Vision: Isaiah 6
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Mission Introduction: Are You FOR the Mission?
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. 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. And one called to another and said: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!” And the foundations of the thresholds shook at the voice of him who called, and the house was filled with smoke. 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!” Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a burning coal that he had taken with tongs from the altar. And he touched my mouth and said: “Behold, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away, and your sin atoned for.” 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.”
Mission Introduction: Are You FOR the Mission?
Periodically, we like to take a Sunday morning and consider where we are in light of our mission here at Reach Church to live to reach all people with Nothing but Jesus. We aren’t announcing some big new thing we are doing…we have plenty of ways for you to practically reach out to others and grow in your faith. Instead we are looking at the mission from a spiritual perspective. Because the question I want you to answer this morning is simple...
Are you FOR the mission of Reach Church to live to reach all people with Nothing But Jesus?
Are you FOR that mission? Are you fully on mission with us? In your heart? Are you FOR us? Are you FOR your church and our mission?
Three Groups
Because I believe there are three groups of people here this morning.
The first group are those who are still exploring Jesus. Or maybe you have embraced Jesus in the past and you are new to Reach Church so you are trying to figure out what this NBJ stuff is all about.
The second group are those who have been here for a while. Perhaps decades. You have faith in Jesus. You know how you are saved, by grace alone. You are a Christian. But you still aren’t totally FOR the mission to live to reach all people with NBJ. You still aren’t there for whatever reason. And you may be a leader of a small group. You may have been in the church for decades. And you may be a good person. You do good things. But you are constantly dragged away to Anything but Jesus instead of to Nothing but Jesus. You use distractions to scoff at NBJ. You say things like, I don’t need a Christian cliche. You focus on lots of GOOD things. Sports, relationships, politics, raising your kids God’s way, keeping on keeping on. But you aren’t totally in. You aren’t totally FOR the mission of Reach Church which is to live to reach all people with NBJ.
The third group are those who are all in. You are FOR our mission. You are FOR Reach Church. It’s not that you are holier than the other two groups…in fact, a mark that you may actually “get” the mission is that you know just how unholy you are! A mark of your spiritual growth is that you see just how far you have fallen. You aren’t arrogant about your faith, in fact, you are just one beggar showing another beggar where you found bread.
Answer the Question This Morning—Not By Being Told to Do It
So this morning, I just want for all of us to step back and honestly answer that question....are you truly FOR the mission of Reach Church to live to reach all people with NBJ? And don’t measure it by how involved you are with the church. Don’t measure it with how much you like the church. Don’t measure it by the STUFF you do. In the depths of your heart, are you truly FOR this mission?
Because I can stand up here all day long and tell you you should be FOR the mission to live to reach all people with NBJ. I can say get involved in Feed the Need, get on a team for NTS, get into a Reach Group, etc, and those are all good things…but you can stay hidden in those first two groups of people while being busy on these types of things—becoming a busybody.
So how do we get to the point of being fully FOR the mission? It’s something outside of ourselves and we see a picture of it in .
Verse 1
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. 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. And one called to another and said: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!” And the foundations of the thresholds shook at the voice of him who called, and the house was filled with smoke. 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!” Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a burning coal that he had taken with tongs from the altar. And he touched my mouth and said: “Behold, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away, and your sin atoned for.” 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.” And he said, “Go, and say to this people: “ ‘Keep on hearing, but do not understand; keep on seeing, but do not perceive.’ 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.”
Sermon: Verse 1
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.
: 1-In the year that King Uzziah died…
Heavenly Worship Meets Earthly Worship
In the year that King Uzziah died…
Reigned 52 years…
Isaiah was one of the most important prophets of the OT. He prophesied during the time of a King named Uzziah who reigned for 52 years. Imagine having a president who was president for not one or two terms, but 13 four year terms. To put it in perspective, if a president of the US were to be president as long as Uzziah was the king, 52 years, Lyndon Johnson, who was president in the 60s would still be president today.
