Isaiah has found himself in a bad spot. As he gazes around his surroundings, he sees six winged serpents flying around in the air, he sees an enormous throne within an even more enormous temple, and he sees these huge feet right in front of him, covered partially by the hem of a robe (the bottom of which stretches as far as he can see). He knows this is a bad spot. It means one of two things. Either he is dreaming, or he has met his demise and is going to figure out the mystery of the Trinity much sooner than he had expected. I guess a third possibility has something to do with a horror scenario in which Isaiah is asked to serve the Lord by polishing the Lord’s ten mile long sandals with his spit and his hair, this puts a monotonous, postal service spin on the beloved hymn, (sung in bored monotone) “Here I am Lord, it is I Lord.”
Well, the truth is that Isaiah is not dead, and he is not going to be singing hymns of monotony, but this is a horror scenario. He is in the presence of the Lord. Every good Jew knows that only one thing can happen when you come in the presence of the Lord; the Lord will see your sin, the Lord will judge you unclean and unfit and unrighteous, and you will die. When in the presence of eternal truth, the lies have nowhere else to hide. Death is inevitable. And, we are not talking death as in you will be sent to hell so that you can drink beer for eternity with your best buddies who also managed to avoid the dull road to heaven. We are talking about dead as in no longer in existence; wiped out, gone, no traces, no more, eternal nothing.
I remember a fear-filled night as a child, nervously looking around my dark room, waiting for God to execute God’s judgment on me for viciously and excitedly stomping on an entire hill of ants. I took my great ten mile long sneakers (from the ant’s perspective) and stomped mercilessly down on the entire ant hill. Now, I waited in fear for the Lord to take his great ten mile long sandals and stomp on me to make things equal in the world again. I knew that evil would be punished and I waited through the night, fearful of the Lord, the only one who knew my actions, and the only one who would care about the evil performed on the tiny creatures formed by God’s very own hands. I understood Isaiah’s fear. Even children know that you and your sin cannot hide from the Lord. And, when in the presence of the Lord, you and your sin cannot live.
This is why heroes who jump in front of trains or run into fires to save others rarely claim to be great people; they know the truth. They know their own secrets. They know that they too would be judged swiftly. They know, that the Lord knows the truth.
So, Isaiah stands at the feet of the Lord, waiting for the inevitable to happen, he waits for his judgment, he waits for his death. He is a sinful man who cannot remain standing in the presence of truth. He must be destroyed. He is a fowl mouthed man who speaks lies and untruths and complains against God, and one of the six-winged serpents, carrying a long metal rod swoops near to take care of the problem. With eyes shut, hoping that it goes quickly, hoping that it is not too painful, Isaiah’s sinful mouth trembles in anticipation. Finally, after the long wait, his lips are lightly touched by a cleansing fire, like the burn of an antiseptic alcohol rub, and his lips are made clean.
He is not dead. He is clean. The heavenly judge chose forgiveness. In the end, coming in the presence of the Lord does not mean death. His ancestors were wrong. Coming in the presence of the Lord means forgiveness. Rather than death, coming in the presence of the Lord means a new life. It means being chosen for something new and special. The heavenly judge chose him, formally fowl-mouthed Isaiah, for a special task.
Lots of Christians worry about their abilities to be a servant of God. They feel inadequate because they cannot speak eloquently like their pastor, or cannot serve other daily like their retired neighbor, or give freely like their rich uncle, or serve because they are simply too rotten to be used. These Christians feel like they need something more in order for the Triune God to enter their life and use them for something important. Isaiah has discovered that the qualifications for being chosen are quite simple, you must be forgiven. This means that all are ripe to be chosen and sent. This means that all can say “Here am I, send me.” This means that no one need run and hide in shame from the Lord any longer. To be a servant of God, the only qualification is that you be forgiven.
The Lord is sending you out for a special task. It will not be easy. It will not be pretty. It will not be a fun day at Knobble’s. But, that is another subject for another sermon. Today, let it be enough to know that you are chosen as one of God special, forgiven servants.
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