The one in the Wilderness has called
John 1:19-34, Acts 19:4, Luke 1:44
The Old Testament is riddled with whispers of the coming of Jesus. Did you know that it also foretells someone who will prepare the way for Him to come? When asked who he was in verse twenty-three, John the Baptist responded with the words of the prophet Isaiah. “I am the voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way for the Lord’” (John 1:23). John’s audience would have understood the significance of someone who went before a king to prepare a way for him. In his time, it was not uncommon for a messenger to be sent before someone important traveled through an area or region. This person’s job was to prepare the path both by the physical removal of barriers and by announcing their coming to those nearby.
John made it clear that he was preparing the way for a perfect coming king: a king foretold by the prophets of old and one who would take away the sins of the world. But how did John prepare the way for the Messiah? In anticipation for the better baptism of Jesus, John baptized as a call for the repentance of sins in anticipation for the one who was to come after him (Acts 19:4). John knew that his Jewish brothers and sisters could not rely on their heritage to be saved, but instead must acknowledge their need for a Messianic Savior who would take away their sin. In all that he did, John sought to bring glory to the one who would bind every sinful heart and bury it with him in a new and better baptism.
Imagine the joy in his heart when John saw his Savior approaching the water. “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1: 29). What a powerful statement. John knew that Jesus was the long awaited Savior that had been prophesied. He knew that Jesus would perfectly sacrifice himself and, in his resurrection, bring with him a new covenant of grace. No longer would God’s people have to atone for their own sins in order to be right with God. Instead, Jesus, a sacrificial lamb, died himself so that he could take away the sins of the world.
John’s entire life was built around bringing Jesus glory. Even when he was an infant in his mother’s womb, he rejoiced at the presence of Jesus (Luke 1:44). Rather than focusing on himself, John made the purpose of his life to prepare a clear path for others to know Christ as the great Redeemer of the world. Has Jesus impacted your life in such a way that you are willing to use every moment to bring him glory?
What if we lived the way John did? What if every aspect of our lives was to pave a way for Jesus to receive more glory? Consider this question and how you can leverage today to bring glory to our King.
