In this sermon, Pastor Chuck Smith discusses the destructive nature of sin and its consequences on individuals and nations. He emphasizes that sin is a rebellion against God's law and that it ultimately leads to destruction and death. However, Pastor Chuck also highlights a new chapter, a new age, described in Isaiah chapter 35, where the wilderness and deserts will rejoice and blossom abundantly. This new chapter represents a time of restoration and salvation, where God will come to save those who are fearful and bring healing to the blind, deaf, and lame.

Welcome to The Word for Today. The Word for Today is a continuous study of the Bible taught by Pastor Chuck Smith of Calvary Chapel, Costa Mesa, California. Pastor Chuck is currently teaching from the Old Testament, and if you're following along in your Bible, we'll be continuing today in Isaiah chapter 35, beginning with verse 10, as we continue with a topical message entitled, Streams in the Desert. One thing is needful, O my Father. One thing is needful, O my God. That I sit at your feet, and pour out my love. This thing is needful, O my God. And now with today's study, here's Pastor Chuck. Sin, by its very nature, destroys. Sin is the rebellion against the law of God. And the law of God was intended for man's good. And he said, he tells you what God requires of you. And what does God really require of you? That you do justly, or that you live a very righteous life. You do what's right. You do what's just. That you love mercy, and that you walk humbly before your God. And that's good. There's nothing wrong with that. I can't fault that. How I wish that every man did live in righteousness. How I wish that every man did walk in humbleness before God. And that every man was merciful, forgiving, patient, understanding. And so God's law is good. In fact, David said, the law of the Lord is perfect. And I find that is so. I do not have any argument with the law of God. I think that it does describe for us the right way to live. Jesus, in sort of a summary of the law, said that basically you are to love God with all your heart and soul and mind and strength. And to love your neighbor as yourself. Now imagine what kind of a world this would be if every man loved God completely and loved his neighbor as he loved himself. Thought of his neighbor's well-being, was kind to his neighbor, considerate, generous, helping them. It would be a glorious world. There's nothing wrong with the law of God. But sin is a rebellion against that law. And where God would have you to live a God-centered life. Sin leads a person into a self-centered life. And those things that God has forbidden in the law are things that when you follow and practice them, have as their very character in nature, self-destruction. So a person who is walking the path of sin is in a self-destructive path. Now we can illustrate that very simply with the law of gravity. You say, I don't like that law of gravity. I feel that man should be able to fly like the birds. And I don't like to be restricted to the ground. I want to fly. You may go over to the Plaza Hotel, up to the top floor and jump, deciding that you're going to fly. You're going to defy that law of gravity. You've never liked it anyhow. Now, you're going to end up broken and bruised on the ground level. But it would be wrong to blame God for all the pain and the hurt that you're feeling. God, why did you let me fall? God, why did you hurt me? No, no. You violated the law of God. You knew the consequences, but you thought you could get by with it. But you can't. To defy the laws is to be on a self-destruct path. And you are destroying yourself. The Bible says the wages of sin is death. And that's true of individual or national sins. Sin will bring death to you. It will bring death to a nation. Sin will destroy you as a person. It will bring you pain and sorrow, misery, suffering. But because no man lives unto himself, your sin also affects those that are around you, and it brings them pain and suffering also. Within a nation, sin is destructive. It destroys the moral fiber of a nation, the strength of a nation. It weakens the nation. It's like a cancer in our society. When a nation's law is in harmony with God's law, that nation will be strong and invincible. But when the laws of a nation allow that which God's law forbids, then the days of that nation's greatness are numbered. Sin destroys. There's no getting around it. Let's look at a simple illustration. The law of God said thou shalt not commit adultery. But you find that you're being attracted to a person of the opposite sex. And in reality, you are committing two sins. The one is that of being a false witness because you said that you would be faithful and keep only unto them so long as you both should live. And the second, you're beginning to become involved in adultery. You can begin to see the effects in your marriage. Your marriage is beginning to break down. You're beginning to argue more. There are these fights, and the children are beginning to feel the insecurity because of these fights that are raging in the house. And you look at the children and you realize the hurt and the pain they're going to experience when they discover that you're planning to leave. You're not going to be there at the dinner table at night. The hurt, the pain that you're going to inflict upon them, something they will never understand