We in the Christian church today are the successors of the apostles

The beginning of the good news about Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God, as it is written in Isaiah the prophet: “I will send my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way” – a voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.’”

And so, John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. The whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem went out to him. Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River. John wore clothing made of camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey. And this was his message: “After me comes the one more powerful than I, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie. I baptize you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.” – Mark 1:1-8

There is much hatred in our world today. People seem to thrive on hate. This blinds us to God and his mercy. Many Christians allow hate to get in the way of forgiveness and consequence, it blocks Christ’s entrance into our world. It is impossible for us to share God’s word and prepare for his coming if we hate those to whom we are sent.

The above text is the fulfillment of two Old Testament prophecies. The first quote, “I will send my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way,” comes from the prophet Malachi. The second, “a voice of one calling in the wilderness, prepare the way for the Lord, make his paths straight,” comes from Isaiah, the prophet.

John the Baptist was that messenger and the voice crying in the wilderness. He was the one who prepared the way of the Lord.

For a while, many thought John was the Christ. However, he put a stop to that very quickly.

He was not the Messiah. He was only the messenger.

John prepared the way for Jesus’ first Advent. He prepared the hearts and minds of the people letting them know that one would come after him who was much greater than he.

That person was Jesus the Christ, the lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. Jesus came, completed his assignment, left, and promised that he will come again.

He set up his church here on earth, by calling 12 apostles to whom he gave the assignment to make disciples, to teach and to baptize in preparation for his second coming.

We, in the Christian church today, are the successors of the apostles. We are left to do the same – make disciples, teach, prepare the hearts and minds of the people of the world for Jesus’ second coming. Yes! We make them aware of God’s word and his plan for their lives.

The world in which we live today is in a desperate need of a savior. Our world is becoming more and more perverse. People do not seem to care about morality any longer.

We build God’s kingdom here on earth by proclaiming the word of God to the people around us. We are to prepare their hearts for our Lord’s second coming. We are called to let them know that God is real and that he cares for their welfare. Yes, he cared so much, he sent his son into the world to die for our sins.

Yes, we need to become a crying voice; making his path straight and to remove the things which block his entrance into our world. We make his paths straight by bringing his word to a world dying from a lack of it.

We are to do this even if it means that we stand alone. However, even so, we do not stand alone because legions of angels are on your side. The Lord God himself stands with us. Amen.

• Rev. Samuel M. Boodle, pastor at the Lutheran Church of Nassau, 119 John F. Kennedy Drive, can be reached at P.O. Box N 4794, Nassau, Bahamas; or telephone: 426-9084; E-mail: lutheranchurch@coralwave.com; website: www.nassaulutheranchurch.org.  

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