“Now the time came for Elizabeth to give birth, and she bore a son. And her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown great mercy to her, and they rejoiced with her. And on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child. And they would have called him Zechariah after his father, but his mother answered, ‘No; he shall be called John.’ And they said to her, ‘None of your relatives is called by this name.’ And they made signs to his father, inquiring what he wanted him to be called. And he asked for a writing tablet and wrote, ‘His name is John.’ And they all wondered. And immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue loosed, and he spoke, blessing God. And fear came on all their neighbors. And all these things were talked about through all the hill country of Judea, and all who heard them laid them up in their hearts, saying, ‘What then will this child be?’ For the hand of the Lord was with him. And his father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied, saying, ‘Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for he has visited and redeemed his people and has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David, as he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets from of old, that we should be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us; to show the mercy promised to our fathers and to remember his holy covenant, the oath that he swore to our father Abraham, to grant us that we, being delivered from the hand of our enemies, might serve him without fear, in holiness and righteousness before him all our days. 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 high to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.’ And the child grew and became strong in spirit, and he was in the wilderness until the day of his public appearance to Israel.”

The Timing of the Promises of God

Something that we all contend with in some capacity is not just the expectation of what God will do, but also when He will do it. Sometimes we lose sight of who God really is, what He has revealed of Himself through creation and through His work, and what the Spirit testifies to concerning His will and nature. We will expect material things and blessings from our heavenly Father, sometimes forgetting that these things are not a given, and that God understands our needs far better than we do. Though enjoyable and objectively good things may come into our lives, God doesn’t owe you a new car, a bigger house, or a beach vacation, nor does He require any of these things to bless your life. So while we should always be thankful for any and every blessing, we can’t operate with an expectation of these things, because we’re blessed to know the truth, that God is good regardless of our circumstances. It is for this reason that Jesus taught in Matthew 6:31–33,

“Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”

And why Paul wrote in Philippians 4:11–13,

“Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned, in whatever situation I am, to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me.”

But as I mentioned, sometimes what we experience isn’t the challenge of expectation of what God will do, but an impatience around the timing of things. Maybe you’re seeking a husband or a wife, maybe you’re trying with great longing to have a baby, maybe you feel spiritually called to missions, to lead, or teach within the body of Christ, but maybe despite your eagerness, zeal, or passion, things just aren’t moving as you faithfully anticipated them going. This is not something that’s only experienced by someone with weak or misaimed faith – even the best of us will sometimes struggle with the timing of things. We read in Matthew 11:2–3,

“Now when John heard in prison about the deeds of the Christ, he sent word by his disciples and said to him, ‘Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?’”

This is John the Baptist, the very man of whose birth we read of in today’s passage, the one of whom Jesus Himself said in Matthew 11:11,

“Truly, I say to you, among those born of women there has arisen no one greater than John the Baptist…”

Though He does close this statement by pointing to the eternal hope of all believers and saying,

“… Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.”

Regardless, John came as the voice in the wilderness, the prophet that heralded the arrival of the Christ, the one who baptized Jesus and testified to His identity – and now he questions things. It’s an important distinction to note that he doesn’t challenge or deny Jesus, this isn’t a breaking of John’s faith, but it is a shaking, a testing, and it creates questions. Questions that Jesus answers, saying in Matthew 11:4–6,

“… Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind receive their sight and the lame walk, lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised up, and the poor have good news preached to them. And blessed is the one who is not offended by me.”

But all the same, it’s understandable to think that if John the Baptist had questions around the timing of things, we shouldn’t feel surprised when we have to contend with questions of our own. This spirit of obedience to God’s timing is something we see Jesus continually illustrate in His earthly ministry. It’s why we see Him saying in John 12:27–28,

“‘Now is my soul troubled. And what shall I say? “Father, save me from this hour”? But for this purpose I have come to this hour. Father, glorify your name.’ Then a voice came from heaven: ‘I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.’”

And why we see Him fall on His face and pray in Matthew 26:39,

“… My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.” … “… My Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, your will be done.”

In His flesh, being both fully Man and fully God, Jesus was strained past any conceivable point of physical and psychological stress as He approached His time on the cross, brutally beaten and crucified, and serving as the focal point of God’s wrath against the sins of man. And yet in the midst of this distress, His surrender is to the timing that has been laid before Him, that He Himself ordained. What we have to understand, and what we can see from today’s passage as John the Baptist is born, is that God’s blessings, and our attendant joy, are not just found in the blessings themselves, but in their timing. They may not unfold at the pace we desire, be it because of the condition of our own hearts, the timing of the plans of God, or likely some combination of the two that’s indiscernible to the human mind, but we must understand that God’s knowledge and understanding is infinite, His timing is perfect, and we are blessed and He is glorified beyond our complete understanding, not just by the promises He keeps, but by the perfect timing of their fruition.  

