There came a Man...

Luke 1
The Birth of John the Baptist

57When it was time for Elizabeth to have her baby, she gave birth to a son. 58Her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown her great mercy, and they shared her joy.

59On the eighth day they came to circumcise the child, and they were going to name him after his father Zechariah, 60but his mother spoke up and said, "No! He is to be called John."

61They said to her, "There is no one among your relatives who has that name."

62Then they made signs to his father, to find out what he would like to name the child. 63He asked for a writing tablet, and to everyone's astonishment he wrote, "His name is John." 64Immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue was loosed, and he began to speak, praising God. 65The neighbors were all filled with awe, and throughout the hill country of Judea people were talking about all these things. 66Everyone who heard this wondered about it, asking, "What then is this child going to be?" For the Lord's hand was with him.

I have thought often of John. Life for John was so very different than most - he lived in the wild, and ate wild things. God called him to be an outsider, and God provided a life and a living for him as he answered that call. Can you imagine being called to live outside and apart from all of society, to be utterly dependent upon God alone, and to then be used to prepare the way for Jesus Christ?

Well - we don't have to imagine. We are called to do that. Perhaps we will not eat locust and wild honey, or wear animal skins, but we ARE called to make the way clear for Jesus. And that, by it's very nature, will assure us a place as an outsider to most of society today. Are we answering God's call?