Today, we look at the next chapter in Isaiah’s prophecy. You’ll notice that this is not one of his sermons like the previous chapters. This chapter is a narrative. Isaiah tells us what happened to him on one fateful day. On that day Isaiah comes face to face with Jesus. We know it’s Jesus because the Apostle John tells us. After quoting from this chapter in Isaiah, and applying that to Jesus, John writes this, ‘Isaiah said these things because he saw his glory and spoke of him.’ Isaiah saw Jesus’ glory in our chapter. Isaiah had a deeper experience of Jesus that changed the course of his life.
I am going to build the sermon around Isaiah’s three responses to what he saw and heard. But there are other things going on here. As I read the chapter, notice how physical this experience is. Isaiah’s soul is changed, but Jesus uses shaking buildings, smoke, shouts and hot coals to do that. It was what Isaiah saw, felt, and heard that resulted in such great change. Another thing to notice is that just as the ability to grasp Gospel truths, the ability to ‘get it’, is something that Jesus can give, it is also something that He can take away. Jesus was taking away this ability from the Church in Isaiah’s day. One last thing: remember that the Spirit has something here for you. Listen for it. It may not be as huge as having a vision, but it will be important enough. Listen for it and embrace it.
[Read Isaiah 6.]
As I said, the sermon will be built around Isaiah’s three responses. So, here’s the first thing. ‘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!’ Isaiah sees his sin more clearly than ever before. He cries out not just in fear but in despair. Isaiah knows, in a way that is completely new to him, that he is a sinner. Let’s take a look at this. The first thing here is that Isaiah didn’t come to see his sins more clearly by reviewing the rules. He was able to see and be horrified by the utter evil of his sin because he was confronted with holiness. It was this deeper experience of a holy Jesus that turned the lights on for him. And it was this experience that moved him to the next level of maturity. Right here there is an important lesson. We really do need to know the rules, but that isn’t enough to get us to see ourselves more clearly. What we need is to experience something. We need to experience more of Jesus. There is nothing wrong with reading good books and getting doctrine right. In fact, these things are necessary. They are tools that Jesus uses. But without experiencing more of Jesus such things will profit us nothing. So, consider Moses bowing at the burning bush, Peter falling at Jesus’ feet after the miraculous catch of fish or Job who repents after being confronted by the Almighty. Isaiah, like these, experienced more of Jesus and his life was changed. Growth, real growth that produces real change, comes as a result of experiencing more of Jesus. You don’t have to feel a building shake around you or hear angels shouting, but a Christian needs to grow in his experience of Jesus if he would mature. I know that that is vague. I haven’t told you what to do! I debated saying more. After all, it is something that you need to experience and just be told about. But I will say this much. You don’t control this. Isaiah didn’t plan on what happened to him. The Spirit works when and where He wills. So, you cannot create this. But you can ask for it. Be aware that it will cost you. Knowing Jesus better always does. That’s why Paul wrote this: ‘Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ.’ Experiencing more of Jesus will cost you, but it is so very worth it.
Next, notice what Isaiah reacts to. It’s not merely that he is a sinner. Instead he says, ‘I am a man of unclean lips.’ When the Spirit points out sin He is specific. If you have vague feelings of guilt, that’s from Satan and not the Spirit. Here, the Spirit points to Isaiah’s words. And it’s not that Isaiah used foul language. Holy living is not defined by what to avoid but by what to be like. Words are to do good, to help, to encourage, to correct in love and more. That’s why Jesus gave us the ability to speak. But Isaiah’s words failed at that. And now Isaiah could see his use of words for what it was: damnable sin. That’s why he said, ‘Woe is me! For I am lost…’ Lost means ruined, undone, destroyed, cut off. Isaiah understood that, because of his failure, his unholy mouth, he deserved to be punished. He deserved hell. No minimizing, no excuses. Isaiah had seen holiness.
But Isaiah experienced more than condemning holiness. There was also mercy and grace. Listen again. ‘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.”’ The guilt was removed and his sin atoned for. Jesus has grace for sinners. But understand what just happened. It’s as if Jesus told Isaiah, ‘I will take the burden of your sin, Isaiah. I will suffer what you fear but actually cannot imagine. I will be lost, undone, ruined, destroyed, cut off for you. I will provide forgiveness by the Cross.’ I picture this as a bittersweet moment for Jesus. I see Him as glad to be able to forgive and yet, aware of what that will cost Him.
