I Believe in a God Who Builds Roads

 

I Believe in a God Who Builds Roads

 

Isaiah 41:3  "The voice of one crying in the wilderness 'Prepare the way of the Lord; make straight in the desert a highway for our God.'"

 

John the Baptist

We credit John the Baptist as fulfilling this statement with his ministry calling for repentance in preparation for the arrival of Jesus, and then declaring Jesus as the Messiah when He arrives (Malachi 3:1; Matthew 3:3; Mark 1:3; Luke 3:4-6; John 1:23; 29-34).  For a long time I looked at the call to "build a highway" also as symbolic of prayer and introspection, a self-examination leading to repentance in an effort to be prepared to meet the Savior, and be ready at any moment to do so if at all possible.  That seemed fitting based on what I know of John's ministry so I still think that there is some truth in this view of the passage. 

 

Roads are both literal and symbolic

Royal highways, both literal and symbolic, were a part of ancient life.  The "King's Highway" is mentioned in Isaiah 35:8 which I would consider analogous to the "narrow gate" of which the Lord Jesus spoke (Matthew 7:13-14),  and the people on the King's highway are holy and strive to reflect holiness by righteousness.  But limiting my thoughts on Isaiah 41:3 to the above assumes that I, or we, are capable of "building a highway to the Lord".  It implies a righteousness of works, that we can somehow become good enough to earn salvation and acceptance from a holy God, whereas Scripture makes it clear that such salvation and acceptance is by grace through faith (Ephesians 2:8-10).  But there's more to this verse that speaks to that marvelous grace.

 

Our God builds roads

In ancient times, it was possible that people in a remote part of a kingdom would work to build a usable road to welcome royalty to the region, but perhaps it was more likely that the King would send crews ahead of him to build a road to the region in order for Him to visit as he pleased.  This caused me to consider this verse from a different point of view.  What if I am in such a state that I cannot reach my King, but my King has promised to reach me?  It fits the context of Isaiah's promise that God will reach Israel, even in exile in Babylon.  I take comfort that we follow a Savior who can reach us no matter where we are or how helpless we have become.  I need to do what I can, but the road is built not by me to my Savior, but by my Savior to me.

The Highway of Holiness

 

Isaiah 35:8  “A highway shall be there, and a road, an  it shall be called the Highway of Holiness.  The unclean shall not pass over it, but is shall be for others.  Whoever walks the road, although a fool, shall not go astray.  No Lion shall be there, nor shall any ravenous beast go up on it; it shall not be found there.  But the redeemed shall walk there, and the ransomed of the Lord shall return, and come to Zion with singing, with everlasting joy on their heads.  They shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and signing shall flee away.” (New King James Translation of the Bible)

 

The great prophets of the Old Testament spoke of things yet to come, but also of events current to their time.  In some cases, their prophecies had appropriate applications both immediate and in the far future.  This is one of the most notable examples of the prophet speaking to a current situation. 

If you compare Isaiah 36:1 through 39:8, and compare with 2 Kings 18:17 through 20:19, you find that they are almost verbatim, and you have a specific crisis in Israel’s history and God’s response to that crisis, which gives us insight in understanding how the other prophecies work. 

 

The context is, as always, very important.  The first 34 chapters of Isaiah are matters of woe and judgment and the doom of nations.  Chapter 35 begins to change the tone of the book.  Chapters 36-39 are the events of Assyria’s attempt to overtake Jerusalem after conquering the northern tribes of Israel and most of what was left save the city.  Chapters 40 and beyond speak of the future plans of the Kingdom of God.  In these pivotal chapters the envoy of Assyria terrifies the leaders of Judah with very real threats of invasion and the envoy blasphemes the God of Israel as weak and ineffective.  Isaiah prophecies and the threat evaporates, and the king of Assyria dies in his own land, killed by his own sons.

 

In the middle of this is the verse about the Highway of Holiness, and much could be said about this.  Suffice it to say that, based on the example of the crisis at hand, one example of appropriate behavior of someone on the Highway of Holiness is to turn to God in prayer first, not last, in a crisis.  To insure this one ought to make turning to God in prayer a habit, for a crisis of some sort will come to all of us, as life in this world is full of trials.  There is much more to the Highway that this, but the context indicates that this is an important part; turn to God in prayer habitually first and prepare to turn to Him quickly should trouble arise.