God talking through the prophet Isaiah in the previous chapter
and chapter 34 of Isaiah. Course you know the children of
Israel were not obeying God. They weren't doing the things
God wanted them to do and he had kind of come down hard on them.
But here in the 35th chapter of Isaiah, through the prophet, the
prophet is telling the children of Israel and Israel the good
news of things to come, the hope of things to come.
And he says here in in Isaiah 35, the wilderness and the
solitary place shall be glad for them.
And the desert shall rejoice and blossom as the Rose it shall
blossom abundantly, and rejoice even with the 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.
Strength Ye strengthen ye the weak hands, and confirm the
feeble needs. Say to them that are a full
fearful heart. Be strong, fear not.
Behold, your God will come with vengeance, even God with a
recompense He will come and save you.
Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the
deaf shall be unstopped. Then shall the lame man leap as
in heart, and the tongue of the lot dumb scene.
For in the wilderness shall waters break out and streams.
In the desert the parched ground shall become a pool, and the
thirsty land springs of water, and the habitation of Dragons,
where each lay shall be grass with reeds and rushes, And in
highway shall be there and away, 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. No lion shall be there, or any
ravenous beast shall go up there on.
It shall be not not be found there, but the redeemed shall
walk there. And the ransom the Lord shall
return. And the and come to Zion with
songs and everlasting joy upon their heads.
And they shall obtain joy and gladness and sorrow, and sign
shall flee away. Excuse me with my reading this
morning. I got some newer glasses, a
little stronger. And this is the first time I've
used them with something this far away.
So things are a little bit difficult more this morning, So
please pardon my stumbling, but I'd like to talk a little bit
this morning about a way that is leading from this earth to
heaven, our heavenly home beyond this world where we Live Today.
Talking about traveling, we've talked about a little bit of
traveling this morning with all the weather that we've been
having. And, you know, we probably heard
the expression, well, you can't get there from here.
Well, apparently Kate can't get here from where she's at right
now. But there is a way to heaven,
and we all want to go there. We travel around.
And it used to be, you know, when we would take a trip.
And I've got a whole drawer that I need to go through, but a
whole drawer in my office area that is full of maps, antiquated
maps, because we just don't use them.
At least I don't use them anymore.
But if I wanted to go someplace here in Bakersfield, I'd pull
that map out and find the street and and be able to navigate my
way there. If I wanted to go to certain
place over on the coast or across this country, I'd I'd get
that map out and and take the right roads and how to get
there. Today all we do is we punch in
the address and our GPS and we take off.
It tells us where to go. But before we took that trip,
there's certain things we'd like to know.
And I have a series of questions here I want to ask and that need
answering. First we would want to know, is
there a road or a way leading from here to our destination.
If we said yes to that, then we'd also ask, well, where is
it? And then we'd also ask where can
I learn about it and get all the information I need to go there?
The 4th question is how can I get on that road and is there
anything that would keep me or hinder me from getting there?
And I'm already behind here not paying attention.
With all these questions answered, we might also have a
few more questions. How can I stay on the road and
are there any signs along the way?
And are there guides along the way as well?
Well, we all want to go to heaven, don't we?
That's really our goal. That's what we're striving for
in this life. That's our final destination as
we want to make it to heaven when we leave this world.
So we need to ask the question, is there a heaven?
Well, I think most of us here today would say that there is in
John 14 versus 2 and three. Jesus said in my father's house
are many mansions. If it were not so, I would have
told you I go to prepare a place for you.
And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and
receive you to myself that where I am, there you may be also.
So the next question is, do I want to reach heaven when this
journey of life is over? Yes, we do.
Absolutely. Every sensible person here would
like to make it to heaven. Let's ask some more questions.
Is there a way that leads from this world to heaven?
If not, then we are wasting our time here this morning.
We are wasting all of our service to God.
We are wasting everything. We may as well close up the
building and go home, because worshipping God would is for
nothing if there's not a heaven that we look forward to.
We'll remember what Isaiah said about this in our text and
Isaiah 35 and verse 8. Isaiah talks about a highway
shall be there and a road and it shall be called the highway of
holiness. The unclean shall not pass over
it. This is the way that God has
provided for those that are going to heaven.
Isaiah says the unclean won't go that way, but it is a way of
holiness. In Christ's sermon on the mound,
Matthew 7 verses 13 and 14, Christ said enter ye in at the
straight gate or the King. James Version says the narrow
gate for wide is the gate, and broad is the way that leadeth to
destruction and many there be which go in there at but
straight is the gate and narrow is the way which leads unto
life, and few there be that find it.