Now, what’s up with the angel and the coal and touching Isaiah’s lips? Was forgiveness dependant on this? Not at all, but these actions were helpful. What we have here is an example of a sacrament. A sacrament is the result of the uniting of some declaration by Jesus to something physical. Here, the declaration is about forgiveness for Isaiah, and the physical act was the coals touching his lips. What were the results? A scar. What else would you expect when a red hot coal comes in contact with human flesh? But this scar was for Isaiah’s good. For the rest of his life, Isaiah would be reminded of this day and what had happened. His sin concerning his words was forgiven and because of that he is be able to speak holy words on Jesus’ behalf. It’s a sacrament: the uniting of some declaration by Jesus to something physical. This sacrament in Isaiah’s life is not to be repeated. But the sacraments of the washing away of the filth of sin and the feeding of souls are to be repeated in the Church.
Let’s move on. Jesus calls for a volunteer. ‘Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?’ And right away we hear Isaiah respond. ‘Here am I! Send me.’ Isaiah answers the call for a volunteer, but what is he volunteering to do? He doesn’t even know yet. But still, he volunteers. Why? The text doesn’t say. But something else from Paul fits here. ‘…and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised.’ We who follow Jesus no longer live for ourselves but for Him because He has forgiven our sin and that at such cost. It makes sense to me to see Paul’s words as the basis for Isaiah’s willingness to volunteer. I don’t know what Isaiah was thinking, but I would hope that if I were in his situation that I would be thinking, ‘I should be destroyed, undone, ruined right now. But I’m not, and it’s only because of Jesus. My life is His to use in anyway He wants. Blank check.’ So, I hope that I would also shout, ‘Here am I! Send me’, even without knowing what I was volunteering for. I can’t be sure that this was what Isaiah was thinking, but I am sure that this was what Paul was thinking, so I know that this kind of attitude is right. Isaiah has no idea what volunteering to Jesus will require, but it will cost him. Isaiah will have his share of suffering. But, that doesn’t matter. ‘My life is His to use in anyway He wants. Blank check.’ Life for Jesus’ volunteers is hard, but in heaven He will make it all worthwhile.
All of this gets even more interesting when you consider that Jesus actually accepts Isaiah’s offer. Remember, Isaiah is an admitted sinner. Oh yes, he has been forgiven of those sins, but that doesn’t mean that he will never sin again. He was not perfected in holiness on that day. So, he will sin again – be assured of that. And he will probably sin with his lips at some point, a harsh word thrown at his wife or some expression of impatience dumped on his kids. But Jesus is not put off by this. He still accepts Isaiah’s offer. He still gives him this mission. And that should encourage you. You have also been called by Jesus to various tasks. And as you work to fulfill those callings, you will sin – be assured of that. Some of you are surprised or even dismayed when you realize that you have once again sinned in one way or other. But Jesus is not surprised – nor is He dismayed. He knows you are a sinner and accepts you as such. His forgiveness is real. So He extends His call to you with open eyes. So, don’t worry. He won’t have second thoughts about you when you sin. He knows that sin remains. He is, in fact, in the process of getting rid of it. And, in time, He will remove the last speck of sin from your life. But for the time being He is content to use you as you are – sin and all. So, relax. There is grace for sinners. That’s the Gospel.
Let me pause here to remind you of something. Not every part of every sermon is for everyone who hears it. Some of you need to come to grips with this part of the sermon, this thought that Jesus knows all about your sin and He still loves you and will still make use of you. But, there are others of you who need to deal with my earlier thought, seeing your sin more clearly in the light of startling holiness. So, which category do you fit into? It may be that some of you have this all sorted out and that’s fine. But for the rest of you, which part of the sermon do you need to heed?
Now to Isaiah’s third comment. To understand it I need to read again how Jesus describes the mission that He has for him. Listen to what He says. ‘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.”’ Isaiah has not volunteered to be a blessing to the Church but a curse. As he speaks the truth, the people will grow more and more blind and deaf to it. Their ability to understand the Gospel that Isaiah preaches will shrink until it disappears. Isaiah understands what this means. He knows punishment – not discipline – is coming. And so, he asks, ‘How long, O Lord?’ He’s asking how long will the destruction continue. How desperate will it become? Listen to Jesus’ reply. ‘Until cities lie waste without inhabitant, and houses without people, and the land is a desolate waste, and the LORD removes people far away, and the forsaken places are many in the midst of the land. 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.’ Did you catch what Jesus said? The destruction will continue until there is but a small remnant left – a tenth. But even then it’s still not over. The curse will be applied even to the tiny remnant. There will be a remnant of the remnant, so that all that is left of a once-great oak is its stump. There is hope, but only barely. ‘The holy seed is its stump.’
I think that Isaiah’s question is an expression of compassion and sorrow. He took no joy in pronouncing Jesus’ condemnation. I say that because I hear the same thing in Paul’s words. ‘I am speaking the truth in Christ – I am not lying; my conscience bears me witness in the Holy Spirit – that I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers, my kinsmen according to the flesh.’ And I see it in Luke’s Gospel when Jesus weeps over Jerusalem even as He condemns it. Holy men do not rejoice when people are cursed, even though they know better than most how much it is deserved. Words of cursing need to be delivered with compassion and sorrow.
