PREPARE THE WAY
9:30 1/3/94 Text Luke 3:1-19 Isaiah 40:1-8 Matthew
3:1-12
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RICK
Today is the first Sunday in which we get to prepare the way
for God to do something new in our lives and in our church for
1993. What the New Year brings us will depend a great deal on
what we bring to the New Year. Are we interested in preparing
the way in our lives in order that God might do a great work both
in us and through us?
TOBY
This morning we are going to look at a person’s life who was
interested in preparing himself and others for the coming of
Jesus Christ into their lives. God had promised in the Old
Testament that He would send a forerunner ahead in the Spirit of
Elijah to prepare the people for the coming of the Messiah. Now
that Christmas is behind us, we must prepare the adult Jesus to
revolutionize our lives in 1993. The power and salvation of God
is ready to be poured out upon on God’s people, but only those
who are preparing the way for Him will receive the maximum bene
fit.
RICK
Our text this morning begins in Luke 3:1. Verse one and the
first part of verse two says, "In the fifteenth year of the reign
of Tiberius Caesar--when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea,
Herod tetrarch of Galilee, his brother Philip tetrarch of Iturea
and Traconitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene-- {2} during the
high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas,"
Notice that Christianity has a historical time and place.
secular historical records testify to what’s recorded in the
Scriptures. There’s more historical records outside of the bible
on Jesus Christ than there is Julius Caeser.
TOBY
Now Luke is not simply giving us a history lesson to pin
point the historical accuracy and place of the mission of Jesus
Christ. This lists of names informs that John the Baptist and
Jesus began their ministries during a period of dark times. The
administration of Tiberious Ceasar was characterized by severity
and cruelty. It was a period of moral degeneration and political
chaos in the Roman Empire. The other names reveal that the Holy
Land was under the domination of a pagan power that arbitrarily
divided up the land and placed it under different rulers. Often
times these rulers were evil administrators and lacked honesty
and integrity.
RICK
Even the sacred religious life was contaminated by people
who didn’t serve or know God, yet they were the ones who chose
who would be the next high priest. God’s people had little to say
about who would be their spiritual leaders. The government decid
ed that behind close doors. Luke wants us to see that it was
during a period when conditions were dark and desperate in the
world, that God called John to "Prepare The Way"
TOBY
It does not matter what the agenda of the world is, when God
gets ready to move, God sends a word. Look at the second part of
verse 2 " the word of God came to John son of Zechariah in the
desert." Notice first of all the faithfulness of God. John’s
life had begun with great promises to his elderly parents Eliza
beth and Zechariah. It’s been 30 years since they were told their
son would prepare the way for the Messiah. No doubt both of them
are dead at this point, and they died wondering if they had heard
God correctly. But God has been true and faithful to his word.
We may not see all of God’s promises come to past concerning us,
our family, our church, but God is faithful to keep His word.
RICK
God’s word comes to John in the desert, and the good thing
is that John is prepared to receive it. Verse 3 says "He went
into all the country around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of
repentance for the forgiveness of sins." For all practical
purposes, John is a nobody out in the middle of nowhere, until He
receives a word from God. It does not matter what the world
thinks of us or where we are, when God chooses to use us, God
knows where we are. John does not just up and start preaching on
his own. No, the word of God came to him in manner that left no
room for doubt that God was calling him to prepare the way. God
did not require John to have several degrees to reach the people.
Just a willing heart and a mouth that would speak would get the
job done
TOBY
When God calls us, God provides us with the necessary equip
ment. Now God does expect us to do that which we are capable of
doing. Laziness on our part is not going to be a reason, for us
to expect the Spirit to do something great through us. We are all
in some kind of a desert in our lives. God is calling us in our
ð 7 3 Šdeserts to prepare the way for Him. God has plenty to equip us
with. Our prayer for each of you for 1993 is found in Ephesians
3:16-18 in which the word of God says "I pray that out of his
glorious riches God may strengthen you with power through his
Spirit in your inner being, {17} so that Christ may dwell in your
hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and
established in love, {18} may have power, together with all the
saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love
of Christ". Saints, a genuine understanding of Christ’s love for
us will always move us to action for Him.
