THE KING’S HIGHWAY
Pastor Kevin W. Burden
Carter Creek Baptist Church
For Sunday AM, August 10, 2008
Isaiah 35:7-10 “And the parched ground shall become a pool, and the thirsty land springs of water: in the habitation of dragons, where each lay, shall be grass with reeds and rushes. 8 And an highway shall be there, and a way, and it shall be called The way of holiness; the unclean shall not pass over it; but it shall be for those: the wayfaring men, though fools, shall not err therein. 9 No lion shall be there, nor any ravenous beast shall go up thereon, it shall not be found there; but the redeemed shall walk there: 10 And the ransomed of the LORD shall return, and come to Zion with songs and everlasting joy upon their heads: they shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.”
Isaiah is serving the Lord in a very difficult time.
• The people of Israel have turned their backs on the Lord.
• They are facing chastisement because of their sins.
• The nation is under attack by the brutal Assyrian army.
• The people are terrified and obviously concerned about their future.
• In the midst of these difficult circumstances, Isaiah stands before them as a prophet of hope and comfort.
He writes to tell the people that a better day is coming.
• He seeks to comfort them by speaking about their coming King.
• This chapter is part of that prophecy of hope and comfort.
Isaiah is looking ahead to the Millennial Kingdom of the Messiah.
• Isaiah sees a time of peace, joy and prosperity.
• A brief look at the first seven verses of this chapter provides some insight into why it will be such a blessed time for Israel.
V 1 – “The wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad for them; and the desert shall rejoice, and blossom as the rose.”
• When Israel returned to their land in 1948, it was a barren waste land.
• Today Israel is a green oasis of prosperity and abundant agriculture.
V 2 – “It shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice even with joy and singing: the glory of Lebanon shall be given unto it, the excellency of Carmel and Sharon, they shall see the glory of the LORD, and the excellency of our God.”
• These were the most beautiful places in Israel; their beauty will return.
V 3-4 – “Strengthen ye the weak hands, and confirm the feeble knees. 4 Say to them that are of a fearful heart, Be strong, fear not: behold, your God will come with vengeance, even God with a recompence; he will come and save...”
• The Israelites are comforted with the promise of this coming kingdom and deliverance them from their tormentors.
V 5-6a – “..the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. 6 Then shall the lame man leap as an hart, and the tongue of the dumb sing:…“
• Physical infirmities and deformities will be healed; they will praise the Lord for His blessings and grace.
V 6b-7 – “…for in the wilderness shall waters break out, and streams in the desert. 7 And the parched ground shall become a pool, and the thirsty land springs of water: in the habitation of dragons, where each lay, shall be grass with reeds and rushes.”
• The deserts and dry places will be transformed into lush pools of water.
• The phrase “parched ground” can be translated “mirage.”
V 8-10 – “An highway shall be there, and a way, and it shall be called The way of holiness; the unclean shall not pass over it; but it shall be for those: the wayfaring men, though fools, shall not err therein. 9 No lion shall be there, nor any ravenous beast shall go up thereon, it shall not be found there; but the redeemed shall walk there: 10 And the ransomed of the LORD shall return, and come to Zion with songs and everlasting joy upon their heads: they shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.”
• Because of the Assyrian invasion, it was not safe to travel the roads.
• The day will come when safety will be restored to the land.
• The people will once again be able to go to Jerusalem to worship.
• A super highway will pass through the land during the reign of Christ.
• These words brought great comfort to the people of Israel.
While Isaiah writes about a real road that will exist in the future, I want to speak to you about a spiritual road that exists today. I want to show that the blessings Israel is looking forward to – are experienced by the saints of God today. The spiritual application…
V 1-2 – The dead, desolate, desert of our hearts come to life because Jesus has moved in and filled our souls with His divine fragrance.
V 3 – Hands once prone to mischief now do the Lord’s work. Knees that once bent to the altar of self & sin, now bow before the Lord.
V 4 – The Lord has defeated our deadness, our darkness and our depravity. He has visited and saved us. He has replaced our fear with His peace.
V 5 – Our eyes have been opened; we have seen His truth and glory. Our ears have been opened; we have heard His call to follow Him.
V 6a – Our feet have been strengthened so we can walk in His ways. Our tongues have been loosed so we can sing His eternal praises.
V 6b-7 – The parched ground of our heart has become a river of living water.
John 4:13-14 Jesus said to her, “Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: 14 But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.”
• The mirage we were reaching for has been transformed into a reality.
• We were pursuing a mirage that offered nothing but destruction, deception and death, we have been given real peace, real joy, real hope, real salvation and real satisfaction.
• The place that was once fit only for “that old dragon,” has become a place of glory, blessing and the dwelling of the Lord God.
As Isaiah speaks to Israel about that highway that will exist during the millennial kingdom, we can glean some things about the spiritual road we are walking. I would like to preach on “The King’s Highway.” Let me point out some interesting characteristics of this road.
#1. IT’S A HEROES WAY – v 8. “An highway shall be there, and a way, and it shall be called The way of holiness; the unclean shall not pass over it; but it shall be for those: the wayfaring men, though fools, shall not err therein.”
