The King is Dead

Isaiah 6:1–13

“In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and the train of his robe filled the temple.

2 Above him stood the seraphim. Each had six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew.

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.

5 And I said: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!”

6 Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a burning coal that he had taken with tongs from the altar.

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?” Then I said, “Here I am! Send me.”

9 And he said, “Go, and say to this people:

“‘Keep on hearing, but do not understand;

keep on seeing, but do not perceive.’

10 Make the heart of this people dull,

and their ears heavy,

and blind their eyes;

lest they see with their eyes,

and hear with their ears,

and understand with their hearts,

and turn and be healed.”

11 Then I said, “How long, O Lord?”

And he said:

“Until cities lie waste

without inhabitant,

and houses without people,

and the land is a desolate waste,

12 and the Lord removes people far away,

and the forsaken places are many in the midst of the land.

13 And though a tenth remain in it,

it will be burned again,

like a terebinth or an oak,

whose stump remains

when it is felled.”

The holy seed is its stump.”

-PRAY

Introduction

In 1952 the sad word went out to London, “The king is dead.”

King George VI had died in his sleep at the age of fifty-six. He was a modest, retiring man, greatly respected and admired.

His reign had carried him through the trials of World War II, the election of a socialist government, and the closing of the worldwide colonial kingdom.

His tired heart gave way. Britons flocked to churches to worship, to pray, and to seek comfort and hope.

In 1963 another shocking word flooded a disbelieving world: “The president is dead.” John F. Kennedy, young, vibrant, and dynamic, was cut down by an assassin’s bullet, and a nation was plunged into grief.

People flocked to churches in the greatest numbers since the announcement of the close of World War II.

Ministers changed their sermon texts and preached a gospel of healing and hope to the people of America.

**About seven hundred years before Christ was born in Bethlehem, the sad announcement was made, “The king is dead.” King Uzziah, the eleventh king of Judah, had died.

Crowned at the age of sixteen, he had reigned for fifty-two years.

Despite his failings, he was the greatest king since David.

The heart of young Isaiah was broken.

Uzziah was not only his king; he was also his friend.

In his heartbreak, Isaiah made his way to the temple to worship and to seek comfort and renewed faith.

The house of God is a good place to go when sorrow comes.

-Some Christians stay away from church for months after a loved one dies. Then they find that the first Sunday they return is a hard one.

We should pray for strength and courage to be good stewards of our sorrow.

Seeing us promptly back in God’s house will impress others that we have inner resources that are adequate even in such a time of grief.

**Isaiah learned that the king was dead but that God was not dead.

Isaiah had lost his king but he discovered the King of Kings.

He had a worship experience that radically changed his life.

1. Isaiah saw the Lord.

Isaiah saw God’s nature and character. He saw God high and lifted up as Lord upon his throne.

He saw God as the object of praise surrounded by heavenly hosts. He saw him in all of his glory.

He saw him in perfect holiness.

Only Isaiah saw the vision.

If others were seated around him, they didn’nt have the same experience.

There is a part of corporate worship that is still a very individual matter.

One person is moved to tears while another in the same row is unmoved. One repents while another trusts in his own self-righteousness.

One responds to the claims of Christ and another resists the persuasion of the Holy Spirit.

II. Isaiah saw himself.

Isaiah did not see himself as a good person, deserving the commendation of God and the praise of people.

He did not say to himself, “I must be a good person. I must be the best person here, for God has honored me alone with a vision of himself.”

Instead, he cried, “Woe to me! I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips” (6:5 NIV).

The closer we get to God, the clearer we see our sins.

The contrast between his holiness and our unholiness gives us a crystal clear awareness of our sinfulness.

The times we feel we are good Christians is when we neglect to pray and worship and feel the presence of the Holy Spirit.

When Peter was closest to Jesus, he said, “Depart from me; for I am a sinful man.”

When the vision of Christ the King was revealed to John on Patmos, he wrote, “I fell at his feet as dead.”

A lost sense of God brings a lost sense of sin.

III. Isaiah saw God’s cleansing power.

When Isaiah confessed his sin, God was faithful and just to forgive his sin and to cleanse him of all his unrighteousness.

The burning coal of purification and cleansing was applied to the member of his body that openly betrayed his inner sinfulness—his unclean lips.

Isaiah experienced the sweet, clean feeling of forgiveness and peace. That is the blessing of confession in worship.

IV. Isaiah saw his work.

Isaiah heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?” (6:8 NIV).

I can hear Isaiah asking, “Would God call a sinful man?”

**There is no other kind.

Sometimes God calls the most sinful person to preach his Word. Yes, he calls sinners to go for him. He does not call sinless angels; he calls sinful people.

But God sends people only after they have been cleansed of their sins by his grace.

The message of God must be spoken through clean lips. The work of God must be poured from clean vessels.

Conclusion

Notice… Isaiah did not say, “Where do you want me to go?”

“What is in it for me?”

“What are the calculated hazards involved?”

“What is the salary?” “What are the retirement benefits?”

Isaiah signed a blank check. He didn’t drive a bargain with God. He didn’t compromise.

God called. Isaiah answered.

God commanded. Isaiah obeyed.

Such an unconditional response only comes through the inspiration of the vision… through worship.

The same thing can happen to us in this worship service today.

The King is alive! He was dead, for he died for our sins on the cross. But he arose from the grave and lives today and is alive forevermore.

Jesus is Lord. He requires unconditional surrender. He commissions us to look upon the fields ready to be harvested and to go into all the world as his witnesses.

God help us to say, “Here am I. Send me!” (1:8 NIV).