Isaiah (Photo credit: Missional Volunteer)
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.
Here Am I; Send Me
I wonder if Isaiah woke up on the day that he saw this vision saying: “Something is going to happen to me that will change my life forever.” The prophet was a learned man, but what happened to him gave him new insight into the reality beyond what he could see with his eyes.
Isaiah’s vision came on the same day as the death of his earthly king, Uzziah. After the death of Uzziah, Isaiah saw the Lord sitting on a throne, “high and lifted up.” He saw the vast differences between his earthly king and his Heavenly King. He became aware of the differences between himself and the world of sin in which he lived and worshipped, and the environment of Heaven where all is pure and holy. He saw the truth of his own depravity and the depravities of all humanity. Isaiah loved the Lord, so he was distressed to see the ways in which he and all mankind have fallen short. The Lord allowed him to see and feel his own impotence. This is the death of self. It is after Isaiah had seen and acknowledged his own unworthiness that the angel purified his lips with the coal from the altar.
After his lips were purified, Isaiah heard the call “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” Was this cry in the air when Isaiah first saw the LORD seated on His throne, high and lifted up, and he just couldn’t hear it? Is this not the cry that went out before the earth was formed, and was answered by the Savior?
The call of God upon the lives of men is an act of enormous grace and mercy. Before we can be raised up, we must first see what we are not. We have to refuse to believe that we are our own gods. Is it not written: “Humble yourselves beneath the mighty hand of GOD and He will lift you up?” Has it not been said: “The first shall be last, and the last shall be first.” Jesus died an ignominious death, being crucified between two thieves. But He rose from the grave. Jesus was the First: The First to usher in the resurrection unto life, who is “The Lamb of GOD slain from the foundation of the world.” Jesus is the resurrection and the life, the Alpha and the Omega. Mankind was condemned to an eternity in Hell, until the sacrifice of Jesus that made possible the “at-one-ment” of GOD and man. Jesus said “Send Me.” Thank God, He came. The First was made last and the last was made first, and we can stand before God, uncondemned!! Glory to GOD!!
Is the Lord sending you somewhere? Are you willing to go?
May these words comfort you today. Until we meet again: “Be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.” (Ephesians 6:10)
Verneda
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