Summary of King Uzziah’s reign…GOOD things
King Uzziah began reigning when he was just 16 years old. He was a good king. He was one of the few good kings. He did GOOD things during his reign. The economy was good. Their enemies were subdued. There was peace in the kingdom for the most part. People felt safe and secure under King Uzziah. He was good, but he wasn’t perfect. He was good, but he wasn’t great. He messed up towards the end of his reign royally. He went into the Temple and offered sacrifices himself instead of the priests offering sacrifices. He took the place of the priest. That was against God’s rules. So 80 priests condemned King Uzziah and God punished Uzziah by giving him leprosy…leprosy is an awful disease where your body literally wastes away. So this powerful, good king, Uzziah, went into seclusion with his leprosy and he co-reigned with his son, Jotham…who was destined to become not a good king, but an evil king.
Uzziah was a good king. Not a great king. In fact, none of the kings were great…only a few were considered good at all.
So this scene that Isaiah records here, happens in the year that King Uzziah died. The people were nervous. The people saw handwriting on the wall and saw that King Uzziah’s son was evil. They knew the prophecies. They saw the Assyrians in the north gaining strength. Trouble was coming. Things had been good for so long. So Isaiah, the spiritual leader of Judah, goes to worship God in the Temple. Notice that in verse 1—Isaiah is worshiping in the earthly temple:
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.
Heavenly Worship Meets Earthly Worship
Isaiah, one of the great OT prophets, is worshiping in the earthly temple, and heavenly worship descends to the earthly temple.
But he was THERE in the temple. It doesn’t say that his glory filled the TV screen. It doesn’t say that his glory filled a gossip conversation Isaiah was having. It doesn’t say that his glory filled the football stadium. Isaiah goes to worship and there, heaven meets Earth, and Isaiah is about to be wrecked. Heaven meets earth. Isaiah sees the Lord. He is a sinful man who sees the Lord. He isn’t killed. That alone is grace. For a sinful broken man like Isaiah to be taken into the throne room of heaven and to not drop dead that alone is grace. This was the first time in history that the throne room of heaven was seen by someone and described by someone, and what Isaiah experienced was far far more than he could have ever imagined. Paul said hundreds of years later, eye has not seen, ear has not heard, neither has it entered into the heart of man the things that God has prepared for those who love him.
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.
In other words, he sees the Lord. He is a sinful man who sees the Lord. He isn’t killed. That alone is grace. For a sinful broken man like Isaiah to be taken into the throne room of heaven and to not drop dead that alone is grace. This was the first time in history that the throne room of heaven was seen by someone and described by someone, and what Isaiah experienced was far far more than he could have ever imagined. Paul said hundreds of years later, eye has not seen, ear has not heard, neither has it entered into the heart of man the things that God has prepared for those who love him.
Angels—Seraphim
The Scriptures describe different kinds of angels. There are cherubim, there are seraphim seen here by Isaiah. There are arch angles like Michal, who seemed to be a military arch angel, and Gabriel who seemed to be a messenger angel. There are the four living creatures described in Revelation and Ezekiel. Here we have the seraphim…literally the burning ones. God loves fire. It’s one of the basest elements. And these seraphs are fiery angels. With six wings. Two covering their face because they could not gaze directly at God’s glory, two covering their feet, two allow them to fly. These aren’t the angels you see on your grandmothers manger set at Christmas. These are majestic creatures that we cannot comprehend.
Millions Upon Millions
The book of Revelation gives us more detail regarding these angels:
And the four living creatures, each of them with six wings, are full of eyes all around and within, and day and night they never cease to say, “Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!”
Then I looked, and I heard around the throne and the living creatures and the elders the voice of many angels, numbering myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands,
Then I looked, and I heard around the throne and the living creatures and the elders the voice of many angels, numbering myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice, “Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!”
Myriads of myriads meaning there are millions upon millions of angels surrounding the throne in heaven. Surrounding the king.
I want you to think of the vastness of the universe. The vastness of space. And imagine a space if you can where the throne room of heaven exists and there aren’t three or four angels surrounding the throne, there are millions upon millions surrounding the throne.
These burning ones. These fiery creatures, these seraphim.
And one called to another and said: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!” And the foundations of the thresholds shook at the voice of him who called, and the house was filled with smoke.
And one called to another and said: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!”
