“Seeing Things Clearly”
Isaiah 6
Intro: Recently our family went to Science Central downtown. It’s a children’s scientific museum, but it’s hardly for kids. Adults play there just as much as kids. One section there that I love is a display of brain teasers and optical illusions. You’ve probably seen the illustration of the two lines before: one with ends pointing in and one with ends pointing out. Though one looks bigger than the other, they really are the same size. How about the Lady on the bulletin cover. How old is she? Sometimes even though our eyes are open, we don’t always see things clearly. Sometimes, when we come to spiritual matters, we need God to correct our vision and help us to see clearly. God did this for Isaiah in chapter 6 of the book that bears his name. Let’s look there and see his call to ministry and how God clarified his vision. And before we start, let’s ask God’s blessing. PRAY!
Setting: Before we look at Isaiah’s vision, let’s consider the setting for the book of Isaiah. The book of Isaiah is one of the longer books in the Bible, and it can tend to be a confusing book for many. But the book of Isaiah is quoted more in the New Testament than all other OT books put together. I would encourage you to read through it with us in the next few weeks.
Isaiah was a prophet of God who lived during the reigns of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah, kings of Judah (we are told in Is. 1). We see here in chapter 6 his call comes in the year that King Uzziah died, which is 740 BC. This is only 18 years before the nation of Assyria comes down and destroys the northern kingdom and wreaks great damage to the southern kingdom. God was tired of putting up with the idolatry of the people.
After the reigns of David and Solomon, the height of the nation of Israel, the nation was split into a northern and southern kingdom. The kings of the north were all evil and worshiped idols. The kings of the south were mixed: some intensely wicked, and some who tried to follow God. Uzziah was a follower of God, yet one who sought to follow him in his own way. Talk about wrong perceptions: he thought he could worship God in his own way! One day Uzziah went into the temple and decided he would offer incense to God himself, the job God gave to the priests, and for his pride God struck him with leprosy, a deteriorating skin disease, until the day of his death.
At this time of seeking for vision and direction - for direction for leadership of the nation, both in a king, in a God, as a people - God reveals himself to Isaiah. He gives Isaiah a vision.
Read Text: Isaiah 6:1-13
I. A Vision of God - God starts by revealing a vision of himself to Isaiah. Isaiah sees him as he truly is. Far too often we have a vision of a god that is just like us. Psychologist Tony Campolo tells of the practice of the Eskimo tribes called totemism. They build totem poles, and on them they carve the images of animals that convey the strengths that the tribe sees in themselves. They carve a bear for strength, an owl for wisdom, etc. And what the people actually end up doing is worshiping an image of themselves.
Many times in America we worship ourselves in our God. We come to believe that God is all loving, and doesn’t want anyone to be unhappy. Husbands divorce their wives and marry another saying, “I can’t believe God doesn’t want me to be happy.”
We come to believe in a God who has no standards, who loves everyone and everything, who lets us do whatever we want and loves to bless us anyway, a god who wants us to be healthy, wealthy, and wise, a god who wants us to be good-looking and popular. But that’s not the God of the Bible!
What did Isaiah see when he saw the Lord?
*He saw a POWERFUL God - he saw a God who was a god of power and might. This was a God to tremble before. A God seated on his throne of judgment. A God high and exalted above all others. A God whose majesty filled the whole heavenly temple. This was a God to be feared.
2 Chr. 20:6 - "O LORD, God of our fathers, are you not the God who is in heaven? You rule over all the kingdoms of the nations. Power and might are in your hand, and no-one can withstand you.
Ps. 77 - What god is so great as our God? You are the God who performs miracles; you display your power among the peoples. With your mighty arm you redeemed your people, the descendants of Jacob and Joseph. Selah The waters saw you, O God, the waters saw you and writhed; the very depths were convulsed. The clouds poured down water, the skies resounded with thunder; your arrows flashed back and forth. Your thunder was heard in the whirlwind, your lightning lit up the world; the earth trembled and quaked. Your path led through the sea, your way through the mighty waters, though your footprints were not seen. You led your people like a flock by the hand of Moses and Aaron.
*He saw a HOLY God. To be holy is to be set apart from sin. We see the seraph angels in the presence of God. They cover their faces and feet before the presence of God. The name seraph literally means “fiery ones” and they stand before a God of glory; even they cover their faces. It says in Rev. 4:8 that the angels in heaven call out - Day and night they never stop saying: "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come."
