I'm sure most of you have had the experience of getting ready for special guests.
Last night, I had the joy of going over to the home of one of my first cousins, to celebrate Christmas with my mother's siblings and their children/grandchildren. There were about 30 of us there, altogether. I don't get to really see and sit down with that group but twice a year. So, this gathering is one of the best parts of Christmas for me.
At any rate, my first cousin and his family moved into a new house this year. Most of us last night had never been there. We enjoyed celebrating with them God's blessing of their new home. Even though their home is new, they still had to make preparations for our arrival. I'm sure it was a lot of work! I have hosted this gathering in the past; so, I know! Finding/making room for 30+ people to eat and fellowship is no small matter! A good host prepares.
This is the role that was assigned to John the Baptist: to prepare the people for God's new thing. Let's look at Luke 1:14b-17 (Message version) - -
"...many will delight in his birth. He’ll achieve great stature with God.
15-17 He’ll drink neither wine nor beer. He’ll be filled with the Holy Spirit from the moment he leaves his mother’s womb. He will turn many sons and daughters of Israel back to their God. He will herald God’s arrival in the style and strength of Elijah, soften the hearts of parents to children, and kindle devout understanding among hardened skeptics—he’ll get the people ready for God.”
Getting the people ready for God's "new work"....
How do we do that at this Advent season?
First, we must get ourselves, our hearts ready, which is what we've been focusing on in this blog the past 15 days. When our hearts are being prepared to celebrate Jesus' birth, people will see that. Our "heart preps" will help others to "get ready".
Yesterday, before traveling back to the hometown for the get-together, I was able to participate in the Christmas choir musical at church. Yes, my toes were numb by the end of each performance, but my heart was full. It was a wonderful tribute to my Savior and, hopefully, it helped to prepare others' hearts as well as my own.
When Jesus came, He was the pivotal Person in God's new revelation, the ultimate Special Guest. God predicted this through Isaiah in 43:18-19 - - -
18"Do not call to mind the former things, or ponder things of the past. 19"Behold, I will do something new, Now it will spring forth; Will you not be aware of it? I will even make a roadway in the wilderness, rivers in the desert.
And, a future fulfillment of this passage is the return of Jesus Christ, when God does something new yet again.
In fact, God does something new every time He changes each one of us, every time we recognize our need for more of Him...every time a sinner is converted, and every time a disciple moves deeper into Him.
The question is, Christian, "Are we getting the people ready for God? Are we preparing our hearts every day, not just at Advent?"
The other day, I was in the nail salon, getting some nice, red sparkly Christmas polish. This was my first time to visit this particular shop. I was in another part of the community, and in a hurry. As the tech worked on my nails, he asked if I was a principal. Shocker! I certainly did not expect to be asked that, there! Apparently, someone I did not recognize, another patron in the shop, had recognized me. My first, immediate thought was - - - how was my walk, during the past half hour? Was I kind? Was I loving? How did I represent the Savior? Was I "preparing the people for God?"
Of course, it was an indictment that I even had to ask that question because, it should not matter if anyone knows me or not. Should I behave any differently when no one knows my name than when my name is known? Come on now...
At all times, I bear the name of Jesus Christ, whether my walk is resplendent at that moment or not.
We may or may not have the calling of Elijah on our lives, as John the Baptist did. But, we can prepare our hearts, "make our preps", and in so doing, be used by Him to "get the people ready for God."
Second, to get our hearts ready, we must follow God's command in Isaiah 43. We must leave behind "the former things". In order to receive Christ, the people of that day who did receive Him (John 1:12) had to leave their former way of doing things behind. The practical application of this principle in our lives today is both repentance and then moving forward in Christ Jesus.
Listen, so many of us remain in prison, so shackled to our pasts that we are unable to allow Jesus to take us where He wants us to go! We are going to explore that tomorrow.
Lord Jesus, sometimes I wonder why You needed John the Baptist...Seems to me You could have just come on the scene and done Your thing beautifully, regardless. It is also a mystery to me why You have asked us to prepare our hearts to welcome You and worship You at Christmas. Not having been raised in celebrating Advent, it's a foreign (but welcome) practice that has added a deeper layer of meaning to my celebration this year. Each of us needs to do different things to prepare. Some need to sweep our house. Some need to dust. Some need to call the exterminator! Whatever our situation, show us what we need to do, to get ready for Your birth in just a few days, so that we can help others to get ready, as well. In Jesus' name, amen.
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