A Life-Changing Experience

INTRO: I reflect back to my life-changing experience that turned me from a young man headed in the wrong direction to a child of God. (Changes, thoughts and the way I looked at life changed, like night and day).

Met my old college baseball coach a couple of years ago. Told him I was a minister and he said, “You’re the last person who I thought would be a minister!”

Today we’re going to talk about a man who had a life-changing experience some 2700 years ago and see what gold nuggets we can lean.

TITLE: A Life-Changing Experience

TEXT: Isaiah 6:1-9 (READ) (7 C’s)

I. Contemplation - v. 1 - “I saw the Lord”.

A. Background - Isaiah was a prophet of God. God raised up prophets during the dark days (sort like evangelist). Isaiah prophesied mainly to SK (Judea).

-Warning them of the impending danger.

B. Vision/dream - seen God’s splendor and majesty. Not his whole glory because:

-Exodus 33:20 - “You cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live.”

1. Moses was only able to see the back of God as He passed by in His full glory.

2. God’s presence changes us - greatest tuning points in our life. We need to act when God directs us.

ex Called into ministry, Jr. College, wasted three years.

Key: Do what the Lord directs. If he tells you run into a brick wall, run expecting God to make a hole for you.

3. Presence found - temple, His house, one of my favorite places is the House of the Lord (where we talk and fellowship together).

II. Conviction - v. 5 “woe is me.”

(HE) - means an expression of grief and despair!

ex Taste college baseball, pitcher, sound, didn’t even swing!

A. I am ruined - Isaiah sees God’s glory and majesty, holiness. He becomes aware of how unworthy, unholy he is.

1. God’s presence - shows us our wretched inner self (how sinful we truly are).

ex. Painting apartment, in the dim light, owner had bright light.

a. Don’t make the mistake - comparing ourselves against each other. Human nature picks someone less righteous. We use the wrong measuring stick.

ex Story of little boy, 8’ 4” tall, mother smiled and noticed his measuring stick was only 6” rather than 12”. He really was 4’ 2” tall.

b. Right measurement - Amos 8 - “Lord is setting a plumb line among His people to see if they meet the requirements.

1. Plumb line - used by masons to see if walls are vertical. Weight with a string attached to it.

-Jesus is this plumb line that is used to measure us, and we need to measure ourselves against Him.

III. Confession - v. 5 - “For I am a man with unclean lips, and I live among people with unclean lips.”

A. Conviction is followed by confession - crying out to God because of his inadequacies.

1. Let us not be like: The college freshman went to the dorm laundry room with his dirty clothes

bundled into an old sweatshirt. He was embarrassed by how dirty his clothes were that he never opened the bundle. He merely pushed it into a washing machine and when the machine stopped,

• pushed the bundle into a dryer and finally took the still unopened bundle back to his room. He discovered his clothes had gotten wet, dry, but not clean!

* Let us not keep our sins in a safe little bundle. Let the Lord do a thorough cleansing!

B. Holy men - recognize how sinful they truly are. Romans 7:15 - “I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do.”

* Apostle Paul writing this, Pharisee of Pharisees, a man as holy as one can be. Says he ends up doing things he doesn’t want to do (because of the power of sin).

ex Interview Billy Graham, how unworthy he felt because of his thoughts.

Thought: If they feel this way, how much more should we!

IV. Cleansing - v. 6-7 - Guilt and sin are taken care of.

A. Isaiah is cleansed - supernatural act cleansing him from his sin.

1. Ourselves - ask forgiveness. We are cleansed from our guilt and sin.

Psalm 103:12 - “East is from west so far has He removed our transgressions from us.”

Romans 8:1 - “There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus!”

a. Teen Challenge - young man killed his mother (imagine the guilt and pain).

* God is the only one at times who can relieve a broken heart and take away the pain and suffering.

b. Cleansing may be painful - My story of sitting on porcupine quill, clean out poison with a needle and razor blade. Painful experience, taught me to look before I sat.