The Lord’s promise to our forefathers still reign today.
Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, he has come to his people to set them free, he has raised up for us a mighty savior, born of the house of his servant David. Through his holy prophets he promised of old, that he would save us from our enemies, and from the hands of all who hate us. He promised to show mercy to our fathers and to remember his holy covenant. This was the oath he swore to our father Abraham, to set us free from the hands of our enemies, free to worship without fear, holy and righteous in his sight all the days of our life. You my child shall be call the prophet of the Most High; for he will go before the Lord to prepare his way, to give his people knowledge of salvation, by the forgiveness of their sins. In the tender compassion of our God, the dawn on high shall break upon us, to shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death, and to guide our feet into the way of peace. (Benedictus Dominus Deus)
The voice of the one was crying in the wilderness and that voice is still crying in the wilderness today. “Prepare the way of the Lord!”
Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. For 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 smooth, and all flesh shall see the salvation of God. Luke 3:1-6
Before the arrival of Jesus, John preached a baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel. Act 13:24
My brothers and sisters in Christ, who have ears to hear the word of the Lord, let them hear; for there are many like John the Baptist preaching to us from every corner of the earth, repent and be baptized. John said, “I baptize you with water for repentance, but after me will come One more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.”
As it is written in Isaiah the prophet: “Behold, I will send My messenger ahead of You, who will prepare Your way.” My brothers and sisters in Christ, let us will an open mind heed the voice of the messenger.
He is a voice shouting in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord’s coming! Clear the road for him!’ This messenger was John the Baptist. He was in the wilderness and preached that people should be baptized to show that they had repented of their sins and turned to God to be forgiven. People went out to him from all of Jerusalem and the countryside of Judea. Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River. Mark 1:3-5
See, I am sending a messenger to prepare the way for our salvation, and the Lord whom you seek is coming. The messenger of the covenant in whom you delight, indeed he is coming, says the Lord. Malachi 3:1
My brothers and sisters in Christ, Jesus is coming and we must prepare for his coming for he will come. “But who can endure the day of his coming, and who can stand when he appears? For he is like the refiner’s fire and the fuller’s soap; he will sit as a refiner and a purifier of silver, and he will purify the descendants of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, until they present offerings to the Lord in righteousness. Then the offering of Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasing to the Lord as in the days of old and in former years.”
Heavenly Father during this week of peace, help us to lay aside everything that threatens our peace, clear our minds so that we could clearly see the way that you are preparing for us, in Jesus name we pray. Amen!
“Merciful God, you sent your messengers the prophets to preach repentance and prepare the way for our salvation; give us grace to heed their warnings and repent of our sins, that we may greet with joy the coming of Jesus Christ our Redeemer, who lives and reigns with you, one God, forever and ever.” Amen!
A candle is burning, a candle of PEACE, a candle to signal that conflict must cease, for Jesus is coming to show us the way, a message of Peace humbly laid in the hay.
My brothers and sisters in Christ, there is so much hatred in this world, so many people have no peace. But this is a season of peace, so let us embrace all it stands for because Jesus himself is our peace.
The reward for trusting God will be the salvation of your souls.1 Peter 1:9
“This salvation was something even the prophets wanted to know more about when they prophesied about this gracious salvation prepared for you. They were trying to find out the time and circumstances to which the Spirit of Christ in them was pointing when he predicted the sufferings of the Messiah and the glories that would follow. They were told that their messages were not for themselves, but for you. And now this Good News has been announced to you by those who preached in the power of the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. It is all so wonderful that even the angels are eagerly watching these things happen.” I am eagerly watching and waiting also. Are you?
And after you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself restore you, secure you, strengthen you, and establish you. 1 Peter 5:10
My brother and sisters in Christ, keep the faith, “For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! So, we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever.”
Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see. Hebrews 11:1
As Christians our faith fuels our hope, we trust in God for the things that we cannot see, confident that he will bring it to pass. My brothers and sisters in Christ, our hope in God never disappoints, and that is why we walk by faith and not by sight.