Jesus calls the two ways that we can choose to go in this life
the Broadway. And the narrow way one leads to
eternal life and the other way leads to eternal destruction.
Notice back at our text Isaiah says, and Hwy. shall be there
and away, 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, Unclean men, in other words, though fools
shall not err there in. So we have answered the first
question, and that there is a way.
Now we want to ask where is the road and what is it?
Let's notice John 14 and verse 6.
Jesus saith unto him, I am the way and the truth and the life.
No man comes unto the Father but by me.
No, Jesus didn't say here that I am a way.
He didn't say that I am some way or I am one way.
He says I am The way you know, Frank had given a lesson here
not too long ago about about this as well.
So not not only that, but he also said I am the truth and the
life and no man comes under the Father but by me.
And isn't that where we want to go, where God is?
So Jesus says you get to God by me.
That's how we get to God. Well, there's someone that would
say, well, we're all going to the same place.
I'm going one way, you're going another way, but we'll all get
to the same place. That kind of statement can't be
true and be biblical because the Bible doesn't contradict itself.
The Bible does not speak of any other way except one way, and
it's impossible for us to reach our destination of heaven by any
other way. Jesus said I am the way, There's
only one way. No man comes to the Father but
by me and him only. So Peter talking to Jesus, said.
Talking to the Jesus said in Acts foreign verse 12 for there
is none other name under heaven given among men whereby we must
be saved, so we know that Jesus Christ is the way.
So the next question where can I learn about the way where can I
get the information that I need to know how to get in the right
way. John Jesus said in John 5 and
was 39. Search the scriptures for in
them you think you have eternal life and they are they which
testify of me. So who is this me?
Jesus says I'm the way, He says I'm the only way, I'm the way,
the truth and the life. All the information needed and
all the instruction are found within the scriptures and it
would lead and direct us in the way or to Jesus.
The next question is, how can I get to Jesus Christ the way?
How can I approach or come unto the way John 4 John 6 and versus
44 through 45. No man can come to me except the
Father which hath sent me. Draw him and I will raise him up
at the last day. It is written in the prophets,
and they shall be all taught of God.
Every man therefore that hath heard, and hath learned of the
Father, cometh unto me again. Who is me?
Jesus says, I am the way. Man comes unto Christ by
hearing, and by learning, and by coming to Jesus.
The Scriptures. The Word or the truth is what a
man learns and hears is the first step towards Jesus, the
way that will get us to heaven as a result of learning.
Faith is what is produced. That's a product of our learning
and hearing the word of God. Romans 10 and verse 17.
Excuse me, I didn't need to catch up here.
Romans 10 and verse 17. So then faith comes by hearing
and hearing by the word of God. When a man hears the word of God
and the gospel and understands what he has heard and can
logically apply it to his life, faith and acceptance is what is
produced. You see how this is kind of
progressing, how it's building on something.
So then faith arouses repentance.
Notice Acts 11 and verse 18. Then have God also to the
Gentiles granted repentance unto life.
Well, what? What does the word unto mean?
It simply means to or toward in the direction of.
The idea is to approach, come toward, move in the direction of
something. One example this morning is all
of us came unto this building this morning.
We left our homes, we got in our cars and we drove here and we
got out of it in of our cars in the parking lot, and we came
unto the building. We came to these doors in the
front of the building, and we came unto the building, but we
weren't in the building yet. We had come unto the building.
We go to someone's home and we knock on the door or we ring the
doorbell and they open and answer the door and they say
they don't say come onto my house.
No, they say come into my house because you've come onto their
house already, but you haven't come into their house yet.
When I was younger, you know, we would in the summertime, we
would go to the lake and and go swimming.
Well, every step we took towards that lake was a step unto the
water. But it wasn't till I got into
the water that I was in the water.
Every step to the ward, the water or in the direction of the
water was a step unto the water. You know I don't have to, and I
and you guys don't have to be in a scholar to figure those things
out. We understand that faith comes
from hearing and hearing God's will, and that causes us to
believe and turn away from the world and repent.
That's what is known as repentance.
All these steps bring us unto Christ, not into Christ.
Yet notice Romans 10 and verse 10, Paul said, with the heart
men believeth unto or in the direction of righteousness.
And with the mouth confession is made unto or in the direction of
salvation. We make the confession of our
faith that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.
That is still a step unto Christ.
We still this is still in the direction of salvation.
But we have not received salvation yet.
We have not been saved yet. Notice the word into never
follows the Word, faith or confession.
The idea of a man having faith into salvation is contrary to
what the Scriptures teach. We cannot believe ourselves into
anything we may. We may believe it, we may have
faith in it, but that doesn't mean we have it.