and will never fully get over. Your sin has destroyed your peace of mind. It has destroyed the sense of worth of your spouse and the happiness and well-being of your children. Sin destroys. It just, you can't get away from it. That's just the nature of sin. Now, when the prophets were speaking of the dark days that were coming upon the earth. When the prophets were speaking of these horrendous wars. When they were speaking of Armageddon and these horrible, almost unthinkable kinds of atrocities upon mankind. When they were warning the nation of its destruction, of the desolation of its cities. When the prophets were warning that your wives will be ravaged by the enemy and you'll see your children being taken away captive. They were only telling you what is the inevitable consequence of a nation when it has forsaken God. When it is in rebellion against the law of God. For that nation no longer has the will or the strength to fight for the freedoms and liberties. The peace activists today are a classic demonstration of people whose moral principles have been so eroded. That they no longer have really anything to fight for, except their own license to licentiousness. History has proven that appeasement does not work with men like Hitler. And Saddam Hussein has been cut from the same cloth. Now, God through the prophets warned of the consequences of sin upon the whole human race. God knew that the unbridled greed of man, accompanied with man's technological developments would ultimately bring man to the brink of disaster. As he used his technical capacities to develop weapons that could exterminate man from the face of the earth. And the Bible describes the horrors of nuclear warfare, the battle of Armageddon. Now, violating the laws of God not only have their built in undesirable consequences. But ultimately they bring along with them the divine judgment of God. So the final chapter, the final page of this chapter of history. Is going to end with man reaping the consequences of sin and rebellion against God. And there will be a great carnage known as the battle of Armageddon. But God will also join in the judgment with earthquakes, meteorite showers, hurricanes and other phenomena of nature. As man reaps the consequences of his rebellion against God. Is that the end of the story? No. There's another chapter. Now, as you come in Isaiah chapter 34 he deals with the battle of Armageddon. He deals with this final pages of this awful chapter that is about to end. The chapter of the accounting of man's sin. The history of sin. Its consequences upon people and upon nations. And ultimately its consequence upon our world. But then you enter into chapter 35. A new chapter. A new age. A new beginning. Sin has had its day. It has brought its inevitable consequences. The destruction. But as he begins to describe the new chapter. The new day. It will be a day when the wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad. The desert shall rejoice and blossom as a rose. It will blossom abundantly and rejoice even in joy and singing. The glory of Lebanon shall be given to it. The deserts will be like the forest of Lebanon. They will be like the woods of the Sharon plain. They will see the glory of the Lord and the excellency of our God. And so God said, say to those who are fearful as they see the disasters that are resulting from sin. Say to those that are of a fearful heart, be strong. Don't be afraid. Be told your God will come and he will save you. And we are told that in that day the eyes of the blind will be open. The ears of the deaf will be unstopped. The lame will leap as deer. And their tongue of the mute will be singing. Springs will break out in the wilderness and there will be streams. And in the desert, a beautiful new earth. No more deserts covered with forest, woods, streams. No more sickness. No more physical infirmities. No more wheelchairs. No more white canes. No more suffering. No more death. No more sorrow. For these things have all come as the resulting consequence of sin upon the earth. A new age that God will establish. I deeply resent the connotation of doom and gloom prophet. It is doom and gloom. Look at the world. Be realistic. Thousands of people dying of AIDS. Millions of people enslaved to drugs and to alcohol. Great problems. And there doesn't seem to be any solution. Banks are failing. The government needs more money. What's new? We're being pinched. I mean, that's doom and gloom. Read your newspaper if you want doom and gloom. Come to church if you want to hear a new chapter. God's got something better. A world without sin. Chapter 35 tells us some of the conditions that shall exist. Now, who are to inhabit this new earth? Who will share in its glory and its beauty? First of all, from a negative standpoint, the sinner won't be there. And the reason for that being is if he were there, he would soon destroy it just like he's destroyed this world. It would only be a matter of time until he spread his evil and brought it to the same brink of destruction. And therefore, the sinner will be excluded. The Bible gives a list of those who are excluded. The fierce. The unbelieving. The abominable. The murderers. The whoremongers. The drug addicts. The idolaters. And all liars. They'll be excluded. In verse 9, the prophet tells us the latter portion who will be there. The redeemed shall walk there. Verse 10. And the