Holy—NonBeing
They call one to another, holy, holy, holy. Or great, great, great. He is other, other, other. He is not like you. Not like me. We are all haunted by how temporary we all are. Everything is going to cease existing at some point. Everything is a bubble. That shouldn’t depress us but redirect our gaze to those things that are ABOVE. The holy things. To the infinity and eternity of God.
The worship is so loud, that the foundations of the earthly temple shake at the voices of just one of these seraphim. The energy from this fiery one, this burning angel fills the temple with smoke. The supernatural meets the natural. The foundations shake. That’s worship right there.
Worship
You won’t be FOR the mission of Reach Church to live to reach all people with NBJ, until you can’t get enough of worship. You can’t wait to get to be among God’s people on Sundays. Here…this event. Because worship is the defining event of the church. You come here with anticipation and life and not about yourself. You can’t wait to invite others to experience this because the worship WE experience after Jesus…after the veil of the Temple is torn, is worship that joins with Heaven.
They call one to another, holy, holy, holy. Or great, great, great. He is other, other, other. He is not like you. Not like me.
Woe is Me
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!”
And the foundations of the thresholds shook at the voice of him who called, and the house was filled with smoke.
Look at Isaiah’s response. Woe is me. Isaiah was a prophet and a prophet pronounced woes on others. Woes on other nations. Woes on the people. Here he is pronouncing a woe on himself. That is the proper response to the full law of God. The holiness of God changes our pronouns. We say “woe to thee” less and we say “woe to me” more, Look at what happens in verse 5:
Look at what happens in verse 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!”
Commissioning Not Calling
I am a man of unclean lips. Isaiah isn’t someone we would have considered to have unclean lips. Some have said that maybe this passage is when Isaiah was converted and called. This was Isaiah’s calling, it’s just out of order in Isaiah. But we know that isn’t true. Why? Because of verse 1—the year that King Uzziah died. Isaiah had already been prophecying. He had already been regarded as the spiritual leader of Judah. He had already enacted . This scene is a deepening of everything Isaiah had known about God in the past. This isn’t Isaiah’s calling…that had happened earlier…this isn’t Isaiah being saved…this is Isaiah being commissioned.
When he tastes Heaven, everything changes. He said, I have unclean lips. The mark of a person who is growing in their holiness, the mark of a person who is FOR the mission of NBJ, is a person who realizes more and more every day just how far they have fallen short of the glory of God. That IS the mark of sanctification. The Apostle Paul said at the end of his life, I am the chief of sinners. I am the worst sinner I know. If you aren’t the worst sinner you know, you don’t know yourself very well. Isaiah, a holy man, a prophet of God, there is no record that shows us that Isaiah was anything but regarded as a holy man of God. He said, woe is me, I am undone. Why?
Oh well, I guess the pastor said Nothing But Jesus.
His response isn’t, I wish they would stop saying those things about Jesus…we get it already. The seraphims didn’t get it already. They are saying to one another holy holy holy right now as they look at the king of glory, Jesus.
Isaiah’s response isn’t…I have been a Christian for decades…I have been a small group leader, an elder, a pastor, I get it already....he said I am ruined. Then the forgiveness comes. Then the guilt is removed. And look at what happens:
But when he tastes Heaven, everything changes. He said, I have unclean lips. The mark of a person who is growing in their holiness, the mark of a person who is FOR the mission of NBJ, is a person who realizes more and more every day just how far they have fallen short of the glory of God. That IS the mark of sanctification. The Apostle Paul said at the end of his life, I am the chief of sinners. I am the worst sinner I know. If you aren’t the worst sinner you know, you don’t know yourself very well. Isaiah, a holy man, a prophet of God, there is no record that shows us that Isaiah was anything but regarded as a holy man of God. He said, woe is me, I am undone. Why?
My Eyes Have seen the (GREAT) King
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!”
Good to Great
Up to this point, Isaiah’s eyes had seen the earthly king. Uzziah. Uzziah reigned for 52 years. Imagine that. He was a GOOD king. The economy was good under him. Their enemies subdued. But he wasn’t a perfect king. Nor was he even a great king. Now Isaiah says, my eyes have seen the GREAT KING. The actual king. The eternal king.
