Third Sunday in Advent, 2001
Isaiah 35

From Wasteland to Garden

The Gobi Desert is a region 1,000 miles long and 600 miles wide. It lies between Mongolia, Tibet and China. The Gobi is considered one of the largest and most desolate places on earth. There are vast expanses of absolutely waterless sand and clay without a tree in sight. One amazing story tells about seven prisoners of war who escaped the Soviet Gulag during World War II. They walked from Northern Siberia all the way to safety in British controlled India. Toward the end of their journey they were forced to cross the Gobi Desert. After trudging over sand dunes for seven days they finally saw an oasis. A few passages from The Long Walk will give the flavor. [By Slavomir Rawicz.]

"The heat enveloped us, sucking the moisture from our bodies, putting ankle-irons of lethargy about our legs. Each one of us walked with his and her own thoughts and none spoke, dully concentrating on placing one foot ahead of the other interminably."

"We went on through the shimmering stillness. Not even a faint zephyr of air came up to disperse the fine dust hanging almost unseen above the desert, the dust that coated our faces and beards, entered into our cracked lips and reddened the rim of eyes already sore tried by the stark brightness of the sun."

After seven days of this, they discovered an oasis of palm trees and a small pool. It was a godsend. The author relates their arrival there: "We lay over the water lapping at it and sucking it in like animals. We allowed it to caress our fevered faces. We dabbed it around our necks. We drank until someone uttered the warning about filling our empty bellies with too much liquid The very feel and presence of water was an ecstasy. Our spirits zoomed. We had walked out of an abyss of fear into life and new hope. We chatted and laughed as though the liquid we had drunk was heady champagne."

Today's Old Testament text from Isaiah also speaks of the desert, and steams in the desert. As a time of preparation for the birth and manifestation of Christ the readings of the Advent season have traditionally given special attention to the voice of prophecy, with a strong emphasis on the reading of Isaiah. Beginning at Isaiah 35:1-4 [Read.]

How do we understand Isaiah's prophecy? If we combine chapters 34 and 35 of Isaiah we see a clear contrast. In Chapter 34 the prophet speaks of a land filled with ferocious beasts, emptiness, and desolation; chapter 35 foretells an amazing transformation of a wasteland into a garden. The dynamic is that of a parched desert blossoming into a rainbow of flowers. Gloom and sadness convert into joy and singing. The contrast couldn't be more pronounced.

The hard part is this: when does this prophecy take place, where does it occur, and to whom does it refer? It is possible that there are several layers of meaning. On a superficial level, the barren wilderness refers to God's curse and deep displeasure with the people of Edom. The Lord says in Isaiah 34:5: "For My sword shall be bathed in heaven; Indeed it shall come down on Edom, and on the people of My curse, for judgment." In effect, Edom will be punished on the Day of the Lord's vengeance (Is. 34:8). The Holy Almighty will manifest His wrath by turning their land into a bleak desert. The curse is complete, including spiritual and physical sickness. These are fearful words. Such judgment guards us from an overly sentimental concept of God.

However, there is another side of the equation. Unlike Edom, Judah shall prosper. That is what chapter 35 is about. The chosen ones will see the glory of the LORD; they will rejoice and sing. The Heavenly Father will show His favor toward His people by rewarding them with rich pasturelands, artesian springs, lakes, pools, lush forests and green meadows. The blessing is complete, including spiritual and physical salvation.

The prophet Isaiah, guided by the Holy Spirit, outlines two utterly different images. They harmonize with the doctrine of the covenant. Covenantal obedience results in the blessing of earth's beauty and man's joy; disobedience ushers in a barren wasteland, and man's misery (Deuteronomy 28). So, at a basic level Isaiah predicts the demise of Edom in their region, and the triumph of Israel in Canaan. This is the easiest way to see the fulfillment of Isaiah's predictions.

