Thy Kingdom Come (Isaiah 11:1-10)

“There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit.” (Isaiah 11:1, ESV)

When we speak of the Kingdom of God or the Kingdom of heaven, we think of many things. In fact, these terms carry with them a broad spectrum of present and future realities. Here, Isaiah presents a Messianic prophecy of the Messiah’s coming Kingdom. To understand this, we first must understand some things pertaining to this verse.

Jesse was the father of David, king of Israel. The “shoot from the stump of Jesse,” refers to the Davidic line and the remnant of Israel. The Messiah King would come through this Davidic lineage. Reading the remainder of the prophecy, we see that the Messiah’s reign would be much different from anything anyone has experienced.

Here are just a few of the unique things that Isaiah prophesied. First, verse two states that “the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him,” that is upon the Messiah so that He would reign over this kingdom in the fullness of God. Second, in verses three through five, we read that He would judge not according to the flesh, but in the perfect righteousness of God. Third, the Messiah will establish a kingdom where there will be perfect peace; in verses six through nine we see that He will change the order of nature for the earth would be “full of the knowledge of the Lord.”

Such a kingdom of peace, harmony, and righteousness is nearly impossible for us to imagine right now. However, the words of the Lord declared that it would come. We refer to this time as the millennial or earthly reign of Christ. Do you know that the Lord has predestined us who believe to reign with Him in this glorious kingdom?

“Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection! Over such the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him for a thousand years.” (Revelation 20:6, ESV)

We ought to count ourselves blessed, that by God’s grace alone, we will reign with Christ in this remarkable Messianic kingdom.

Regarding this Millennial Kingdom, men who study the end times have varied opinions as to whether this is a physical future kingdom or if it is a present spiritual kingdom. While I personally believe that there will be a future literal reign of Christ on earth, there are many aspects of a present reality of Christ’s kingdom. We can count ourselves as already being members of the Kingdom of Heaven, already seated with Christ in the heavenly places (Ephesians 2:5-6, 19). We are reigning with Christ where we live today as His ambassadors (2 Corinthians 5:20). Moreover, Christ reigns as king in the hearts of us whom He has saved (1 Peter 3:15) and He reigns over the church (Ephesians 1:22; Colossians 1:18).

What is the point? First, we ought to rejoice in the fact that we are already citizens of Christ’s kingdom and that we will reign with Him in a future glorious earthly kingdom. However, secondly, as present citizens of the kingdom, we ought to be living as citizens of the Kingdom of God today. We as citizens of a heavenly kingdom should not live by earthly rules for we have a higher and much more glorious calling.