A Voice for God

Luke 3:1, 2 – Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate being governor of Judaea, and Herod being tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip tetrarch of Ituraea and of the region of Trachonitis, and Lysanias the tetrarch of Abilene, And Annas and Caiphas being the High Priests, the Word of God came unto John, the son of Zacharias, in the wilderness.

    Luke lists government leaders and spiritual leaders that were contemporaries of John. They were his contemporaries but not, necessarily, his peers. These men were known…John was unknown. These men had a platform…John did not have a platform. These men were recognized authorities…John was not recognized as an authority. These men were included in everyday society…John was excluded and isolated. These men had their own agenda…John was a herald with God’s agenda. These men had words…John had the Word. These men had to devise their own words…John had the Word of God come to him.

    While life was going on, somewhere, behind the scenes, unbeknownst to the world, the Spirit of God and the Word of God were working. There was a man being groomed and prepared by God. He was being prepared to be a voice for God. The Word of God came to John in the wilderness; in the solitary place; in the lonely place; in the isolated and obscure place. We mustn't be afraid of loneliness, isolation or obscurity, for there the Word of God will come to us. He will find us as we wait upon Him. In your wilderness; in your isolation; in your desert place, God’s word, God’s voice, God’s direction, God’s wisdom will come to you.

   Once we have the word, and that word has prepared us, then we can become a voice. There must be a vocal expression of the word. The word must not be simply spoken to us, but it must be spoken through us. It is given to us so it can be given through us. We must become vessels of the word. We must become a voice by which the word of God is transported into the ears of this world. We have the words whereby peoples' destinies can be changed. Faith comes to unbelievers as they hear the word spoken. It is a gift of God given to those who hear, through those that speak the words of God.

    Let us not be discouraged in our loneliness and isolation. Remember who you are; you came from God. Remember whose you are; you belong to God. He has not forgotten you. Wait on Him, listen to Him, worship Him, yield to Him. For He has enlisted you in the army of believers who come from the spiritual lineage of John; a people who know their God and who are faithful to be the voice of the Word of Life to this generation!