Malachi
Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet Before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD. Malachi 4:5
This is the final prophecy of the Old Testament, given some four centuries before Jesus came to earth to fulfill all Scripture. In this prophecy, God promises to send a man who would prepare the way for the Messiah. This messenger would be called Elijah.
But it wouldn’t be Elijah sent back to earth. John the Baptist would pick up where Elijah left off and preach repentance and the coming of the kingdom of heaven. Added to John’s ministry was the Holy Spirit’s great gift of baptism for the remission of sins. All these things would make for a people prepared to meet the Lord.
We also are told to prepare for the coming of the Lord, and we don’t know when that day will be any more than the people of Malachi’s day. For that matter, the people who heard John preach had no idea that the Lord’s coming was only a matter of months or weeks or days away.
We must be prepared. But we might ask, who is our Elijah? Will God send us a forerunner to call to repentance, preach the gospel, and baptize people? The answer is: Yes, God will and already has sent someone. Only it’s not just one man. Every believer is called to preach the good news to prepare a way for the Lord. The second Elijah’s directive in Malachi 4:6 is our command, too. Our call is to “turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers.” Our mission as God’s Elijahs begins in the home. How sad it is that so many neglect to prepare their own families for the Lord! Preach to those closest to you first. Then go out into the world to proclaim salvation through Christ. For those who turn to the Lord in faith, the dread is taken out of the “great and dreadful” Day of the Lord. For children of God, that day will simply be great.
Come, Lord Jesus. Make us Your prophets to prepare others for Your coming. Even so, come, Lord Jesus! Amen.