Yesterday was Thanksgiving, and I did not hear one person say they were thankful for roads. When I think about it, I cannot ever remember someone being thankful for roads. However, I do remember people complaining about potholes. I also remember, (I have done so myself), people complaining about road construction. Think about roads. It is not immediately clear that earthly roads play a part in God’s heavenly kingdom. Just because we don’t recognize it, doesn’t mean it’s not true.

Deborah sang about highways that were abandoned and travelers that were forced to take winding paths. It is just one line in her song, but it is important line. You see, when the roads begin to fall apart, it is an outward sign of the inward corruption and failure of government. When roads become so dangerous to travel, that it safer to travel through mountain paths, it shows that the nation has lost control. Evil and wicked men are in the driver seat. This is what was happening in Israel, the nation that God created. Israelites could not move about safely in the land, but more importantly they could not do what God had created them as a nation to do.

God created Israel to worship Him and introduce Him to the world. This plan revolved around Israel being faithful and the nations of the world being forced by geography to transverse from one end of Israel to the other to do commerce with each other. Israel was located at the crossroads of all the great nations. They were at the center between Egypt, Syria, Samaria, Babylonia, Macedonia and the Persians. As years passed, nations would rise and fall, yet all would travel to and through Israel.

One of the things that made the timing of Christ’s appearance so perfect was the system of Roman roads. Paul and the other missionaries were able to spread the gospel the whole known world in a matter of a few short years because the roads were safe. God does not limit His concern to only spiritual highways.