High and Lifted Up

Trinity Sunday

Scripture Readings: Isaiah 6:1-8; Psalm 29; Romans 8:12-17; John 3:1-17

If you have ever visited another church, you are more likely to notice the differences than the similarities, to varying degrees. Although we may say we worship the same God, we do some things differently. Sometimes this is a good thing, sometimes not. It’s good to learn different views and get new ideas, but those same ideas can divide us and cause churches to split up. We sing different songs, we pray differently, there is no end to things we can bicker over. The following video shows some basic causes of conflict.

But first, a little about the overall story. On the night in which Jesus was born, another boy was born nearby. While some followed the true messiah, others were certain it was this other guy, named Brian, who had neither the power nor intelligence of Jesus. Then he meets this girl he becomes infatuated with, and she introduces him to a group of rebels trying to overthrow the Romans. He also has a pushy mom of dubious morals. He just can’t win at anything in life and ends up getting crucified. But we are still early in the movie. The Romans have come looking for Brian, and he is trying to escape. He runs into the marketplace, and notices several false prophets, messiahs, and philosophers standing up and making speeches. So he acts like one of these, trying to hide from the Romans. He had recently heard Jesus giving the Sermon on the Mount and tries to emulate Him. Here we go:

Monty Python's The Life of Brian: the lost shoe - Bing video

This of course seems extreme, but is it really? We look for signs, let them divide us, and put our faith in the wrong places. We form our own little groups and run off in our own direction, leaving others to fend for themselves, thinking that we know better and believe the right things. But the more I read the Bible and try to follow Jesus, the more such things don’t seem to matter. Not that they are no longer as important, I am just humbled by my inability to truly understand things that are beyond my comprehension. When we look at our world and what God has created, how can we not be in awe of His work? Sure there is ugliness in our world, but it is mostly created by us. The natural world, even humans who are still youngsters, is beautiful beyond comprehension, also.

I guess it is only natural that there are lots of ups and downs, direction-wise, as we look at our Scriptures today. For as we try to understand the things of God, those things so far beyond us, we think of them as being above us, in Heaven, when they are actually here amongst us, too. In seeking to honor God, we lift things up: our prayers, our hands in praise and in supplication, our voices in song. When we are looking for divine help, we lift our eyes and hearts to God, even when we know that His Spirit dwells within us. But we also lift up things that don’t deserve it, such as the gourd and the shoe in the movie clip, as well as people, possessions, and other earthly things. Isn’t that what idolatry is, as we elevate things above us when only God is worthy of that honor?

Of course, we often lift ourselves, even when we know better. This generally has a result that we don’t want, for when you climb up on your high horse, there is only one way to go: down.

Our passage from Isaiah 6 has always been one of my very favorites. Life would be so much easier if we could be granted such an experience, for I am certain that one we have seen God in His glory upon His Heavenly throne, we will never be tempted to lift ourselves up again. Isaiah exclaims:

"Woe is me! I am lost, for I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips; yet my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!" (Isaiah 6:5)

This isn’t the only time someone says such a thing in the Bible, and how glorious it would be if more people could have such encounters in this lifetime! Note that it is a time of worship. Maybe if we could join in worship more, we might be more unified, focused solely on praising God and not elevating things that don’t deserve it. The heavenly host praise God, singing:

“Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory."

Isaiah tells us this happened in the year King Uzziah died, so he makes it clear that this was a historical event, not just for Isaiah, but an event worth remembering for all time and in all places, for all people, recorded in Scripture, witnessing to God’s glory. It is part of our history, too. So try to put yourself in Isaiah’s position, knowing how sinful you are, and living amongst sinners, and suddenly you find yourself on your knees before the throne of God. I can imagine smoke, fire, thunder, lightning, and all of that power directed towards me and my impending doom. What would you expect to happen?

Then one of the seraphs flew to me, holding a live coal that had been taken from the altar with a pair of tongs. The seraph touched my mouth with it and said: "Now that this has touched your lips, your guilt has departed and your sin is blotted out." (Is. 6:6-7)

Bet you wouldn’t expect that to happen! At first, having an angel come at you with a burning coal certainly would not seem to be an improvement of one’s predicament. But cleansing is necessary not only to approach God, but to live holy lives. Purification is necessary for us. Blessed are we who believe in Jesus, for He was lifted up on the cross for us. He paid the painful price; we don’t need that burning coal.

Today is Trinity Sunday, and we celebrate the different ways that God works today. Isaiah of course lived before Jesus did, so he needed a different kind of cleansing experience, as only a select few have experienced. We now get our cleansing through the Spirit based on the blood of Jesus shed for us. I can’t help but think that Isaiah’s experience before the throne of God would be a greater incentive not to ever sin again, but God in His grace is always ready and willing to forgive us and cleanse us again. Through the Three-In-One God, the Holy Trinity, we are made whole again.

And now imagine what it is like to leave the presence of God, cleansed and born again. Isaiah would go on to be one of God’s greatest prophets, but that calling brought a great deal of suffering, and it begins in the very next verse! But note that the Lord doesn’t tell Isaiah to go, Isaiah responds to a general call: “whom shall I send?” Perhaps you are wondering where that call is for you! Through most of this scene, God is silent: maybe that is how God seems to you, and that’s OK. Before he can answer God’s call, Isaiah must prepare for it, and sometimes that is our task, too: preparing for when the call comes. Until then, we keep praising God and responding to the call to be forgiven and cleansed. Minus the burning coal!

The divisions and bickering amongst the people of God is one of the hardest parts of living faithfully today, but someday that will be done away with when Christ returns. Let us stay focused on worshipping the one true God, praising His glory and might! May our worship of Him help to unite us!