HOLY, HOLY, HOLY (ISAIAH 6)
Are you old enough to remember the first Indiana Jones movie – The Raiders of the Lost Ark? Do you remember the final scene when Indiana Jones and friend were bound and the ark was finally seized by the Nazi raiders? Indiana Jones struggled in vain to free himself and watched in horror when the ark fell into the wrong hands.
Then the raiders made a wrong move and decide to open the box-like object holy to the Jewish faith. Initially nothing happened. Then waves and waves of speeding smoke streamed into the air and assailed from all directions, transforming into a pretty female face before the transfixed audience.
At this point, Indiana shouted to his friend to close her eyes, to resist looking into the faces and eyes of the image. At the same time, the archaeological thieves were rubbing their hands in glee and opening their eyes so big at the magical display, the mysterious features and miraculous sight before them. Their jaws dropped as they repeated the word, “Beautiful.” That was the last word from them as the smoke whisked up into the air, sliced and speared into them, slashing them into pieces.
Unlike the gods of men, the God of heaven is holy. Isaiah caught a dramatic vision of the Lord’s holiness when he was called into prophetic service in the year King Uzziah died. The good king Uzziah had died and vacated the throne but the Lord God was reigning and seated on his throne. Kingdoms and governments rise and fall, come and go, but God’s throne is unshakable, high and exalted. Uzziah’s entombment was powerfully contrasted with God’s enthronement. The earthly king was buried in his regal robes but just the fringe of the heavenly king’s robe blanketed the whole temple.
The mere mention of God and presence of His holiness caused a huge commotion and a choir outbreak among angels in heavens and on earth. According to the orthodox view, the seraphs stand at the head of the nine choirs of angels, surrounding the seat of the enthroned Lord and they ranked ahead of cherubim that carried the chariot of the divine throne (Keil & Delitzsch). The radiance of God’s holiness was too luminous for the seraphs to bear and too wondrous to behold, so much so that they covered their faces, eyes and feet, breaking out in chorus, “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.” Holiness is the very essence, foundation and core of His Being, but how should men response to His holiness?
Confession is Required of the Sinner
6:1 In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and exalted, and the train of his robe filled the temple. 2 Above him were seraphs, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying. 3 And they were calling to one another: “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.” 4 At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke. 5 “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.” 6 Then one of the seraphs flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. 7 With it he touched my mouth and said, “See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.”
The pastor walked into the church alone and felt an overwhelming sense of God’s holiness. He went to the front, knelt down at the altar rail, and began to beat himself on the chest, crying out, “Oh Lord, I am nothing!”
A few moments later, the minister of music entered the church. He too felt the overwhelming presence of God and, seeing the pastor at the altar, went
and knelt down beside him. He also began to strike his chest and say, “Oh Lord, I am nothing. I am nothing.”
It happened that the whole staff, one by one, began coming in. The minister of recreation, the minister of education, eventually, the whole staff, all kneeling at the altar bemoaning their “nothingness” before the Almighty.
A little while later, the church custodian came in and got caught up in the revival, as well. He knelt beside the ministerial colleagues and began beating on his chest, adding to the refrain, “Oh Lord, I am nothing. I am nothing.”
At that moment the pastor looked up, saw the janitor, and nudged the minister of music. “Well, well,” he said. “Just look at who thinks he’s nothing!”
The only possible response to His holiness is not joy, celebration, ecstasy, applause or approval, but alarm, terror, fright, horror, unease, submission, even dismay. How do you behave encountering God’s holy presence? Do you say “wow” or “woe?” Holiness is intrinsic to God and inseparable from God. There is no sin, impurity or blemish in Him – not even a spot or a speck. His thoughts, acts and decisions are 100% righteous and wholesome. There is not the least shortcoming or deficiency or weakness in Him. God is opposed to and cannot be associated with uncleanness, defilement and sin. The seraphs could not find a way to describe or express God’s holiness, except to repeat it three times – “holy, holy, holy,” the first continuous three-fold repetition of the word in the Bible. Praising His holiness is not tiresome, tedious or terrifying to them. Four times, the Bible says there is a beauty or splendor to His holiness (1 Chron 16:29, 2 Chron 20:21, Ps 29:2, 96:9).