Good to Great Things
Isaiah had experienced the good things of life. Uzziah was a good king. Isaiah focussed on good issues of the day. Uzziah had worked on good issues like the economy and the military and the country and all of these things are good not bad. But they are ALL passing away. All of them.
Idolize the Good and Trivialize the Great
Because here is what we do—we idolize the good and trivialize the great. We idolize the good and trivialize the great. Sports are good. They aren’t great when compared to this scene in heaven. Politics are good…there are good issues to discuss. They aren’t great. We can have good leaders, good presidents, good role models…but they aren’t great. There is only one who is great.
There is only one great king. King Jesus. Paul said, the rest of it is garbage. That is why we say Nothing but Jesus. Because we can so quickly become anything but Jesus people. We can so quickly forget Jesus. We forget Jesus when we focus on what’s in it for me when we come to church. We forget Jesus when we get cynical and sarcastic about church.
Look at what he says next…my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of Hosts!
Look at what he says next...
The LORD of hosts!
The LORD of hosts!
Isaiah Saw Jesus
Notice that Lord is in all caps. L-O-R-D. Anytime we see LORD in all caps in the OT, we are talking about the covenant Lord. Yahweh. The great I am. I am that I am. Isaiah said, I have seen the great king, I have seen Yahweh, I have seen I AM, the LORD. Who is this that Isaiah is seeing here? Who is this king of glory? Who is this one on the throne?
When Isaiah says, I saw the Lord…high and lifted up…when Isaiah said, I have seen the King, the LORD of hosts…who is he saying that he saw exactly? You say, he saw God. Too vague. Too vague. Yes he saw God…but he has a name.
Isaiah saw King Jesus. This was Isaiah’s nothing but Jesus moment.
How do I know…is this a stretch...
AM
In , Jesus was arguing with the Pharisees…the Pharisees were asking Jesus just who did he think he was saying the things he was saying, doing the things he was doing, messing things up for them. And Jesus answered them in :
Your father Abraham rejoiced that he would see my day. He saw it and was glad.” So the Jews said to him, “You are not yet fifty years old, and have you seen Abraham?” Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.” So they picked up stones to throw at him, but Jesus hid himself and went out of the temple.
Before Abraham was I AM—that means Yahweh. He was claiming to be the covenant Lord of the OT. He was claiming that anytime you see L-O-R-D in caps in the OT, that is Jesus. Jesus isn’t as hidden in the OT as many think he is. Jesus claimed here to be the great I AM. Isaiah saw Jesus.
More proof…John quotes some things that Isaiah said and then he makes this statement:
Isaiah said these things because he saw his glory and spoke of him.
“He has blinded their eyes and hardened their heart, lest they see with their eyes, and understand with their heart, and turn, and I would heal them.” Isaiah said these things because he saw his glory and spoke of him.
Isaiah saw the glory of Jesus! He saw King Jesus. The great King. Not the earthly king who comes and goes. The earthly president who comes and goes regardless of how long they reign whether it be 8 years or 52 years…he saw the eternal king on his throne in heaven with millions upon millions of angels, saying to one another holy, holy holy. Isaiah was lifted out of time into eternity and he was never the same man again. It was a commissioning.
Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a burning coal that he had taken with tongs from the altar. And he touched my mouth and said: “Behold, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away, and your sin atoned for.”
Not, Oh Well, NBJ
Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a burning coal that he had taken with tongs from the altar.
Now among those who went up to worship at the feast were some Greeks. So these came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and asked him, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.”
:
Think of it this way, Verses 1-4 for Isaiah is like us hearing the fullness of the Law of God. It is like us hearing that the holiness of God, the righteousness of God, and the righteousness that he requires is far far greater than anything we could have ever imagined. That our greatest problem and our greatest unrighteousness isn’t that we are lusting people, but that a person with lustful intent is an adulterer. That our problem isn’t anger it’s murder. That when we encounter the holiness and majesty and otherness and transcendence of God…we have a problem. A deep one. One that shakes the foundations of who we are. One that we can’t hide from…the WHOLE earth is filled with his glory. With his weight. With his holiness. With his rightness. This is like hearing the Law of God as we have heard in these Ten Commandments. That we are far more guilty than we imagined. Get it?
