The voice of one crying in the wilderness
John 1:22-23 says: 22 Finally, they said, Who are you? Give us an answer to take back to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself. 23 John replied in the words of Isaiah the prophet, “I am the voice of the one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way for the Lord.”
Do you ever feel like yours is the voice crying in the wilderness? Does it seem that the harder you try to make sense of this world, the less you understand, and certainly, the less anyone listens to you?
John had an advantage in that when they asked, Who are you, he replied with the words of the prophet Isaiah, and the Jewish people knew these words because they had committed them to their hearts from their youth. If we had only committed the words of the prophets to our hearts from our youth, and relied on those words instead of our own, perhaps then our words would carry more weight.
John the Baptist was a unique individual in more ways than one.
- He lived a solitary life in the wilderness
- He wore unusual garments
- He had an unusual diet
- He was content being the one who pointed to the Lord Jesus Christ–no jealousy issues
- He recognized that although he came on the scene before Jesus, indeed he was born six months prior to Jesus’ birth, Jesus existed before him (John 1:30)
Why, do you suppose, John lived in the wilderness rather than among his fellow Jews? I believe God sequestered John in the wilderness so that his message would be pure, untainted by the religious thinking of the day. Rather than being educated under the current priestly system which had been corrupted, God set John apart thereby keeping his message pure and unadulterated. John’s message was to repent of your sins, and he baptized with water. Jesus’ message was repentance as well, but He baptized with the Holy Spirit.
May we hear the call of the one crying in the wilderness and repent; indeed, may we sound forth the call to a lost world that Jesus lives, and he lives to take away the sins of the world. Praise be to God.
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Seeking Holiness 