The Unchanging God in an Ever-Changing World (Isaiah 6:1-8)

as I was thinking about what to share this morning and preparing for it I was reminded of a story that I heard many years ago the story is told of a young man who was aspiring to be a speaker and then he gets this opportunity finally to address a large audience at a local church so as he was preparing his talk he was terrified of the idea of addressing a large audience that Sunday he goes to an older gentleman who's been in ministry for a very long time for advice he says sir you've been in ministry for so long what advice would you give a younger man who was aspiring to be a minister of God's Word how do I overcome this fear and how do I address people and capture their attention he said son the first three minutes of any talk is very crucial you either capture the attention of your audience in the first three minutes if not you lose your audience for the rest of your talk and the young a man listened intently and nodded and he was waiting for the older man to give him some more advice as to how he could capture the attention of his audience then the older man said you could begin with a story something like this well I spent many years in the arms of a woman who was not my wife and the young a man was jolted he thought to a moment this is an older minister who's been in town for a very long time who's been in ministry for quite a bit of time and what did he just say he's been in the arms of a woman who is not my wife and then as the younger man was you know perplexed the older man says that was my mother the younger man thought that's a brilliant idea let me do the same so the next Sunday as he was getting up on the platform waiting to address the audience he holds on to the railings he looks at the audience who were intently looking at him and he begins by saying well I spent many years in the arms of a woman who's not my wife and the audience are all leaned forward because they are in church and what is this gentleman who is aspiring to be to be a minister what did he just say and then the young of man didn't expect such a response that he forgot what to say he said ah for the life of me I cannot remember her name this morning I hope I remember the text of what I have to share with you we live in truly unprecedented times one-third of the human population is under some form of lockdown that is about 2.6 billion people major sporting events religious gatherings public meetings business meetings big product launches have all been postponed indefinitely our hospitals are flooded with people our streets are empty our airports are shutting down prominent businesses are closed educational institutions are closed celebrations and festivities are put on hold in other words in some way or other our lives have come to a halt it is not business as usual if you look back into history this is not the first time humanity is confronted with a crisis of this magnitude the many wars that have been fought through the centuries the spread of diseases like influencer malaria natural disasters like the tsunami that hit the Indian subcontinent in 2004 2010 earthquake in Haiti or the 2017 hurricane Harvey that hit San Jose in Texas human history is full of countless suffering but unlike many other events in human history the present crisis that we are confronted with is dramatically different it's scale is much larger its impact is global it affects our lives at multiple levels it has multiple layers multiple dimensions it affects us economically psychologically physically in large parts of the world there is widespread lockdown and so individual liberties are curtailed and rightly so the implications of these restrictions are manifold that you know people are unable to go out people are isolated those directly affected by the virus are isolated from those who are near and dear to them at a time when they want to be near their loved ones with restrictions on public gatherings we are unable to grieve and celebrate together also the present crisis demands the coordinated efforts of multiple departments in the government bureaucracy politicians police departments medical teams you name it so it affects your life at multiple levels it is multiple layers it involves multiple departments working together its impact is global so this is a unique crisis in a certain sense in times of crisis such as this when the soul is troubled and the heart is restless when the urges deeply felt to look for reasons what does the scripture have to say can an ancient text speak to our present crisis can it speak to our need our fears and our worries let me assure you this morning that scripture is both timely and timeless it speaks to the wounded soul comforting the hurting reviving the soul encouraging the timid and imparting wisdom for life this morning I would like to draw your attention to a very familiar passage in Isaiah chapter 6 reading from verse 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 above him verse cereth's each with six wings with two wings they covered their faces with two they covered their feet and with two they were flying and they were calling to one another holy holy holy is the Lord Almighty the whole earth is full of his glory at the sound of their voices the door posed and thresholds shook and the Temple was filled with smoke 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 then one of the Seraphim II with a life coal in his hand which he had taken with tongs from the altar with it he touched my mouth and said see this has touched your lips your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for then I heard the voice of the Lord saying whom shall I send and who will go for us and I said here am I send me let's bow our heads in prayer Eternal Father thou changest not and we come to your holy throne this morning thank you for your reminders in your word thank you for your word that is timely and timeless would you speak to our hearts this morning may your