The voice of one crying out in the wilderness: “Prepare the way of the Lord.”

Luke 3:4

I want you to think of a time in your life when something happened that threw your life out of kilter. You lost your job, for example, or you got a new one, or you retired. You moved to a new place. You got married, or you got divorced. You found out that you’re going to have a baby, or that you can’t have a baby. A loved one died, or you met the love of your life.

Good or bad, something has probably happened in your life that threw it out of kilter. You found yourself in a new place in life, without any obvious road map or direction. The old rules, expectations, and routines weren’t working anymore. A new way had to be discovered or learned. 

When this happens, we are in what the Bible traditionally calls “the wilderness.” And that is what I want to explore with you this morning. 

The Invitation of the Wilderness

Before we get to John the Baptist and his wilderness invitation, think of the Old Testament story that introduces this whole idea. 

It takes place in Exodus, after God’s people are rescued from slavery in Egypt. They are headed to the Promised Land, but first must travel through the wilderness. Why? Because it is there, in the wilderness, where they will be formed as God’s people, and where they will learn how to trust God, and how to rely on God above all else. The wilderness teaches us that. 

Centuries later, when the Israelites lost their way as God’s people, they found themselves in exile, away from their promised land. Back in the wilderness. Being reminded, again, of its purpose: To learn to trust God and rely on God above all else. 

The prophet Isaiah became the voice of the Lord reminding them of that, crying out in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. 

Whatever wilderness we might find ourselves in, the invitation is the same: To grow closer to God through this experience. To learn to trust God and rely on God above all else. 

In the New Testament, the wilderness is where Jesus found himself, after he was baptized by John. He spent forty days in the wilderness, being tested by Satan, and being prepared to handle all of the temptations that he would face in his ministry.  

And the wilderness, finally, is the place where we meet John the Baptist today. He is there, in the wilderness, inviting all who would listen to prepare the way of the Lord. 

John the Baptist

John the Baptist’s appearance in our gospel reading today (Luke 3:1-6) is an annual tradition in the church. Every year, during this Season of Advent, in the weeks leading up to Christmas, we hear from this eccentric prophet. We hear his cry, in the wilderness, to prepare the way of the Lord.

While the rest of the world is focused on Christmas, we as liturgical Christians are journeying through this Season of Advent, trying to live out the call from this strange prophet to go out into the wilderness to prepare the way of the Lord.

He shows up every year, but I still want to remind you of who this important prophet is, and why he is important to us. So who exactly is this man that we know as John the Baptist? 

Well, first of all, John was a miracle baby, much like his cousin Jesus.  Born to an old woman, Elizabeth, who was barren, and her old husband Zechariah. The angel Gabriel appeared to Zechariah in the Temple to tell him that he and Elizabeth would have a son, John. News which would thrust Zechariah into his own wilderness. He didn’t believe the angel and was struck mute until after his son was born. Nine months to prepare the way of the Lord and to learn to trust God, no matter the circumstance. 

When John was born, Zechariah gave him the name that the angel Gabriel had requested – John – and then Zechariah could speak. 

His time in the wilderness had served its purpose. Zechariah learned to trust God again, and to entrust his new son, John, to God. A son who would be given a unique mission: To live in the wilderness, and to proclaim a baptism of repentance. John’s call would be to fulfill the prophecy of Isaiah spoken so long ago: To be a voice crying out in the wilderness: “Prepare the way of the Lord.”

Prepare the Way of the Lord

Which gets us back to our invitation today, and to the point of this Advent season – to prepare the way of the Lord.

And what John wants us to know is that the best way to do this is to spend some time in the wilderness. What does that mean? Well, listen to how Martin Luther explains this:

“To prepare the way of the Lord means to prepare ourselves for the Lord’s activity in us, so that God may help us, and our life may be the life of Christ … But how is this way prepared By clearing out of the way whatever will be an obstruction.”

We prepare the way of the Lord by clearing out of the way whatever will be an obstruction to the Lord’s activity in us. And the wilderness is the best place to clear out of the way those obstructions to our lives of faith.  

The wilderness is the best place to change our ways, because it is the place where we are most ready to be changed. It is the place where we know that the old way must be let go, and a new way must be learned. The wilderness is where we learn, each and every time we find ourselves there, how to trust God above all else. And learning to trust God is preparing his way.  

How Do We Get There?

So the wilderness is where we are invited to go this Advent season, but how do we get there? And what do we do there?

Well, as I see it, there are basically two ways for us to get to the wilderness: By choice, or by force. Or, as I used to tell my kids when they were younger and didn’t want to do something – “we can either do this the happy way or the sad way – it is your choice.”

I think the same is true with going to the wilderness to prepare the way of the Lord. We can do this either the happy way or the sad way.  It’s our choice.

The happy way of getting to the wilderness is found by actively clearing out of the way whatever will be an obstruction to the Lord’s activity in us. Take some time, each day, each week, and each year, to look at our lives honestly: To consider those things that we are doing, and not doing, that are getting in the way of living out our faith.  And then, to repent, and to return to the Lord. To clear out those obstructions between us and the Lord. In order to prepare his way. That’s what this Season of Advent is all about.

Through our weekly worship, and our additional worship opportunities; through bible study and daily prayer; through heartfelt conversations with fellow believers. Through all these things and more, we can learn what changes we need to make to grow closer to the Lord and to prepare his way. And we can all choose to do this. 

Thrown Into the Wilderness

That’s one way to get to the wilderness: By choice. The other way of getting to the wilderness is by being thrown there through the unexpected events of our lives – those things that happen that throw us off balance enough to take another look at our life of faith and relationship with our Lord. 

Maybe you are in that place today. Maybe your life has been thrown off balance by some unexpected event, good or bad. If that is the case, then it is worth remembering that you still have choices. If you have been thrown into the wilderness, you can choose to embrace it, even if you didn’t plan to be there. Or you can fight against it, and become bitter. 

When God’s people originally found themselves in the wilderness, they often complained, as we know. They didn’t want to be there. They wanted to go back to Egypt. But God had a plan for them, and God didn’t give up on them. They eventually learned to trust God, and were brought to the promised land. 

Jesus shows us the other way of responding to being thrown into the wilderness. After he was thrown there, driven there by the Holy Spirit, he chose to spend that time fasting and working through various temptations in his life, temptations to take a shortcut to doing the work that God called him to do. 

So, if you feel like your wilderness is unwelcome, remember that you are in good company. Jesus himself was thrown into the wilderness after his baptism. He shows us a way of embracing the wilderness. And he promises to be with us as we navigate this uncertain time and learn again to place our trust in God. 

Closing – God’s Wilderness Promise

But wherever you find yourself today, remember God’s promise. Remember that God never calls us to change without also promising to help us to be changed. And remember that God has a plan for your time in the wilderness.

It is a time to learn to trust God, and to rely on God above all else. It is a time to prepare the way of the Lord. But this doesn’t mean that you have to create the way, or to make the way. You simply have to prepare the way. 

And so, whether you are in the wilderness today or not, hear John’s invitation to you –Hear the voice of one crying out in the wilderness. Hear the invitation from God’s word to change your ways, and prepare the way of the Lord.

And hear the promise, too, that we will not always be in the wilderness. We are on our way to the Promised Land. For the promised Messiah is coming to take us there. Every valley shall be filled, and the rough ways made smooth. And all flesh shall see the salvation of God. 

That is the promise that John proclaimed from the wilderness. The promise that was fulfilled by Jesus. And blessed are all who believe it. Amen.