This is a “royal road.” In ancient times powerful kings would build roadways through their kingdoms.
“The way of holiness” can be translated, “The way of the Holy One.” It speaks of the Holy One leading the redeemed back to Jerusalem, both in the terrestrial and celestial sense. Christ, at His return, shall be the Leader on this highway, thus it is called, “The way of the Lord.”
There was a time in my life when I could not walk the King’s Highway. My feet were firmly planted on the low road of life.
Ephesians 2:1-3 I was “dead in trespasses and sins;” and “walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:” “fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and was by nature a child of wrath,..”
I was wandering across the burning sands and treacherous byways of this world. I stumbled along blindly toward Hell. Each step caused me to be mired deeper in sin. But, when I trusted Jesus, I was lifted from the low road of sin and my feet were placed on the high road of salvation.
Psalm 40:1-3 “I waited patiently for the LORD; and he inclined unto me, and heard my cry. 2 He brought me up also out of an horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings. 3 And he hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God: many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in the LORD.”
It is a highway that only those who know our Hero, King Jesus, can walk on!
It’s the Heroes Way…
#2. IT’S A HOLY WAY – v 8. “…the unclean shall not pass over it; but it shall be for those: the wayfaring men, though fools, shall not err therein.”
This road represents “a path; a course of life.” This road is a clean, well maintained road reserved for those who have become “new creatures” in Christ (2 Cor 5:17).
We are living in a day when those who claim to know Jesus play fast and live loose.
• The Lord expects His people to be a separate people (2 Cor 6:17).
• He expects us to refrain from the appearance of evil (1 Thess 5:22).
• I have a genuine concern for those who refuse to live a holy life.
1 John 2:3-4; 15 “And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments. 4 He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his com-mandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him… 15 Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.”
We are “wayfaring men” on this road and do not know what lies around the next bend. But if we will walk in His path, and follow His lead, we will not “err.” This word means “wander, go astray, stagger, and stumble.” His holy way is found in staying in His Word and in communion with Him in prayer.
It’s the Heroes way; A Holy way…
#3. IT’S A HARMLESS WAY – v 9. “No lion shall be there, nor any ravenous beast shall go up thereon, it shall not be found there; but the redeemed shall walk there:”
This way is a safe way! “Ravenous” means “violent one, murderer.” As long as the pilgrim stays on the highway, he is safe from the attacks of those who would seek to destroy him.
We are stalked by a violent enemy (1 Peter 5:8). He cannot touch those who are walking the King’s highway (1 Peter 5:9; James 4:7).
This road is reserved for the redeemed. Thos who have been rescued from sin and Satan can walk this road in absolute safety.
It’s the Heroes way; A Holy way, A Harmless way…
#4. IT’S A HEAVENLY WAY – v 10a. “And the ransomed of the LORD shall return, and come to Zion with songs and everlasting joy upon their heads: they shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.”
The King’s Highway leads to Glory! It leads His pilgrim’s home. There is “joy and gladness; Sorrow and sighing will flee away” when we reach the end of the road!
• There is a mansion at the end of the Way (John 14:1-3).
• There is a glorious city at the end of the way (Rev 21:9-22:5).
• There is peace, joy and blessing at the end of the road (Rev 21:4).
• We will meet the King face to face at the end of the way (Rev 22:4).
Keep walking! Don’t look for an exit! Stay the course! This road leads to Home!
It’s the Heroes way; A Holy way, A Harmless way, A Heavenly Way…
#5. It’s A Happy Way – v 10b. “And the ransomed of the LORD shall return, and come to Zion with songs and everlasting joy upon their heads: they shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.”
We are told that the pilgrims on this road come with “songs and everlasting joy upon their heads.”
Those who walk the King’s highway experience…
• His peace (Phil 4:7). “And the peace of God, which passeth all under-standing, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”
• His pleasure (1 Pet 1:8). “Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory:”
• His presence (Heb 13:5). “I will never leave thee…”
• His provision all along the way (Matt 6:25-34).
The way may grow hard and our strength may sometimes fade, but there is no better path through the wilderness of this world than the King’s highway.
CONCLUSION: T. DeWitt Talmage:
In diligence you dash on over the Bernard Pass of the Alps, mile after mile, and there is not so much as a pebble to jar the wheels. You go over bridges which cross canyons that make you hold your breath; under projecting rock; along dangerous precipices; through tunnels dripping with the meltings of the glaciers. In doing so you learn the magnificence of a road built by governmental authority.
My Lord, the King of Kings, decided to build a highway from earth to heaven. It spans all the chasms of human wretchedness; it tunnels threw all the mountains of earthly difficulty; it is wide enough and strong enough to hold the entire human race. It was blasted out of the "Rock of Ages," cemented with the blood of the Cross, and built amid the praises of angels and the anguish of devils.
The Monarch of the Universe sent His only Son to build that road. He put head and hand and heart to it, and after the road was completed, He waved His blistered hand over it, crying, “It is finished.”
• Are you on the King’s highway?
• Has He lifted you out of the miry clay and set your feet on His path?
• Are their adjustments you need to make in the way you walk?
• Do you need to be saved? Come to Jesus!
