Preparing The Way

He is coming ~
And an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing to the right of the altar of incense, Zacharias was troubled when he saw the angel and fear gripped him. But the angel said to him, "Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your petition has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you will give him the name John.

You will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth. For he will be great in the sight of the Lord; and he will drink no wine or liquor, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit while yet in his mother's womb.

And he will turn many of the sons of Israel back to the Lord their God. It is he who will go as a forerunner of Elijah, TO TURN THE HEARTS OF THE FATHERS BACK TO THE CHILDREN, and the disobedient to the attitude of the righteous, so as to make ready a people prepared for the Lord."
Luke 1:11-17

Behold

He is coming! ~

"Behold, I am going to send My messenger, and he will clear 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.
Malachi 3:1

Higher Plan

He is coming ~

"For My thoughts are not your thoughts,
Nor are your ways My ways," declares the LORD.
"For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
So are My ways higher than your ways,
And My thoughts higher than your thoughts. . .
So will My word be which goes forth from My mouth;
It will not return to Me empty,
Without accomplishing what I desire,
And without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it."
Isaiah 55:8-9,11

Intercessor

He is coming ~

As a result of the anguish of His soul,
He will see it and be satisfied;
By His knowledge the Righteous One,
My Servant, will justify the many,
As He will bear their iniquities. . .

He Himself bore the sin of many,
And interceded for the transgressors.
Isaiah 53:11,12b

Our Sins

He is coming ~

Yet it was our grief He bore, our sorrows that weighed Him down.
And we thought His troubles were a punishment from God, for His own sins!
But He was wounded and bruised for our sins.
He was chastised that we might have peace;
He was lashed - and we were healed!
We are the ones who strayed away like sheep!
We, who left God's path to follow our own.
Yet God laid on Him the guilt and sins of every one of us!
Isaiah 53:4-6 TLB

Second Sunday of Advent ~ LOVE

He is coming ~

For He grew up before Him like a tender shoot,
And like a root out of parched ground;
He has no stately form or majesty
That we should look upon Him,
Nor appearance that we should be attracted to Him.
He was despised and forsaken of men,
A man of sorrows and aquainted with grief;
He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.
Surely our griefs He Himself bore,
And our sorrows He carried;
Isaiah 53:2-4a