LifeLink Devotional

Monday, April 27, 2020

If you were able to join us in person or online, you heard that Jesus is the Way-Maker. He has provided the one and only way to eternal life and eternal relationship with God as His children.

In our study of the Gospel of John for this week, we discover that there was a way-maker for the Way-Maker. His name was John the Baptist, or his better name, John the Baptizer.

John was preaching in the wilderness along the Jordan River, near Bethany. His message was one of repentance and forgiveness. The religious leaders of the day, convinced that the law was the way to God, came to question him about who he was.

John 1:19-23 ^“And this is the testimony of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, “Who are you?” He confessed, and did not deny, but confessed, “I am not the Christ.” And they asked him, “What then? Are you Elijah?” He said, “I am not.” “Are you the Prophet?” And he answered, “No.” So they said to him, “Who are you? We need to give an answer to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?” He said, “I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way of the Lord,’ as the prophet Isaiah said.”

After stating that he was not the Christ, John said that he was also not Elijah or the promised Prophet. When they pressed him to declare who he was, John replied, “I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way of the Lord,’ as the prophet Isaiah said.”

John the Baptizer quoted Isaiah 40:3-5.

^“A voice cries: ‘In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD; make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain. And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together, for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.”

John said, in essence, “I am the way-maker for the Way-Maker. I am preparing the hearts of people to see the arrival of the Lord.”

As we start this week of study of John 1:19-34 in preparation for next Sunday, let me ask one penetrating question for you to consider today.

In the wilderness of the world, where people wander without direction or hope, how does your life prepare the way for them to meet Jesus?

My prayer is that the Holy Spirit will open our eyes to the truth that God has placed us in this current wilderness so that we can be way-makers for people to meet the Way-Maker.

Pastor John