But there is a problem with this perspective. The language is too exalted for such a narrow reading. The Almighty Creator is not merely concerned with tiny slices of territory in the Middle East; His purposes take in the whole world. Hence, the passage ought to be interpreted in cosmic terms. The two chapters may refer to Christ's Second Coming at the end of time. In this case, chapter 34 would point to the eternal condemnation of rebellious unbelievers at the Last Judgment; chapter 35 would refer to the eternal blessedness of the redeemed in Heaven. Of the two positions we have mentioned, one restricts the fulfillment of Isaiah's prophecies to the confines of Palestine, the other sees the fulfillment in the heavenly sphere following the Second Coming of Christ.

A third possibility has become popular in the last century. In this view, the judgment of Edom in Isaiah 34 refers to the global destruction that takes place during the Great Tribulation. After the rapture, Antichrist sets up a horrendous and tyrannous one-world government. Chapter 35 points to the physical return of Christ with His saints to vanquish the Antichrist. After the crushing defeat of the Beast, King Jesus then establishes His kingdom in Jerusalem, and rules the world for one thousand years.

This last scenario sounds titillating and certainly gains the most acclaim at present, but the rapture theory has a couple of challenges to overcome: it is a novel eschatological position unknown to the historic Church; and worse, it receives virtually no warrant from Scripture.

How then should we interpret our text? Why not see these chapters of Isaiah as referring to the First Advent of Christ? Not only is that viewpoint the most direct, it makes the most sense. Isaiah 34 and 35 have to do with Christ's First Coming. The Edom of chapter 34 represents the ultimate doom of all the nations who oppose Christ's Kingdom and the Church; the Judah of chapter 35 represents Christ's Church and her successful extension over the globe. When can we expect the accomplishment of these Messianic promises and prophesies? They will transpire in this present age, before the final, physical return of Jesus from Heaven. This theory may not be the most popular, but it seems to enjoy the greatest support of Old and New Testament passages. Let us review some.

God told the Serpent in Genesis 3:15: "The Seed, [The Son of God] will bruise your head" When the Son of God becomes incarnate in Bethlehem, dies on the Cross, rises from the dead and ascends into heaven, at that moment His dominion will begin to crush Satan's head. Hence, Jesus rules right now, for He said in the Great Commission: "All authority has been given Me in heaven and on earth" (Mt. 28:18). Moreover, God told Abraham, "in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed." St. Paul teaches us that Christians are now the true sons and seed of Abraham (Gal. 3:7-14). Thus it is the Father's will that, through the Church's preaching of Christ crucified and risen, "all the families of the nations shall worship before him."

The prophet Isaiah promises in Isaiah 2:2 that all the nations shall flow to Zion. Hebrews 12:22 tells us that the Church is now Zion. How will all the nations of earth flow to Zion? A spiritually renewed Church attracts the nations to the Christian faith by the vitality and depth of her worship, doctrine, and life. It should be noted that Isaiah 2:2 makes no reference to a visible, physical presence of the Messiah, as though the Second Advent had already taken place. Neither is the eternal, heavenly state in view. This passage and numerous others teach that the spread of the kingdom and of the gospel will be accomplished through the supernatural work of the Holy Spirit in this present era. We can be sure that at some point in history before Christ comes again there will be worldwide conversion on an unprecedented scale.

In this light let us consider Isaiah 35:5-6. The prophet states: "Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. Then the lame shall leap like a deer, And the tongue of the dumb sing." This description perfectly fits the ministry of Jesus. He touched the eyes of the blind, and they received their sight. To the deaf He said: "Ephphatha" and their ears were opened (Mark 7:34-35). The lame He gave to walk. The Lord performed all these miracles and more.

A quotation from Gregory of Nazianzus was recently sent my way. It is truly splendid! Gregory was one of the Church Fathers who argued for the full deity of Christ against the Arians. The Arians insisted that Jesus could not have been God if he hungered, thirsted, and tired. Gregory responded: "He was baptized as man ­ but he remitted sins as God He was tempted as man, but he conquered as God He hungered ­ but he fed thousands He was wearied, but he is the rest of them that are weary and heavy-laden. He was heavy with sleep, but he walked lightly over the sea He pays tribute, but it is out of a fish; yea, he is the king of those who demanded it He prays, but he hears prayer. He weeps, but he causes tears to cease. He asks where Lazarus was laid, for he was man; but he raises Lazarus, for he was God. He is sold, and very cheap, for it is only for thirty pieces of silver; but he redeems the world, and that at a great price, for the price was his blood. As a sheep he is led to the slaughter, but he is the shepherd of Israel, and now of the whole world also. He is bruised and wounded, but he heals every disease and ever infirmity. He is lifted up and nailed to the tree, but by the tree of life he restores us. He dies, but he gives life, and by his death he destroys death." [From Reading Scripture with the Church Fathers , by Christopher A. Hall, p. 73. I thank Dr. John Brugaletta for this citation.]

