A Voice Crying in the Wilderness

Isaiah 40:1–11 NKJV

“Comfort, yes, comfort My people!” Says your God. “Speak comfort to Jerusalem, and cry out to her, That her warfare is ended, That her iniquity is pardoned; For she has received from the Lord’s hand Double for all her sins.” The voice of one crying in the wilderness: “Prepare the way of the Lord; Make straight in the desert A highway for our God. Every valley shall be exalted And every mountain and hill brought low; The crooked places shall be made straight And the rough places smooth; The glory of the Lord shall be revealed, And all flesh shall see it together; For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.” The voice said, “Cry out!” And he said, “What shall I cry?” “All flesh is grass, And all its loveliness is like the flower of the field. The grass withers, the flower fades, Because the breath of the Lord blows upon it; Surely the people are grass. The grass withers, the flower fades, But the word of our God stands forever.” O Zion, You who bring good tidings, Get up into the high mountain; O Jerusalem, You who bring good tidings, Lift up your voice with strength, Lift it up, be not afraid; Say to the cities of Judah, “Behold your God!” Behold, the Lord God shall come with a strong hand, And His arm shall rule for Him; Behold, His reward is with Him, And His work before Him. He will feed His flock like a shepherd; He will gather the lambs with His arm, And carry them in His bosom, And gently lead those who are with young.

The LORD is Coming!

Isaiah pictures the LORD’s desire to return in glory to Jerusalem after His previous departure from the temple and city in judgment. (Ezekiel 10:1-22).

Since the time of Jerusalem’s destruction and captivity by Babylon, the temple of the LORD has been without the glory of God.

The return of the LORD is prophesied by the prophet Malachi

Malachi 3:1–3 NKJV

“Behold, I send My messenger, And he will prepare the way before Me. And the Lord, whom you seek, Will suddenly come to His temple, Even the Messenger of the covenant, In whom you delight. Behold, He is coming,” Says the Lord of hosts. “But who can endure the day of His coming? And who can stand when He appears? For He is like a refiner’s fire And like launderers’ soap. He will sit as a refiner and a purifier of silver; He will purify the sons of Levi, And purge them as gold and silver, That they may offer to the Lord An offering in righteousness.

John the Baptist applies Isaiah’s passage to the coming of the Messiah.

Luke 3:3–6 NKJV

And he went into all the region around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins, as it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet, saying: “The voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord; Make His paths straight. Every valley shall be filled And every mountain and hill brought low; The crooked places shall be made straight And the rough ways smooth; And all flesh shall see the salvation of God.’ ”

The LORD’s return is depicted in Christ’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem. (Matthew 21:1-15; Mark 11:1-10; Luke 19:29-38; John 12:12-15)

The ultimate fulfillment of this passage will take place at the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. (Ezekiel 40:1-48:35; Galatians 6:6; Revelation 21:2)

The WILDERNESS

The Jews had experienced exile in Babylon due to their disobedience toward the LORD.

The wilderness is the place that the LORD brings His people for the sake of testing and sanctification. (Deuteronomy 8:2-3; Matthew 4:1-11; Luke 4:1-13)

Deuteronomy 8:2–3 NKJV

And you shall remember that the Lord your God led you all the way these forty years in the wilderness, to humble you and test you, to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not. So He humbled you, allowed you to hunger, and fed you with manna which you did not know nor did your fathers know, that He might make you know that man shall not live by bread alone; but man lives by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the Lord.

Matthew 4:1 NKJV

Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.

The wilderness is where God separates and isolates His people from the distracting, deceptive, and divisive voices in this world.

The wilderness is where hearts are revealed. The wilderness will produce either humility or pride, submission or rebellion, holiness or hardening, faith or unbelief.

The wilderness is where destinies are determined.

The VOICE

The wildness is where competing voices are exposed and discerned.

Voice of the World: The voice of the world beckons us to back.

Voice of the Flesh: The voice of the flesh is exposed and amplified.

Voice of the Devil: The voice of the tempter and deceiver lures us to act independently of God.

Voice of the Word: The voice of the Word challenges us to live by faith in what God has said.

The wilderness is where God’s messengers are formed.

The identity of the man and his message are exchanged for the identity and message of the LORD.

John 1:19–23 NKJV

Now this is the testimony of John, 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.” Then they said to him, “Who are you, that we may give an answer to those who sent us? What do you say about yourself?” He said: “I am ‘The voice of one crying in the wilderness: “Make straight the way of the Lord,” ’ as the prophet Isaiah said.”

The wilderness is where God’s messengers are commissioned.

Malachi 3:1 NKJV

“Behold, I send My messenger, And he will prepare the way before Me. And the Lord, whom you seek, Will suddenly come to His temple, Even the Messenger of the covenant, In whom you delight. Behold, He is coming,” Says the Lord of hosts.

The MESSAGE

Preparation

Prepare the way of the LORD (Make ready the way of the King to come)

Make straight in the desert a highway for our God (Highway of holiness)

Isaiah 35:8 NKJV

A highway shall be there, and a road, And it shall be called the Highway of Holiness. The unclean shall not pass over it, But it shall be for others. Whoever walks the road, although a fool, Shall not go astray.

Every valley shall be exalted. (God will raise up the oppressed)

Every mountain and hill brought low. (God will bring down the proud)

The crooked places shall be made straight. (God will purge corruption)

The rough places shall be made smooth. (God will remove what offends)

Promise

The glory of the LORD shall be revealed. (manifest presence of God)

All flesh shall see it together. (Numbers 14:21)

Perspective

Emphasis on this life is vanity

All flesh is grass, it withers.

All the loveliness of flesh is like the flower of the field—it fades.

Why? Because the LORD blows upon it.

Building on the Word of God is eternal

The Word of our God stands forever!

Proclamation

God wants us to be His voice to this generation.

Get up on a high mountain. (platform)

Lift your voice with strength, don’t be afraid. (boldness)

God wants us to bring His message to this generation.

Behold your God!

The LORD God is Coming (Second Coming)

With a strong hand

His arm shall rule for Him

His reward is with Him

His work goes before Him

He will feed His flock like a Shepherd

He will gather the lambs with His arms

He will carry them in His bosom

He will gently lead those who are with young

Response to the Word

The LORD is coming!

Have you received Jesus Christ as your Savior and King?

We must prepare the way in our hearts and lives through confession, repentance, and obedience.

We must turn away from the voice of the world, the flesh, and the devil so that we might discern and heed the voice and message of God’s Truth, the Word of God.

We must determine to be His voice to proclaim His message to our generation.