Listen! It’s the voice of someone shouting,
“Clear the way through the wilderness for the Lord! Make a straight highway through the wasteland for our God! Fill in the valleys, and level the mountains and hills. Straighten the curves and smooth out the rough places. Then the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all people will see it together.
The Lord has spoken!”
-Isaiah 40:3-5, NLT
I've read it so many times in the past couple of days, "Where is this God when all these terrible things are happening?" In the midst of so much turmoil, confusion, violence and struggle, we strain to see the hand of God. We see rampant homelessness while the cost of living steadily increases. We see a rise in violence against women and children while the music and movies we watch become all the more violent and aggressive. We see educators on strike, refusing to teach and work in deplorable conditions while we see fewer and fewer teachers even signing up for the job.
We continue to go to church, we might even pray every now and then over a meal or for a sick friend. We watch the news, scroll on social media, put a ❤️, 😭 or 🙏🏾 and move on with a SMH, while we're doing none of the above. We neither love nor cry, and we are not praying. Chances are we've likely forgotten about the situation entirely until it comes up in conversation.
This might seem a little strong, but my passion is for those who can't see God while standing in the middle of their turmoil. They really need the love. They really are crying. And they could really use our earnest, fervent prayer. The book of Isaiah was written 700 years before Jesus was born, but it repeatedly prophesies of His coming. In this particular passage, the writer prophesies of the work of John the Baptist who would cry these very words to announce the arrival of the Messiah. He was calling out to the people to take action! Examine yourselves! Get it together! The Messiah is coming! Move out of the way!
These words sound like orders for physical action, but John the Baptist was not calling for people to go cut grass and fill in valleys. He was calling for people to take spiritual assessment. What idols are in the way of my worship? What sin has brought me to the valley of guilt and shame? What mountain has my pride created and set me upon? What crooked path have I taken in my quest for success? These are the places that the prophet is addressing in Isaiah and they are the same words that John the Baptist used to describe his purpose and calling. Clear the way for the Lord.
We often want to see the Lord, but we fail to realize that He is always there. He has always been there. The scripture that tells us all about John the Baptist begins "In the beginning the Word already existed. The Word was with God, and the Word was God. He existed in the beginning with God. God created everything through him, and nothing was created except through him" (John 1:1-3). Our eternal God has always been right there in the midst of everything around us. The scripture even goes on the explain how this very Word became flesh, or human, and lived right here on Earth with us, in the person of Jesus Christ. However, it also talks about how He had been there for quite some time, was standing right among them and they didn't even recognize Him.
Perhaps they were too consumed with their "self-care?" Maybe they were hoping He would give them time to get done with their sin? Or maybe their lives were good and they had no need for a Messiah. Surely the world isn't that bad, right? The problem was they could not see him because they would not make room for Him. The problem is that we cannot see Him because we refuse to surrender to Him. I'm going to implore you, cry out to you in the same voice that the prophets cried out, over centuries old and beg, MAKE WAY FOR THE LORD. The Messiah is here.
He can meet our needs for homelessness and wealth gaps and economical disaster. He can shape the hearts and minds of man and rescue families from violence and murder and separation. He can fill organizations with integrity and reset the hearts and minds of governmental leaders and authorities. But He wants to do it through YOU. You move the idols and clear the way through prayer. You bring down your mountains of pride and surrender your gifts and talents to Jesus. You receive forgiveness for sin and climb out of the valley of shame. You commit to the straight path of truth that He has hewn for us and become a real influencer. When we take the Word of the Lord seriously, when we do the work, when we become honest with ourselves and live a life that participates in the presence of God, His Word promises that we will see His glory:
"Then the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all people will see it together.
The Lord has spoken!”
I can't wait until we can see calamity and instead asking "Where is God?" we can respond with confidence, "Come see His glory! He is always here."
I love y'all. Talk soon.
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