Three times the term “holy” is used in succession - the Jew’s way of expressing a superlative - of the greatest holiness. We have lost sight of the holiness of God. God will not tolerate our sinfulness for long. In Isaiah’s day the people were given this warning in 3:8 - Jerusalem staggers, Judah is falling; their words and deeds are against the LORD, defying his glorious presence. The look on their faces testifies against them; they parade their sin like Sodom; they do not hide it. Woe to them! They have brought disaster upon themselves. Tell the righteous it will be well with them, for they will enjoy the fruit of their deeds. Woe to the wicked! Disaster is upon them! They will be paid back for what their hands have done.
Remember what happened when God saw the wickedness of man in Noah’s day. Gen 6 -
The LORD saw how great man’s wickedness on the earth had become, and that every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the time. The LORD was grieved that he had made man on the earth, and his heart was filled with pain. So the LORD said, "I will wipe mankind, whom I have created, from the face of the earth--men and animals, and creatures that move along the ground, and birds of the air--for I am grieved that I have made them."
We must remember that we serve a holy God.
*He saw a magnificent God - He experienced God with his senses - he saw a vision with his eyes, he heard the voices of the seraphs, he smelled the smoke that filled the temple, he felt the thresholds of the temple shaking, he tasted the coal taken from the altar for his cleansing. This wasn’t just a head knowledge of God, it involved his whole senses.
We see here hints of the triune nature of God - in verse 8 - Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, "Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?
*He saw a God to be worshiped - We see the seraphim worshiping the Lord. We see in Rev 4:8 - the elders fall down in worship of the Lord. We see he is a God of glory - the whole earth is filled with his glory.
So often we look with wrong perspectives - we look at our world and see it filled with hatred, crime, and corruption. But let’s remember that God is still on the throne. God is still in control.
Prov. 21:1 - The king’s heart is in the hand of the LORD; he directs it like a watercourse wherever he pleases.
Isaiah saw a magnificent vision of a magnificent God. I think in our own lives, we need to see our God much more clearly. When we see our God, in helps to put everything else in perspective. In seeing his vision of God, Isaiah also had a renewed vision of himself.
II. Vision of Self - Far too often we exalt ourselves - we compare ourselves to ourselves - and 2 Cor 10:12 tells us that is not wise. When we compare ourselves to a holy God, we find we are far lacking. In verse 5 we see Isaiah acknowledging his sinfulness - "Woe to me!" I cried. "I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the LORD Almighty."
He also saw himself as one who needed cleansing and forgiveness - 6,7 -Then one of the seraphs flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. With it he touched my mouth and said, "See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for."
Far too often we see our sinfulness, but don’t do anything about it. When we look at ourselves and see sinfulness, we need to seek the forgiveness of God and seek the forgiveness of any that we might have offended. 1 Jn 1:9 - If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
III. Vision of the Work to be Done
When we see a holy God, and receive his forgiveness, he will give us something to do.
vs. 8 - Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, "Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?" And I said, "Here am I. Send me!" He said, "Go and tell this people
Just like the command that Jesus gave his disciples before he left them - Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."
Acts 1:8 - But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."
Isaiah was sent to be a witness to his community. But Isaiah was told not to be discouraged if they did not listen. In fact, God told Isaiah that the people would not listen. He said Isaiah should preach until the city was ruined and overtaken.
Sometimes we wonder why bother if people won’t listen to us. We think no one wants to hear us share what God has done for us. But we are responsible for telling them, not for their response.
Yet, God does give Isaiah hope. Even though the nation as a whole would reject him, yet there would be some who would follow God. vs.13- And though a tenth remains in the land, it will again be laid waste. But as the terebinth and oak leave stumps when they are cut down, so the holy seed will be the stump in the land."
God was going to leave a remnant in the land who would follow him.
Concl: This morning, what is your view of God. We say we believe in God, but do we really believe in the God of the Bible? Or do we believe in a god that we have made up for ourselves.
What is your view of yourself? Do we see ourselves as self-sufficient, needing no one or nothing? Or do we see ourselves as sinful and in need of the forgiveness of God. If we see our sin, let’s quickly confess it and receive God’s forgiveness.
What is your view of the work to be done? Are we willing to volunteer and let God use us? Or do we have better things to do with our time? This morning, let’s not suffer from wrong perspectives - As we see God and what he calls us to do, let’s listen and obey him.