RICK
John came preaching and baptizing. He got the name John the
Baptist, because people were not use to baptisms by an individu
al. Baptist was an outward sign that God had forgiven them of
their sins. January is the time of year of turning over a new
leaf. Unfortunately, many find the other side of the leaf is not
a whole lot better than the side they turned over. Someone has
said, "most of the leaves we turned over in January have already
started to fall by the second week."
TOBY
John the Baptist did not preach, just behave a little nicer,
or let’s just love each other, or let’s just accept everybody. No
his message was repent. The word repentance in Hebrew indicates
a deliberate turning or returning. It’s a break off from the
direction one is going at a 180 degree turn. The word designat
ed a return of the people to the covenant which had been estab
lish with God. Repentance is coming to God by those who have
broken faith with God.
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RICK
Repentance never comes with demands and conditions. I’ll do
this God if you do that. Repentance comes out of a genuine
realization of a desperate need. It’s realizing that you are in
a burning house with no way to escape except someone from the
outside comes in to save you. You see people cannot find Jesus
until they realize that they are lost and in desperate need of
being saved. We are not doing God a favor by becoming Chris
tians. He’s done us favor by making it possible for us to escape
the pitiful condition that we are in. Repentance is always the
first step in preparing the way.
TOBY
Let’s look at verses at verses 4-5 "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. {5} Every valley shall be filled in, every mountain and
hill made low. The crooked roads shall become straight, the rough
ways smooth." Praise God for all the voices that cry out and
proclaims to the people the standards established by God. John
is warning the people of an important event which is coming. If
we were told, the president is coming to church next Sunday along
with Lionel Ritchie and Michael Jordan all the church would make
preparations to be here. Yet we spend so little time preparing
to meet Jesus when his presence arrives on Sunday.
RICK
Why is it that we are more impressed with the presence of
celebrities than we are with Christ. One day many of us will be
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in hell with those same celebrities. We will have their presence
with us for all eternity. Yet when we get it, we’re going to
wish we had received Jesus. As sinners were prepare the way of
God into our lives through confession and humility.
TOBY
To prepare the way of the Lord is to fill up what’s lacking.
Do we recognize that in ourselves alone, we are not fit to stand
in God’s presence and that we need to break down everything in
our lives that keep God out. How many of us are willing to have
our pride flattened out in 1993. Half of us are to proud to come
out and admit we’re wrong and need to ask for forgiveness. The
other half is usually to admit our feelings were hurt in the
first place.
RICK
When Jesus comes we shall all be flattened out. Those
things in our lives that are crooked shall be made straight.
Ecclesiastes 7:29 says ": God made humankind upright, but people
have gone in search of many schemes." Let’s not look back at
1992 and just writ it off. Let’s look back as see, where have we
deviated from the well beaten ways of God as revealed in His
word? Where did we follow some crooked ways. Where is that we
need to make straight in 1993 by looking to Jesus who is the
Author and Finisher of Our faith.
TOBY
Verse six says "And all mankind will see God’s salvation.’"
Two often we miss the salvation of God, because it does not come
in the form we anticipate that it would. With few exceptions,
ð 7 3 Šmost of the people expected an earthly Messiah that would de
stroy the Roman government and put the Jewish nation on top to
rule the world for God. Jesus had no such intention of doing
anything like that. In our own country, we look for Messiahs to
rise and lift us from our social and economic conditions. The
last Messiah we chose was Bill Clinton. Unfortunately, he could
not deal with removing our sin, so the problems will remain.
RICK
Our generation, like John the Baptist’s generation, has very
little concept of the depth of our sin, and the need of a Messiah
who can bring about a spiritual deliverance. You can put all the
clean clothes on an alcoholic that you want to and give him house
in the suburbs, but it doesn’t change his condition. Jesus is
interested in changing the inner person in 1993. John the Bap
tist pointed the people to their spiritual needs. Until we get
Black people to see the spiritual need of our lives, generations
are going to continue to fall by the way side talking about what
racism is doing.