ransomed of the Lord. What does it mean redeemed, ransomed of the Lord? He's saying redeemed how I love to proclaim it. Redeemed by the blood of the Lamb. What's it mean? What's he talking about? The word redeemed has to do with the word slavery. You see, one thing that sin does beside destroy is enslave. Sin by its nature enslaves the person that is engaged in it. Give yourself over to a lust. Give yourself over to the flesh and you'll soon find yourself enslaved by your flesh. Bondage of sin and corruption. And redemption has to do with the paying of the price in order to deliver the slave. You see, you were spiritually bankrupt. You were not able to pay for your redemption. You were a slave to sin. Hopelessly a slave to sin. No power to redeem yourself. And in that pitiful state, a slave to that which was destroying you. God saw you, had pity and mercy upon you and loved you. And he sent his son to bear your sin. To pay the price to redeem you. And so Jesus paid the price to redeem you from your sin. That you might be set free from the power of sin that is destroying your life. He paid the ransom. The price that was demanded. And he gave his life to redeem you. And that's why we were singing redeemed how I love to proclaim it. Redeemed by the blood of the Lamb. The redeemed will be there. Those that have been ransomed. What will be the conditions? The ransomed to the Lord shall return. They'll come to Zion with songs. Everlasting joy will be upon their heads. They will obtain joy and gladness. And sorrow and sighing will flee away. A beautiful new age. And the book of Revelation tells us And God himself will be with them. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes. And there shall be no more death. Neither sorrow nor crying. Neither shall there be any more pain. For the former things are passed away. You see death. Pain. Sorrow. Tears. These are all the consequence and the effect of sin. Sin having been removed. No more tears. No more pain. No more suffering. No more sorrow. A glorious new day. For God's people. And so the book doesn't end in darkness. It doesn't end on that somber note of destruction. This present chapter of the book ends that way. And it looks like we're headed into the final pages of this chapter. But that's only the heralding of the glorious new day. The day of our Lord. Face to face. Lord let me know. Face to face. Lord let me see you. Pastor Chuck Smith will return with a few closing comments. But first I'd like to remind you that today's message is available in its unedited form on cassette or CD. Simply write or call and ask for ordering details on tape or CD number T-3269. Again that's tape or CD number T-3269. As we come to a close in today's program. We'd like to discuss the true meaning of Christmas. And why a man born 2000 years ago can still affect the world today. Do you know the prophecies that were fulfilled in Jesus birth and death? And why they had to take place? The word for today presents two Bible studies by Pastor Chuck Smith. Entitled tidings of great joy. And the purpose of his coming. Discussing the reasons why Jesus was born. Including the fulfillment of prophecy and the historic background. In the Christmas season there is so much focus on presents. That we may forget the greatest gift of all. God's only beloved son. Our Savior. Pastor Chuck examines the birth of Christ. And leaves no room for doubt that Jesus was indeed the promised Messiah. To order tidings of great joy. And the purpose of his coming by Pastor Chuck Smith. Call the word for today at 1-800-272-WORD. Or write to us at P.O. Box 8000. Costa Mesa, California 92628. And remember the word for today would like to assist you this Christmas. In spreading the gospel of Jesus to your family, friends and co-workers. Please call our customer service department. To help you in finding that perfect gift. That will reflect the true meaning of Christmas. And if you call right now and mention this radio ad. The word for today will give you a 20% discount. On any resource carried by the word for today. Once again that number to call is 1-800-272-9673. And for those of you that would like to visit our website. You can do so at www.twft.com. Or if you would like to email us. You can do so at info at twft.com. Well coming up next time on the word for today. Pastor Chuck will be continuing his fascinating study. Through the book of Isaiah. That's coming up next time on the word for today. And now with a few closing comments. Here is Pastor Chuck. If you today would like to be free from the bondage of sin. You maybe have been caught up in. Things have gone farther than you ever intended them to go. Sin has a way of compounding. I would encourage you to go back to the prayer room as soon as we are dismissed. And the pastors and counselors will be back there to pray with you. Because God will set you free today. God will change the whole thing around today. Things look rather dismal and hopeless at this point. You are on the verge of going over the edge. But God will save you. Go back and give God a chance. In your life. See what he will do for you. If you will just give him the opportunity. May the Lord be with you now. And bless and keep you in his love. Through his grace. In Jesus Christ our Lord. This program is sponsored by the word for today. The radio ministry of Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa, California.