Go or Stay?
Isaiah 6:1-8 KJV
In the year that king Uzziah died I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple. [2] Above it stood the seraphims: each one had six wings; with twain he covered his face, and with twain he covered his feet, and with twain he did fly. [3] And one cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory. [4] And the posts of the door moved at the voice of him that cried, and the house was filled with smoke. [5] Then said I, Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts. [6] Then flew one of the seraphims unto me, having a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with the tongs from off the altar: [7] And he laid it upon my mouth, and said, Lo, this hath touched thy lips; and thine iniquity is taken away, and thy sin purged. [8] Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me.
King Uzziah, one of Judah’s greatest leaders, died in 740 B.C. He was a great leader, but he wasn’t perfect, in 2 Chron. 26:16-21 the scripture says he was disciplined, in his later years, for disobeying God..
Isaiah’s vision was not of King Uzziah, but it was in the year of his death. As often happens, Isaiah gained a new vision during a time of sorrow and mourning. Now that the great King died, Isaiah was clearly able to see another King, sitting on another throne.
This was not an imperfect King on an earthly throne. This vision was of the King of kings and the Lord of lords sitting on His heavenly throne. John 12:36-41 identifies this King as King Jesus. Verse 41 says, “These things Isaiah said, because he saw His glory, and he spoke of Him.”
The moment that Isaiah saw who really ruled–not Uzziah or his predecessor, but King Jesus, he was lifted into a state of deep worship. In verse 3, he cried out “Holy, holy, holy . . .” This utterance of three holies or the tris agions, as theologians refer to it, appears only twice in Scripture. Here and in Rev. 4:5-11. Let me read from John’s vision to you: “And from the throne proceed flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of thunder. And there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God; [6] and before the throne there was, as it were, a sea of glass like crystal; and in the center and around the throne, four living creatures full of eyes in front and behind. [7] And the first creature was like a lion, and the second creature like a calf, and the third creature had a face like that of a man, and the fourth creature was like a flying eagle. [8] And the four living creatures, each one of them having six wings, are full of eyes around and within; and day and night they do not cease to say, "Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God, the Almighty, who was and who is and who is to come." [9] And when the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to Him who sits on the throne, to Him who lives forever and ever, [10] the twenty-four elders will fall down before Him who sits on the throne, and will worship Him who lives forever and ever, and will cast their crowns before the throne, saying, [11] "Worthy art Thou, our Lord and our God, to receive glory and honor and power; for Thou didst create all things, and because of Thy will they existed, and were created."
What a magnificent expression of worship! The moment we truly understand it is Jesus that sits on the throne, we will join Isaiah and John in the expression of the tris agion, Holy, holy, holy–and in spontaneous praise we will admit to God that He is completely holy, and when we do, like Isaiah, we will see our complete sinfulness.
Look at Isaiah 6:5-7 KJV Then said I, Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts. [6] Then flew one of the seraphims unto me, having a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with the tongs from off the altar: [7] And he laid it upon my mouth, and said, Lo, this hath touched thy lips; and thine iniquity is taken away, and thy sin purged.
Like Isaiah, many of the great heroes of faith saw themselves as sinners and humbled themselves before God:
∙ Abraham Genesis 18:27 NLT Then Abraham spoke again. "Since I have begun, let me go on and speak further to my Lord, even though I am but dust and ashes.
∙ Jacob Genesis 32:10 NLT I am not worthy of all the faithfulness and unfailing love you have shown to me, your servant. When I left home, I owned nothing except a walking stick, and now my household fills two camps!
∙ Job Job 40:1-5 NLT Then the Lord said to Job, [2] "Do you still want to argue with the Almighty? You are God’s critic, but do you have the answers?" [3] Then Job replied to the Lord, [4] "I am nothing—how could I ever find the answers? I will put my hand over my mouth in silence. [5] I have said too much already. I have nothing more to say."
∙ David 2 Samuel 7:18 NLT Then King David went in and sat before the Lord and prayed, "Who am I, O Sovereign Lord, and what is my family, that you have brought me this far?
∙ Paul 1 Tim. 1:15 NLT This is a true saying, and everyone should believe it: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—and I was the worst of them all.
∙ Peter Luke 5:8-11 NLT When Simon Peter realized what had happened, he fell to his knees before Jesus and said, "Oh, Lord, please leave me—I’m too much of a sinner to be around you." [9] For he was awestruck by the size of their catch, as were the others with him. [10] His partners, James and John, the sons of Zebedee, were also amazed. Jesus replied to Simon, "Don’t be afraid! From now on you’ll be fishing for people!" [11] And as soon as they landed, they left everything and followed Jesus.
Like other great men of the Bible, Isaiah saw himself as unholy and unclean. After a clear view of the brilliance and holiness of God, he clearly evaluated his own soul.
Isaiah wasn’t humiliated by the experience, but he was humbled. What’s the difference? Satan wants you humiliated so you feel unworthy to serve the Lord. He will beat you up with your mistakes, sins and indiscretions.
God wants you humbled so you can serve the Lord. He wants you to admit your sins, so He can forgive you and empower you to live differently.
That’s exactly what happened to Isaiah. God humbled him so he was fit for service. Listen to what Isaiah heard the Lord say in Isaiah 6:8 KJV “Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” And listen to Isaiah’s response in the same verse: “Then said I, Here am I; send me.”
I pray we may all experience Isaiah’s vision and humility so we can have his attitude for service. I pray that we will busy ourselves, going, weeping, sowing and reaping.
∙ Going--Will you claim your neighborhood for Christ? Will you invite at least one friend to your church?
∙ Weeping--Will you pray, with a broken heart for the salvation of your neighborhood?
∙ Sowing--Will you place God’s word, either a Bible or a tract in the hands of your neighbors?
∙ Reaping--Will you attend a witness training? Will you share the gospel with those who need to hear the gospel?
A couple of years ago, Tim Forneris, a 22 year old groundskeeper gave Mark McGwire, a million dollar ball, saying “I think I have something that belongs to you.” McGwire in turn gave it to the Hall of Fame to display beside Ruth’s and Marris’ record breaking balls. Why? He said it didn’t belong to him, it belonged to the world.
Forneris and McGwire, both displayed the kind of attitude Christians should have about their salvation. We do not hoard our treasure, we share it with the world.
http://www.freshministry.org/illustrations.html