voice be heard O Lord and your name be hallowed in Christ's name Amen the opening verse gives us the historical context in which Isaiah has a vision of God in the year King Uzziah died this is very very significant it's not half a certainty written in the text it is intently written with a specific purpose in mind it's giving us the context in which Isaiah has this vision of God King Isaiah was a great king he was king of Judah he reigned for 52 years he was a very wise and powerful King he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord he had a large army well trained an organized one under his leadership Judah spread its influence far and wide he led successful military campaigns against the ammonites the Philistines the Arabs capturing recapturing the city of elif and this was very significant because illa tha's a seaport a port city so that gave Judah great prominence in the region as a significant player in international trade and commerce under his reign Judah prospered Judah was peaceful and there was political stability everything was so smooth and it was going well and then suddenly Uzziah dies all good things must come to an end as the Indian poet sano Birkin so eloquently wrote the magic fates too fast the scent of summer never last but the nights turn Hollow and vast but nothing remains nothing lasts change is a fundamental feature of our world the world as we know it is subject to change and decay all material things change over time it was not long before the coronavirus that we were all making plans some to travel to exotic locations in the world some to buy some to sell some were planning their weddings but it all came to a halt when Nations declared lock down change is an inevitable part of life and part of succeeding in life is adapting to change not all change is bad some changes are good some are planned whereas others are not expected they are you know unpredictable some are unexpected some are anticipated some are predicted whereas others are implemented or not implemented or whatever in some form or fashion change will happen and it can affect us at various levels it can affect our health our economy our our culture communities and relationships our world today is constantly changing now more than ever we are aware of it the numbers are constantly changing the number of debts the number of new cases the economic variables are constantly changing they are all in a state of flux in the midst of chaos and uncertainty when we find ourselves lost looking for answers where and to whom do we turn to in the midst of any significant change we always tend to look for something familiar something that hasn't changed let me give you an example imagine if you grow up in a remote part of the world and for the first time in your life after many years you get the opportunity of visiting the city of your birth now when you get co2 to the city you want to go to your childhood home the home that you grew up in how do you find your way to your childhood home obviously in our day we have Google Maps but what if Google Maps Maps was not an option in that remote part of the world we look for familiar landmarks like shops parks roads streets restaurants but what if those shops and restaurants and parks that we visited frequently as a child were all demolished and what if the the names of the streets and roads were changed and what if our childhood home that we longed to see has been remodeled in the absence of a point of reference we are lost we cannot find our way how do we navigate life's challenges in the absence of an unchanging point of reference now here in Isaiah chapter 6 we see that King Uzziah who ruled for 52 long years is no more someone else will soon take his throne if you look at the history of Israel it's interesting to note that godly Kings would lead the nation in accordance to God's commandments and therefore would continue to enjoy divine blessings and divine favor whereas ungodly Kings would lead the nation of Israel astray into idolatry and following that you know all that happens the turmoil and the trouble the exile and things would get pretty bad now with the passing of King Uzziah his son Jotham is most likely to take his thrown because he's been co-regent with desire the last part of his life but now with the passing of Uzziah will show them remain faithful to Yahweh will he follow in the way of the Lord or like many other kings before him will he also refused to follow the precepts of the Lord how will he Shepherd the people of God also in the neighborhood at the time the threat was imminent tiegler Plesser 3 the Assyrian Emperor had established himself as a mighty military Conqueror as long as you Zia was on the throne there was no imminent threat for Judah but now since you saya is removed from the throne or is removed from the scene I should say the threat can no longer be ignored the danger is closed in such a time of uncertainty God says to Isaiah let me take you up into heaven and let me show you who really is on the throne the king was dead but let me show you who really is the king my eyes have seen the king the Lord Almighty I saw the Lord it is fascinating to me at a time of crisis God doesn't come to Isaiah and tell him Isaiah tell me about your feelings of a sires death rather God draws Isaiah's attention to himself showing him who truly is on the throne many times in our life the temptation is to look at our problem and look intently and deeper and deeper into the problem and try to resolve it in our own strength and then when we fail we look around us but the solution lies not in looking deeper into the problem the solution looks like the solution lisen looking beyond the problem to the one who was seated on the throne I saw the Lord in 2014 when I was diagnosed with a very rare and aggressive form of cancer I was a New York City preparing for the next steps of treatment chemotherapy and radiation I had completed one surgical procedure prior to that I wrestled with