In the Old Testament, God was known as the “Holy One” nine times (Job 6:10, Isa 10:17, 40:25, 43:15, 49:7, Ezek 39:7, Hos 11:9, Hab 1:12, 3:3), the “Holy One of Jacob” once (Isa 29:23) and the “Holy One of Israel” an astonishing 31 times (2 Kings 19:22, Ps 71:22, 78:41, 89:18, Isa 1:4, 5:19, 5:24, 10:20, 12:6, 17:7, 29:19, 30:11, 30:12, 30:15, 31:1, 37:23, 41:14, 41:16, 41:20, 43:3, 43:14, 45:11, 47:4, 48:17, 49:7, 54:5, 55:5, 60:9, 60:14, Jer 50:29, 51:5). In the New Testament a knowledgeable demon-possessed man caused a major disturbance in the synagogue when He cried at the top of his lungs, addressing Jesus as “the Holy One of God!” (Mark 1:24, Luke 4:34).
The presence of God was spectacular in the heavens but not a feast to the eyes of heavenly beings or to the hearts of fallen humans. It is too glaring, bright and intense for eyes, glasses and lenses. In fact, it is an eyesore, a torture and an agony to the eyes but worse for man’s filthy, corrupt, sinful, unclean and impure heart.
Isaiah said to the effect: “I am utterly done for,” “I am to be cut down” or “I am at the end of the rope.” The Hebrew word for “ruined” occurs 15 times in the Bible, the other 14 times used in the context of helpless and defenseless people (Jer 14:17, Lam 3:49, Hos 4:5, 4:6, 10:7, 10:15, 10:15, Obad 5, Zeph 1:11), ruined and wasted cities (Isa 15:1, 15:1, Jer 47:5) and perishing beasts (Ps 49:12, 20). He thought he would be history - struck down by the sword or crumble from a heart attack. Only with cleansed hearts can sinful men into the presence of a holy God. Man could only catch a vision of God but not meet God face to face, including Moses. The LORD knew Moses face to face (Deut 34:10) and spoke to Moses face to face (Ex 33:11) just as He did with the Israelites (Deut 5:4), but Moses did not meet God face to face. Exodus 33:23 says Moses saw the back, and not the face, of God.
The awareness of sin is heightened and utmost in the presence of divinity. Attendees just want to bury their head in the sand, no sand to bury one’s head, no cave to run to, no sin to hide. The word “unclean” is even more impressive. There were four ways an Israelite was considered defiled: (1) from eating unclean animals such as pigs, (2) from contact with carcasses (Lev 11:8, 11:38), (3) from a bodily discharge of man or woman (Lev 15) and (4) from infectious diseases such as leprosy (Lev 13:15, 13:44). The first three has limits – usually seven days (Lev 12:1, 15:14). But the man with leprosy is confined without limit and he warns passersby of his presence by crying “unclean, Unclean” (Lev 13:45). Isaiah’s actions were similar to that of a leper in the presence of God who could only cry “unclean” – his own sinfulness, worthlessness and unrighteousness.
Cleansing is Required for the Soul
6 Then one of the seraphs flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. 7 With it he touched my mouth and said, “See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.”
What do you consider the worst chore? An Internet men’s grooming column suggested ironing clothes is one of the worst chores. Other unpleasant chores cited include mowing the lawn, grocery shopping, taking out the trash, making the bed every day and drying dishes, but families and homeowners and maybe teens would know the answer to this question that I asked my wife, too. She replied, “Cleaning. Cleaning things hardest to clean.”
Home is unlike dormitory. At home we have to continually vacuum the floor, clean the dishes, the pots, the wok, the stove, the area surrounding the kitchen floor and of course, the worst of the lot - the restrooms. My wife is on me like a hawk when it comes to cleaning dishes. I would miss what is not on the sink - the wok or a pot that is on the stove, the rice cooker that is on the table, and even something by or at the sink. It has to be on the sink for me to spot it, she complained.