In verse 6....one of these seraphs, breaks off from the rest of them, this burning fiery one, and
:
Isaiah’s response when he feels the full weightiness of God, the full holiness and splendor of the Trinitarian Lord…his response is WOE IS ME. I am at the end of my rope. I am without hope. I am ruined. And this is a holy man. Isaiah is a holy man of God. And he says, my lips, my words are unclean, my friends are unclean, my family is unclean, my people are unclean.
Isaiah’s response when he feels the full weightiness of God, the full holiness and splendor of the Trinitarian Lord…his response is WOE IS ME. I am at the end of my rope. I am without hope. I am ruined. And this is a holy man. Isaiah is a holy man of God. And he says, my lips, my words are unclean, my friends are unclean, my family is unclean, my people are unclean.
He doesn’t say…oh well, NBJ. He doesn’t say, I can do what I want. He doesn’t say, I am so relieved. He doesn’t say, now I can live a life without structure and rules and all that. He says I am ruined. Woe is me.
But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (he who was about to betray him), said, “Why was this ointment not sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor?” He said this, not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief, and having charge of the moneybag he used to help himself to what was put into it. Jesus said, “Leave her alone, so that she may keep it for the day of my burial. For the poor you always have with you, but you do not always have me.” When the large crowd of the Jews learned that Jesus was there, they came, not only on account of him but also to see Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. So the chief priests made plans to put Lazarus to death as well, because on account of him many of the Jews were going away and believing in Jesus. The next day the large crowd that had come to the feast heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem. So they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, crying out, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!” And Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, just as it is written, “Fear not, daughter of Zion; behold, your king is coming, sitting on a donkey’s colt!” His disciples did not understand these things at first, but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things had been written about him and had been done to him. The crowd that had been with him when he called Lazarus out of the tomb and raised him from the dead continued to bear witness. The reason why the crowd went to meet him was that they heard he had done this sign. So the Pharisees said to one another, “You see that you are gaining nothing. Look, the world has gone after him.” Now among those who went up to worship at the feast were some Greeks. So these came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and asked him, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.” Philip went and told Andrew; Andrew and Philip went and told Jesus. And Jesus answered them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. If anyone serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there will my servant be also. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him. “Now is my soul troubled. And what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? But for this purpose I have come to this hour. Father, glorify your name.” Then a voice came from heaven: “I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.” The crowd that stood there and heard it said that it had thundered. Others said, “An angel has spoken to him.” Jesus answered, “This voice has come for your sake, not mine. Now is the judgment of this world; now will the ruler of this world be cast out. And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.” He said this to show by what kind of death he was going to die. So the crowd answered him, “We have heard from the Law that the Christ remains forever. How can you say that the Son of Man must be lifted up? Who is this Son of Man?” So Jesus said to them, “The light is among you for a little while longer. Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you. The one who walks in the darkness does not know where he is going. While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light.” When Jesus had said these things, he departed and hid himself from them. Though he had done so many signs before them, they still did not believe in him, so that the word spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled: “Lord, who has believed what he heard from us, and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?” Therefore they could not believe. For again Isaiah said, “He has blinded their eyes and hardened their heart, lest they see with their eyes, and understand with their heart, and turn, and I would heal them.” Isaiah said these things because he saw his glory and spoke of him.
Because listen I think when our response to the Law of God, when we hear the Law of God preached in it’s actual fullness, when it hits our heart and not those people out there, but us, and our response is “well, I can do what I want, pastor said NBJ, pastor said that we are all guilty, guiltier than we thought...” what we really are saying is Nothing But Grace. We aren’t saying Nothing but Jesus. We are saying NBJ.
Grace
Grace is just unmerited favor. Grace is I did something wrong and I was allowed to walk. Grace is when a kid does something bad and the parent shows grace. Grace can be very very cheap. Grace can be abused. When we say Nothing But Jesus as if we can just get away with what we want, we can just throw in the towel a bit because the Law is deeper than we thought…and everyone is guilty anyway…we are really saying Nothing but Grace for me.