Well, there you are. We’ve looked at Isaiah’s experience and his three responses. So, what did you hear from the Spirit? What does He want you to take home with you? What does He want you to work on as a result of the preaching of His Word? There was something here for you. What was it?
I am going to build the sermon around Isaiah’s three responses to what he saw and heard. But there are other things going on here. As I read the chapter, notice how physical this experience is. Isaiah’s soul is changed, but Jesus uses shaking buildings, smoke, shouts and hot coals to do that. It was what Isaiah saw, felt, and heard that resulted in such great change. Another thing to notice is that just as the ability to grasp Gospel truths, the ability to ‘get it’, is something that Jesus can give, it is also something that He can take away. Jesus was taking away this ability from the Church in Isaiah’s day. One last thing: remember that the Spirit has something here for you. Listen for it. It may not be as huge as having a vision, but it will be important enough. Listen for it and embrace it.
[Read Isaiah 6.]
As I said, the sermon will be built around Isaiah’s three responses. So, here’s the first thing. ‘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!’ Isaiah sees his sin more clearly than ever before. He cries out not just in fear but in despair. Isaiah knows, in a way that is completely new to him, that he is a sinner. Let’s take a look at this. The first thing here is that Isaiah didn’t come to see his sins more clearly by reviewing the rules. He was able to see and be horrified by the utter evil of his sin because he was confronted with holiness. It was this deeper experience of a holy Jesus that turned the lights on for him. And it was this experience that moved him to the next level of maturity. Right here there is an important lesson. We really do need to know the rules, but that isn’t enough to get us to see ourselves more clearly. What we need is to experience something. We need to experience more of Jesus. There is nothing wrong with reading good books and getting doctrine right. In fact, these things are necessary. They are tools that Jesus uses. But without experiencing more of Jesus such things will profit us nothing. So, consider Moses bowing at the burning bush, Peter falling at Jesus’ feet after the miraculous catch of fish or Job who repents after being confronted by the Almighty. Isaiah, like these, experienced more of Jesus and his life was changed. Growth, real growth that produces real change, comes as a result of experiencing more of Jesus. You don’t have to feel a building shake around you or hear angels shouting, but a Christian needs to grow in his experience of Jesus if he would mature. I know that that is vague. I haven’t told you what to do! I debated saying more. After all, it is something that you need to experience and just be told about. But I will say this much. You don’t control this. Isaiah didn’t plan on what happened to him. The Spirit works when and where He wills. So, you cannot create this. But you can ask for it. Be aware that it will cost you. Knowing Jesus better always does. That’s why Paul wrote this: ‘Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ.’ Experiencing more of Jesus will cost you, but it is so very worth it.
Next, notice what Isaiah reacts to. It’s not merely that he is a sinner. Instead he says, ‘I am a man of unclean lips.’ When the Spirit points out sin He is specific. If you have vague feelings of guilt, that’s from Satan and not the Spirit. Here, the Spirit points to Isaiah’s words. And it’s not that Isaiah used foul language. Holy living is not defined by what to avoid but by what to be like. Words are to do good, to help, to encourage, to correct in love and more. That’s why Jesus gave us the ability to speak. But Isaiah’s words failed at that. And now Isaiah could see his use of words for what it was: damnable sin. That’s why he said, ‘Woe is me! For I am lost…’ Lost means ruined, undone, destroyed, cut off. Isaiah understood that, because of his failure, his unholy mouth, he deserved to be punished. He deserved hell. No minimizing, no excuses. Isaiah had seen holiness.
But Isaiah experienced more than condemning holiness. There was also mercy and grace. Listen again. ‘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.”’ The guilt was removed and his sin atoned for. Jesus has grace for sinners. But understand what just happened. It’s as if Jesus told Isaiah, ‘I will take the burden of your sin, Isaiah. I will suffer what you fear but actually cannot imagine. I will be lost, undone, ruined, destroyed, cut off for you. I will provide forgiveness by the Cross.’ I picture this as a bittersweet moment for Jesus. I see Him as glad to be able to forgive and yet, aware of what that will cost Him.
Now, what’s up with the angel and the coal and touching Isaiah’s lips? Was forgiveness dependant on this? Not at all, but these actions were helpful. What we have here is an example of a sacrament. A sacrament is the result of the uniting of some declaration by Jesus to something physical. Here, the declaration is about forgiveness for Isaiah, and the physical act was the coals touching his lips. What were the results? A scar. What else would you expect when a red hot coal comes in contact with human flesh? But this scar was for Isaiah’s good. For the rest of his life, Isaiah would be reminded of this day and what had happened. His sin concerning his words was forgiven and because of that he is be able to speak holy words on Jesus’ behalf. It’s a sacrament: the uniting of some declaration by Jesus to something physical. This sacrament in Isaiah’s life is not to be repeated. But the sacraments of the washing away of the filth of sin and the feeding of souls are to be repeated in the Church.
