Sunday, June 30, 2019
HOW TO RESPOND TO A HOLY GOD!
Isa
6:1-8
6:1 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.
Isaiah saw
this Holy God because God wanted to be seen.
When we begin to see ourselves as righteously complete God comes to us and
shows us Himself and we are immediately reminded of our own
particular sin. That is why most of us would rather avoid contact because of
the great contrast between His holiness and our sinfulness. We prefer to
commune with sinners like ourselves than to be painfully reminded of our
deficiencies.
We can’t put
on airs and pretend holiness
with such a holy God for all things are naked and open before Him. With others
we may play the saint but in the presence of an awesome God we
are found out. All our righteousness appears as filthy rags and we cry along
with Isaiah that we are undone.
Isaiah was
immediately made aware of his unclean lips
for that was his particular sin. We may be immediately prompted of our lust or
our greed or our hypocrisy. The holiness of God pierces the darkness
and shines the light of reality on a dirty life. Woe is me, we cry!
Once sin is
recognized and confessed cleansing flies forth from the throne. A coal from the altar of sacrifice is placed upon the
unclean lips and they are made clean. We hear the pronouncement of pardon:
“thine iniquity is taken away, and thy sin purged.” The dead air becomes fresh
as the morning!
Being made
clean we are then able to hear God’s heart.
We sense his passion and are made
privy to His plans. “Whom shall I
send, and who will go for us?” We rise to meet the challenge not because we are
perfect but because we are purged. We are washed and made useful.
Like a school boy assured of the right answer, our hand shoots up and waves for
recognition. We shout with eager anticipation: “Here am I; send me.”
Whatever your plans for the day, beg God for a glimpse of His holiness. It makes all the
difference.
Dear Lord, let me see your holiness
today even if the light of thy countenance reveals some sin in me. Let me be
useful as one of your volunteers. AMEN
