Word of God will stand forever based on prophecy fulfilled and prophecy to be filled. The final hope is Christ return. Yet in Isaiah 40 we see hope springing a new in Israel. The punishment for sin being over and the rebuilding of Israel begins. With the rebuilding comes the forerunner of Christ who preaches in the wilderness make way for our God. He also preaches something Christ also preached when it speaks of the flowers and the grass fading or passing away and a symbol of human life. Yet God's word will remain even with life and death of us humans. The prophecies of old being waited on to be fulfilled, and yet it remain for a time period of punishment before the fulfilling began to come to pass. God's word never fails. Isaiah is speaking of the forerunner being John who preached in the wilderness as Elijah and also by the Jordan river. To understand a little more about the forerunner, one needs to understand John taught the gentiles in the wilderness and had a following. Jesus would take over John duties as teacher when John dies as a maryter by being beheaded. The forerunner just a man that would proclaim the word of God, declare who the Messiah was as well as declare who we are as human's, not equal to God or the ability to make image equal to God, explaining that the Messiah was not a graven Image that could be removed(verse 20) Messiah being more then a man but also the Word of God He would be the Creator of all things. His word would not become void. Christ is the word of God and came in the flesh in visible form as the Lord. The word of God stands forever. The word being the offspring of God/Son of God.

As John the Baptist would prepare the people for the Messiah, he would prepare them first to hear the word of God and it would come forth and bring them to repentance and he would baptize them in water as a sign of faith and repentance and he would tell them when the Messiah would come and that the Messiah would baptize them with fire/Holy Spirit. We see in this chapter God is not setting up a graven image as man would that they would hope would not be destroyed, God was coming in the image of man as His Son, because He is the Word of God a separatable part of God that remains even if God is not taught about. Because Christ is the Spirit of prophecy. There people that believe in prophecy and not God, but there people that believe God and don't follow Him. John the Baptist was to bring the people to know who God was and the importance of believing in God and not the images of idolatry.

God is a shepherd to His people setting and establishing a rock that would not fade. God in his holiness can not be compared to anything, everything is beneath God in comparison to ability. God is not grass or flowers that fade, but is a God that remains forever, A God that does not tire but gives rest and strength to the weary that call upon His name. A Majestic God that rules the earth and calls us to worship Him, A God that shepherd's his people. The baptism of John is a baptism of who God is, or to educating the people of who God is for the purpose of bring them to repentance. John was speaking to the backslidder of Israel and the Gentiles about God. The Messiah purpose and faith in Him not fully revealed yet at the time of John being the forerunner, in the since of the cross. What we can note is Isaiah speaks about the forerunner of Christ call of preaching to the people about God and yet the Messiah will be revealed to John at the Baptism. Did John fully understand? The answer is no because simply he was seeing Christ ministry before him and instead of following he continued preaching. He held his post until it was time for his ministry to cease and Christ ministry to become a greater light.

Can we preach Christ? Can we tell of Christ return, then we are a type of forerunner to Christ return. Yet Christ taught his disciples to teach not only about God the Father, but God the Son and Holy Spirit. The runner of Christ need to know that in their weakness He is strong, In their weakness he will provide strength. Yet we must have faith to believe God will empower us. John was blinded and yet seeing. Yet teaching by the power of the Holy Spirit and yet still a man. We are like John the Baptist as being human ever believing and yet being blinded by events we only particially understand. If God blinds us for a time frame so events can be, then let be for our sin of blindness is not our sin, but our sin comes with failing to trust in God's power to reveal all truth to our hearts and minds. Not everything God reveals to man is glorious like the coming of the Messiah, for the grusomeness of Christ death is hid within the word itself in the Old Testament. Yet his hope came with the ressurrection also revealed. There many things we are not ready to hear but it must come to light at the right timing.

Dear Heavenly Father help us to be forerunners of your Son's coming, knowing you will provide the strength to those with faith. Help us to rest in your word for your word is eternal. In Jesus precious name, Amen.

Continual Scripture Study for Devotion: Luke 3:16 KJV
16 John answered, saying unto them all, I indeed baptize you with water; but one mightier than I cometh, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to unloose: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire:

Mark 6:31-35 KJV
31 And he said unto them, Come ye yourselves apart into a desert place, and rest a while: for there were many coming and going, and they had no leisure so much as to eat.
32 And they departed into a desert place by ship privately.
33 And the people saw them departing, and many knew him, and ran afoot thither out of all cities, and outwent them, and came together unto him.
34 And Jesus, when he came out, saw much people, and was moved with compassion toward them, because they were as sheep not having a shepherd: and he began to teach them many things.
35 And when the day was now far spent, his disciples came unto him, and said, This is a desert place, and now the time is far passed: