"Isaiah's Vision"

Text: Isaiah 6:1-8

Introduction:
What was your condition when you came into this website today? When Isaiah went into the Temple he was burdened with all kind of anxieties, grief, and sense of loss. What about you?
When he left the Temple, he was a different man. All the anxieties and grief vanished, he had a lightened heart, a spring in his step and a new resolve..."Here I am Lord send me".
My prayer for you today is the same. I pray that you leave here a different person than when you first clicked on. I pray you will have a lighter heart and a new song in your heart and a new resolve..."here I am Lord use me".
What made the difference? Isaiah had a "Vision of God"!

THE REVELATION OF THE ETERNAL (vs. 1)
In verse one we see the time of the vision...the when and the why.

A. "It was in the year that King Uzziah died" the earthly king was laid in the grave but Isaiah the prophet saw that the true King of Israel was not dead but very much alive and well and seated on His throne.
if the throne of Israel had not been empty, he would not have seen the throne of God in Heaven. And so it os with our losses, with all our sorrows, and all our pains and all our disappointments...they have a purpose...to reveal to us the Throne of God.
God never empties places in our homes, in our hearts, in our nation, or in our churches, without being ready to fill them. Sorrows and disappointments and losses are meant to prepare us for the vision of God.
He sometimes has to purge the inward eye in order for us to see Him more clearly.
(When the leaves drop from the Hugh oak trees in the fall, we can see the blue skies more clearly.)
In verse 13 God even compares His people to trees. Sometimes the trees have to be cut down, (removed) so that a new tree can grow from the old stump.
Here God is explaining His plan for a Holy remnant of faithful followers. (A tenth)
god is merciful, even when He judges...God promises to preserve His people. But, god's highest purpose is to lead us to Him.
When Uzziah died, the King became visible!
Is that perhaps what our sorrows, pains, losses, and disappointments do for us? They reveal Him to us more clearly. "Him who is the same Yesterday, Today, and Forever!"
It was because the earthly king was dead that the Living Heavenly King was revealed!
Isaiah became more conscious and aware of God's presence. "I saw the Lord". God came to Isaiah in the manifestation of His Kingly Power, because the throne of Judah was vacated or empty.
So remember, when losses come to us, he draws near. In all our hurts and pains, He is our Healer. in all our grief's, He  brings comfort. he is our all in all. he is everything we have need of.

So dear friends, let us learn God's purpose in empting hearts, and chairs, and homes. he empties them that He may fill them with Himself.
He takes us into the darkness in order that he may bring us out into the land where "God, Himself, is the sun and moon and light".
When Uzziah dies, our hearts shall see the King. Oh the revelation of the eternal, that's what we need. We need a new vision of God. We need to see the King!
John 14: Philip said to Jesus, "Lord, show us the Father and it will be sufficient....Everything will be all right, just show us the Father."
 

We need to pray for a fresh vision of God. Jesus, show us the Father in all His Glory. Jesus Christ is the King of Glory!

What made the difference for Isaiah? Who went from a "Scribe" in the palace to a "Prophet". It was a vision or revelation of the King!!
if our eyes could only behold the King. Like John and his vision of the Aisle of Patmos; "If we could see the King on all His splendor and glory and royalty, then He will lay His hands on us and say, "Do not be afraid for I am the first and the last. I am the Living One. i was dead and I am alive for ever more. And I have the keys of Death and Hades." (Rev. 1:9-18)
 

JESUS SHOW US THE KING!

"The recognition of our sin" (vs 5-7)
Following the revelation of His Holiness, is the recognition of our sin. If we truly see God, we shall see our sins. It was important for Isaiah to see God in His Holiness.

For when we recognize how Great and Holy our God is, we realize how sinful we are. We need to see and realize how Awesome and Holy our God is, we realize how sinful we are.

Whe you get GOD into your life, you will see like Peter in the Upper Room, that not only do your feet need to be washed but "ALL OF ME", "Wash all of me Lord, my hands, my feet, and my head. I am un-cleaned Lord"

In Closing:
 It was not "Joy" that sprang from Isaiah's heart when he saw the King upon His throne, heard the proclamation of His name. "HOLY HOLY HOLY IS THE LORD". I am un-cleaned Lord, I am ruined!
We all so need to discover God's Holiness. Holiness means..."Morally perfect, pure, and set apart from ALL sin." Why do we need to discover God's Holiness? Because our daily sins and frustrations, society's pressure and our short comings reduce and narrow our view of God. Most of the time we live in a distorted view of God.  We need Isaiah's vision of God as "High and Lifted Up" to empower us to deal with our problems and concerns. God's moral perfection, properly seen, will purify us from sin, cleanse our minds from our problems, and enable us to worship and serve God more effectively.

Isaiah's motto for his life can become your motto for life..."HERE I AM LORD, SEND ME...HERE I AM LORD TAKE ME - ALL OF ME"