Tuesday, December 18

ISAIAH

Isaiah 6

Isaiah, the son of Amoz, was a great prophet about 700 years before Christ was born. His name literally means, “The Lord Saves.” He was a man who loved the Lord and walked in His ways, and yet, he also knew that that walk was ongoing and would not be complete until life’s end. He had already been called by God to preach, but now, he was being called to go deeper. Isaiah said it well: “In the year King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and exalted, and the train of His robe filled the temple. Above Him were seraphs…calling to one another, ‘Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord Almighty, the whole earth is full of His glory.’ At the sound of their voices, the door posts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke. ‘Woe to me!’ I cried, ‘I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord God Almighty.’ Then one of the seraphs flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. With it, he touched my mouth and said, ‘See, this has touched your lips, your guilt is taken away and your sin is atoned for.’”

Ruined? Unclean lips? Yes—even though he was already serving the Lord, he was now being called to see and preach some deeper things. In humility, he was more than willing to do God’s bidding—and not because he had the abilities to do so, but because he was available. What would be his new message?—“Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son and will call Him Immanuel.” (7:14) And, “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on His shoulders, and He will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end.”(9:6,7) The deeper walk Isaiah was being called into involved the coming Messiah and how that Savior would indwell each of His people.

At the root of all this is humility. Hebrews 11:6 tells us to seek the Lord God and believe He is, even without seeing. The call is to believe we are nothing and God is everything—Pure, Righteous, Holy, Good, Judge, and King! The call is to believe we have nothing, for God owns it all, including us. He was and is before everything, even before the earth was formed. We must first believe we are nothing and God is all in all. He loved us first—allow Him to be your Lord and King, to rule your life. Admit you are a sinner and have fallen short of God’s glory—repent of your sin and allow God’s life to live through you, and others will see Him alone. God is looking for availability, not ability. When we come to the end of ourselves, that is when God will plant the seeds of His life, righteousness, humility, and love within. Praise God—changed into His likeness!

~Nancy Faust