1. Joy in Kept Promises

“Now the time came for Elizabeth to give birth, and she bore a son. And her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown great mercy to her, and they rejoiced with her.”

Historically speaking, it’s never been viewed as a “good” thing to not have children. The age in which we currently live, in which there are married couples who consciously choose to not have children as a matter of preference is, generally speaking, an extreme oddity. Throughout all human existence there was an understood purpose and a seemingly collective desire to have children, producing offspring was part of life. It ties in with the commandment that God gave man and woman in the beginning, to be fruitful and multiply. But there’s a difference between making a choice to avoid having a child and being unable to have one. In antiquity this was seen as a bad thing, in many ways a shameful thing. There was often a sentiment that if something was wrong with a person then it must be as some consequence of sin. We see this displayed in John 9:1–2,

“As he passed by, he saw a man blind from birth. And his disciples asked him, ‘Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?’”

However Jesus’ reply in verse 3 gives a true and clarifying distinction regarding the nature of these things,

“… It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him.”

While we may want to relegate seemingly superstitious ways of thinking like this to the past, they’re not. The first question of many who receive a critical medical diagnosis is to ask, “What did I do to deserve this?” I’m not saying it’s a bad thing to think over and consider your obedience before God – but the question should be, not so much if what is unfolding is a punishment, but rather how this trial is intended to draw you closer to the Lord. We know that the world is fallen, we know that tragic things happen to good and righteous people, and so it’s a mistake to automatically think that negative circumstances are a moral reflection. We know that their childlessness was a continual point of concern for Zechariah and Elizabeth – we know this because Gabriel’s first words to Zechariah are Luke 1:13

“… Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son…”

Which tells us that this was an appeal that they had brought before God previously. We know their concern from Elizabeth’s praise, saying,

“Thus the Lord has done for me in the days when he looked on me, to take away my reproach among people.”

Outside of Elizabeth’s own words, we know that her childlessness was a publicly known matter because of Gabriel’s words to Mary,

“And behold, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren.”

The fact that God first created life is miraculous, the fact that He continues to do so through us, regardless of our ability to biologically explain things is still miraculous, but in what He delivers to Elizabeth there is something more than just the miracle of life, there is an answered prayer and deliverance from shame for this woman who was known as barren. And what we see is that her community who has looked upon her as somehow lesser now rejoices with her. They didn’t know the full weight of what God was bringing to bear in the lives of two of His servants, and yet in the blessing of the birth of John the Baptist there is a shared joy among the community because of the promise that God has fulfilled.

“And on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child. And they would have called him Zechariah after his father, but his mother answered, ‘No; he shall be called John.’ And they said to her, ‘None of your relatives is called by this name.’ And they made signs to his father, inquiring what he wanted him to be called. And he asked for a writing tablet and wrote, ‘His name is John.’ And they all wondered. And immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue loosed, and he spoke, blessing God. And fear came on all their neighbors. And all these things were talked about through all the hill country of Judea, and all who heard them laid them up in their hearts, saying, ‘What then will this child be?’ For the hand of the Lord was with him.”

We all make mistakes sometimes, and in that Zechariah may be almost uncomfortably relatable. There came a moment as he stood before the angel Gabriel, the news that he would have a son freshly told, when he was called to have faith, and in that moment, he faltered. His faith didn’t crumble and break, it wasn’t as though he stopped believing in that moment, but he also questioned and hesitated where God had supplied abundant evidence for Zechariah to believe. What we see now could be understood as a course correction, as a man who has stumbled once and has mercifully learned the lesson that God has taught him. As we’ve read, when Gabriel came to Zechariah he told him,

“… Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John.”

Zechariah messed up when receiving this news, and while God didn’t take away the blessing of the child that He had promised, He did strip Zechariah of the ability to broadly testify about it. Now, presented with another opportunity to display his faith and obedience, Zechariah doesn’t falter for a second. He doesn’t say to name the boy John, but affirms that his name is John. There’s no question, no hesitancy, no pride in wanting the child to bear his own name, or indecision as to if this will look strange to those he’s addressing, only obedience – and this obedience is immediately met with deliverance. Gabriel told Zechariah after the man expressed his doubts,

“And behold, you will be silent and unable to speak until the day that these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their time.”

