Tag Archives: Preparing the Way

Preparing the Way

Advent

December 4, 2021

Scripture Reading: Luke 3:1-6

In the fifteenth year of the reign of Emperor Tiberius, when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, and Herod was ruler of Galilee, and his brother Philip ruler of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias ruler of Abilene, during the high-priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John son of Zechariah in the wilderness. He went into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins, as it is written in the book of the words of the prophet Isaiah,
‘The voice of one crying out in the wilderness:
“Prepare the way of the Lord,
   make his paths straight.
Every valley shall be filled,
   and every mountain and hill shall be made low,
and the crooked shall be made straight,
   and the rough ways made smooth;
and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.”

As an advocate activist, I am very aware of who the rulers are of my nation, state, county, city, and even the school board, although I have no children in school. I also can identify the leaders of my faith and church. In naming these leaders, Luke describes the part of the world into which Jesus was coming. What comes to your mind when you remember Abraham Lincoln, Franklin Roosevelt, or Hitler? By simply naming names, Luke paints a historic picture upon which he will sketch the life of Jesus.

As an advocate activist, John the Baptist called all who heard his voice to do justice and show mercy. He warned the people and the leaders to repent, change their ways from doing that which was neither righteous nor kind. He further alerted them that the One, Isaiah described, was coming soon to fulfill the prophet’s vision. John was very aware of how those leaders failed to respond to the call for justice and mercy. Instead, most were dedicated to maintaining their power and wealth. Thus, he provided a wake-up call while laying the groundwork for Jesus’s ministry.

We, too, must be aware of the world’s impact on all God’s people, and all people are God’s. We, too, must seek to do God’s justice and share God’s love as demonstrated in the life of Jesus.

Prayer: Lord, during this Advent season, help us examine ourselves and repent of anything separating us from you. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

Sharing Love

Advent

December 5, 2020

Scripture Reading: Mark 1:1-8

The Proclamation of John the Baptist
The beginning of the good news of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
As it is written in the prophet Isaiah,
‘See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you,
   who will prepare your way;
the voice of one crying out in the wilderness:
   “Prepare the way of the Lord,
   make his paths straight”‘, Mark 1:1-3

How do we, as Christ-followers, prepare the way of the Lord? How do we make the path to the Lord straight? If we had it to do over again, would we have become Christ-followers based on observing the ways of those of us who proclaim to be Christians in our world today? We should heed Gandhi’s comments:

“I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.”

I find myself judgmental of others I perceive as thinking they have the corner on Christ, the only corner. And the rest of us do not count. My sense is they are seeing me in the same way. How do we bridge such a gap? At times, if I had the power, I would put a moratorium on all the hot button issues that divide us and only allow us to interact and work together on things with which we agree. The problem I fear is more profound than those issues or any issues. The forces of evil are stealthy and will quickly adapt to our search for common ground.

Our hope lies in faith. I do not know who wrote the book of Hebrews, but I appreciate their help to make the path to Christ straighter for me:

Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. Indeed, by faith our ancestors received approval. By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was made from things that are not visible. (Hebrews 11.1-3)

My electricity was off a few weeks ago. I searched my house for a lighter so I could light some candles. I never did find it but had some flashlights and managed. A few days ago, I got a call from a new neighbor ready to bake something. Her pilot light was out, and she did not have anything with which to light it. I told her that I could not find a lighter just days earlier, but as I talked, I dug through a catchall drawer checking again, and there it was. I met her in the middle of the street to give her the lighter. She just moved here recently and is from another country. She told me later that she could not find the place to light the pilot and waited until her husband got home to do her baking. I did not solve her problem, but I unexpectedly gave her the gift of trusting me to help if she needed it. She is already a Christ-follower. I did not need to straighten her path to him. I did need to show her we shared the same source of love.

Prayer:
Create in me a clean heart, O God,
   and put a new and right spirit within me.
Do not cast me away from your presence,
   and do not take your holy spirit from me.
Restore to me the joy of your salvation,
   and sustain in me a willing spirit. Amen. (Psalm 51:10-12)

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

Prepare the Way

Advent
December 10, 2018

Scripture Reading: Luke 3:1-6

He went into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins, as it is written in the book of the words of the prophet Isaiah,
‘The voice of one crying out in the wilderness:
“Prepare the way of the Lord,
   make his paths straight.
 Every valley shall be filled,
   and every mountain and hill shall be made low,
and the crooked shall be made straight,
   and the rough ways made smooth;
 and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.”’ –Luke 3:3-6

Arriving home from some shopping several weeks ago, I was surprised to see a truck parked in front of my next-door neighbor’s house and workers installing a temporary wheelchair ramp. I learned later that one of her relatives had been injured in an accident and he was moving in with her while he rehabbed since at that point, he was wheelchair bound. They were preparing a way for him to access the house.

When we read the quote above from Isaiah, we recognize that John the Baptist was being the front man for Jesus before he started his ministry. As I read this scripture today, it struck me that we are all called to prepare the way for all flesh (to) see the salvation of God. Those of us who are just as at home in a church as we are in our own living space may be insensitive or even blind to the fears of others who were not raised following the path of Christ. A few years ago, my church dropped the use of Latin words to describe parts of the service and started printing the words that most of us knew by heart like the Lord’s Prayer because they might be unfamiliar to many guests.

Worship is not all there is to prepare the way. Living a life of service modeling the ways of Jesus is just as important in our daily lives. Some may feel more comfortable feeding the hungry or tutoring children in school as they discover the ways of the Lord and certainly heartfelt hospitality is always a way to welcome the stranger.

Prayer: Lord, show us how to prepare the way. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.