Isaiah—Heeding God's call to speak (Isa 6:1-13)

HINENI: HEEDING THE CALL OF GOD (Isa 6:1-13)

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Dr. Paul Manuel—2002

Life is full of frustrating experiences, situations that try our patience and make us wonder if a particular task is worth the effort.

A teacher was helping one of her kindergarten students put on his boots. He had asked for her aid, and she could understand why. Even with her pulling and his pushing, the boots resisted. By the time the second boot was on, she had worked up a sweat. She almost sobbed when he said, "They're on the wrong feet." She looked and, sure enough, they were. It wasn't any easier pulling the boots off than it was putting them on. She managed to keep her composure, though, as they worked together to get the boots back on—this time on the right feet. He then announced, "These aren't my boots." She bit her tongue rather than scream, "Why didn't you say so?" Once again, she struggled to help him pull the ill-fitting boots off. Then he said, "They're my brother's boots. My mom made me wear them." She didn't know if she should laugh or cry, but she mustered up the grace to wrestle the boots on his feet again. "Now, where are your mittens?" she asked. "I stuffed them in the toes of my boots."

Life is full of frustrating experiences. When such a situation is God's doing, it really makes us wonder, as it probably did for Isaiah—Heeding God's Call to Speak.

 

After Solomon's reign, when the United Kingdom split into northern and southern factions, the rulers of these two entities did not always follow God as they should. In the Northern Kingdom of Israel, all the kings were apostate. Despite repeated prophetic warnings, they forsook the Lord and embraced the gods of the surrounding, pagan nations. In the Southern Kingdom of Judah, those who occupied the throne vacillated between serving the Lord and serving idols. They, too, had the benefit of a prophetic witness, calling for righteousness and devotion to God alone, but not all the Judean kings heeded that call. In both kingdoms, as is often the case (even today), the general populace followed the lead of their rulers. Good kings had a good influence on society; bad kings had a bad influence on

society.

 

The eighth century BC saw the ministry of several prophets: Amos and Hosea in the north, Micah and Isaiah in the south. Isaiah, perhaps the most well-known and well-respected of these divine spokesmen, seems to have had free access to the royal court of Judah and used that access to represent God before the king. Early in the prophet's ministry, perhaps even before he assumed the prophetic mantle, Isaiah had a disturbing vision. Please turn to Isa 6, where the new prophet receives a command from God, and...

 

I. The order is startling (Isa 6:1-8)

Isa 6:1 In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and exalted, and the train of his robe filled the temple. 2 Above him were seraphs, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying. 3 And they were calling to one another: "Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory." 4 At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke. 5 "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 Almighty." 6 Then one of the seraphs flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. 7 With it he touched my mouth and said, "See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for." 8 Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, "Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?" And I said, "Send me!"

To go to all this trouble— summoning Isaiah to the throne room and cleansing the prophet so that he can appear before the Almighty—surely God has something dynamic in mind. So, what is this assignment...?

A. It is to represent the heavenly court.

King Uzziah (Azariah) ruled the Southern Kingdom of Judah for over fifty years, longer than any other king except Manasseh (fifty-five years). During that period he fortified the defenses around Jerusalem, strengthened the Judean military, controlled the major trade routes, and extended his kingdom's dominion over hostile neighbors. He was a righteous king, and Judah prospered under his governance. Unfortunately, material prosperity brought with it a spiritual laxity, as people looked more and more to their own concerns and less and less to God's concerns. Compounding this spiritual apostasy is the political uncertainty that inevitably arises whenever a king dies, as happens with the death of Uzziah.

• Will the transition of power to a new monarch be peaceful or fraught with strife?
• Will the next king be able to maintain the gains of the previous administration, or will corrupt officials undermine them?
• Will Judah's enemies remain inactive, or will they attempt to exploit the new government's preoccupation with internal affairs?

