Sermon Bible The wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad for them; and the desert shall rejoice, and blossom as the rose. Isaiah 35:8 The way of holiness is (1) a high way; (2) a strait and narrow way; (3) a plain and obvious way; (4) a safe way. J. N. Norton, Golden Truths, p. 399. Reference: Isaiah 35:8.—Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. xxxii., No. 1912. Isaiah 35:10I. "Sorrow and sighing shall flee away." (1) The sorrow of bodily disease shall pass away. (2) The sorrow of dying will pass away. (3) The sorrow of bereavement will pass away. (4) The sorrow of poverty will flee away. (5) The sorrows caused by the sins of others will flee away. (6) The sorrows produced by the fear of evil, by dark imaginations, and by blighted hopes, shall flee away. (7) The sorrows of this life's illusions and delusions shall all pass away. (8) The sorrows of sin will pass away. (9) The bitterness of the heart shall flee away. II. When shall this be? (1) It shall be to the individual saint when his earthly career terminates. (2) To the saints as a body this will be realised at the times of the restitution of all things. III. By what signs may we be assured that our sorrows will flee away? (1) The first sign is personal faith. (2) A second sign is acknowledged and avowed citizenship in the kingdom of the Saviour. (3) A third sign is the fleeing away of sin—the being cleansed from sin. (4) Another sign is the present good effect of sorrow. (5) A fifth sign is a living hope—hope, born of faith—hope, the child of God's promises—the hope which is the anchor of the soul. When these five signs exist—personal faith in Jesus, avowed citizenship in His kingdom, the fleeing away of sin, the present good effect of sorrow, and a living hope—then we have good reason to expect that our sorrows shall flee away, and that our sighings shall for ever subside. S. Martin, Westminster Chapel Pulpit, 2nd series, No. 2. References: Isaiah 36:5.—Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. xi., No. 646; Ibid., Evening by Evening, p. 283. 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.
Strengthen ye the weak hands, and confirm the feeble knees.
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 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 an hart, and the tongue of the dumb sing: for in the wilderness shall waters break out, and streams in the desert.
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.
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.
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:
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. William Robertson Nicoll's Sermon Bible Text Courtesy of BibleSupport.com. Used by Permission. Bible Hub |
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