Of all things in the world, man’s heart is the hardest to clean. No soap, detergent or solvent is tough enough to clean the sin, stubbornness and stain in his heart. Cleaning, however, is similar but not identical with cleansing. Both are necessary, continual and refreshing, but cleaning has to do with things and objects, but cleansing has to do with hearts and minds. Cleaning has to do with the outside, but cleaning on the inside. Most of all, cleaning is an act of men, but cleansing is an act of God. The principal agencies for cleansing in the Old Testament include water for minor or indirect defilements (Lev 15:5-18, etc.); or combined with a sin offering and burnt offering (12:6-8); fire (Num 31:23; the ashes of a heifer or young cow. For the complex ceremonial in cases of leprosy, combining water, cedar, hyssop, crimson thread, the blood and flight of birds, the trespass offering, sin offering, burnt offering (Lev 14). Blood, the vehicle and emblem of life, plays a large part in the major cleansings, in which propitiation for sin, as well as the removal of ceremonial defilement. (International Standard Bible Encyclopedia “Cleanse”)
There are two words for sin in this passage. First is guilt or “avon,” which is derived from the root `awah, which means “to be bent, bowed down, twisted, perverted” or “to twist, pervert,” according to Vine’s. It portrays sin as a perversion of life (a twisting out of the right way), a perversion of truth (a twisting into error), or a perversion of intent (a bending of rectitude into willful disobedience). The word “iniquity” is the best single-word equivalent. This word has to with man’s inner condition. (from Vine’s Expository Dictionary of Biblical Words)
The second word “sin” or “chatta’ah” means missing the road or mark. For the most part this word represents a sin against God. Men are to return from “sin,” which is a path, a life-style, or act deviating from that which God has marked out (1 Kings 8:35). They should depart from “sin” (2 Kings 10:31), be concerned about it (Ps 38:18), and confess it (Num 5:7). The noun first appears in Gen 4:7, where Cain is warned that “sin is crouching at your door.” Another nuance of the word is “sin” in general. (from Vine’s Expository Dictionary of Biblical Words)
The word “atone” or “kaphar” is an outstanding theological term. It occurs 102 times in the Bible, mostly translated as atonement, but four times for forgive (Ps 65:3, 78:38, 79:9, Jer 18:23) and once each for coat (Gen 6:14), pacify (Gen 32:20), pardon (2 Chron 30:18), appease (Prov 16:14), annulled (Isa 28:18), conjure away (Isa 47:11). When God commanded Noah to build an ark, he also instructed him to subdivide the ark into rooms and to coat or “kaphar” the room, which was to apply a coating of bitumen to the rooms – I’ll let the builders figure this out! Atonement therefore does not mean the absence of sin, but the covering for sin. One is not concealed or protected from sin but has a wrapper or covering in sin.
Theologically speaking, sinner’s sins are forgiven and atoned for but they are not absent of sin, free from sin or unstained by sin ever again when he is cleansed. Homeowners know when they have cleaned their kitchens, rooms and restrooms, they do not need to do it ever again, right? Of course not. Some families sweep their floors every day, some vacuum every week and month.
In the same way the word “taken away” means remove from, put away or turn aside but not forever or permanent. If so, man would have no responsibility. In Exodus (30:10), Aaron was instructed to make an annual atonement at the altar once a year (Ex 30:10). In Leviticus provision was made for the Israelites sin. Once a year the priest was to lay both hands on the head of the live goat and confess over it all the wickedness and rebellion of the Israelites--all their sins--and put them on the goat’s head and then send the goat away into the desert, carrying all their sins to a solitary place for atonement of sins (Lev 16:20-22)
Commission is Required of the Servant
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!” 9 He said, “Go and tell this people: “’Be ever hearing, but never understanding; be ever seeing, but never perceiving.’ 10 Make the heart of this people calloused; make their ears dull and close their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed.” 11 Then I said, “For how long, O Lord?” And he answered: “Until the cities lie ruined and without inhabitant, until the houses are left deserted and the fields ruined and ravaged, 12 until the LORD has sent everyone far away and the land is utterly forsaken. 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.” (Isa 6)
The movie “The End of the Spear” retells one of the most dramatic stories of missions in the modern era, about five of the finest and brightest young men who dedicated their lives in the 50s to be missionaries. They uprooted their families, studied a new language and waited for an opportunity to reach the Waodani tribe, one of the most violent tribes in Ecuador. After many attempts to make contact with the tribe by dropping gifts and messages to them, they decided to land to befriend them but the meeting ended with their tragic death.
