Loving God, bless the life of this dear reader; in Christ Jesus I pray, amen.
Happy Advent Season everyone! Our text for today comes from Mark 1: 1 The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God; 2 As it is written in the prophets, Behold , I send my messenger before thy face, which shall prepare thy way before thee. 3 The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. 4 John did baptize in the wilderness, and preach the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins. 5 And there went out unto him all the land of Judaea, and they of Jerusalem, and were all baptized of him in the river of Jordan, confessing their sins. 6 And John was clothed with camel's hair, and with a girdle of a skin about his loins; and he did eat locusts and wild honey; 7 And preached , saying , There cometh one mightier than I after me, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to stoop down and unloose . 8 I indeed have baptized you with water: but he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost. (King James Version: In honor of its 400th Birthday, we will studying our texts in the KJV until the end of the year).
"This is a great place. They have a Poblano Soup to die for." With those simple words, we were convinced to try this new place. Word of mouth. It is still the best and cheapest way to advertise anything worth knowing. Word of mouth makes or breaks new movies. It helps sell new books or not. Someone who cares enough prepares the way, as it were, of this which is coming. Advent is our opportunity to prepare the way for Jesus much like John the Baptist did prior to Jesus' start of His ministry. Mark's Gospel tells of this coming messenger and his purpose. It would be a "voice crying in the wilderness" (one of many phrases used beyond the Church thanks to the King James Bible), "Get ready, the Lord is coming!"
John did more than announce the coming Messiah, he started in sharing the message that God would be sharing through His Son: Confess your sins! Get right with God! Get to work in telling others! And it worked then and it can work now. John was an unamplified, unbroadcast voice by the River Jordan, telling the message of truth. It was a hard message for some to receive, for they did not want anyone to know of their sins, which they prayed remained hidden. But the offer: These sins and all their weight can be removed from you - it struck a chord because many came and presented themselves for the ritual of washing reserved not for Jews but for those wishing to be clean. And as they were baptized, they heard the message that the One coming after John would be greater; so much greater that John confessed he was not worthy to untie his sandal. So much greater that His baptism would be not of water but of the Holy Ghost!
Thanksgiving and Advent sort of ran together this past week. On Thursday we were having a great meal; come Sunday we saw the beauty of the church decked out in green and white, bright sparkling lights on the Christmas tree and wreaths; signs that the church building is ready for the celebration coming that is Christmas. The message may have been, Are you ready? As we remember and celebrate Jesus' first coming, what are we doing to ready ourselves for His second return? More importantly, as an old professor used to say, "What have we done about His first coming?" We can get ready, just like the people who came to John; confessing our sins and presenting our lives are that sacrifice of love and service to all the world.
PRAYER: Come Lord Jesus, come. Enter into my heart anew as Lord and Savior. Clean out the clutter of the sins and bad deeds of my heart. Let there be room for Thee in all places of my life. May I share with someone today of the goodness and grace You have shared with me, so that yet another person can be ready. I pray this in Christ Jesus' precious name, amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord!
Eradio Valverde