God on my knees I said lord I don't understand the thing and I'm come and I kept complaining to him in prayer I said Lord all that went wrong in my life look at it Lord my life is a mess and the Lord said keep going Sam and I kept going and he said Sam you have something that many others don't I said yes I do Lord that's what I've been telling you all along he said Sam there is still something that you have many others don't I said help me Lord I don't know what that is he said you have me the joy of knowing him the delight of his presence the comfort of his word the sweetness of his whisper overpowers overcomes every grief and pain and fear and all else we are indeed blessed people when you see him I don't necessarily mean that you have a visual experience of God but when you see him through your inner eyes of understanding it will take all your breath away for nothing on earth can prepare you for that sight you know that God Isaiah sees is not a figment of his imagination he truly exists it's not like Isaiah is going through a difficult time in his life and he needs some cosmic figure up there to rely on to pull him through life's challenges No Isaiah truly sees the one who truly exists and this and he has got a fresh set of eyes to look at the world now and he is touched by it now as you read on I saw the Lord seated on a throne high and exalted notice the Lord is seated on the throne it does it's not a picture of a being who is anxious who is troubled who is worried it's a picture of one who is in complete control he is seated on the throne high and exalted the the images and language used in this passage is so fascinating it emphasized the majesty of God seated on the throne high and exalted his his throne is over every other throne it points to his sovereignty he is over and above all created things he transcends the created universe he is eternally on the throne high and exalted and the Train of his robe filled the temple it points to the overwhelming presence of God the unchanging one who is seated on the throne high and exalted transcending the created universe who is sovereign and whose presence fills the temple now as you've read on it's fascinating to see that there is no description of the being who was seated on the throne word skin no word skin rice no further than the hem of His garment in Exodus chapter 24 if you eternia Bibles with me to Exodus chapter 24 verse 9 Moses and Aaron Nadab and Abihu and the seventy elders of Israel went up and saw the God of Israel under his feet was something like a pavement made of sapphire clear as the sky itself there is again there is no description of God word stop at the pavement what is it telling us God is in fo bow if you look at Ezekiel the the prophet who was in exile with the people of Judah Ezekiel also has a vision much like Isiah did in the thirtieth year in the fourth month on the fifth day while I was among the exiles by the cable River the heavens were opened and I saw visions of God and then you see it's very interesting it's a very trying time for the people of Judah they are in exile life is not as usual the memories are fresh in their mind of Jerusalem its walls have been torn down her daughters have been killed and now they are taken away from their homeland in exile in Babylon in the midst of uncertainty in the midst of bein grieving the loss in the midst of anticipation looking forward to their day when it will finally dawn that they will get to return home and rebuild their cherished city Ezekiel has a vision of God an Ezekiel chapter one reading from verse 26 above the expands over their heads was what looked like a throne of sapphire and high above on the throne was a figure like that of a man I saw that from what appeared to be his waist up he looked like glowing metal as a full of fire and that from there down he looked like fire and brilliant light surrounded him like the appearance of rainbow in the clouds on a rainy day so was the radians around him don't you see as you read this passage the Prophet is struggling to put into words what he saw he is wrestling with his idea and he's struggling to put to words what he actually saw Ezekiel tell me what you saw I saw one like the Son of Man from his waist up it was like glowing metal it was like fire alright Ezekiel tell me waist down it was also like fire zekiel is really struggling to put into words what he saw God is in a football and that's what we see throughout scripture and Ezekiel what does he do he falls face down in worship many times after our church services we sit around our tables discussing and analyzing God debating theological topics failing to remember that if we actually saw the one of whom we are talking about we would say nothing but fall face down remember the song which says I can only imagine surrounded by your glory what will my heart feel will I dance for you Jesus or in all view will I be still will I shout hallelujah or will I be able to speak at all will I stand in awe of you or to my knees will I fall I can only imagine surrounded by your glory what will my heart feel God is in awe so God is sovereign God is transcendent goddess in effable then there is a brief description of the angelic beings who surround the throne of God and they are calling to one another holy holy holy is the Lord God Almighty notice they are calling one another God is self-sufficient he meets nothing he did not create beings to sing him some crisis he did not create beings because he was lonely and needed some sort of you know some sort of praise or some sort of worship no he created out of goodness he lacks nothing he needs nothing God is self-sufficient but the Angels having seen the glory the wisdom the Majesty the beauty the magnanimity and the moral perfection of God cannot help but try holy holy holy the three sanctum praise for the divine king who changes not holy holy holy is the Lord God Almighty their sole response is of praise and is captured in the word holy God is unlike