Pioneers of Christ

 ^;Then John went from place to place on both sides of the Jordan River, preaching that people should be baptized to show that they had repented of their sins and turned to God to be forgiven.  Isaiah had spoken of John when he said,

“He is a voice shouting in the wilderness,
‘Prepare the way for the Lord’s coming!
    Clear the road for him! 

 The valleys will be filled,
    and the mountains and hills made level.
The curves will be straightened,
    and the rough places made smooth. 

 And then all people will see
    the salvation sent from God.’”^'

^{Luke 3: 3-6 (NLT)} 

The ministry of water cleansing. And it was John's ministry, and it was a sign. He brought them out of their towns and villages to meet with him in the wilderness. He called them to himself in order to prepare them for the One that would come after. He pointed out their sin nature to them, and so, their need for a savior. He lead them to repentance and into the waters of baptism, for that outward sign of that inward cleansing. It's what we all need. To be dealt with, so to say, by the likes of John the Baptist. To have your hills flattened and your roads made straight, in order to get to Jesus straight away. No holding back. Meeting Jesus will be the greatest thing of all. No regrets. All rough places are being made smooth.
 

And the whole thing is God's design. It is a process. He wins us over, piece by piece, and bit by bit. We don't just give up the ship. We don't just hand over the reigns. How could we? Why would we? It's not that simple. All of my life before Christ was a selfish endeavor. It was a 'me' generation and a long season. I accumulated a lot. I carried a lot of baggage. I didn't know where I was going, but I was prepared to leave at a moments notice. Then the Holy Spirit showed up. He blew in like the wind on this certain April morning. He did and He was this amazing person. This truth teller. This person so full of love that His presence stopped me. I was arrested in that moment. I was not myself. I was determined to know more about this person that He spoke of and that He seemed to know so well, this person named Jesus
 

That's what John was doing. He was on a mission. He was directing traffic and sending them out, heart prepared and ready to meet their Savior. Are you ready for this? Are we ever ready to meet the one that loved us so much that He volunteered to become a man? God and Man. Are we ever ready to be changed? We can never know to the extent that our lives will change once we believe in Jesus, but we can know this, men are corrupt and hate God and there is no way to escape the wrath that is to come, unless we meet Jesus and repent and He redeems us from the curse.

  

We are the redeemed. Our redemption comes to us from the Lord and then we are changed. His desires become our desires. After we are redeemed, then the fruits of redemption can grow. Fruit can grow, with the rich soil that becomes our lives, and we want nothing more than to serve one another in love. The Gospel requires mercy and calls us to do all the good that we can do in love. That is what I see the Church doing. Its members are out there loving on people as pioneers of Christ. 

The Church becomes Jesus's hands when her members love people by taking the hungry a meal. The Church becomes Jesus's feet when her members love people and give the poor shoes and a blanket. The Church is not just hands and feet but it is also a voice. The Church becomes Jesus's voice when her members love people and supply the lost with a way home and a bed. Could we expect anything less? Could we do anything more? Yes. in humanity, the needs are always clearly visible. When the Kingdom of God is at hand, there is Love and the needs of many are being met. The seeds of revival are being planted. 'And (one great day) all people will see the salvation sent from God.'

Dear Father. Thank you for sending John the Baptist out and those like him, with the message to prepare the way. Use us in the same way. Give us Holy Spirit anointing to be the hands and feet of Christ, so that He can move into our hearts and neighborhoods and shine His Love over humanity like the Light in the darkness that we need more of in the world today. End evil. End poverty. End sickness. End violence. End corruption. Open our eyes. Bring us back to ourselves in You. In Jesus' name. Amen.  

Source: 'Derummingthemessagehome', December 3 2019, reposted.