Welcome to Day 151 of the “Manna for the Mind” devotional! This series is about finding nourishment in the Word of God to get us through the day. In each devotional, I take a variety of scripture passages (typically 1-3 verses each) and build our understanding of what they teach via their context and connecting scripture. My goal is to help you understand how to be the type of human God created you to be.

Today’s passage is Luke 1:76-78. We’re continuing the words of Zechariah and his preparation for the birth of John the Baptist.

Luke 1:76-78

NASB	NLT	VOICE
76 And you, child, also will be called the prophet of the Most High; For you will go on before the Lord to prepare His ways;	76 “And you, my little son, will be called the prophet of the Most High, because you will prepare the way for the Lord.	76 And you, my son, will be called the prophet of the Most High. For you will be the one to prepare the way for the Lord.
77 To give His people the knowledge of salvation By the forgiveness of their sins,	77 You will tell his people how to find salvation through forgiveness of their sins.	77 So that the Lord’s people will receive knowledge of their freedom through the forgiveness of their sins.
78 Because of the tender mercy of our God, With which the Sunrise from on high will visit us,	78 Because of God’s tender mercy, the morning light from heaven is about to break upon us.	78 All this will flow from the kind and compassionate mercy of our God. A new day is dawning: the Sunrise from the heavens will break through in our darkness.

Zechariah remembered hundreds of years of God’s mighty work in history, going all the way back to the works of Abraham. Then, he connected it to his story and personalized it. His son had been chosen for the role in the drama of the ages. Although God has unlimited power, he chooses to work through frail humans who start off as babies. Don’t minimize what God can do through those faithful to him. All of us are babies at one time in our lives. The goal for those who nurture the babies is to guide them on a path that reflects God’s love, compassion, and mercy and teach them how to live that out in their lives to the best of their gifts, skills, and abilities. God has a unique path for us, so how those gifts are used will differ. However, we can all build the foundations of God’s compassion and mercy.

Malachi 3:1

NASB	NLT	VOICE
1 “Behold, I am sending My messenger, and he will clear a way before Me. And the Lord, whom you are seeking, will suddenly come to His temple; and the messenger of the covenant in whom you delight, behold, He is coming,” says the Lord of armies.	1 “Look! I am sending my messenger, and he will prepare the way before me. Then the Lord you are seeking will suddenly come to his Temple. The messenger of the covenant, whom you look for so eagerly, is surely coming,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.	1 These are the words of the Eternal, Commander of heavenly armies: ETERNAL ONE: Pay attention! I am sending My messenger, and he will clear the road ahead for Me. The Lord you seek will suddenly arrive at His temple. And the Messenger of God’s covenant, your soul’s delight, Watch, because He, too, is coming.

This verse talks about two messengers. The first one is understood to be John the Baptist. The second is Jesus, the Messiah, for whom both Malachi and John the Baptist prepared the way. Malachi shared this prophecy about Jesus. Jesus will be the one to share God’s teachings and learn how to live a godly life by reflecting on Jesus as a human. John the Baptist begins preparing his audience for the teachings of Christ, sharing the Gospel teachings while also preparing them to say that a more powerful one will come after him,

Malachi 4:2

NASB	NLT	VOICE
2 But for you who fear My name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings; and you will go forth and frolic like calves from the stall.	2 “But for you who fear my name, the Sun of Righteousness will rise with healing in his wings. And you will go free, leaping with joy like calves let out to pasture.	2 But for you, the ones who tremble at the sound of My name, a warm sun of righteousness will come forth with healing in its rays, and you will go out, springing from the stalls like calves in open pasture.

On the Day of the Lord, the wrath of God towards the wicked people will burn like a furnace. Yet, he will be like the sun’s healing warmth to those who love and obey. John the Baptist prophesied that with the coming of Jesus, the dawn was about the break with light for those in sin’s darkness. The light and embrace of God will be blinding to those who’ve avoided him and intentionally disregarded his ways. Still, it will be healing to those who follow him. It will be refreshing and uplifting, dissolving the chains we have in sin.

The “Sun of Righteousness” can refer to the glory of God, whose coming will be as bright as a sunrise, and to Jesus, the Messiah. When the Kingdom of God comes down to earth on the last days, the Lord will heal all creation. When Jesus ministered on earth, we can read about many instances where he healed peoples’ infirmities. When he died on the cross, he brought healing to all from sin and its disease. God will heal Israel from their faithlessness on the Day of the Lord. This brings great hope for all who love and worship God. One day, the healing waters from Eden and the throne of God will produce healing fruits for all people. This gives us reason to pray for all who are suffering. All those who follow and love him will be healed permanently from sin and brokenness as we stand before him at the gate. We can begin to pray for the preparation of what’s to come, prepare our hearts for the potential of this happening at any moment, and prepare those around us by sharing the story of the Gospel and what God has done in our lives.

BREATHE IN: Prepare Ye…

BREATHE OUT: …the way of the Lord.

Until next time, stay blessed!