Devo for WorldVenture - Isaiah 6:8

Isaiah 6:8

As we wrap up this week in Isaiah 6:8, I want us to think about the role of atonement in sending Isaiah, and us, out.

I want to look at Isaiah’s atonement as being the catalyst that drove Isaiah to say “Send Me”

I also want to look at how atonement should have a similar effect on Christians today.

Isaiah 6:8 ESV

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.”

First, atonement brings us near

Remember when he first entered into this vision, what did he see?

He saw the Lord “high and lifted up”

The connotation that we are meant to feel is that God was far above Isaiah, towering over Him.

Imagine being swallowed up in the vastness of something so massive that you cannot help but feel small and insignificant.

The scene that is played out for us in Isaiah 6 reminds me of staring out into the horizon over the ocean or up at the stars.

You cannot possibly even see to the end of these things.

This is where the Lord was in relation to Isaiah - impossibly high above him.

Here, in v. 8, we see the newly cleansed Isaiah close enough to hear the Lord musing to Himself… “Whom shall I send and who will go for us?”

Isaiah’s perspective has been radically changed, and now He is seeing yet another deep and beautiful dimension of our Lord.

The Lord is still high and lifted up, but now Isaiah is lifted up to the Lord,

I imagine it like a child who is picked up by their parent, and he is brought close to be able to hear the voice of the Lord.

My question for us is do you see yourself like this?

Having been brought close to this God who is High and Lifted up...

No longer separated by a vast distance between you and Him...

In our atonement, Believers are brought near to the Lord and in one of the most incredible and holy mysteries in the world, we are given access to the thoughts and words of the Lord.

Think about that for a second…

The God who spoke everything into existence in Genesis 1

The God whose voice thunders with power and shatters the cedars of Lebanon - according to Psalm 29

The God whose Word became flesh and came after us with a passion and love that drove Him towards a rugged and bloody cross - John 1.

This is the God who we are given the distinct honor and privilege of getting to hear His voice.

Before, we were too far off to perceive what the Lord was saying, but now, He is intimately close with us.

He dwells in our hearts and whispers into our soul, leading, guiding, directing us forward with Holy gumption towards the upward call of Christ.

It’s not only true for Isaiah that He was brought near to the Lord - you, believer have been brought near to the Lord.

Second, atonement sends us out

The picture of Isaiah in v. 8 is radically different than the picture we see in v. 5...

Remember, v. 5 - Isaiah sees this incredible scene playing out in front of him, and his response is “Woe is me” or in the Matt Prine Authorized version - “Oh crap”

But here in v. 8, he has moved from being paralyzed over his own sinfulness to speaking directly to the Lord - offering himself up to be used however the Lord sees fit. Here I am!! Send Me!

In verse 5, he wanted to get out of there over the shame of his sin

In verse 8, he wanted to get out of there to fulfill the Lord’s call

Honestly, the fact that he is now asking the Lord to send him out is crazy...

He is face to face with the Lord - worshipping in the throne room with the seraphim

This is the holiest place that anyone could possibly be.

There is no sin, no hurt, no suffering, no rebellion - just the unbelievable holiness of God, filling every inch of this place!

And what is his request - Send me! I will go!

Wouldn’t you want to stay there forever?

I would probably be like Peter at the mount of transfiguration - “Lord, should I set up tent over here or over there?”

“Don’t mind me.... I will just be over here singing Revelation Song for the rest of eternity.”

Nope - not Isaiah…

Here I am!! Send Me!!

Why?

Because He understood that he was no longer his own.

Through his atonement, he had been realigned for service to the Lord

As such, he was driven forward to accomplish God’s will in the world.

Atonement will drawn us near and it will send us out

Here’s where I want to land…

The call of God is still alive and well today.

This was not a one-off for Isaiah.

He is still asking this question today of His Church.

Whom Shall I send? Who will go for us?

How do we play a part of this call?

I know that we are supposed to be centering our prayer time around Isaiah 6:8, but I am going to break or at least bend some rules here…

I want to focus our time on Matthew 9:38 - Pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.

There is a direct tie between Isaiah 6:8 and Matthew 9:38

If we are going to play an active role in God’s redemptive plan for the world, then we need to be committing ourselves to this prayer.

Coincidentally, in praying this prayer, we are also a part of the answer to the prayer.

I am not sure about you, but I want to be a part of God’s rescue plan for the world.

Let’s cry out to the Lord to send laborers - and lets understand that this call is not necessarily just to the ends of the earth.

He will send out laborers to work in the harvests right here at home.

For our prayer time:

If the Lord lays a particular field on your heart, pray for Him to send laborers there.

If He lays someone on your heart, that you feel may be called to go, pray that they would have the heart of Isaiah, and would say “Here I am, Send me”

Pray that WorldVenture would be used significantly as God sends out laborers into the harvest.