Mark 1:5-8

⁵ And everyone from the territory of Judea, and everyone of the Jerusalemites were going out to him, and after confessing their sins, they were being baptized by him. ⁶ And John has clothed himself with camel’s hair, and with a leather belt around his waist, and he is eating locusts and field honey. ⁷ And he was preaching by telling them: “the One who is more important than me is coming after me, of whom I am not worthy to even bend down and untie the strap of his shoes.” ⁸ I baptized you[1] in water, but he will baptize you[2] in the Holy Spirit.

the next big thing

For all practical purposes, John the Baptist looked like a bleary‑eyed madman who had lost touch with his time and culture. He didn’t dress right. He didn’t eat right. He didn’t live in the right place. And he certainly didn’t say the right things. If he walked into one of our churches today, most people would assume he needed counseling, a shower, and a long nap.

But John was not ego‑driven, unbalanced, or confused.
He was tuned to a different frequency — the beat of a not‑so‑distant Drummer.
He was ready for the next big thing: the arrival of Christ.

In an age when people repeated the same religious clichés like parrots, John was a lone, unfiltered voice. And strangely enough, people recognized authenticity when they heard it. They loved John. They admired the way he spoke truth to political power. They respected the way he broke traditions that had become hollow. They sensed his fierce loyalty to the future God had promised, even if they couldn’t connect the dots the way he did.

John lived for what was coming, not for what was comfortable.

And now the choice sits in front of us.

We can stay buried in the present — consumed by the news cycle, distracted by the trivial, shaped by the anxieties of the moment.
Or we can commit ourselves to the next big thing: the return of Christ.

If we choose that path, then the question of relevance must shift.
The axis must change.
We must begin asking:

Does what I’m doing today make sense in light of the King’s return?

That is the measure of a life aligned with the future.
That is the posture of a people preparing the way.
That is relevance in the kingdom of God.

Prayer

LORD, make us a people focused on and relevant to Your second coming.
Lift our eyes from the noise of the present and anchor us in the hope of Your return.
Shape our choices, our priorities, and our courage by the world that is coming.
Amen.

[1] plural.

[2] plural