All the missionaries, except one who was barely married for two months, left behind grieving widows and fatherless toddlers. The movie tells how the oldest of the missionary kids at the time of the incident, Steve Saint, the son of Nate Saint, one of the five missionaries who died at the spear of the Waodani, decided to return to the Amazon in 1995 to replace his departing aunt who amazingly continue to work tirelessly with the tribe that killed his brother, Steve’s father.
The most touching part in the movie, however, was when the five-year old Steve Saint grieved for the loss of his father, friend and hero. Steve explained later: “When I was a little boy, my dad was the universe. I knew that when I grew up I wanted to be just like my dad.” (“’End of the Spear’ Story Bridges Murder, Brings Love, Reconciliation” Christian Examiner Feb. 2006)
The fourth day after his father’s disappearance, his mom took him into the room and said, “Stevie boy, your dad is never coming home.” In the movie the little boy cried out alone in despair: “It didn’t work.” They had tried their best to be friends with the natives, to reach out to them and to win them for Christ, but ended up with losing a parent, experiencing death up-close, and fearing a bleak future.
I laugh at people who sentimentally pined for a dramatic and audible vision of God. I always say God can speak to you make sure you do not claim to talk to God, engage Him in conversation Joan of Arc-style. The outcome of catching a vision of God and a glimpse of Him is not a corny feeling, a joyous celebration or a loud cheer but a solemn examination and a true confession. God does not show up in a dramatic fashion for high tea with you – it is usually high noon. Attendees’ lives are changed. They are sent out to change the world, make a dent not just a difference, shape and even to sacrifice their lives like Isaiah. According to tradition, Isaiah was cut into pieces by a saw.
The outcome of God’s revelation is to commission his people to service. Actually, the Lord did not commission Isaiah; he gave an invitation which Isaiah responded to: “Here am I.” This phrase is just one word in Hebrew: “hinini” or “behold, I.” This is a word commonly used to state and assure one’s conscious awareness, total availability and undivided attention, tantamount to saying, “I hear and I’m here.” The other two similar “hinini” responses were from Abraham who dropped the knife he was using to sacrifice Isaac in response to the angel’s call (Gen 22:11) and Moses who stumbled upon the burning bush in the desert (Ex 3:4).
Isaiah could not believe his ears. He was called to preach to people who hear but could not understand where you are coming from and do not see eye to eye with you on a matter, whose hearts are hardened, eyes are dull and ears are closed. God, you must be kidding. This must be a joke. God’s commission is actually a study of contrast, an irony in evangelism, and at times, a futility of effort. God sent Isaiah with a warning: You will speak as if to a wall, until your coarse and teeth rot, People will regard you as invisible, bothersome (fan) and even a pain in the neck and a sore to the eyes. Do you still want to go? Your words will be considered hate speech, the literature as hate literature, and the messenger as a hatemonger.
Conclusion: When Isaiah look into God’s holiness, he can only cry, “Long live the King.” God’s cleansing power is available for all worshippers. God is still in charge seated on the throne. He is still active involved in the world. He is still invested with His people. Looking at ourselves we become inadequate, irrelevant and insignificant, but looking at God we become involved and instruments. “Enter to worship, depart to serve.” The first response to God’s holiness is “I am ruined.” Only when we admit our sin and shortcomings can advance to the next stage when we can say, “I am cleansed.” Only when we are covered by the blood of the Lamb can we advance to the third stage when we can say, “I am sent.”
Victor Yap
Other sermons in the series and other sermon series:
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