ADVANCE MAN

Luke 3:2-18
2 The word of God came to John son of Zechariah in the desert. 3 He went into all the country around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. 4 As is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet: "A voice of one calling in the desert, 'Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for Him. 5 Every valley shall be filled in, every mountain and hill made low. The crooked roads shall become straight, the rough ways smooth. 6 And all mankind will see God's salvation.' . . . 15 The people were waiting expectantly and were all wondering in their hearts if John might possibly be the Christ. 16 John answered them all, 'I baptize you with water. But one more powerful than I will come, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. . . .' 18 And with many other words John exhorted the people and preached the good news to them.

Let's say you were about to introduce an extremely important person to a group who knew nothing about him. You'd want to send along a representative who would impress those people. Someone with some sophistication, someone who had it all together.

You probably wouldn't want a guy who got his clothes from Wilderness Camel instead of American Eagle. You wouldn't want a guy who got his food at the local Honey-baked Locust outlet. You wouldn't want a guy who spent his time out in the desert, denouncing the folks who would come out to hear him.

You probably wouldn't want John the Baptist. But Jesus did. John the Baptist was Jesus' advance man. It was John who spread the word that Jesus was around. It was the camel-skin clad, locust-munching, desert-dwelling John who was chosen to spread the news that Jesus was coming--to baptize the people, and even to baptize Jesus.

That tells us that Jesus doesn't choose people by our standards and our estimation of value--which are often external evidences of things we like: how a person looks, what he wears, or what he drives. Instead, when Jesus wants to get a job done, He chooses the willing and the obedient--not necessarily the suave, the slick, and the smooth.

This reality should be a challenge and an encouragement to all of us, because we all feel inadequate in one way or another. Not rich enough. Not cool enough.

If John the Baptist and the disciples are any indication, those aren't the traits our Lord is looking for. The people in Jesus' inner circle were just common folk, doing minimum-wage jobs and getting their hands dirty at ordinary tasks.

Listen to God's call to service. If you have ripped jeans, a beat-up old Yugo, and a Big Mac budget, you could be just the person God is looking for. You could be Jesus' advance man for someone who needs to find out about Him. --Dave Branon

DESTINATION POINTS

* In what ways do I sometimes feel inadequate to be a member of God's team of workers?
* What are three things I feel I can do to let someone know about Jesus? When will I begin doing those things?
* Which of the disciples am I most like? Or am I most like John the Baptist? What traits do I have that Jesus could use?

bottom line: Feeling inadequate? God will still use you!

soul journey