Prepare the Way! – Sermon 7 December, 2014

Prepare the Way!
Is. 40:1-11 & Mark 1:1-8
The word “prepare” means “to make ready, to make the necessary preparations, to get everything ready”. John the Baptist’s job was to prepare the way for the public ministry of Jesus. His teaching and preaching would set the stage for Jesus’ teaching and preaching.
The gospel according to Mark was written by John Mark sometime 60-70 A.D. originally to Roman Gentiles to tell the good news concerning Jesus.
Verses 2-3 come from Isaiah 40:3, Malachi 3:1, and draw from Exodus 23:20, where Mark makes it clear that the gospel is bound fast to the promise of God in the Old Testament and is a continuation of the story of God’s saving activity.
1. This is an Old Testament prophecy. According to Mark God’s original messenger was John the Baptist.
John’s task was to make a road for God, and he did this by preaching. The content of his preaching was a firm uncompromising call to all to prepare themselves for the coming of the Lord by turning from their evil ways and turning back to God. Hence his Purpose was proclaiming the good news.
The general custom in ancient times, before a king visited any part of his realm, a messenger was sent before him to prepare the way.
His Message was a call for a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins” (v. 4).
Also, his dress and lifestyle were a protest against the godlessness and self-serving materialism of his day. It amounted to a call to separate oneself from the sinful culture, repent, and live a life focused on God.
2. The New Testament gives a new mandate to God’s contemporary messengers, the Christians, to go out and preach the gospel. Jesus commissioned His disciples and us to go out teaching (Matt. 28:19-20). This is not just a “great suggestion”, but rather a call for commitment to obey and serve the Lord.
Therefore the purpose is “to seek and to save the lost” (Luke 19:10). Today, we are to announce that Jesus has come and is coming again. This should be our message.
1. We are to declare the gospel (cf. 1 Cor. 15:1-4).
2. Also, our lives are to be living letters for Jesus (cf. 2 Cor. 3:2-3).
The message should be clear: Just as Jesus came the first time He is coming the second time. The world wasn’t ready for Him the 1st time and they probably will not be ready for Him the 2nd time.
• One out of every 30 verses in the Bible mentions the subject of Christ’s return or the end of time.
• Of the 216 chapters in the NT, there are well over 300 references to the return of Jesus Christ.
• Only 4 of the 27 NT books fail to mention Christ’s return.
• That means one-twentieth of the entire NT is dedicated to the subject of our Lord’s return.
For more than 2,000 years, Christians have believed Jesus Christ would return to this earth, physically, in his “Second Coming,” in their generation. Even though Our Lord knew the church would not see that return for two millennia, He wanted each generation to live as though He could come at any time for motivational purposes. Our Lord knew He would “go into a far country. And after a while He will return and demand an accounting, as He taught in His parables. He knew that routine living was an enemy to spiritual motivation in a physical universe. So He presented His Second Coming in such a way that Christians would be motivated to live as though He would interrupt their lives and return before their natural life span had ended.
The apostles as well as the 1st century church lived with the expectation that Jesus would come during their lifetime. This expectation motivated them to live holy lives as well as dedicated lives to evangelism and reaching the world for Christ.
My question is: Where has that expectation gone as we are preparing to enter 2015?
John was preparing the way of the Lord.
What about us?
Do we really live as if Jesus were coming back?
Do we really expect that He will come back in our life time?
I believe that if we did live like this it would change the way we live dramatically.
Just as the Bible promised He would come the first time it has also promised that He will come the second time.
The Bible says: “Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man.” Luke 21:36
(1) Are we preparing the way of the Lord?
(2) Are we prepared for the return of the Lord?

Krikor Youmshajekian