Personal Revival and Evangelism

Text: Isaiah 6:1-8

Introduction

  1. The need of the hour. Highlight the dearth of labourers in the harvest field.
  2. Context and occasion – death of an earthly king. Uzziah died approx. 740 B.C. after a reign of 52 years. Overall, he was a good and godly king but he suffered from a common human failing; success went to his head! His downfall is described in 2 Chronicles 26:16. (V. Buksbazen)

  3. “Isaiah 6 begins with an empty throne in Israel but an occupied throne in heaven.” (J.M. Riddle)

    The earthly king was dead but the Eternal King was still on the throne.

  4. There are four clear steps we can trace in the passage that led Isaiah down the path of personal revival and toward usefulness for God.

I. Isaiah’s Vision (Vs. 1-4)

We know from John 12:41 that this vision was of the preincarnate Christ.

God often gave His men glimpses of His glory when He called them to special service.

Look at what Isaiah saw!

He was confronted with:

A. The Highness of God (Vs. 1)

Isaiah saw God as He is – exalted far above all.

1. Exalted in His Sovereignty (Vs. 1a)

a. The whole picture here is that of a King on his throne (See Vs. 5). It is a scene of indescribably grandeur, splendour, majesty, sovereignty and Divine power.

b. The Hebrew word for ‘Lord’ here is ‘Adonai’, a title that emphasises God’s absolute authority and sovereignty.

c. We need to be restored to a high view of the God we serve in a day when most of Christendom is trying to “lower” God down to our level.

d. Eph. 4:6

“One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.”

e. John 3:31

“He that cometh from above is above all: he that is of the earth is earthly, and speaketh of the earth: he that cometh from heaven is above all.”

f. Isaiah 57:15

“For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.”

2. Exalted in His Majesty (Vs. 1b)

a. The word ‘train’ comes from the root meaning “to hang down”. A train is an extension of a robe or gown that is drawn along behind the person in a formal procession.

“It is said that the importance and glory of oriental monarchs was displayed by the extent of their garments.” (Riddle)

b. Illustration: A bride’s train.

c. The Lord’s train filling the temple highlights his infinite majesty and sovereignty and King of kings.

d. Psalm 104:1-2

“Bless the LORD, O my soul. O LORD my God, thou art very great; thou art clothed with honour and majesty. Who coverest thyself with light as with a garment: who stretchest out the heavens like a curtain:”

B. The Holiness of God (Vs. 2-4)

The holiness of God is the major emphasis of the vision.

The holiness of God is emphasised in:

1. The Seraphims’ Posture (Vs. 2)

a. The word ‘seraphim’ has the idea of “burning one”. The same Hebrew word is translated ‘fiery’ in every other place in the O.T.

These creatures shine and glow in the holy presence of Almighty God.

b. These pure, heavenly creatures reveal a posture of profound awe and reverence for their God. Even though they are sinless, they cover their faces and feet in God’s presence. Even as sinless, holy seraphs, the holiness of their God so impacts them that they will not gaze directly upon Him.

c.

“With two wings they covered their faces, in awe that dared not gaze at the glory. With two they covered their feet, in acknowledgement of the lowliness of their glorious service. With twain they were flying or hovering. The verbs are in the imperfect tense, describing what they were doing continually.” (W.E. Vine)

d. Where is the holy awe and fear of God in our day?

The God we serve is Adonai, Almighty, All-powerful, Before all things, Beautiful, Creator, Everlasting, Ever Present, El Shaddai (God Almighty), Elohim (God of power & Majesty, Creator), God, Glorious, Holy, High, Immutable, Immortal, Invisible, Indescribable, Unchangeable, I AM, Just, Jehovah – Jehovah Jireh (The Lord will provide), Jehovah Rapha (The Lord who heals), Jehovah Nissi (The Lord our Banner), Jehovah Shalom (The Lord is Peace), Jehovah Raah (The Lord our Shepherd), Jehovah Tsidkenu (The Lord our Righteousness), Jehovah Sabaoth (The Lord of Hosts), Jehovah Mekoddishkem (The Lord Who Sanctifies You), Jehovah Shammah (The Lord is There), King – King of Israel, King Everlasting, King of kings and Lord of lords, Marvellous, Majestic, Never Changing, Omnipotent (all-powerful), Omnipresent (everywhere present), Omniscient (knows all things), Only Wise God, Perfect, Pure, Powerful, Potentate, Provider, Ruler, Redeemer, Self-existent, Self-sufficient, Sovereign, Sinless, the Same yesterday and today and forever, Victor over sin, death and the grave.

2. The Seraphims’ Praise (Vs. 3-4)

a. The Audience of their Praise (Vs. 3a)

Their cry of praise is directed:

i. To the Lord. They are magnifying God’s holiness in His presence. Compare with Revelation 4:6-9.

ii. To each other. Notice the emphasis here on the fact that they were crying out to each other as if to keep the truth of God’s holiness continually before each other.

iii. Remember! Singing in the church is to the Lord and to each other. It is for the exaltation of the Saviour and the edification of the saints. It is for Christ and Christians.

See Eph. 5:18-19; Col. 3:16.

b. The Anthem of their Praise (Vs. 3b)

i. The Holy Character of God

“Holy, Holy, Holy is the LORD of hosts”.

  1. The holiness of God is the focus of their cries of adoration in God’s presence. Of all attributes of God, this is the attribute that captivates the hearts of these holy beings.

