A Christmas Meditation

It is very nearly Christmas, and I have been meditating on a few passages lately relating to the Christmas story. These passages are John 1:19-23 and Isaiah 40:1-5. As I will show you, these passages are magnificently linked and carry a message that brings joy to billions of people around the world. In telling you this relationship, I will reveal to you (if you haven't already made this connection) a message that the scribes and priests of Israel (the social elite and the religious leaders of the time) missed when they heard it.

To start with, I want to give to you Isaiah 40:1-5, because one, it was written first, and two, with an understanding of this passage, the second will become all the more amazing.

Isaiah 40:1-5
Comfort, comfort my people, says your God. Speak tenderly to Jerusalem,
and cry to her
that her warfare is ended,
that her iniquity is pardoned,
that she has received from the LORD’s hand
double for all her sins.

A voice cries: "In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD;
make straight in the desert a highway for our God.
Every valley shall be lifted up,
and every mountain and hill be made low;
the uneven ground shall become level,
and the rough places a plain.
And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed,
and all flesh shall see it together,
for the mouth of the LORD has spoken."

These words were spoken by the old testament prophet Isaiah, who is responsible for a large portion of the messianic prophesy that is contained in the old testament. In fact, Isaiah is the most commonly referenced prophet in the new testament. Let's look at what Isaiah says in these five verses. The first part, or first stanza of this passage is the most emotionally charged, as it relates directly to the condition of God's people, Israel. He says, in essence, the hard times are over and you will be ushered into the good times. You shall war no more and all your misdeeds will be pardoned, and you will be forgiven double the amount of your transgression!

This is an awesome statement, especially to a people like the people of Israel, that have been beaten, lost, enslaved, nearly annihilated, taken captive, persecuted, and have been continually under the judgement of a righteous God. For a people like that to hear the message "your strife is ended, and your sins are forgiven" is almost beyond words. But it goes on. The second part of this passage gives cause for further celebration. It tells the people of Israel to "Prepare the way of the LORD. Make everything ready to receive the LORD. It goes on to say that when this happens, "the glory of the LORD shall be revealed". You must remember that, at this point, the Jews (Israel) have lived for centuries serving, worshiping and following after God and they have seen a glimpse of His glory, and a sampling of His power. They saw a glimpse of His glory as His holy fire guided Israel through the desert, and they experienced a sampling of his power when He delivered them from Egypt after the ten plagues through the parted Red Sea. For a people who have seen these tidbits of His glory to hear "the glory of the LORD shall be revealed" is an awesome statement. It says to them that what they've seen so far is a glory masked. His true glory has been hidden from them and it shall soon be made clear. So, before I go on, I would like you to think about this passage and what it meant for the people of Israel. "Your warring and hardships are over and if you thought God was glorious before, you haven't seen anything yet." Think on this. I'll wait.

Okay, now I'd like to jump forward in time and look at the other passage mentioned at the beginning, John 1:19-23. This passage comes at the beginning of the letter of John recounting the account of Jesus' life, death, and resurrection, otherwise known as the Gospel.

John 1:19-23
And this is the testimony of John [the Baptist], when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, "Who are you?" He confessed, and did not deny, but confessed, "I am not the Christ." And they asked him, "What then? Are you Elijah?" He said, "I am not." "Are you the Prophet?" And he answered, "No." So they said to him, "Who are you? We need to give an answer to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?" He said, "I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness, 'Make straight the way of the Lord,' as the prophet Isaiah said."

This event takes place before Jesus started his ministry, when John the Baptist (not John the apostle) is still preparing the people of Israel for Jesus' message. He is baptizing people and preaching the forgiveness of Sins (which at this point in the history of Israel is very radical, almost heretical, because only the Sacrifices of Atonement can deal with sin). So, of course, the religious leaders of Israel send their people to find out who this guy is. They ask him just that, "Who are you?" It's odd, because if someone asked you or me "Who are you," the natural response would be to state our name; a positive answer-- I am Henry Bartel. But that's not what John says. In response to this question, he gives them a negative answer. He says "I am not the Christ", which means that he knew why they were there, which is to find out if this person preaching the forgiveness of sins was the prophesied Christ, or Elijah, who was to come before the Christ. So the Levites then ask him if he is Elijah, or the prophet, and he says no. After finding that John is not the Christ, or Elijah, or anyone they expected him to be, they ask him again, I'm sure in an exasperated tone, "Who are you? We need to give an answer to those who sent us." Then John drops the bomb that should have tipped them off. He quotes the prophet Isaiah, and says "I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness, 'Make straight the way of the Lord,' as the prophet Isaiah said." Now, you should recognize that statement from the first passage we looked at. Here John only uses one line from this passage, but the men he is addressing are the priests of the Jews, and they know the entirety of scripture by heart and should recognize this passage instantly. They should know what John is referencing, and more than that, they should know what John is telling them by referencing this particular passage. He is telling them that the time is here which the passage in Isaiah prophesied. That the time of the revelation of the Glory of the LORD is at hand. He's telling them, and Israel, that their time of warring and strife is over and that the forgiveness of sins is close at hand. At these words of John, the Levites and priests that were questioning John should have seen this. But they were too concerned about getting to the bottom of this, what appeared to be, crazy man preaching forgiveness of sins that they missed his message completely.

This message, the message of John the Baptist, is preached every year in December around the world. The times of warring with the worries of this world are over, and the Glory of the LORD has been revealed. Jesus, God become man, has paid our debt and offers forgiveness on top of forgiveness. Make straight the path of the LORD in your heart and offer Him free passage into your life, he will reveal the glory of the LORD in you. The religious leaders of Jesus' time missed this because they were too concerned with appearances. The same message is here in front of you, will you see it? Will you embrace it? Will you rejoice at the coming of the Glory of the LORD. If so, make straight the way of the LORD. Make your mountains low and your valleys high, let go of your pride and self-pity. Open your heart and life to Jesus and he will make your rocky ground even and your rough places a plain. The glory of the LORD has been revealed, can you see it?