SHOWING SOME RESPECT

His mother straightened his tie and brushed imaginary dust off the shoulders of his jacket. Dad stood behind him and smiled. The young man was about to receive several honors as part of his graduating class. “Remember you are our son,” his mom said. “Do us proud tonight.” Their son’s achievement brought honor to the whole family.

AS YOU ALL ARE SITTING THERE OR HAVING COFFEE AT HOME, Climb back through the branches of your family tree. Were there some relatives who brought honor to your family name? What about one or two who brought dishonor?

Rebecca read earlier from the book of Isaiah: 6:1-8.

Isaiah 6:3–4 “3 And one called to another and said: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!” 4 And the foundations of the thresholds shook at the voice of him who called, and the house was filled with smoke.”

So you all should be getting a visual here. “house filled with smoke,’ In the OT, we read over and over when God spoke to Moses, fire and smoke, on Mt Sinai, fire and smoke, we see the glorious power of God.

So.........What is in a name? Isaiah 5:3-4 tells us:

Judaism considers some names of God so holy that, once written, they should not be erased: YHWH, Adonai, El ("God"), Elohim ("God," a plural noun),[a] Shaddai ("Almighty"),

Proverbs 22:1–2 tells us: “1 A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches, and favor is better than silver or gold. 2 The rich and the poor meet together; the Lord is the Maker of them all.”

The second line of the Lord’s Prayer is “Hallowed be your name” (Matthew 6:9). God’s name in the Bible is the summation of God’s character, the fullness of who God is. The word hallow means to set apart as sacred and pure, to honor. So the person who prays, “Hallowed be your name,” is asking that God’s awesome and holy character would be on display to the world.

Donald Williams writes this: “In general, the glory of God is to be the first thing on our minds when we pray.” So church, let’s think a minute here, What is the first thing we usually focus on in prayer? I went over this last week.

2. If you pray “Hallowed be your name,” you are also offering yourself as a channel or a direct line through which God can show his holy nature to a drifting and at times rebellious culture. What are some ways that we as Christians can honor God’s name in our daily lives? Praise, quiet time, maybe blessing others, or maybe a “peace be with you”, praying with someone, you get it don’t you?

The Old Testament prophet Isaiah caught a glimpse of God’s holy character one day. The king of Judah had died, and the young prophet found himself feeling insecure and fearful. Then he saw the Lord, holy and exalted, and it changed his life. Again, as Becky read earlier, Isaiah caught a glimpse of God’s Holy character and he wanted to be all in. AMEN

Let’s think a minute again, If you were given this vision that Isaiah observed, how would each of your senses—sight, sound, smell, taste, touch—be affected?What would each of you do?

In verse 5 from Isaiah chapter 6, Why does Isaiah respond by saying, “I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips?”

He knows he has been a great sinner like the rest of the people right? So He is confessing to God his sins and the nation’s sins which is what all of us are to do when God prompts or calls us to receive His son, Jesus Christ into our hearts.

If you have had an experience when you had an overwhelming sense of God’s glory and your own weakness and failure, what changes did that crisis make in your life. (If you have not had such an experience, do you think that reading about Isaiah’s vision could change you? Just sayin’

In Isaiah 6:8, what is God calling you to do?

Isaiah 6:7–8 “7 And he touched my mouth and said: “Behold, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away, and your sin atoned for.” 8 And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” (Now listen church, Isaiah responds,) “Then I said, “Here I am! Send me.”

Pray rejoicing that God our Father is the Holy One, the one exalted above everyone and everything else.

Listen again how Jesus calls for His Father

Matthew 26:39 39 And he went a little further, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.

Matthew 26:42 “42 He went away again the second time, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if this cup may not pass away from me, except I drink it, thy will be done.”

Next week, I will be preaching with the focus on Who’s in charge? Who exactly is God and we will be discussing His Glory.

AMEN

Now, please stand and turn your hymnals to page 672 and let’s sing together, “GOD BE WITH YOU TILL WE MEET AGAIN.”