“And the four beasts had each of them six wings about him; and they were full of eyes within: and they rest not day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come.” (Rev. 4:8)

  1. Holiness is the only attribute of God that is repeated in this manner in the Bible. There are many truths about God in the Bible, and we need to cherish them all, but God’s holiness could be called the chief of his attributes.
  2. The emphasis of the vision is on the absolute purity of God. Holiness speaks of the “otherness” of God and his “aboveness” over all His creation. There is none like Him in all the universe. He is God alone.
  3. The vision made a huge impact on Isaiah. Interestingly, his favourite designation of God was “the Holy One” or “the Holy One of Israel” (30 times in Isaiah).
  4. If you could have asked Isaiah “what is God like”, he would have immediately said without hesitation,

“God is Holy!”

  1. Psalm 99:1-3

“The LORD reigneth; let the people tremble: he sitteth between the cherubims; let the earth be moved. The LORD is great in Zion; and he is high above all the people. Let them praise thy great and terrible name; for it is holy.”

ii. The Glory of God

“the whole earth is full of his glory”.

In Creation, we get a glimpse of God’s glory if we have eyes to see. See the crash of ocean waves, the wind rustling through the trees, the stars twinkling in the night sky, and you will get some sense of the infinity and immensity of God.

See Psalm 19:1 and Romans 1:20.

c. The Aftershock from their Praise (Vs. 4)

i. There was a shaking of the house (Vs. 4a).

ii. There was a filling of the house (Vs. 4b). This is the cloudy smoke so often associated with the Holy Presence of God in the Bible. The house of God was filled with the glory of God.

II. Isaiah’s Confession (Vs. 5)

Note the word ‘then’ in Vs. 5 & 6.

When Isaiah saw God for who He was, he saw himself for what he was.

A. I am Undone (Vs. 5a)

  1. The word ‘undone’ is a powerful word meaning “to be destroyed, done away with, perish, be cut off”.

Isaiah gained a deep sense of his nothingness and unworthiness in God’s presence. He came to the end of himself.

Self was put to death in the presence of God, not inflated in the presence of God.

  1. This was a death-to-self experience for Isaiah and was the key to his subsequent usefulness for God.

“At the cross I see that I’m ended, not mended” (Roy Hession).

B. I am Unclean (Vs. 5b)

  1. “I am a man of unclean lips”.
  2. “I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips”.
  3. Note that it was the sight of God on His throne that produced this contrition and confession in Isaiah:

“for mine eyes have seen the king, the LORD of hosts.”

  1. Summary: We will not be truly usable for God until we have a sense of our corruptness, nothingness and unworthiness to say or do anything for God.
  2. Gospel application: The first step to salvation is to admit you are an unclean sinner before God, then plead for cleansing.

III. Isaiah’s Cleansing (Vs. 6-7)

Take note of the second ‘then’, revealing the blessed outcome from Isaiah’s confession.

Confession brought cleansing and ultimately equipping.

A. It was Fast Cleansing (Vs. 6a)

  1. One of the Seraphims, undoubtedly sent by God, flies to Isaiah with a live coal from the altar.
  2. The swiftness of the answer reveals the grace of God and His readiness to cleanse in response to true contrition and confession.

B. It was Fiery Cleansing (Vs. 6b)

  1. This coal was taken from the altar of sacrifice.
  2. Cleansing is available for salvation.
  3. Cleansing is also available for sanctification and service (1 John 1:9).
  4. Confession and cleansing take place in God’s holy presence.

C. It was Focused Cleansing (Vs. 7)

  1. Notice that the cleansing was applied to the specific area of need.
  2. The word ‘purged’ comes from the Hebrew word translated repeatedly as ‘atonement’ in the Old Testament.
  3. God’s men need God’s special touch on their lips to give them the words to speak and the power with which to speak them.
  4. Jeremiah 1:9

“Then the LORD put forth his hand, and touched my mouth. And the LORD said unto me, Behold, I have put my words in thy mouth.”

IV. Isaiah’s Commission (Vs. 8-9)

A. The Sequence leading to the Call (Vs. 8a)

  1. There is a definite link between personal revival and a call to service.
  2. Notice that the commission did not come until there had first been a deeper work of spiritual revival in Isaiah.
  3. Andrew Murray wisely observed:

“Great advances in missions are always connected with a deep revival of spiritual life, and a higher devotion to the Lord Jesus.”

  1. Why are so few hearing the call to preach in our day?

Because we are laughing about our sin instead of confessing our sin.

  1. Personal testimony: Rededicating my life to God’s call came after a season of personal revival.

B. The Sensitivity to the Call (Vs. 8b)

  1. Isaiah is now allowed the privilege of hearing the voice of the Triune God speaking:

“Whom shall I send and who will go for us?”

  1. That same Divine question comes ringing down to us today.

C. The Surrender to the Call (Vs. 8c-9)

  1. God would not force Isaiah.
  2. Isaiah responds with those now-famous words:

“Here am I; send me.”

  1. You can’t say:

“Here am I send me”

until you have first confessed:

“I am undone and unclean”.

Conclusion

  1. What is your view of God? Have you lost the awe, wonder and reverence?
  2. What is your view of yourself? Do you see yourself for who you are in God’s presence? Are you God-reliant or self-reliant?
  3. Will you, like Isaiah, surrender to God and say:

“Here am I send me?”