anything he is completely different he is separate and above the physical universe he is separate and beyond the physical universe he is unlike any other God is holy he transcends the space time physical world in second chronicles we read verse chapter two verse six but who's able to build a house for him for the heavens and the highest heavens cannot contain him so Who am I that I should build a house for him except to burn incense before him the beauty of the Christian messages even when scripture time and again emphasize the transcendence of God the holiness of God the beauty of it is God who dwelt in unapproachable light came near in the person of Jesus Christ he walked our dusty roads he died our death offering us life forgiveness God who is transcendent came so near he is imminent as well see is Lois talking about God's transcendence and eminence and talking about time he writes this imagine or think of a paper you take a piece of paper you put a put the pen to the paper and start drawing a line the point at which you start drawing the line imagined that to be the beginning of time and at the point at which you end the line and take off your pen from the piece of paper imagine that to be the end of time he says God is like that piece of paper the piece of paper contains the line God contains time aw Tozer writing about the imminence and transcendence of God says think about a bucket imagine a bucket you plunge the bucket into an ocean the waters filled a bucket in some sense the ocean is in the bucket but the bucket is in the ocean as well God's transcendence and God's eminence and in our day and age I fear sometimes have we over emphasized on the imminence of God and have you lost sight of the transcendence of God JB Phelps wrote an influential book entitled your God is too small the title says it all Phillips argues that especially evangelicals with their correct emphasis on the personal intimate nature of God and invitation for personal relationship with him are they in danger of creating a God who exists only to serve them we have made a God or we have made God our good buddy in the sky one who says oh that's okay it's all right but remember the God who saves is also the God who judges the God who justifies is the one who will judge the God who walked the dusty road sir Palestine the dog the God who went to the cross for us he is the one who is on the throne he is eternally on the throne and the angels cry out holy holy holy as they get a glimpse of the glory of God holy holy holy is the Lord Almighty the whole earth is full of his glory Wow when the angels looked down at the earth what do they see they see the glory of God the beauty of God the wisdom of God the majesty of God the power of God the goodness of God but as we look around what we see we see pain we see tears we see turmoil we see people and fear how come the Angelica beings see God's glory amidst the mess we are temporal beings and we have the temporal perspective we do not know what God is up to and what God is doing by allowing all that we see look with me to to the Gospels if you go back into structure when Jesus was crucified on the cross those who were standing at the witnessing the crucifixion they thought if Jesus is who he claimed to be then God would rescue him God would save him he will not let his Anointed One succumb to death the disciples who followed him for three long years they were appalled by seeing Christ on the cross their Messiah their teacher but unknown to those who were witnessing the crucifixion God's seeming negligence was a masterstroke masterstroke he was doing something incredible he was recognized he was reconciling humanity to himself by the death of his only begotten son today as we look back in history we are moved by the sacrifice of Christ on the cross we are fascinated by it we are touched by it and we bow our knees in humble worship and adoration and surrender to the king who loved so much to give his life for us but to them who saw it who were alive witnessing it all it made no sense but post his resurrection it made it all made sense let me tell you the same thing today remember we are temporal beings finite and we do not have the eternal perspective so as we look at the chaos we wonder what on earth is God doing has God lost his senses or as God lost control no he is very much in control the whole earth is full of his glory then we read at the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the Temple was filled with smoke their praise was not a half-hearted you know activity they were fully in it they saw God and they worshiped him with their entire being that the thresholds shook in the temple was filled with smoke then Isaiah having seen all of this having been given the distinct honor of seeing the glory and the majesty of God what does AI SIA do isaiah doesn't say all right now let me go and write some books god unveiled a limited-edition god for commoners god's fiery messengers isaiah doesn't do any of that but rather Isaiah cries out and says woe unto me when he saw God and in his light when he sees himself he cannot help but say woe unto me my lips are unclean I cannot sing praises to the holy king my eyes have seen the king the Lord Almighty when he saw the Lord he had an overpowering sense of his own unworthiness only when you have seen God have you truly seen yourself what do I mean we live in a very relativistic society where we are told morality is a matter of legislation we legislate morality there are no objective standards or objective moral values and duties we as a society collectively sit together and decide what is right and what is wrong our feelings and preferences take precedence over truth that's the age we live in listen to these words by Marquis de saved he said believe me Eugene the words wise and virtue suppliers only with local meanings there is no action however bizarre you may picture it that is truly criminal or one that can really be called virtuous everything depends