We're not there yet. So with the heart, man believes
unto righteousness. In Romans 10 and 10 repentance
is unto Acts 11 and verse 18. Confession is unto Romans 10 and
verse 10. Or with the heart.
Men believe it unto righteousness, and with the
mouth confession is made unto or in the direction of salvation.
Next question Are there any hindrances or anything that will
keep me from getting into the way?
And how can I get into the way? Romans 6 and verses one through
4. What shall we say then?
Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?
God forbid. How shall we that are dead to
sin live any longer therein? Know ye not that so many of us
as were baptized into Jesus Christ, were baptized into his
death? Therefore we are buried with him
by baptism into death. That, like as Christ was raised
up from the dead by the glory of the Father, Even so we also
should walk in newness of life. Well, what does that mean?
This is what it means. Paul says we're buried.
We are baptized into Jesus Christ.
That means there's a transition from outside to inside.
When we walked into this building, now we were inside.
Every step that we did prior to that was something that was
coming onto the building. But when we walked into the
building, we were inside the building.
Every step that I took towards the lake to go swimming was a
step unto the water. But when I stepped into the
water, I was now in the water. We understand that it's
impossible for you to come into this building without first
having come onto it. The apostle Paul also said in
Galatians the third chapter, verses 26 and 27.
For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.
Here's the reason we're saved by faith.
We hear that term used so much. Here's why the reason verse 27.
For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on
Christ. So when we're baptized into
Christ, that's what puts us in Christ, that become a child of
God and puts us into the body of Christ in the Church of Christ.
How many are in Christ? Well, as many as I've been
baptized into Christ anymore, no.
Any less, no. Well, some would say, well, I
don't understand. I really don't know how you
could misunderstand this. Notice in First Corinthians 12
and verse 13, for by 1 Spirit, are we all baptized into one
body. So when a person is baptized
into Christ, they become part of the body of Christ.
It's one, it's the same. It's not different.
It's not a denomination. It is the body of Christ,
Christ. You are a child of God.
You are in Christ. You're in Christ's church, the
Church of Christ. What puts you in there is not
faith alone, is not a confession alone, is not repentance alone.
All those are steps unto But what puts you in Christ is
baptism. So Jesus says, I am the way, and
how do we get into Christ? The scriptures teach us that we
are baptized into Christ Roman 6 and verse 17.
But God be think that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have
obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered
you. This is the doctrine of Christ.
This is the doctrine of the true church.
Next question. Am I willing to accept the
truth? Do you think that if Christ
commands everyone to believe and to repent and to confess and be
baptized, that these steps are not necessary for us to reach
heaven? You know, The thing is, we get
in the way that leads to our destination.
Sometimes it's not certain that we'll get there, just like Kay
did this morning. She intended to be here, but
things happened that she wasn't able to get, you know, in our,
in our spiritual life, and you've seen it as well.
Some people start out really well, but they get off the way.
They get off the road. They take the wrong road and and
and and maybe backtrack and take the wrong turn or whatever, or
they fall off the way. And The thing is we have to stay
in the right way. We must stay until our journey
is over. Polls coursed and talked about
in second Timothy foreign versus 6 through 8.
For I am now ready to be offered in the time of my departure is
at hand. I fought a good fight.
I finished my course. I kept the faith.
Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness
which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that
day, and not to me only, but unto all them also that love His
appearing. It takes effort on our part to
stay on the road. You know, we've maybe all been
at some point in a car and driving in bad weather and maybe
snow or ice or whatever, and it sometimes it gets a little
slippery. And sometimes in our Christian
life, things get a little bit slippery and we tend to maybe
veer off a little bit and we get off the way we have to stay
faithful. Notice Revelation 2 and verse
10. Be thou faithful unto death and
I will give the a crown of life. We have to stay and remain on
the right road. One of these days Jesus will
say, this is the end of your journey.
This is done. Enter into the joy of the Lord.
We must always remember to take care not to stray away from the
right path And Proverbs 14, verse 12.
There is a way that seemeth right on demand, but the end
there are of are the way of death.
The world may tell you, and other religious entities and
organizations may tell you that there's a way to get to heaven,
but it's not. It's a different way, or it's a
way or some other way. The scriptures teach us that
there is only one way to have and that's through Jesus Christ
and baptism into Christ. We thank you for listening to
our podcast put on by The Church of Christ at 2215 Plans Rd. in
Bakersfield if you would like any additional information.
Or you would like to receive a free Bible correspondence course
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info@churchofchristbakersfield.com. Our service times are Sundays at
10:30 AM and 5:00 PM and Wednesdays at 7:30 PM.
Please make plans to join us. We would love for you to be our
honored guest.