It isn’t Grace Wins. It isn’t Love Wins. Grace doesn’t always and shouldn’t always win. Love doesn’t always win. Jesus always wins.
It isn’t nothing but Grace, but Nothing But Jesus. It isn’t grace and Law it is Law and Gospel. It is Law and Jesus. It is Law and the King, the Lord of hosts. The one whose train fills the room. The one whose glory fills the earth. It is nothing but that. Big big big difference.
Isaiah’s response wasn’t oh well. It wasn’t…well, NBJ. It was, woe is me, I am ruined, I am the chief sinner, my people are sinners, my eyes have seen your weightiness…then it’s with each word landing deep into the foundations of his soul...
Isaiah said these things because he saw his glory and spoke of him.
Nothing. But. Jesus. The King. Yahweh. The Lord of hosts. The GREAT king. Not oh well, nothing but Jesus, I’ll do what I want. It’s Nothing. But. Jesus. Nothing But the King. Nothing but the Lord of Hosts. Big big difference between that kind of response and the one that says oh well, anything goes.
Burning Coal to Lips—Forgiveness
Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a burning coal that he had taken with tongs from the altar. And he touched my mouth and said: “Behold, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away, and your sin atoned for.”
One of these seraphs, breaks off from the rest of them, this burning fiery one, takes a burning coal, touches Isaiah’s lips, the very part of his body that Isaiah had said was unclean and the most sinful, his lips, think of the pain Isaiah felt when that burning coal touched his lips, it was a preview of the pain of the cross of Jesus to take away our sins…your guilt is taken away, your sin is atoned for. You are forgiven. Your sins are remembered no more.
In verse 6....one of these seraphs, breaks off from the rest of them, this burning fiery one, takes a burning coal, touches Isaiah’s mouth and says…your guilt is taken away, your sin is atoned for. You are forgiven. Your sins are remembered no more.
They asked him, “Who is the man who said to you, ‘Take up your bed and walk’?”
Isaiah’s Response
And it’s not, I’m going to let you get away with your sins…I’m going to show you grace. It’s not I’m just going to love on you....it’s a bloody sacrifice....your guilt is taken away…your sin has been paid for atoned for by another.
I really hope you are getting this. Nothing else will change you. Nothing else matters. I know it is weighty, I know it is deep.
Good to Great Things
Isaiah had experienced the good things of life. Uzziah was a good king. Isaiah focussed on good issues of the day. Uzziah had worked on good issues like the economy and the military and the country and all of these things are good not bad. But they are ALL passing away. All of them.
Because here is what we do—we idolize the good and trivialize the great. We idolize the good and trivialize the great. Sports are good. They aren’t great when compared to this scene in heaven. Politics are good…there are good issues to discuss. They aren’t great. We can have good leaders, good presidents, good role models…but they aren’t great. There is only one who is great. There is only one great king. King Jesus. Paul said, the rest of it is garbage. That is why we say Nothing but Jesus. Because we can so quickly become anything but Jesus people. We can so quickly forget Jesus. We forget Jesus when we focus on what’s in it for me when we come to church. We forget Jesus when we get cynical and sarcastic about church.
Isaiah had been called in the past, he was called before the foundation of the world. But here he isn’t called, he is commissioned. He is taken way deeper into the mysteries of God through Jesus. He is shown there is a much bigger and eternal picture.
What is his response to all of this?
Oh well, I guess the pastor said Nothing But Jesus.
His response isn’t, I wish they would stop saying those things about Jesus…we get it already. The seraphims didn’t get it already. They are saying to one another holy holy holy right now as they look at the king of glory, Jesus.
Isaiah’s response isn’t…I have been a Christian for decades…I have been a small group leader, an elder, a pastor, I get it already....he said I am ruined. Then the forgiveness comes. Then the guilt is removed. And look at what happens:
And he touched my mouth and said: “Behold, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away, and your sin atoned for.” 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.”
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.”
Isaiah had been called in the past, he was called before the foundation of the world. But here he isn’t called, he is commissioned. He is taken way deeper into the mysteries of God through Jesus. He is shown there is a much bigger and eternal picture.