The child was born, but this wasn’t the only thing that was to take place. Zechariah was told that his wife would bear a son and that he was to call the child John. So as this final piece of what was to be fulfilled fell into place, and Zechariah displayed his immediate and unwavering obedience, his tongue is loosed and his speech returned to him. After being forced into silence for over nine months, Zechariah’s first words aren’t to delight in his restored ability to speak, but rather to express his joy by blessing the Lord. His words stand to reflect the condition of his heart, and the true source of the blessings in his life, and they serve to inspire the fear of the work of the Lord that God is due. God keeps His promises and in them there is immeasurable joy for those who are the recipients of His blessings.

2. Freedom in Kept Promises

“And his father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied, saying…”

Let’s be honest, Zechariah being struck dumb can often be read with some degree of comedic connotation. I’m not saying this is necessarily a bad thing – as we’ve already discussed, he definitely messed up, he should have known better for several reasons, and the punishment of his silence was temporary. It’s not like we’re pointing and laughing because Zechariah’s heart burst, fire consumed him from heaven, or he was mauled by bears, he just couldn’t talk for a while, and so, it’s kind of funny. That being said, we can be almost entirely sure that his time of silence was in no way funny to Zechariah himself. Israel had received no broad prophetic word from God in 400 years, and that ended with the angel Gabriel coming to him to tell him of his answered prayers, of the son that would be born to him, and that this child will grow to do great and momentous things in the name of the Lord – and Zechariah couldn’t share the news, as penalty for his doubt he couldn’t speak a word. God’s plans were not stayed because of Zechariah’s silence, but the part that he was allowed to play in them, the testimony he might have been blessed to share was removed. But as we’ve already discussed, in his obedience after the birth of his son Zechariah is delivered, his tongue loosened, and to the fear and wonder of the people, this man who was struck dumb in the temple is now speaking once again – not only speaking, but prophesying. The freedom that Zechariah has been given through the promises of God is not just that he can speak again, but he is now blessed to bring the word of the Lord to the people of his nation, to foretell the arrival of their long awaited deliverance.

“Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for he has visited and redeemed his people and has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David, as he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets from of old, that we should be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us; to show the mercy promised to our fathers and to remember his holy covenant, the oath that he swore to our father Abraham, to grant us that we, being delivered from the hand of our enemies, might serve him without fear, in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.”

Sometimes we fail to realize that God’s foremost blessing in our lives is not in anything material, it’s not in our health, or length of life, or even our friends and loved ones – it’s in the fact that we get to serve Him, that we, who He by no means needs, are loved and used by Him in the fruition of His will. It isn’t that we’re imprisoned slaves, shackled to do the will of our master against our will and to our detriment, but rather that through our salvation our broken and wicked will is replaced with the holy will of God. His aim becomes our aim, His desires our desires. This is something that is acted out imperfectly on this side of eternity, but is refined by the Spirit through sanctification and is fully realized in heaven. This is why Paul writes in Galatians 2:19–20,

“For through the law I died to the law, so that I might live to God. I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”

This place, this highest calling of service is where Zechariah points us through the first part of his prophecy. In his praise we can see similar themes to the prayer that Hannah offers as she leaves her son Samuel at the temple, in the care and service of the Lord, saying in 1 Samuel 2:1–2,

“… My heart exults in the LORD; my horn is exalted in the LORD. My mouth derides my enemies, because I rejoice in your salvation. There is none holy like the LORD: for there is none besides you; there is no rock like our God.”

And closing by saying in 1 Samuel 2:9–10,

“He will guard the feet of his faithful ones, but the wicked shall be cut off in darkness, for not by might shall a man prevail. The adversaries of the LORD shall be broken to pieces; against them he will thunder in heaven. The LORD will judge the ends of the earth; he will give strength to his king and exalt the horn of his anointed.”

The first place we should go in our freedom is to glorify and worship the Lord because He is the Author and Foundation of that freedom. We read as Zechariah makes reference to God’s covenant with Abraham. After God sees Abraham’s obedience and delivers Isaac from being sacrificed, we read in Genesis 22:15–18,

“And the angel of the LORD called to Abraham a second time from heaven and said, ‘By myself I have sworn, declares the LORD, because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, I will surely bless you, and I will surely multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven and as the sand that is on the seashore. And your offspring shall possess the gate of his enemies, and in your offspring shall all the nations of the earth be blessed, because you have obeyed my voice.’”

