January 3 Evening Devotional | Prepare the Way of the Lord | Morning and Evening by Charles Spurgeon

Evening, January 3 | “The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.” —Luke 3:4

This Evening's Scripture Reading: Luke 3:1-6

“Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Cæsar, Pontius Pilate being governor of Judæa, and Herod being tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip tetrarch of Ituræa and of the region of Trachonitis, and Lysanias the tetrarch of Abilene, Annas and Caiaphas being the high priests, the word of God came unto John the son of Zacharias in the wilderness.

“And he came into all the country about Jordan, preaching the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins; as it is written in the book of the words of Esaias the prophet, saying,

“The voice of one crying in the wilderness,
Prepare ye the way of the Lord,
Make his paths straight.
Every valley shall be filled,
And every mountain and hill shall be brought low;
And the crooked shall be made straight,
And the rough ways shall be made smooth;
And all flesh shall see the salvation of God.”

Devotional Video Transcript:

The voice crying in the wilderness demanded a way for the Lord, a way prepared, and a way prepared in the wilderness. I would be attentive to the Master’s proclamation, and give him a road into my heart, cast up by gracious operations, through the desert of my nature. The four directions in the text must have my serious attention.

Every valley must be exalted. Low and groveling thoughts of God must be given up; doubting and despairing must be removed; and self-seeking and carnal delights must be forsaken. Across these deep valleys a glorious causeway of grace must be raised.

Every mountain and hill shall be laid low. Proud creature-sufficiency, and boastful self-righteousness, must be levelled, to make a highway for the King of kings. Divine fellowship is never granted to haughty, high-minded sinners. The Lord hath respect unto the lowly, and visits the contrite in heart, but the lofty are an abomination unto him. My soul, beseech the Holy Spirit to set you right in this respect.

The crooked shall be made straight. The wavering heart must have a straight path of decision for God and holiness marked out for it. Double-minded men are strangers to the God of truth.
My soul, take heed that you be in all things honest and true, as in the sight of the heart-searching God.

The rough places shall be made smooth. Stumbling-blocks of sin must be removed, and thorns and briers of rebellion must be uprooted. So great a visitor must not find miry ways and stony places when he comes to honor his favored ones with His company. Oh that this evening the Lord may find in my heart a highway made ready by his grace, that he may make a triumphal progress through the utmost bounds of my soul, from the beginning of this year even to the end of it.

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Charles Spurgeon's Morning and Evening is a classic daily devotional that has been inspiring Christians for over 150 years. It is a collection of 732 meditations on Scripture, one for each morning and evening of the year. Spurgeon's writing is known for its clarity, insight, and wit, and his devotionals are full of practical wisdom and encouragement.

Spurgeon's Morning and Evening has been a blessing to millions of Christians over the years. It is a valuable resource for anyone who wants to grow in their faith and knowledge of the Bible.

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Originally published in 1865, Morning and Evening by Charles H. Spurgeon is in the Public Domain.

All Scripture quotations are from the King James Version (Public Domain)
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