What is his response to all of this?
His response isn’t, I wish they would stop saying those things about Jesus…we get it already. The seraphims didn’t get it already. They are saying to one another holy holy holy right now as they look at the king of glory, Jesus.
Isaiah’s response isn’t…I have been a Christian for decades…I have been a small group leader, an elder, a pastor, I get it already....he said I am ruined. Then the forgiveness comes. Then the guilt is removed.
And look at what happens: Here I am…send me…Here I am…use me…it’s not about me…here I am…have your way with me…Isaiah was saying, I’m all in....my eyes have seen the King…Isaiah saw that the Lord was all in with Isaiah....you are forgiven...
This was a deepening of everything Isaiah already knew about God.
This was Isaiah’s NBJ moment. Have you had that moment that you heard about earlier in Doug’s testimony?
What about you?
Are you FOR the mission to live to reach all people with Nothing But Jesus? Are you able to say, my eyes have seen King Jesus…here I am…have your way with me…use me...
We h
Aren’t you tired of messing around with it?
There is only one great king. King Jesus. Paul said, the rest of it is garbage. That is why we say Nothing but Jesus. Because we can so quickly become anything but Jesus people. We can so quickly forget Jesus. We forget Jesus when we focus on what’s in it for me when we come to church. We forget Jesus when we get cynical and sarcastic about church.
Have you lost your first love? Doing good things...
Lost our First Love
And I can’t compel you to be FOR the mission of Reach Church. Only the Holy Spirit of Jesus can do that. Some of you are so distracted with lesser things…maybe they are good things. But you have idolized those good things and have made those good things ultimate things. And with our faith we have access to GREAT things.
Three Groups
As I said earlier, there are three groups of people here today.
The first group are those who may be new to the church, maybe you are still seeking answers to who Jesus is, maybe you have struggled in your faith, you aren’t yet a believer, or perhaps you have been extremely stale in your faith for years. You are part of this first group.
The first group are those who may be new to the church, maybe you are still seeking answers to who Jesus is, maybe you have struggled in your faith, you aren’t yet a believer, or perhaps you have been extremely stale in your faith for years. You are part of this first group.
Group Two: Not totally FOR Nothing But Jesus
The first group are those who may be new to the church, maybe you are still seeking answers to who Jesus is, maybe you have struggled in your faith, you aren’t yet a believer, or perhaps you have been extremely stale in your faith for years. You are part of this first group.
Group Two: Not totally FOR Nothing But Jesus
Group 2: Not totally FOR Nothing But Jesus
Group 2: Not totally FOR Nothing But Jesus
The second group are those who have been here, you have heard the message of NBJ, you get it, but you still scoff at it a bit, you still use excuses and distractions like I don’t like cliche Christianity even though the Apostle Paul used the phrase and coined the phrase, “In Christ Alone” over 200 times…you still resist the message. You are focused maybe on good things, but you have idolized those good things.
The third group get it. Your eyes have seen King Jesus. And you never want to look back. You are saying daily, here I am use me.
Group One: Still Searching for Jesus
Group Two: Not Totally FOR Nothing But Jesus
Group Three: FOR Nothing But Jesus...”Here I am…Use Me!”
Group 1: Still Searching for Jesus
Group 1: Still Searching for Jesus
(Leave this slide up for a while!)
Group 2: Not totally FOR Nothing But Jesus
Group 2: Not totally FOR Nothing But Jesus
Group Three: Totally FOR Nothing But Jesus...”here I am....use me”.
We all fluctuate between those three groups. But ultimately, we need to move into the third group.
Joe Carter Walk Off Home Run
This past week was the longest world series baseball game ever. In the 18th inning the game ended with a walk off home run. A player hit a home run, his team won the game and it was over. There have only been two times in history that the world series has ended with a game winning home run.
Paul and use of In Christ.
One was Bill Mazeraski in the 1961 world series when the Pirates beat the Yankees in the bottom of the 9th inning in game 7 of the world series. And the only other walk off home run to end a world series was against the Phillies in 1993. The Phillies were playing the Blue Jays and were trying to force a game seven. The score was tied in the 9th inning. The Phillies brought in their closer Mitch Williams. Joe Carter hit a two run walk off home run to beat the Phillies.