Let’s move on. Jesus calls for a volunteer. ‘Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?’ And right away we hear Isaiah respond. ‘Here am I! Send me.’ Isaiah answers the call for a volunteer, but what is he volunteering to do? He doesn’t even know yet. But still, he volunteers. Why? The text doesn’t say. But something else from Paul fits here. ‘…and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised.’ We who follow Jesus no longer live for ourselves but for Him because He has forgiven our sin and that at such cost. It makes sense to me to see Paul’s words as the basis for Isaiah’s willingness to volunteer. I don’t know what Isaiah was thinking, but I would hope that if I were in his situation that I would be thinking, ‘I should be destroyed, undone, ruined right now. But I’m not, and it’s only because of Jesus. My life is His to use in anyway He wants. Blank check.’ So, I hope that I would also shout, ‘Here am I! Send me’, even without knowing what I was volunteering for. I can’t be sure that this was what Isaiah was thinking, but I am sure that this was what Paul was thinking, so I know that this kind of attitude is right. Isaiah has no idea what volunteering to Jesus will require, but it will cost him. Isaiah will have his share of suffering. But, that doesn’t matter. ‘My life is His to use in anyway He wants. Blank check.’ Life for Jesus’ volunteers is hard, but in heaven He will make it all worthwhile.
All of this gets even more interesting when you consider that Jesus actually accepts Isaiah’s offer. Remember, Isaiah is an admitted sinner. Oh yes, he has been forgiven of those sins, but that doesn’t mean that he will never sin again. He was not perfected in holiness on that day. So, he will sin again – be assured of that. And he will probably sin with his lips at some point, a harsh word thrown at his wife or some expression of impatience dumped on his kids. But Jesus is not put off by this. He still accepts Isaiah’s offer. He still gives him this mission. And that should encourage you. You have also been called by Jesus to various tasks. And as you work to fulfill those callings, you will sin – be assured of that. Some of you are surprised or even dismayed when you realize that you have once again sinned in one way or other. But Jesus is not surprised – nor is He dismayed. He knows you are a sinner and accepts you as such. His forgiveness is real. So He extends His call to you with open eyes. So, don’t worry. He won’t have second thoughts about you when you sin. He knows that sin remains. He is, in fact, in the process of getting rid of it. And, in time, He will remove the last speck of sin from your life. But for the time being He is content to use you as you are – sin and all. So, relax. There is grace for sinners. That’s the Gospel.
Let me pause here to remind you of something. Not every part of every sermon is for everyone who hears it. Some of you need to come to grips with this part of the sermon, this thought that Jesus knows all about your sin and He still loves you and will still make use of you. But, there are others of you who need to deal with my earlier thought, seeing your sin more clearly in the light of startling holiness. So, which category do you fit into? It may be that some of you have this all sorted out and that’s fine. But for the rest of you, which part of the sermon do you need to heed?
Now to Isaiah’s third comment. To understand it I need to read again how Jesus describes the mission that He has for him. Listen to what He says. ‘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.”’ Isaiah has not volunteered to be a blessing to the Church but a curse. As he speaks the truth, the people will grow more and more blind and deaf to it. Their ability to understand the Gospel that Isaiah preaches will shrink until it disappears. Isaiah understands what this means. He knows punishment – not discipline – is coming. And so, he asks, ‘How long, O Lord?’ He’s asking how long will the destruction continue. How desperate will it become? Listen to Jesus’ reply. ‘Until cities lie waste without inhabitant, and houses without people, and the land is a desolate waste, and the LORD removes people far away, and the forsaken places are many in the midst of the land. 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.’ Did you catch what Jesus said? The destruction will continue until there is but a small remnant left – a tenth. But even then it’s still not over. The curse will be applied even to the tiny remnant. There will be a remnant of the remnant, so that all that is left of a once-great oak is its stump. There is hope, but only barely. ‘The holy seed is its stump.’
I think that Isaiah’s question is an expression of compassion and sorrow. He took no joy in pronouncing Jesus’ condemnation. I say that because I hear the same thing in Paul’s words. ‘I am speaking the truth in Christ – I am not lying; my conscience bears me witness in the Holy Spirit – that I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers, my kinsmen according to the flesh.’ And I see it in Luke’s Gospel when Jesus weeps over Jerusalem even as He condemns it. Holy men do not rejoice when people are cursed, even though they know better than most how much it is deserved. Words of cursing need to be delivered with compassion and sorrow.
Well, there you are. We’ve looked at Isaiah’s experience and his three responses. So, what did you hear from the Spirit? What does He want you to take home with you? What does He want you to work on as a result of the preaching of His Word? There was something here for you. What was it?
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