Scripture
The word of God came to John son of Zechariah in the desert. He went into all the country around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. As is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet: “A voice of one calling in the desert, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him. Every valley shall be filled in, every mountain and hill made low. The crooked roads shall become straight, the rough ways smooth. Luke 3:2-5
Observation It is easy to gloss over this rough grain story of John the Baptist and miss the courage of the man.In a society saturated in legalism John broke every social rule to follow God. It was a time for conformity to at least one of the three major religious groups. Take your pick: Pharisee, Saducee or Essene. But there was no room for start ups. John joined none of them and launched out living far from the establishment in the desert.
John didn’t go to the world; John went after God and the world came to him. Hidden in the wilderness people found John the Baptist best.
This lifestyle had its advantages, for John could speak his message without dilution. His word was as uncompromising as a laser beam level. Valleys must be filled, crooked must be straight, and pot holes must be filled in. Notes on John’s sermons could be taken in phrases not paragraphs. He was simple and to the point: God is coming so get ready. The only way to build a road through a rugged place is to have a simple message that creates one straight pathway. Let others follow and add side streets. Let the pioneer build simply the main road. John did not have tangents just a target and with that he built one road that today we call the Christian faith.
There are times to launch out on nothing more than a personally perceived word from God. There is the danger of misinterpretation. There is certainly the misunderstanding of others. But the world needs more like John the Baptist to be like Daniel Boones for others to follow their trail. The “word of God came to John in the desert” and there he followed God. We would do well to do the same. There will be times that God will call us to follow him before the road exists. We must alert others to a road that must be built and by example inspire others to join the highway crew in construction. If God has spoken yet there is no road then the only option is to make one.
Prayer Father, today I want to be more than a road builder; I want to inspire others to build the road for themselves. There is a desert around me where there is no way; yet one is needed for other leaders to follow. Help me to become the road builder that you need me to be. Amen.
