things of life. But when we try to squeeze eternity out of things that are inherently temporal, we set ourselves up for disappointment. That's why we need to draw from the well of salvation, from the living water that Jesus offers. It's the only water that can satisfy our eternal thirst.

So how do we draw from this well?

1. Acknowledge Your Thirst: The first step is admitting you're thirsty, spiritually parched. We live in a culture that prides itself on self-sufficiency, but let's drop the pretense. The gospel starts where our self-sufficiency ends.

2. Go to the Source: Jesus is the well. Simple, but we often miss it. We go to self-help books, YouTube gurus, or even good-intentioned friends before we go to Jesus. Start with Jesus. Sit in His presence, pray, dive into the Scriptures.

3. Use the Bucket of Faith: Drawing water from a well requires a bucket, and in our case, that bucket is faith. You extend your faith every time you choose God’s promises over your fears, every time you choose worship over worry, and every time you say, "God, I trust You," even when everything around you screams otherwise.

4. Drink Deeply: This isn't a sip-and-go deal. Spend time meditating on the truths of God. Memorize Scripture. Ingest it until it becomes a part of you.

5. Share the Water: The water drawn from this well is meant to be shared. Isaiah said, "Let this be known to all the world." Your joy, your satisfaction, your transformation—these are all testimonies. Don't hoard the living water; let it flow through you into the lives of others.

Church, the well is open, the water is free, and the invitation stands. We’ve got an eternity-shaped void that only Jesus can fill. So, what are you waiting for? Drop your bucket, quench your thirst, and then go and tell the world of the well that never runs dry.

Conclusion

Isaiah spoke of a sprout from the stump of Jesse. In the fullness of time, that Sprout came to life in Jesus Christ, born in a manger, raised in obscurity, but destined to be the Savior of the world. This Jesus wasn't just a moral teacher; He was the Word become flesh, the tangible expression of God's love and the embodiment of His promises.

He healed the sick, welcomed the outcast, and spoke life into the broken. But He didn't stop there. No, He went to a cross for you and for me. His body was broken so that we, the distant and the empty, could be made whole.

In His resurrection, Christ defeated death, offering us not just life but abundant life, eternal life. He ascended into heaven, but He left us a promise: "I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am" (John 14:3). That’s a promise you can take to the bank because our God is a promise-keeping God!

So here’s the invitation: Put on Christ. Step into the river of His grace. It’s for the broken who feel like they’re beyond repair. It's for the distant who think they've strayed too far to ever come home. It's for the empty who’ve tried to fill their lives with everything but God and found themselves still parched and wanting.

Remember what the Apostle Paul said in Galatians 3:27: "For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ." To put on Christ is to put on His righteousness, His purpose, His joy, and His peace. When you wear Christ, you become part of that second remnant, that sprawling, ever-growing family of God.

If you feel broken today, know that we serve a God who was broken for you, so that you might be made whole. If you feel distant, know that Jesus crossed the ultimate distance from heaven to earth, so you wouldn’t have to. If you feel empty, know that Jesus said, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink” (John 7:37).

So come, draw water from the wells of salvation with joy, for the promise-making God is also our promise-keeping God. What He’s begun in the stump, in the remnant, in the wellsprings, He will complete in you, through the saving grace of Jesus Christ.

Live for this God. Trust in this God. Love this God, for He is worthy of all that and so much more. Church, it's time to put on Christ, and it's time to live.