And So Suffers the World

John the Baptist is often spoken of as a New Testament character who wears the model of an Old Testament prophet.  Actually, there were folks of his day who thought of him as a prophet.  Another who fits the same mold is the Apostle Paul   There are things about him which bring Jeremiah to mind.  Perhaps, the most outstanding thing is the word about calling.  In Romans 1:1 the Word says, "Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God."  In Galatians the same language is used as it says, "But when God, who set me apart before I was born..."  (Galatians 1:15)    

To turn to the Jeremiah material in the Old Testament is to read, "Now the word of the Lord came to me saying, 'Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you, and before you were born, I consecrated you...."(Jeremiah 1:4-5)  Not only were both given similar understandings of who they were in the plan of God, but both also became the voice of the Lord which thundered forth with authority.  Paul is spoken of as an Apostle, but he was a voice to the nations as surely as was Jeremiah.  

The world of our day suffers for the lack of such a voice.  There are many spiritual leaders who tend to a more localized sphere of influence, but none stand on the stage of the history of nations to speak with the boldness and with the spiritual authority as did these men from the past.  And if there was someone, it is doubtful that people would listen for the times have not really changed so much with the passing of all these centuries.