God always gives notice

Isaiah 40:1-5

God always gives notice about what He is going to do!  Jan and I were in Houston this Thursday where she attended a reunion of ladies who were in our “Truth Seekers” class at Spring Baptist.  I came back to pick Jan up and one of the ladies ask this question: “Bob, are we in the last days” and my answer was I do not know it is very dark in our world, men are lovers of self and not of God, good is called evil and evil is called good, and yes, the Father has given us information on what to watch for in Matthew 24 and other places in Scripture.

With that said, God wants Isaiah to bring comfort and words of encouragement to His people, 

and God spoke these words to Isaiah: “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.”   

(Isaiah 40:1-2 ESV)  Babylon is coming, captivity and hard slave labor is going to happen, 

but God wants Isaiah to encourage the people, so it could be said these words are for the 

prophet, not to talk about judgment, prophets like to do so, but to talk to the people about a 

time to come, after Babylon.  

The way back to God is often through the wilderness, it has rough terrain, it is often a 

rugged time of self searching, it also has mountains and ravines, but God is telling Isaiah 

to proclaim this to His people, that a road is made for God to return to His people, to the 

promised land, and it will be quick and easy access for God.  David the great king tells us 

that when we humble ourselves before God and have a broken and contrite heart, God 

comes to us, God hears our cries, it’s when we no longer seek only His hand but His face, 

the highways through our personal wilderness become level, and much smoother.  

The ultimate fulfillment of verse 3 is found only in Christ!  Do you recall the opening 

statement: “God always gives notice about what He is going to do!” The prophet Isaiah tells 

us about a forerunner before Christ begins His ministry, and so does Malachi, in chapter 3:1, 

 “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; and the messenger of the covenant in 

whom you delight, behold, he is coming, says the LORD of hosts.”  God who loves you so 

much sent this message to you and I not once, but twice, the first time was 700 years 

before Christ showed up on planet earth and then through Malachi 500 years before 

Christ took on flesh and became the God man.  You may be asking, why is this the first 

time I’ve heard about this letter, but you and I have had important things to do, like work, 

raising kids, and living life.   But what is life without the influence of the only One who knows 

all about us, who has numbered our days correctly and loves us, could it be time to seek 

His face?

The gospel according to Mark 1:2-3, “As it is written in Isaiah the prophet, “Behold, I send my messenger before your face, who will prepare your way, the voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight,’” And Doctor Luke also gave a historical account in Luke 3:1-6, and both tell of this forerunner John the Baptist and his message, repentance and make His paths straight!
From the Back Porch,
Bob Rice