Prepare Ye the Way

 

[The following is a manuscript of my message delivered on Sunday morning the 18th of October, 2020, at Pilgrim Reformed Church.  This was an abbreviated service, also streamed live, due to constraints put in place from the COVID-19 pandemic.  Our YouTube streaming channel is:

http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDIz4WuP8igQstkEOq1AMTg.  Look for the video of our recorded services on our Vimeo channel:  http://vimeo.com/pilgrimreformedchurch.]

As we read the Gospel accounts in our New Testament, we can see two times so far when Jesus has come on the scene, with His arrival being clearly announced.  The first was at His birth, with the announcement from an angel to the nearby shepherds.  And the second was just before He began His ministry, proclaimed to the multitudes who came to the River Jordan to be baptized by John.  Both were foretold long ago by the prophets, speaking for God to the children of Israel.  And both carried a tremendous impact on the fate of mankind.

Let’s look at that second instance for a moment, right before Jesus came to the Jordan to be baptized along with the multitudes and the sinners.  Please listen and follow along as I read from chapter 3 of the Apostle Luke’s Gospel account, verses 1 through 18, and I’ll be reading from the New King James Version of our Holy Bible this morning…

1 Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate being governor of Judea, Herod being tetrarch of Galilee, his brother Philip tetrarch of Iturea and the region of Trachonitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene, 2 while Annas and Caiaphas were high priests, the word of God came to John the son of Zacharias in the wilderness. 3 And he went into all the region around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins, 4 as it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet, saying:

“The voice of one crying in the wilderness:

‘Prepare ye the way of the Lord;

Make His paths straight.

5 Every valley shall be filled

And every mountain and hill brought low;

The crooked places shall be made straight

And the rough ways smooth;

6 And all flesh shall see the salvation of God.’ ”

7 Then he said to the multitudes that came out to be baptized by him, “Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8 Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance, and do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones. 9 And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees. Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.”

10 So the people asked him, saying, “What shall we do then?”

11 He answered and said to them, “He who has two tunics, let him give to him who has none; and he who has food, let him do likewise.”

12 Then tax collectors also came to be baptized, and said to him, “Teacher, what shall we do?”

13 And he said to them, “Collect no more than what is appointed for you.”

14 Likewise the soldiers asked him, saying, “And what shall we do?”

So he said to them, “Do not intimidate anyone or accuse falsely, and be content with your wages.”

15 Now as the people were in expectation, and all reasoned in their hearts about John, whether he was the Christ or not, 16 John answered, saying to all, “I indeed baptize you with water; but One mightier than I is coming, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loose. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. 17 His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather the wheat into His barn; but the chaff He will burn with unquenchable fire.”

18 And with many other exhortations he preached to the people.

--Luke 3:1-18 (NKJV)

Let us pray…  Father God, thank You for giving us such a clear explanation of what we should do to repent of our sins and to bear good fruit.  Through John’s exhortations to a few individuals, we can see examples of how we must live so as to be righteous in Your sight.  Thank You, Father, for making sure all of this is saved for us in our Bible.  Please help us to heed these examples and the words in our scripture, especially as they pertain to our Lord Jesus and our fate throughout eternity.  And Father, please protect us from all the effects of the coronavirus and all the troubles of the world around us.  Please keep us strong in our faith, of one mind in our love and worship, and healthy and safe through these trying times.

Speak to us now, Father, that we might hear Your voice through Your Spirit and better understand the message You have for us for this day.  Give us the words and the courage to proclaim to all the world the return of Your Son Jesus to the earth.  Show us Your will for our lives through Your Holy Spirit and may He guide us through each day.  This we pray under the blood and in the name of Your Son, Christ Jesus our Lord.   Amen.

During his 1960 presidential campaign, John F. Kennedy often closed his speeches with this story of Colonel Davenport, the Speaker of the Connecticut House of Representatives:   

“On May 19th, 1780 the sky of Hartford darkened ominously, and some of the representatives, glancing out the windows, feared the end was at hand.  Quelling a clamor for immediate adjournment, Davenport rose and said, ‘The Day of Judgment is either approaching or it is not.  If it is not, there is no cause for adjournment.  If it is, I choose to be found doing my duty.  Therefore, I wish that candles be brought.’  Rather than fearing what is to come, we are to be faithful until Christ returns.  Instead of fearing the dark, we are to be lights as we watch and wait.”

As I’ve mentioned more than once before, we don’t know when Jesus will return to call His church home but we must be ready for when He does.  Jesus Himself says to be watchful.  He tells us to do as our Master commands right up to that time, so that we’re sure to always be doing right, and to be righteous in God’s eyes.

As we asked of Jesus in our church reading earlier, let us live our lives as if His coming is but a second away.  And let us be a light unto the world – a world that is cowering in darkness.

Our scripture reading tells the story of John, a kinsman of Jesus, whom we call the Baptist, because that is what he is mostly known for: baptizing the masses.  He is also known as the voice crying out in the wilderness, as the great prophet Isaiah foretold.  And we could also call him an announcer, for John openly proclaimed our Lord’s first appearance upon the stage of life, as Jesus began His ministry on earth.

But Jesus was around 30 years old at that time, and as I mentioned, it was an angel that announced His birth, His first coming into our world.  Listen to how Luke recorded this wonderful event, in the 2nd chapter of his Gospel account, verses 8 through 14…

8 Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. 9 And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid. 10 Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. 11 For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. 12 And this will be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger.”

