LEARNING DAILY

 

Isaiah 49:11, “I will make each of My mountains a road, and My highways shall be elevated. Surely these shall come from afar; look! Those from the north and the west, and these from the land of Sinim.”  God

 

This is a verse that everyone reading it would not understand and keep reading.  That would have been me except I have begun using commentaries and study Bibles to help me get a better understanding of what I am reading.  A comment in the JSESB intrigued me so that I am passing it on to you today, hoping to give some understanding and encourage to each of you.  The comment was “Satan endeavors to make the Christian think that even though he might make it, still, its going to be a difficult journey that will not be worth the effort.”  I would never have gotten this from a quick reading of this verse.  I had to do further research to understand how this was gotten from the above verse.  Let me share what I found.

 

For the Israelites of Isaiah’s day, this refers to the difficulty of returning from their captivity in Babylon; there would be obstructions and difficulties during their return.  The Lord was telling the people that He created the mountain or the high places as well as the valleys or the low places. The Lord was telling them through His prophet that He would remove all obstacles or make the mountains a highway for His people to return to Jerusalem. 

 

It was very interesting how Bible scholars all pointed to the difficulties you and I have walking on the narrow way.  Some of you gave your life to Christ at an early age.  Some, like me, it took longer.  And, some of you may have taken even longer.  Satan was there trying to misdirect you, getting you to live in worldly ways so you would not ever come to know Jesus Christ as your Savior.  He fought hard to keep you especially when you got close to making your decision to follow Jesus.  But when you decided to give your life to him, the warfare for your soul began in earnest.  Satan never stops trying to pull you away from the narrow way that leads to heaven.  He hates you and does everything he can to deceive you and get you to step off the narrow way.  You could refer to the verse from Isaiah and say there are many mountains (obstructions and difficulties) that you are looking at in your walk with Jesus.  Satan is not the only challenge.  There are people all around you that laugh and scoff at you when they find out you are a Christian.  Perhaps they just put up with you as long as you do not bring up anything Jesus has done for you.  Yes, the hearts of too many people are hardened due to the deception in their lives.

 

Jesus, Himself, gave warning that in the last days, there would be many who would come to deceive even Christians.  I tell you that there are many deceivers in the world today preaching and teaching false doctrine and lies.  Be careful!  Be aware of those who would tell you there is more than one way to get on the narrow way that leads to eternal life.  In this life, you and I will be faced with opposition, persecutions, unbelief, Satan’s lies, and immoral temptations, losses, and all sorts of deceptions.  But, through them all, our Lord Jesus Christ makes a way – a narrow way.  “My highways shall be elevated (exalted)”.  His highway is a way of righteousness and holiness.  Stop with those thoughts of not being worthy.  Of course you aren’t.  No one is!  It is Christ’s righteousness in us that makes us righteous.  Our walk on the His highway – the narrow way - is due to our faith in who Jesus Christ is and that He loved us enough to take our rightful place on a cross of shame that we might live eternally with Him. 

 

I wonder if we will ever know the number of obstacles He has removed for us as we walk with Him!  I am lifted up and encouraged by the short study on a verse I would have just read without any thought.  My prayer is that you have been as well!

 

From now on DJSB will be used to note information or quotes from the David Jeremiah Study Bible and LSSB will refer to information and quotes from the Life in the Spirit Study Bible.  I have added Jimmy Swaggart’s Expositor’s Study Bible to be referred to from now on as JSESB