What we sometimes forget, and what Zechariah’s prophecy calls us right back to, is that we’re not given freedom for the sake of our own desires, but rather were liberated to serve God. This is something that is strongly emphasized, yet again is sometimes forgotten in the exodus. Most everyone remembers that the people were delivered from slavery in Egypt, that there were plagues culminating in the Passover, and the exodus itself through the Red Sea and into the wilderness. But the people’s liberation wasn’t that they be freed from tyranny to pursue the desires of their own hearts – which would have been to trade one tyrant for another – rather they were freed to worship the Lord. In Exodus 4:22–23 God says to Moses,

“Then you shall say to Pharaoh, ‘Thus says the LORD, Israel is my firstborn son, and I say to you, “Let my son go that he may serve me.” If you refuse to let him go, behold, I will kill your firstborn son.’”

And in Exodus 7:16 we see the same directive repeated,

“The LORD, the God of the Hebrews, sent me to you, saying, ‘Let my people go, that they may serve me in the wilderness.’ But so far, you have not obeyed.”

This is our great deliverance, this is our highest calling and our greatest gift – that we can worship in the presence of the Lord without fear. What Zechariah says appeals to the past, and speaks to the present and immediate future that would soon unfold, but it also calls to the promise far in the future that is described in Revelation 21:2–4,

“And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, ‘Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.’”

What God promises, what is delivered to us is much more than the liberation of physical chains cast off or prison doors open, it’s freedom from the slavery of sin, and a true calling into His service, to worship Him in His glory and righteousness for eternity.

3. Separation in Kept Promises

“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 high to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.’”

Here Zechariah’s prophecy shifts – so far he’s spoken of the coming Christ, the deliverance of God’s people, and the blessing of their relationship to the Lord. But now he begins to address his newborn son, and the blessed role he is to play in the unfolding promises of God. The children of God are a separated people, a liberated people, ones who do not walk in the spirit of the world, or hold our citizenship on this earth. John the Baptist, the voice in the wilderness that comes to declare the arrival of the Messiah, is a figure that reflects this separation. We can see this beginning in the first words Zechariah speaks concerning him – that he will be called “the prophet of the Most High.” This seemed to tickle something in my brain, because while every true prophet is a prophet of God, I couldn’t ever remember reading any other specifically called a prophet “of the Most High.” Despite the fact that God is consistently referred to as “the Most High” throughout the Bible, we only see one other person in all of Scripture called “of” the Most High, and that’s not a prophet, but a priest. Genesis 14:17–20 says,

“After his return from the defeat of Chedorlaomer and the kings who were with him, the king of Sodom went out to meet him at the Valley of Shaveh (that is, the King’s Valley). And Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine. (He was priest of God Most High.) And he blessed him and said, ‘Blessed be Abram by God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth; and blessed be God Most High, who has delivered your enemies into your hand!’ And Abram gave him a tenth of everything.”

Despite the brevity with which he’s mentioned in Genesis 14, Melchizedek is a fascinating Biblical figure. Hebrews 7:1–3 tells us,

“For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God, met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him, and to him Abraham apportioned a tenth part of everything. He is first, by translation of his name, king of righteousness, and then he is also king of Salem, that is, king of peace. He is without father or mother or genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but resembling the Son of God he continues a priest forever.”

Because of this description there are those who hold the theory that Melchizedek wasn’t a man at all, but rather God in human form, a pre-incarnate Christ who greeted Abraham and blessed him. I personally find this to be a stretch, as it insists a reading on the passage that isn’t necessary in order for it to make sense. Melchizedek has no mother or father, no genealogy is given, no recorded date of birth or death – all of this is true in a very practical sense. With virtually every prominent figure in the Old Testament we’re given a genealogy of some kind, a history of where they’ve come from, a note of their birth, or death, or place of burial – some kind outside information is commonly given. Melchizedek is a king, the king of Salem, which is commonly held to be an older name for the city of Jerusalem. Not only is he a king, but he is also the priest of God. This would be noteworthy on its own, but it’s especially significant because there hasn’t been a priesthood established yet as it was later done under Aaron and the tribe of Levi. Despite the profound significance of his station, we’re given nearly no information around Melchizedek, other than these facts that all point to his life being entirely devoted to God. He is this singular, mysterious priest of God Most High, it is after his order, not Aaron’s, that Jesus is called Great High Priest, all of which emphasizes Melchizedek’s separation as priest of God. Tying this back to John the Baptist, I’m not saying that there’s a direct correlation between him and Melchizedek, but rather that their titles help us understand their highly unique roles in fulfilling the will and promises of God. As we’ve already read from Matthew 11:11, Jesus states,