13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying:

14 “Glory to God in the highest,
And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!”

--Luke 2:8-14 (NKJV)

We’re all pretty familiar with that – we hear it or read it every Christmas.  But I bring it up here because it represents fulfillment of prophecy, the first time the absolute embodiment and incarnation of God set foot on the earth, the first time our Lord Jesus became as one of us.  This was our Lord’s first coming into our world.  John announced the coming of Jesus into His ministry, and His purpose for coming to us.

Now, Isaiah was not alone in foretelling of one who would prepare for the Lord's coming.  Hear what God said through the prophet Malachi in the 1st verse of the 3rd chapter of his book of prophecy…

1 “Behold, I send My messenger,
And he will prepare the way before Me.
And the Lord, whom you seek,
Will suddenly come to His temple,
Even the Messenger of the covenant,
In whom you delight.
Behold, He is coming,”
Says the Lord of hosts.

--Malachi 3:1 (NKJV)

God said He was sending His messenger to prepare the way of His coming.  And when He comes, the promised Messiah will suddenly come to His temple.  God did indeed come to earth in the person of Jesus, and as an adult came into the temple preaching repentance, with John the Baptist preparing the way.  Someday Jesus will return and come into His temple, His new temple.  Who will prepare the way then?

Through Malachi, God said our Lord is coming, in whom we delight.  We who believe in Jesus as the Son of God do indeed delight in Him as our Savior.  But God offers even more than salvation to those who would accept Jesus as Lord.  He also provides healing – spiritual healing - to those who had once accepted Jesus but have since strayed from the straight and narrow way.

Hear what God tells us through Isaiah, in chapter 57 and verse 15 of his prophecy…

15 For thus says the High and Lofty One
Who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy:
“I dwell in the high and holy place,
With him who has a contrite and humble spirit,
To revive the spirit of the humble,
And to revive the heart of the contrite ones."

--Isaiah 57:15 (NKJV)

But that healing requires repentance, a turning from our sinful ways back to a contrite and humble spirit.  John the Baptist prepared the way of Jesus coming into His ministry by calling the people to repentance, preaching to them to humble themselves before God.  He warned that the Kingdom of God was at hand.  And family, so it is again.

Isaiah and Malachi foretold of John's role in God's plan hundreds of years before the Baptist was even born.  Everything that the angel and these men and others spoke of regarding the coming of Jesus holds true for His return!  Jesus is coming again, He will return, and if we read our Bibles closely, it seems the time of His next arrival is getting closer and closer.

But now the job falls to us.  We must be the voices crying out in the wilderness, calling mankind to repent and to accept Jesus as Lord.  We must prepare the way of our Lord's second coming, making straight the crooked ways in the deserts of our times.

The Baptist has given us a good roadmap to follow in how to live our own lives and how to instruct others.  Share what we have with others in their time of need.  Be fair and just in our dealings with others, not trying to take advantage of them for our own gain.  Don’t intimidate anyone, or falsely accuse someone else of wrongdoing.  Be content with what we have, and not envious with what someone else might possess.  Bear good fruit, lest we be cut down and thrown into the fire.

For Jesus is coming, with His winnowing fan in His hand, ready to separate the chafe from the wheat.  He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather the wheat into His barn.  But the chaff He will burn with unquenchable fire.

Eternity is a very long time.  If we accept our Bible as truth, there are two ways we can spend eternity: either rejoicing in the presence of God in heaven, or burning with unquenchable fire.  Jesus is coming again, and when He does we’ll no longer have a choice.  Prepare ye the way of our Lord, and help others make the right choice, too.

In the blessed name of Christ Jesus our Lord, our Savior, the one true Son of God.  Amen.

Let us pray…  Father God, thank You for giving us the means to prepare for what is to come.  In our Bible, we read words of encouragement as we face tough times.  We are shown how to live and how to interact with others so that we will be righteous in Your eyes.  Thank You for this guidance.  Help us, please Father, to be ever vigilant as we await our Lord’s return.  Help us as we encourage others to turn from their disobedient ways and to accept Jesus as Lord.  And Father, help us be more loving, more trusting, more merciful, and more kindhearted toward others in our daily walk.

Please hear us now, Father, as we pause for just a moment to speak to You straight from our hearts, promising to repent of our sinful ways, seeking Your forgiveness and Your help to do so…

Lord Jesus, You who had never sinned came to John to be baptized.  You and John both warned the people that they must repent for the Kingdom of heaven is at hand.  Well, Lord, from what we can see in our world today, God’s kingdom is rapidly approaching.  Forgive us, Jesus, for those times we have failed to do as You command us to make disciples from among the peoples.  Forgive us when doubts creep in and all that is going on in the world around us causes our faith and our love to falter.  Help us, please Jesus, to not be timid or fearful to tell others about You and what You have done for us.  Help us to love others enough to want to lead them to You and everlasting life.  Help us to love one another as You love us, to see one another as You see us.  Give us Your heart for loving others.  Strengthen us, Jesus, through these dark times.  And Lord, please heal the divisions between us, that creep in and separate us, even within Your church family.  Help us remain faithful and obedient through the storms raging around us, concerned more with the needs of others than with our own wants and desires.  This we pray in Your blessed name, Christ Jesus our Lord and our Savior.  Amen.