These are all legitimate concerns and are probably on Isaiah's mind as he contemplates the future without Uzziah on Judah's throne. All of them, however, disappear in the light of the divine presence, as God enables the prophet to see things from His perspective.

 

He gives Isaiah a glimpse of the heavenly sanctuary, and it is more than the prophet can handle. Contaminated by his own sins as well as by contact with the sins of others, Isaiah realizes that his sudden appearance in the presence of a holy God is certain to spell the prophet's doom, "for no one may see [Him] and live" (Exod 33:20b). Only the rapid intervention of a seraph prevents Isaiah's imminent death.

 

What would you rather not do, if you could help it? What experiences would you be quite content to miss?

• Bungie-jumping off the Brooklyn Bridge?
• Being Mike Tyson's sparring partner?
• Getting a root canal without anesthesia?

What do you fear most?

• Heights?
• Snakes?
• Your mother-in-law?

Whatever you would rather avoid, you would gladly welcome rather than be in the presence of a holy God . You may think of Him as your friend, but that is only at a safe distance. There is nothing more terrifying than for a sinful man to appear before a sinless God. Someday, that will happen, and only the intervention of a savior will prevent your imminent death.

 

Isaiah barely has a chance to recover his composure, when he hears God ask for a volunteer. Now, anyone with a lick of common sense knows that you should find out what the assignment is before you agree to take it. After all, it might be inconvenient, or expensive, or dangerous. Get the details first, then decide. Not Isaiah—he just throws up his hand right away, like some little kid on the playground, hoping to get picked for the team. Why does he do that? There are probably several reasons, not the least of which is that serving the Lord is the highest and most rewarding assignment anyone can have. Isaiah knows that no matter what the inconvenience, no matter what the expense, no matter what the danger, the call to represent God is worth any sacrifice.

 

There are a few passages in scripture that offer a glimpse of the convocation between God and angelic beings in heaven.

• Gen 1 quotes God, saying to them, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness" (v. 26a).
• 1 Kgs 22 describes "the LORD sitting on his throne with all the host of heaven standing around him on his right and on his left" (v. 19b = 2 Chr 18:18b) as they discuss the fate of King Ahab.
• Job 1 tells of a "day the angels came to present themselves before the LORD," when He asks Satan's opinion about a particular saint (v. 6a = 2:1 a).

Here in Isa 6, the prophet not only witnesses that convocation (so also Oswalt 1986:185), he receives a commission to represent the heavenly court, and...

B. It is to render the heavenly verdict.

As we read on, we will see that Judah's sin has invoked God's censure, and that Isaiah is to bring this divine condemnation to the people.

 

There are at least two lessons we might draw at this point. The first lesson is about the problems of life. Just as events in Isaiah's day raised a number of concerns for him, so events now may raise a number of concerns for you and may even threaten to overwhelm you...

• Doubt, as you wonder if today's youth—so preoccupied with their own interests—will become the leaders needed to face tomorrow's problems;
• Despair, as you see the fluctuating stock market and watch helplessly while your savings or retirement dwindles to less than what you originally invested;
• Fear, as you hear more strident threats from Muslim terrorists and assume that it is only a matter of time before the violence touches your own life.

These are all legitimate concerns and may be on your mind as you contemplate an uncertain future. Just like Isaiah's concerns, however, all of them disappear in the light of God's presence, as He enables you to see things from heaven's perspective. Then, like Isaiah, you realize that what is most important to God is what should also be most important to you.

 

The second lesson is about the potential of life. Just as Isaiah's sinfulness should have signaled his death in God's presence, so your sinfulness should have the same effect. Wondrously, however, God's grace provides atonement that, like Isaiah, remits your sin against Him, repairs your separation from Him, and recommends your service to Him. All that is left for you to do is answer His call with "Hineni."

 

When God commissions Isaiah, the order is startling. That God would deign to employ someone as sinful as Isaiah is amazing. The assignment is difficult, though, and...