It would be hard to sum up the person and work of our Lord Jesus any better. The Holy Spirit inspired Isaiah to foresee these magnificent works of the Messiah 700 years before Christ's birth.

Let us read the last three verses of chapter 35. (Isaiah 35:8-10) [Read them.]

Here is the Highway of Holiness leading to Zion. This is the superhighway that leads to the presence and power of Christ in His Church. The redeemed of God walk on this path without fear of tyrannous leaders or murderous thieves, for the kingdom of God holds sway. As pilgrims, believers walk in the joy of the Lord. Isaiah is careful to point out that not everyone is saved. Isaiah says: "the unclean shall not pass over it." There will always be tares in the field until Christ's Second Coming. But the wheat will outnumber the tares.

The garden theme is prominent in these Messianic prophecies. The Gospel of Christ turns the wasteland into a garden. Christians have too often erroneously taught that Christ's kingdom has little to do with the present created order. The kingdom is limited to the hearts of the regenerate, to heaven, or the eternal state. This virtually denies that the messianic kingdom has anything to do with this present earth. Our passage today makes it clear that this earth is a part of the kingdom. "The wilderness and the wasteland shall be glad the desert shall rejoice and blossom as the rose For waters shall burst forth in the wilderness, And streams in the desert. The parched ground shall become a pool, and the thirsty land springs of water; In the habitation of jackals, where each lay, there shall be grass with reeds and rushes."

This being the case, we strengthen our souls when we contemplate the goodness, wisdom, and majesty of God in what He has made. The smell and sight of nature's wonders reveal the glory of the Lord. Saint Francis of Assisi encouraged his followers to contemplate creation and to praise God "in all creatures and from all creatures." Of all the religious orders, it was the Franciscans who most loved and rejoiced in creation. We would do well to know nature better in its immediacy and to cultivate the ancient practice of meditating on nature in order to increase our spiritual understanding and love for God's world.

The promise of Isaiah that the wasteland would be converted into paradise is a message of hope. "The desert shall rejoice and blossom as the rose." Then Isaiah says: "Strengthen the weak hands, And make firm the feeble knees. Say to those who are fearful-hearted, 'be strong, do not fear!'" These prophesies should change our whole outlook on life. While it is true that every atom of creation bears some trace of Adam's fall, there will surely come the day when every atom will be redeemed. Colossians 1:20 promises that Jesus Christ will one day reconcile to Himself "all thingson earth." How? "Through the blood of His cross." Romans 8:21 says: "the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God." These divine pledges concern this present age. They should give us hope, and if we have hope, then we will work to accomplish what has been promised. The problem with gloom and doom eschatologies is that they offer little incentive for earthly improvement. Rather, they promise victory for Antichrist, and defeat for the Church before Christ's Second Coming. For some of these people, the worse the world's conditions become the better. Depravity, apostasy and environmental degradation signify that Jesus is coming soon. In this scheme of things, there seems to be no inducement to tend and adorn the earth. If prospects for this age are hopeless, why try?

An optimistic eschatology provides a completely different motivation. It moves us to great sacrifice and endeavor to advance God's kingdom, and under His grace, and in the power of the Holy Spirit, to turn the wasteland into a garden. On this third Sunday in Advent let us commit ourselves to uphold our Christian responsibilities. What are our duties? To faithfully carry out the Great Commission, to diligently build up the church, to pray without ceasing, to engage in spiritual warfare, to serve the hurting and meet the needs of the innocent, to walk in holiness, and to live with one another in faith, hope, and love. And what will be the consequence if we are faithful in these duties? Our text from Isaiah tells us: God will transform the earth from wasteland to garden.

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