When we set off on a trip to a certain destination, it is important to make sure that we get on the correct road. If we don’t, our trip will be a failure, as we won’t arrive where we want to. Having a good guide and a safe way is also important. In our Scripture reading for today the Prophet Isaiah speaks of such a highway that will take God’s children to the heavenly Zion. Let’s look into our Scripture passage and see what God, through His prophet, tells us.
As our passage opens, God calls out to His children, especially those who are fearful hearted (vs. 4). I will admit that there are plenty of times when fear comes knocking at my heart. Problems seem overwhelming, events in the world can be frightening, and where can we turn? God tells us that we do not need to fear, for He will come and save us. First, He provided the means to redeem mankind through the shed Blood of His Son, Jesus Christ. Thereafter, God is there for His children. He will come with a vengeance to protect and save us, and bring us along on His highway to our home with Him.
Isaiah speaks of healing that the Lord will bring us, both here on earth and in His heavenly kingdom (vs. 5-6). When Jesus came to earth He brought healing. He opened the eyes of the blind, brought hearing to the deaf, and healed the crippled. His healing is still available today. Even more important than the physical healing we can have through the Holy Spirit’s power, is spiritual healing. The Holy Spirit opens the eyes of the spiritually blind, and opens the ears to those who have been deaf to His voice. Are your eyes open to see God moving in the world today? Are your ears open to hear His voice speaking in so many different ways, trying to get your attention? God is trying to reach you, and to bring you into His family as one of His children.
Jesus also brought healing to the crippled and to those who were mute. Many of those who had been crippled and unable to walk, once Jesus healed them they turned around, leaping and skipping for joy. That would be a natural response for someone who had been unable to move around. When we turn to Jesus for salvation and are set free from the bondage and the crippling chains of sin and the devil, when we realize what that means, we will leap and sing for joy, too!
As Isaiah continues in our Scripture, he describes a picture of what God’s Millennial Kingdom will be like (vs. 6-9). We’ve all seen photos of desert landscapes, and perhaps have even been through one. Everything is very dry, as water is scarce. Living in such a locale, especially in the past, was very difficult. Plants, animals, and even people could die of thirst. However in Jesus’s Kingdom there will be water bursting forth in the desert. When the desert has a rare rainstorm, the cactus and other plants bloom into brilliant flowers. Jesus gives not only physical water for our physical thirst, but He is the Living Water for our spiritual thirst. When we drink of Him we will never be spiritually thirsty again (John 4:10-14).
God promises to lead us along His highway, the Highway of Holiness through our life, bringing us to His spiritual Zion, or heaven (vs. 8-10). The Highway of Holiness is the way that the righteous take. It is found only by following God. Along this highway He will protect us from evil and harm (Psalm 91). The unclean, those who are still in their sin, who have not come to the Lord Jesus and been cleansed from their sin, are not on this highway. Just like we want to make sure that when we go on a trip, we get on the correct road, in our life we want to make sure we choose the correct road for our eternal destination. Many people want the fast and easy way, but Jesus tells us to seek His way, the straight and narrow path, which will lead to eternal life (Matthew 7:13-14). God prepares a way for His people to travel to Him, and He will walk with us. God doesn’t just point the way, He is the Way (John 14:6), and He is always beside us as we go.
As our Scripture ends, we see that in our spiritual Zion, there will be singing, joy and gladness, replacing any sorrow and sighing we had (vs. 10). In the Messiah’s kingdom, all spiritual evil and physical catastrophe will be reversed, and the land and the people will be blessed. Gladness will replace sadness across the board in God’s kingdom. Don’t you want that? Make sure you are on the correct highway!
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