Prepare the Way for Yahweh

Good Shepherd Community Church

John the Immersionist (baptizer) appeared in the wilderness of Judea on the banks of the Jordan River proclaiming, Prepare the way for Yahweh! He is the prophesied Forerunner of the Messiah in fulfillment of the prophecy of Malachi and Isaiah and he prophecy of his own father, Zacharchi at his birth. And his father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied, saying, Luke 1v 76ff: And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High; for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways, to give knowledge of salvation to his people in the forgiveness of their sins,because of the tender mercy of our God, whereby the sunrise shall visit us from on highto give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace."Mark begins his good news announcement with the message of John concerning the soon appearing of Messiah, King of God's Kingdom. He summons the people of Israel to repentance from the lifestyle of commandment breaking of the Mosaic (Law) Covenant to a heart obedience to Yahweh. He preaches repentance, a conversion to God marked by a new ritual sign of immersion, dipping in the river. He was proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. Luke 3:3In his quoting from Isaiah and Malachi he identifies Jesus as the Son of God and in the quotations from this earlier prophets John gives testimony to the divinity of Jesus, the Messenger of the Covenant who is identified as the arrival of Yahweh!