Isaiah sings of deserts blooming and the lame leaping; in prison, John asks Jesus if he is the One to come. Jesus answers by pointing to Isaiah’s signs made real in his ministry. Advent joy is not denial of hardship but recognition: in the very places of barrenness, the Messiah’s works already flower—and yet we still wait for the highway of holiness to run its full course.
Isaiah 35:1–10; Psalm 146:5–10; James 5:7–10; Matthew 11:2–11.