“Truly, I say to you, among those born of women there has arisen no one greater than John the Baptist…”

There was no prophet who had come before him who was quite like John, this figure who was called to stand as bridge between the intertestamental periods, to fulfill the work in the spirit of Elijah, and to call the people to repentance in anticipation of the coming Christ. John, who was a Nazarite from birth, filled with the Holy Spirit, separated to gloriously bring forth the promise of the Lord prophesied in Isaiah 40:3–5,

“A voice cries: ‘In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD; make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain. And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together, for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.’”

And all of this is alluded to, the moment we read Zechariah prophesy that his son will be called “prophet of the Most High.” Does it mean that John is somehow better than figures like Samuel, Nathan, Elijah, or Isaiah? No, not exactly – a prophet is a prophet, and their glory is not their own, but rather the glory of God shining through them. But John is called in a way that others were not, to a task and purpose that others were not, and in that we can see his separation, and reflect upon our own. In John 8:12 Jesus states,

“… I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

He also teaches in Matthew 5:14–16,

“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.”

These two passages harmonize perfectly, because we aren’t the light of the world by our own provision or power, we shine with the Light of the glory of our Father. We are set apart, separated from the darkness of the world by His work in us, and the same is reflected in John. In Luke 3:15–17, which we’ll of course come to later in our study of Luke’s gospel account, we read,

“As the people were in expectation, and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be the Christ, John answered them all, saying, ‘I baptize you with water, but he who is mightier than I is coming, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.’”

John came, sent by God, not to do the work of his own power or righteousness, but to declare the glory and power of the coming Light to those who were mired in darkness, to declare coming Life to those imprisoned in death, and to both display and announce the separation that exists in those who are changed by God.

“And the child grew and became strong in spirit, and he was in the wilderness until the day of his public appearance to Israel.”

And here is a final affirmation concerning the separate nature of John’s role – the wilderness. The wilderness can have a negative connotation to it – after all, this is where the rebellious nation of Israel was sent to wander for forty years until the generations that failed to trust in the Lord’s deliverance had died away. But the wilderness in itself is not a bad place – it’s a place of separation and refinement. During their time in the wilderness between Egypt and the Promised Land – before the people trusted in the word of the spies over the promises of God and rebelled – they faced trial after trial, and they failed repeatedly. The people despaired as they found themselves caught between the army of Pharaoh and the Red Sea, they were thirsty and were given water from the rock, they were hungry and were given bread from heaven, yet they continually grumbled and complained against God, and against Aaron and Moses. They were delivered from every challenge that came before them, they were punished and corrected for their transgressions against God, and by the time they arrived at the promised land they had been given abundant evidence that the Lord who had called them out of Egypt was far more than capable of delivering and providing for them.  The wilderness has been the blank slate, the area of guidance in the aftermath of being slaves in Egypt, and after their time of preparation, they failed. They doubted and rebelled, they thought to kill Moses and return to their lives of slavery in Egypt, and so they were exiled back into the wilderness, to the place of trial and testing and refinement. Matthew, Mark, and Luke all record in their gospel accounts that after Jesus was baptized, but before His ministry began, He was led by the Spirit into the wilderness. Here He was tempted, which gives us affirmation of the words in Hebrews 4:15 which says,

“For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.”

The wilderness was not a place that Jesus went as some kind of punishment, but rather a place of separation. While the translations use them differently, the word for “wilderness” here is the same used elsewhere for “desolate place.” This makes sense, the two certainly sound synonymous, but most often when we read of a desolate place, it’s where Jesus is going to withdraw from the crowds and pray. This helps illustrate that the wilderness isn’t a bad place, it’s a separate place, and the fact that this is where John the Baptist grows into a man – not raised up as a priest, or in the formality of the temple, but in the wilderness, guided by the hand of God until he is called, again helps us see his separation. God’s promises are not things that are mixed in and disguised with the culture. The Lord may bless in a multitude of ways, but what is His is separate, holy, refined, and pure – righteousness had no partnership with lawlessness, and light no fellowship with darkness. So too, the children of God are in, yet separated from the world through the fruition of the promises of God in our lives, and this is a separation that is revealed quite clearly in the life and calling of John the Baptist, the forerunner of Jesus Christ.

Pastor Landon’s sermon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2THtzt24pFY