Preparation
John the Baptist prepares us for the advent of the Messiah. How does he do this? He does this by telling us who the Messiah is. He tells us how the Messiah will come. He tells us when the Messiah will come. He does this by telling us to turn back to God. Who is John the Baptist? John the Baptist never tells anyone that he is anything more than a precursor of the Messiah. Although he appears to do priest-like stuff (i.e., ceremonial washings, etc.), he is not a priest (as in, Jewish priest). He comes only to prepare...