 

II. The outcome is somber (Isa 6:9-13).

Isa 6:9 He said, "Go and tell this people: "Be ever hearing, but never understanding; be ever seeing, but never perceiving.' 10 Make the heart of this people calloused; make their ears dull and close their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed."

11 Then I said, "For how long, O Lord?" And he answered: "Until the cities lie ruined and without inhabitant, until the houses are left deserted and the fields ruined and ravaged, 12 until the LORD has sent everyone far away and the land is utterly forsaken. 13 And though a tenth remains in the land, it will again be laid waste. But as the terebinth and oak leave stumps when they are cut down, so the holy seed will be the stump in the land."

Despite Uzziah's personal devotion to God, he did not deal with the people's apostasy. When he assumed the throne, the king failed to destroy the high places, those idolatrous, hilltop shrines that dotted the Judean countryside. As a result, "the people continued to offer sacrifices and burn incense there" (2 Kgs 15:4) instead of worshipping the true God in Jerusalem. What attracted people to these false deities was the convenience of not having to travel to the capital and the relief of not having to tolerate any intrusive restrictions on the way they lived. Unlike the true God, who expected His people to obey His laws, rules that touched all areas of life, false gods made no such demands. The people who worshipped them could behave however they wanted when they left the local shrine. There was no connection between the religion of idolatry and daily life, no obligation to be righteous. After living like this for a while, despite repeated prophetic calls to repent, the people's hearts have become unresponsive to God. Now God will address the matter through Isaiah's preaching, and...

A. It will contend against the nation's rebellion.

What is missing in this prophetic assignment? ...There is no mention of repentance. From the outset, God tells Isaiah that people will ignore his message. He can talk until he is blue in the face, and it will not make a bit of difference. In fact, Isaiah's ministry will have the opposite effect. Instead of softening hearts, it will harden them. Instead of realizing their repentance, it will reinforce their rebellion.

 

Can you think of another instance where God responded this way, where a person hardened his heart and God confirmed him in that position by hardening it further? ...Pharaoh hardened his heart several times to Moses' request for Israel's freedom,'° despite some miraculous disincentives. Finally, God confirmed Pharaoh in his rebellion by adding divine reinforcement.

 

There is a point at which rebellion becomes irreversible. When people become so entrenched in their sinful behavior that they refuse to repent, it is only a matter of time before they exhaust God's patience and endure His wrath. Judean society is apparently on the road to certain doom, and when Isaiah asks how long he must persist in this vain effort at reformation, God replies that...

B. It will continue until the nation's destruction.

Who in his right mind would undertake such a pointless and frustrating task, one destined from the start to fail? This is why Isaiah should have asked God about the assignment before he volunteered for the assignment. This should also be a lesson for you. If God asks you to do something, do not agree until you have completed a proper feasibility study to determine if that task is reasonable. This is all the more important because, unlike what God told Isaiah, God will probably not tell you how it will turn out. It is up to you, therefore, to decide if the job meets your prerequisites for success. Why inconvenience yourself for nothing? Right?

 

Wrong! There are at least three lessons we might draw at this point, all of them correctives to improper expectations.

• First, God does not assign tasks for your personal satisfaction but for His sovereign purpose.

• So, when He asks what seems unappealing to you, remember that yours is not to challenge the job but to jump at the chance.

• Second, God does not measure the value of your service by the level of your success.

• So, when He asks what seems unreasonable to you, remember that being faithful is more important than being successful.

• Third, God does not base His reward on the size of the job He gives but on the effort to the job you give.

• So, when He asks what seems unimportant to you, remember that it is to your benefit to do your best.

God gives Isaiah a particularly difficult and discouraging task. Without hesitation or complaint, in fact, with alacrity, the prophet accepts what is surely to be a frustrating experience. What motivates him to do this? ...He knows what few of God's people truly grasp—that serving the Lord is the highest and most rewarding assignment one can have. This is Isaiah—Heeding God's Call to Speak.

For the Bibliography and Endnotes see the pdf here.