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Copyright January 23, 2022 by Rev. Bruce Goettsche
It is always inspiring to hear the testimony of someone’s conversion to Christ.
It is similarly interesting to hear Pastors, missionaries and other ministry leaders share about how they were “called” by God into ministry.
The Bible contains a number of these accounts.
We read about the call of Abraham, Moses, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Amos.
My call from God was nothing dramatic.
When I turned to the Lord at the age of 13 it was not long after that that I just “knew” I was supposed to be a Pastor.
It is hard to explain.
There were no visions, but God did arrange the circumstances of my life to confirm what I was feeling in my heart.
This morning we read about the call of Isaiah.
A prophet of God did not DECIDE to be a prophet.
They were selected by God for the job.
Before we get into Isaiah’s call, we need to establish the historical context.
It was in the year King Uzziah died that I saw the Lord.
You can read the story of King Uzziah in 2 Chronicles 26.
Let me give you the capsule summary.
Uzziah was a good King .
He sought the Lord and followed Him under the prophetic leadership of Zechariah.
He was King for 52 years in Judah, the southern Kingdom of Israel at the time.
Israel was at peace and it was a prosperous time.
Things were good in Judah.
He led successful military campaigns, built towers and strengthened the walls of the city, he dug deep cisterns for water and expanded the agriculture of the land.
However, Uzziah became arrogant and went into the sanctuary of the Lord’s temple and offered his own incense.
This task was given to the priests alone, but Uzziah didn’t care!
When the priests rebuked him he turned on the priests.
As he did, leprosy appeared on his forehead.
He was hurried out of the temple before the leprosy stopped spreading and lived in isolation the rest of his life.
Uzziah ended his rule sharing leadership with his son Jotham.
Jotham was the King for 16 years and part of that time (we don’t know how much of that time) he reigned with his dad.
It was during this time of mourning for Uzziah that Isaiah “saw the Lord.”
Isaiah saw a vision that brought him into the presence of God.
GOD’S GLORY
He [GOD] was sitting on a lofty throne, and the train of his robe filled the Temple. 2 Attending him were mighty seraphim, each having six wings.
With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they flew.
3 They were calling out to each other,
“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of Heaven’s Armies!
The whole earth is filled with his glory!”
4 Their voices shook the Temple to its foundations, and the entire building was filled with smoke.
Isaiah does not describe God Himself (God is Spirit).
He tried to describe the majesty of God he experienced.
His throne was above all others.
The word “train” can also mean “hem.”
Do you remember one of the Royal Weddings in England?
The most impressive part of the wedding gowns was the ridiculously long train on the dress (Princess Diana’s was 25 feet long!)
It was a symbol of royalty or status.
Here, just the train of God, or just the hem of his garment filled the temple.
It is a picture of the incredible majesty and power of God.
Surrounding the majesty of God are seraphim (the word means “burning ones”).
These were angelic attendants to the Lord.
In Biblical times, the appearance of angels did not make anyone say, “Aww, how cute!”
The appearance of an angel made a person wet their pants!
Note these impressive beings adopted a posture of humility before the LORD.
They had wings to cover their face and feet (virtually covering themselves) which denotes again the superior greatness of God.
The cry, “Holy, Holy, Holy” doesn’t mean much to us.
The word “Holy” means “set apart” or “distinct”.
It is as much about character as being.
God is set apart from us!
That doesn’t mean He is hiding, it means He is qualitatively superior to us.
There is a purity and excellence in Him that is much bigger than we can imagine.
This is why the term is repeated 3 times.
This was the way of emphasis at that time.
In fact it still is.
We might say, something is “really, really” big.
Whenever Jesus says, “Truly, Truly I say to you” or “Verily, Verily I say to you.”
You should pay close attention to what he says.
When the prophets begin a prophecy with more than 0ne “woe” you know it is a significant (and devastating) judgment.
Holiness then would be God’s primary or superior characteristic because it is the only One that is repeated three times.
And it is not just repeated three times here; “Holy, Holy, Holy,” is also repeated by the “living beings” who are around the throne of God.
Isaiah’s Response
5 Then I said, “It’s all over!
I am doomed, for I am a sinful man.
I have filthy lips, and I live among a people with filthy lips.
Yet I have seen the King, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.”
6 Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a burning coal he had taken from the altar with a pair of tongs.
7 He touched my lips with it and said, “See, this coal has touched your lips.
Now your guilt is removed, and your sins are forgiven.”
Isaiah responds with an acute awareness of His sinfulness.
He is overwhelmed by the power, stature, and holiness of God.
But it is not an unusual response to seeing a glimpse of God’s Holiness.
We see this response throughout the Bible.
When someone saw a flash of the power and excellence of God, their own sinfulness stood in stark contrast.
We are fine when we are comparing ourselves to each other.
We feel pretty good about our lives.
However, when we measure ourselves against absolute holiness, the contrast is stark and terrifying.
Isaiah, perhaps because he had he had been teaching about the Lord, is drawn to how unclean his lips were.
He is aware that even the seemingly good words he spoke were tainted with sin-filled motives and an extreme lack of reverence before such a Holy God.
Isaiah understands that sin is not just “doing bad things” it is a rebellious tongue or a mind that resists submission to the Lord.
It is not just what we do or not do, it is WHY we do or don’t do those things.
What happens next, seems strange.
The seraph took a burning coal from the fire (fire was used to purify) and basically cauterizes his lips.
Notice God does not say, “O, it’s all right, you are doing fine!”
The Lord treated Isaiah’s awareness seriously.
God does not overlook our sin, He addressed it by sending Christ to the cross!
Our sin is not insignificant, it is a much bigger deal than we can see right now.
When we stand before our perfect Lord , we will see the true horror of our sinfulness and, like Isaiah, will be undone.
We will understand how much we deserve the judgment of God and that will make the grace of God stand out in much sharper contrast.
Isaiah’s Commission
8 Then I heard the Lord asking, “Whom should I send as a messenger to this people?
Who will go for us?”
I said, “Here I am.
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