on our customs and on the climates we live in what is considered a crime here is often a word you a few hundred leagues away and the witches of another hemisphere might quite conversely be regarded as crimes among us there is no atrocity that hasn't been defied no word shoo that hasn't been stigmatized Tim Robin says a thief and a politician it's one and the same it's a matter of perspective the problem with such a view of morality is that we cannot look back into history and look at the atrocities against humanity ones that Dolf Hitler did in Nazi Germany we cannot condemn them why because if what is legal or what is lawful is moral the Nazis were acting in accordance with their legal or with their laws so you cannot condemn them there has to be an objective moral law on the basis of which you can rise up and stand in judgment over those crimes against humanity if not we cannot or we have no right to condemn them in matthew's in Matthew go Matthew's Gospel chapter 19 verse 16 you read of a rich young man who comes to Jesus and asked some teacher what good thing must I do to get eternal life jesus rephrases his question and says why do you ask me about what is good and then he tells him there is only one who is good what good thing must I do jesus says why do you ask me what is good and he answers the question what is good by pointing to the one who is good God is the unchanging point of reference on which we base our judgments of what is right and is wrong God's commandments to us flow from his very nature and therefore our good he is that unchanging point of reference by which we ought to live our lives brothers and sisters it's imperative that we see ourselves in the light of God in his light only then can be satisfactorily answer the fundamental questions of life the question of meaning the question of morality the question of identity we are created in the image of God and therefore have infinite value and Worth and when we know him and see ourselves in his light we see the depravity of our own heart the moral bankruptcy or else we'd be like the Pharisee who goes to the temple and says thank you Lord that I'm not like the tax collector and not like the adulterer I'm not like this one who is spraying right now the tax collector here and he boasts in his own righteous deeds not realizing the moral depravity within his own heart but when we see God we see the moral bankruptcy within and we cannot help but cry out woe unto me remember job who was an upright man and after hearing God he says this behold I am wile what shall I answer thee I had heard of you by the hearing of the earth but now my eye sees you therefore I despised myself and repent in dust and ashes woe unto me and as Isaiah cries out woe unto me the Bible says the Seraph takes a piece of coal from the altar places it on Isaiah's mouth and says your sin has been atone for and you are without guilt you guilt is taken away Isaiah is purged from ascend since as he is witnessing the glory and the majesty in the beauty of God he says to himself bought unto me and in desperation as he stands there God ministers grace to him purging Isaiah of his sins and then he says then we read I heard the voice of the Lord saying whom shall I send and who will go for us sorry who will go for us and Isaiah replies send me here am i I'm looking for a poem that I wrote many years ago as I was reading this passage and meditating on it I remember the days I face life's grim realities and puzzled I stood before the challenges that lay ahead of me I could hear him say to me you can count on me I remember the days since tained I stood condemned to die guilty sought for help but found none and then he said to me you can count on me I remember the days I stared at the mountains that I had to climb I stood still I knew it was impossible then he said to me you can count on me I remember the day I felt lonely and pondered who will take me through life's little journey I could hear him say to me lo I'm with you to the end of the age you can count on me I remember the days in agony I cried out I am done I can't take any more I can't go any further then I heard him whisper in my ears you can count on me but now he says to me look at the harvest it's plenty whom shall I send and as in silence I gazed on him I could hear his still gentle voice in my ear can I count on you Isaiah sees God in His light Isaiah sees himself and then Isaiah sees the world around in desperate need and his commissioned to go many times we confuse ministry with activity but true ministry emanates when you first get a glimpse of the holiness and the majesty the beauty and the glory of God and in His light you see the depravity of your heart and as you stand perplexed condemned and in shame hang your head the work of grace unfolds in your life and you are commissioned to go so as we live in uncertain times when fear and doubt grips us let us bring ourselves to bear these eternal truths that God changes not he is eternally on the throne high and exalted transcending the created order I close with the words of King George the sixth as he was addressing the British Empire while England was at war he said I asked the man of the gate of the year how I meet how may I tread safely into the unknown he said to me go out into the darkness put your hand into the hand of God and that shall be to you brighter than the day and safer than the known that's close in prayer Heavenly Father we thank you for this beautiful morning thank you for the reminders in your word when everything else falls when we fall apart we take comfort in knowing that you are still sovereign you're permanently eternally on the throne we come in humble adoration and recognition of your majesty in your glory we love you Lord would you continue to minister to us may you be glorified in US and through us amen

Channel: Grace Bible Church of Bend

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Length: 46min 46sec (2806 seconds)

Published: Mon Apr 20 2020