Thursday, September 10

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 2015

Isaiah 6:1–7:25

2 Corinthians 11:16–33

Psalm 54:1–7

Proverbs 23:1–3

 

 

In Isaiah 6:1, we read about Isaiah’s amazing vision:  “In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on the throne, high and exalted, and the train of his robe filled the temple.”  Later, the vision included angels singing, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty;/ the whole earth is full of his glory.” (6:3)

 

In short, Isaiah stood in awe and respect of the holiness of God and wondered if he could even remain in God’s presence:  “Woe is me!  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.” (6:5)

 

Yet, God graciously cleanses Isaiah’s lips through sending a live coal from the altar with the promise:  “Your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.”  With this recognition of his right standing before God, Isaiah boldly volunteers to serve God:  “Here am I.  Send me!” (6:8)  Isaiah receives a message of judgment, which he then relays to his people.

 

We may marvel at Isaiah’s vision and think that he had received a unique calling, but these thoughts often have the tendency of causing us to “freeze.”  Having been redeemed by the blood of Christ and having received His forgiveness, we sometimes exchange Isaiah’s words with others:  “Woe is me!  I am unqualified!  For, even though I know the King and have experienced His presence in my life, I am a person who doesn’t know enough or have enough charisma to make a difference among a people of unclean lips.”

 

Several texts in the New Testament dispel this notion of being unqualified, however.  First, Acts 4:12,13 explains that the bold apostles declared and stood behind the powerful Name of Jesus in the face of the Sanhedrin’s opposition.  Acts 4:13 records:  “When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and took note that these men had been with Jesus.”  The apostles’ transformation from cowardice at His trial to the courage of Pentecost and beyond had emerged from some supernatural power.

 

In 2 Corinthians 3:4–6, Paul highlights the competence that comes through the Holy Spirit:  “Such confidence we have through Christ before God.  Not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence comes from God.  He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant—not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.”

 

Then, in James 5:16–18, the author indicates the potential behind the prayers of the saints:  “Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed.  The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective….  Elijah was a human being, even as we are.  He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years.  Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced its crops.”

 

In Christ, we have freedom and confidence to approach the throne of grace (Hebrews 4:14–16).  We have received life so that we may share the Good News with others.  We are each gifted in one way or another to serve as a blessing in the lives of those around us.  Let us rejoice in God’s choosing us to love others through us!

 

Lord God, thank You for making us competent as ministers of the New Covenant through the power of the Holy Spirit.  Thank You for sending Your Son to take our place on the Cross, making us fit to serve You.  Bring us into the path of those who need Your love and Your touch.  Help us to demonstrate Your awesome character and love to others.  Take away our fears and hesitations in the remembrance of Your awesome grace and sovereignty.  In Jesus’s Name, amen.

 

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