I can get ahead of God’s leading. John the Baptist did not jump to conclusions. Consider what he knew about his cousin Jesus. When their mothers had met, John’s mother knew Mary’s child was the Lord.
In a loud voice she exclaimed: “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear! But why am I so favored, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?
Luke 1:42-43
Then when Jesus came to be baptised, John indicates his high regard for him,
Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptized by John. But John tried to deter him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?”
Matthew 3:13-14
Yet, knowing all this, John did not pronounce Jesus as the one. He waited for the sign.
“I saw the Spirit come down from heaven as a dove and remain on him. … the one who sent me to baptize with water told me, ‘The man on whom you see the Spirit come down and remain is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’
John 1v32-33
Only when the Father gave the promised sign was John willing to act and announce Jesus.
I sense we are waiting for something. I am tempted to guess what it might be and to help the process along. The Lord will bring it about. The true preparation is to be with him, present in this moment.
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Photo by Serghei Trofimov on Unsplash