And a highway shall be there, and a way; and it shall be called the Holy Way. The unclean shall not pass over it, but it shall be for the redeemed; the wayfaring men, yes, the simple ones and fools, shall not err in it and lose their way. [9] No lion shall be there, nor shall any ravenous beast come up on it; they shall not be found there. But the redeemed shall walk on it.
Isaiah 35:8-9 AMPC
Our salvation can be likened to a house whose foundation is destroyed with cobwebs and cockroaches, wall geckoes and beetle. This building needs to be reconstructed for the King of Kings, but the person who owns the building is in debt of $1 million. The first part of the gospel is that a man, Jesus, came and paid the million dollars. This is what we communicate to an unbeliever. Now what often happens, is that someone shows him a picture of a house who the King of Kings will like to live. Every Sunday he is preached to about this holy standard and he is trying and trying to get to the standard. The person who pays the Million dollars is a Zillionaire, in fact, he makes money and can call up as much as is needed. Some people’s houses maybe a million dollars worth of repair, some may be a hundred thousand, some a couple of thousands. The construction work can now begin because the debt has been paid. All he simply needs to do ask the person who paid his debt, who is very eager to help. Your salvation journey was not meant to be done by your own strength.
The issue with flesh-based works for salvation is that it just doesn’t work. Our righteousness to God is a filthy rag, Isaiah 64:4, and all it creates are proud self-righteous individuals or weary souls that drawback to perdition. The good news is that the gospel did not end when we first heard about the Lord. Paul in Romans 1 said he was excited to preach the gospel to those who are actually believers. He said he preached the gospel to the Jew first and then the gentile, Romans 1:11-15. However, he went ahead to define a Jew as being one in the heart, not the physical, Romans 2:29. This means the gospel has a greater weight on a believer. Isaiah 35 retells the gospel to the believer. It says to the fearful, do not be afraid. It preaches good news to the feeble knee, the lame, the blind. It preaches to the one who rises and falls. Isaiah 34 started off speaking about the controversy of Zion with Idumea. Zion is the redeemed. Idumea is gotten from a root word that means ruddy (red) man, speaking of the flesh. God himself is aware of the struggles we face when trying to live right. He is aware of the presence of sin around us, even though we have been delivered from the power of it. The good news is that Jesus cares about the feeble knees. Isaiah 42:3 says he will not quench a smoking flax, meaning the one struggling to live right, He comes to help.
The bible says we have been given all things that pertain to life and godliness. Part of this is the highway of holiness, spoken about in Isaiah 35. The testimony of this highway is that even if a person was a fool and walks on this highway, they will not go astray or err in it. It is for the wayfaring men or the pilgrims. All who walk here return to Zion with singing and everlasting Joy! No need to self-impose penance or ordinances that do not help. Isn’t that good news? What then is this highway? According to Isaiah, the highway is there. In the midst of this dry land, wilderness condition that he speaks about there is a pool, wherein is the highway. In the new testament, the water is described as the word, Ephesians 5:26. Psalm 84:5 says Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee; in whose heart are the ways of them. [6] Who passing through the valley of Baca make it a well; the rain also filleth the pools. This shows that the highway is in our hearts. This means our hearts can be conducted in a manner that will get us to the city. This man in Psalm 84 has believed that whenever he passes through a valley of Baca, he will make it a well. In the heart of this person is the pool of water, the Word of God. This means a person whose heart is fixed on the reality of the Word of God. When the bible said a child of God does not sin, it is truth. This is a testimony of the way.
It may seem too simple, but this was how simple it was to come into the faith in the first place. Believe, Confess and you will be saved. It was never meant to get more complex than that. How do I base my life on the word of God? In every passage of scripture, there is a manifestation of the gospel. The gospel is the power of God unto salvation to all who believe. The bible says John 15:3 that your cleanliness is simply by the word of God. This is how God created the world. He called things that were not, as though they are. E.g. if He wanted to grab a cup that was not there, He would say behold a cup and before He stretches his hand to grab it, the cup appears. The enemy, knowing how free the gospel is seeks to stop you from understanding it and when you understand it, he aims to keep you from living it out. The moment you stop seeing God as a savior at any time, you are off the highway of Holiness.
Final thoughts: Just as there are demonic influences that cause a person to work in sin. The bible says the law of the Spirit of life can set us free from sin and death. The secret behind the way of Holiness is the Spirit of the Word, the Spirit of life in it, John 6:63. He is able to impart His influence on you to cause you to walk right. An example is in Ezekiel 2:2 where the Lord asked Ezekiel to stand and once he believed, the Spirit stood him on his feet. Mary in Luke 1, was another example. Her faith in God’s word created a literal baby in her. The moment you begin to walk on this way, you will realize that the major work is to believe that simply believing in God’s word can save you. The influence of the Spirit of life is able to set us free every day from the spirit of sin and death. The people who have this mindset are those in whose hearts are the highway of holiness. Though they are fools, they will not err therein. This is the gospel. This is the truth.
Prayer for today: Lord Jesus, thank you for your promise to me in Isaiah 35, that though I be fearful hearted, blind, lame, in the wilderness, etc, You have come to save me. Plant my feet in this highway of holiness. Help my unbelief! I know now that so long as I walk in this simple way of the gospel, I will return to Zion with everlasting Joy, because as Psalm 84 says, every one of them in Zion appears before God.
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