Today’s Theme for Prayer – Jesus Calls Me Beyond Myself
How Generous is My Response to the Lord?
From Unclean Lips to Sent: The Transformation of Isaiah
Is 6:1-10
In the year King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a high and lofty throne, with the train of his garment filling the temple. Seraphim were stationed above; each of them had six wings:with two they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they hovered. One cried out to the other: “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts! All the earth is filled with his glory!” At the sound of that cry, the frame of the door shook and the house was filled with smoke. Then I said, “Woe is me, I am doomed! For I am a man of unclean lips, living among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!” Then one of the seraphim flew to me, holding an ember which he had taken with tongs from the altar. He touched my mouth with it. “See,” he said, “now that this has touched your lips, your wickedness is removed, your sin purged.” Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? Who will go for us?” “Here I am,” I said; “send me!” And he replied: Go and say to this people: Listen carefully, but do not understand! Look intently, but do not perceive! Make the heart of this people sluggish, dull their ears and close their eyes; Lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and their heart understand, and they turn and be healed.
Grace Prayed For
Prayer: “Lord, when You ask, ‘Whom shall I send?’ give me the courage and boldness to answer, ‘Here I am, send me!’ Equip me to be Your messenger, to share Your love and truth with the world, no matter the cost.”
Reflection
This passage from Isaiah 6 offers a breathtaking glimpse into the throne room of God, a vision so powerful it forever changes the prophet Isaiah. Let us reflect on this scene and allow it to draw us closer to the heart of Jesus.
The year King Uzziah died was a time of national uncertainty for Israel. Their earthly king, a figure of stability and leadership, was gone. But Isaiah is given a vision that transcends earthly concerns. He sees the true King, seated on a “high and lofty throne,” His glory filling the very temple. This isn’t just a political leader; this is the Lord of Hosts, the Creator of all, surrounded by majestic seraphim, beings so holy they must cover their faces in His presence.
The cry of the seraphim is a thunderous declaration of God’s nature: “Holy, holy, holy!” This isn’t just a statement; it’s a feeling, an experience. The very foundations of the temple tremble at the sound. God’s holiness is not a cold, distant attribute. It’s a vibrant, overwhelming power that fills the entire earth. It’s a holiness that demands our reverence, our awe.
Isaiah’s response is immediate and profound: “Woe is me, I am doomed!” In the presence of such pure, unadulterated holiness, Isaiah becomes acutely aware of his own sinfulness, his “unclean lips.” He recognizes the vast gulf between his own brokenness and God’s perfection. This isn’t self-pity; it’s a truthful acknowledgment of his condition.
Perhaps you can relate to Isaiah’s feeling of unworthiness. In the light of God’s perfection, our own flaws and failures can feel overwhelming. We might feel tempted to hide, to pull away, believing we are too far gone, too broken for God.
But that’s where the grace of Jesus shines through.
Notice what happens next. One of the seraphim takes a burning coal from the altar – a symbol of purification – and touches Isaiah’s lips. “Your wickedness is removed, your sin purged,” the seraph declares. This is a picture of the cleansing power of God’s grace, a grace that reaches down to us in our unworthiness and makes us new.
This is the heart of Jesus, who came to bridge that very gap between our sin and God’s holiness. On the cross, He bore the weight of our sin, becoming the ultimate sacrifice for our purification. Just like the burning coal touched Isaiah’s lips, the sacrifice of Jesus touches our hearts, cleansing us from the inside out.
And then, the incredible invitation: “Whom shall I send? Who will go for us?” The God who is holy beyond comprehension desires to use us, even in our brokenness, to be His messengers in the world. Isaiah, freshly cleansed and empowered, responds with a resounding “Here I am, send me!”
This is the invitation extended to each of us. God doesn’t call the qualified; He qualifies the called. He takes our messy, imperfect lives and, through the cleansing power of His Son, transforms us into vessels of His grace.
The final part of the passage speaks to the challenge of sharing this message. Some hearts will be hardened, unwilling to see or hear. But that doesn’t negate the urgency of the call. Jesus came so that all might have the opportunity to experience the transformative power of His love.
So, let us be like Isaiah. Let us allow the vision of God’s holiness to humble us, to reveal our need for His cleansing grace. And then, let us respond to His call with open hearts, ready to be His messengers of hope and healing in a world desperately in need of both. Let us, through the power of the Holy Spirit, reflect the glory of Jesus that we may say with Isaiah, “Here I am, send me!” Let us go and share the good news that, through Jesus, even the most unclean lips can be made pure, and every heart can be transformed by the love of the Holy One.
Growing in Intimacy/Union with Jesus
Jesus is the ultimate expression of God’s desire for relationship. He is Immanuel, “God with us,” who came to earth to dwell among us, to know us intimately, and to reconcile us to the Father. This passage reminds us that Jesus is not a distant deity but a loving Savior who wants to have a personal relationship with us. The invitation from the throne room is an invitation to deeper intimacy with Jesus, who has made that intimacy possible.
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Sharing
Jesus last words on Earth were to his disciples, can be found in Matthew Chap 28 when Jesus told his disciples, “Then Jesus approached and said to them, “All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age.”
Jesus calls all of us to share in his redemptive mission here on Earth. I would ask you to share this Scripture reflection with your family, your friends and your acquaintances, and then share it with a couple of individuals that you may may not be comfortable sharing with, keeping in mind always the words of Jesus, And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age
Author was assisted by AI in the drafting of this Post