TOBY
Verse seven says "John said to the crowds coming out to be
baptized by him, "You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee
from the coming wrath? " Needless to say, John was not known for
trying to sugar coat the gospel. Yet people were coming to
listen to him from all walks of life. He spoke with authority and
boldness. He addressed the people fearlessly and pointedly,
drawing attention to their sins and calling them to repentance.
RICK
Some came to see John out of sincerity, some out of curiosi
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ty, and some out of hypocrisy. John had nothing good to say
about those who were not earnest to escape God’s wrath. He said,
" you are like poisonous snakes hinging in the grass who don’t
show themselves until the grass is set on fire." He said this
because some of the people were living in self satisfaction and
sin, but now they came to be baptized not to be changed, but to
try to get an insurance policy against the coming judgment. This
is similar to people who want to be Christians, but don’t want to
have to be born again.
TOBY
Let’s look at verse 3:8-9 "Produce fruit in keeping with
repentance. And do not begin to say to yourselves, ’We have
Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you that out of these stones
God can raise up children for Abraham. {9} The ax is already at
the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good
fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire."
One can tell when Jesus comes into a life, because there’s
a change that takes place. Knowing Christ is more than going
through a religious phase. If anyone is in Christ, he or she is
going to become a new creation.
RICK
God is no respecter of persons when we come to Him. He
cares nothing about which family we have come out of, because the
requirements are still the same for everyone. Everyone has to
know Jesus for him or herself. Once we see the sinlessness of
Christ, our estimation of ourselves becomes like Paul saying,
"Christ came to save sinners of whom I am chief." For we shall
ð 7 3 Šnot be judged by our profession and our birth, but by our hearts,
our lives, and our relationship to Jesus Christ.
TOBY
Can we look back over our lives in 1992 and see any fruit
produced by us that was not there in 1991? Are there any areas in
our lives that we which Jesus would quit troubling us about?.
What fruit do we want to produce in 1993. The soil in the king
dom of God is too rich and precious to have barren trees continu
ally using it up. That soil has been nourished by the life and
death of Jesus Christ. When you go into a forest, you will
discover that some trees stand tall, but they are dead. Their
roots keep the tree from falling over. There are some who pro
fess to stand tall for Christ, but in reality are dead. Because
they hang around the church, they think they are alive in Christ.
Being at the church and being in Christ are to different experi
ences.
RICK
Let’s look at verses 10-14, "What should we do then?" the
crowd asked. {11} John answered, "The man with two tunics should
share with him who has none, and the one who has food should do
the same." {12} Tax collectors also came to be baptized. "Teach
er," they asked, "what should we do?" {13} "Don’t collect any
more than you are required to," he told them. {14} Then some
soldiers asked him, "And what should we do?" He replied, "Don’t
extort money and don’t accuse people falsely--be content with
your pay."
Now John is talking about people who have the right doctrine
but the wrong actions. John stresses practicality as a means of
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producing fruit. The coat and food represent the physical neces
sities of life. These should no be hoarded. John spoke against
using ones’s power and position on the job to abuse others. He
condemns taking advantage of other’s for one’s own enrichment.
TOBY
We know when we have heard from God when we are motivated to
bring about changes in our lifestyles. To grow in God is to come
out of complacency and accepting the status quo in any area of
our lives. To grow in faith may even mean taking some steps that
may cause other people to think you’re dumb. But so what. The
good news is that Jesus is coming in 1993 and for those who are
preparing the way, Jesus shall undoubtedly bring forgiveness of
sin and inward renewal through the Spirit. We don’t have to let
the New year take control of us. When we give control of our
lives to Jesus, he controls not only what comes in with the new
year, He also controls how we react to the good, the bad, and
everything in between.
RICK
What does Jesus want for us in 1993. Jesus says, I have
come that you might have life and that you might have it more
abundantly. That life is free in that you can’t buy it, you
can’t earn it, and you’ll never deserve it. There is a catch.
You must be willing to say yes God, and let go of sin. In the
place of sin, God’s going to give you a new kind of a joy. We
encourage everyone, to prepare the way to receive it.
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