The world series began this past week…there have been only been two walk off home runs to end the world series. One was Bill Mazeraski in the 1961 world series when the Pirates beat the Yankees in the bottom of the 9th inning in game 7 of the world series. And the only other walk off home run to end a world series was against the Phillies in 1993. The Phillies were playing the Blue Jays and were trying to force a game seven. The score was tied in the 9th inning. The Phillies brought in their closer Mitch Williams. Joe Carter hit a two run walk off home run to beat the Phillies. Later on, Joe Carter watched all nine camera angles of his home run that made him a world series champion. It was an historic moment. He was asked which camera angle was his favorite shot. Would it be of the moment his bat hit the ball? Of him flipping the bat? Of him rounding first base? Of him being mobbed by his teammates at home plate. None of those were his favorite. His favorite camera angle of his home run didn’t have him in the shot at all. It was the shot of his teammates as they saw the ball sail over the fence and realized they too had become world series champions.
Later on, Joe Carter watched all nine camera angles of his home run that made him a world series champion. It was an historic moment. He was asked which camera angle was his favorite shot. Would it be of the moment his bat hit the ball? Of him flipping the bat? Of him rounding first base? Of him being mobbed by his teammates at home plate. None of those were his favorite. His favorite camera angle of his home run didn’t have him in the shot at all. It was the shot of his teammates as they saw the ball sail over the fence and realized they too had become world series champions.
Jesus has won the victory for us. Jesus hit the home run while we were in the dugout…and his home run became our home run. His victory became our victory. His obedience became our obedience. And Jesus LOVES to see us celebrate that. He loves to see us worship in the temple. He loves to see us get it. There is an older song we have sung here years ago that says, his favorite song of all is the song of the redeemed, when lost sinners now made clean, lift their voices loud and strong. When those purchased by his blood, lift to him a song of love, there is nothing more he would rather hear, none so pleasing to his ear, than his favorite song of all.
And that song is worship, is using your spiritual gift that you are commanded to use. It is focussing on the GREAT eternal things, not idolizing the good fleeting things.
ASK
Some day we will meet God. We will be standing in his presence as this scene in Isaiah’s life is a picture of what will happen to each one of us. Are you moved today, are you compelled today, by this vision of Jesus, by the holiness of Jesus, to move into that third group for good? To say, here I am, use me. To say, I am FOR this mission of Reach Church to be all about Jesus. I am FOR this mission of Reach Church to mean it when we say on Christ the solid rock I stand all other ground is sinking sand. I mean that when I sing it. I am FOR the mission of Reach Church, to live to reach all people with NBJ, regardless of where that takes me.
I want to ask you to do something that is going to seem very small when compared to the majesty of what we have heard this morning. However, it’s huge. If every person sitting here were to take this step....it would be huge. Let’s take it together.
There is a card in your bulletin....we aren’t announcing some big new thing we are doing, we are already doing plenty of big things that you can be involved in....we are asking you to say I am FOR the mission of Reach Church to live to reach all people with NBJ. I’m in. I’m done messing around. And then we are asking each person regardless of who you are. Regardless of what you have done in the past…how you have volunteered or led things in the past…we are asking you today to be commissioned, to go even deeper by saying, here I am use me. Use me on a volunteer team on Sundays. We aren’t asking you to serve every Sunday. We aren’t asking you to come out during the week for dozens of hours....we are asking, no we are commissioning you to take this step and say, here I am, use me, put me on a team so I can get to know others, I want to see how God will use me. And we are asking those of you who use social media to join our team....what an amazing tool we have in social media…we have a way to communicate into the hearts and minds of so many people you are connected to…would you commit to being part of this social media team…we will tell you what to do, it will be so simple and easy but do it and see how God will use you…see how God will use you…your simple obedience to this calling…to reach all people with NBJ.
I want to ask you to do this now. Don’t wait. Don’t get hung up because you don’t know the details…we will contact you and help you figure out the best place to be used, how frequently you can be used…we will make it work with you. See King Jesus, and say here I am, send me, here I am, use me.
