A voice of one calling: “In the desert prepare the way for the LORD; make straight in the wilderness a highway for our God. Every valley shall be raised up, every mountain and hill made low; the rough ground shall become level, the rugged places a plain. And the glory of the LORD will be revealed, and all mankind together will see it. For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.”
Isaiah 40:3-5
The picture we have in Isaiah 40:3-5 is that of repairing roads, removing obstacles, and preparing the way for the coming of a king. The image of a highway is frequently used in Isaiah’s prophecy. Isaiah prophesied against the Assyrian threat to Jerusalem, and now He points to the fulfillment of God’s comfort for the captives in Babylon. He describes God’s deliverance of the captive Israelites in the midst of the wilderness describing a highway fit for a king.
This Word is fulfilled in the ministry of John the Baptist who came to prepare the way for the ministry of Jesus Christ. Just like the days when the roads were prepared for a king’s arrival, John the Baptist prepared the way for Christ to come. He removed the obstacles from the roads of life by preaching repentance. When John the Baptist began his ministry of preparation, the gospel of Mark points to the fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy: It is written in Isaiah the prophet: I will send a messenger ahead of you, who will prepare the way – a voice of one calling in the desert, prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him. (Mark 1:1-3)
We can take comfort that God goes before us even in the most difficult of times, preparing the roads in our lives by removing the obstacles so that we can draw near to Him. What obstacles do you have that need to be removed to make way for King Jesus? Seek the Lord and trust Him with the roadblocks of your life. He is calling to you in the desert places of life; He is seeking to come into the places of your life where rubble and obstacles have stood in the way. He is calling to you to prepare the way – a voice crying out in the wilderness.
Heavenly Father, I can hear You calling as a voice in the wilderness of my life. I desire for You to remove anything that separates me from Your love and cry out to You to make the rough parts of my life level. In Jesus’ name, Amen
