Reclaiming A Vision of God's Majesty

"In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of His robe filled the temple. Above it stood seraphim; each one had six wings: with two he covered his face, with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. And one cried to another and said: "Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; The whole earth is full of His glory!" And the posts of the door were shaken by the voice of him who cried out, and the house was filled with smoke. So I said: "Woe is me, for I am undone! Because I am a man of unclean lips, And I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; For my eyes have seen the King, The LORD of hosts." Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a live coal which he had taken with the tongs from the altar. And he touched my mouth with it, and said: "Behold, this has touched your lips; Your iniquity is taken away, And your sin purged." Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying: "Whom shall I send, And who will go for Us?" Then I said, "Here am I! Send me." -Isaiah 6:1-8

Isaiah records for us a most awesome experience--Isaiah saw the Lord. He saw the Lord in all His majesty. He saw the Lord sitting on the throne of heaven. Isaiah heard the voices of the angels constantly singing God's holiness. Smoke, trembling doorposts, singing. Isaiah's vision of God was truly a most awesome experience.

Notice, first of all that Isaiah's vision of God came after the death of King Uzziah. You will remember that King Uzziah was a tremendous leader for Israel. He was the sort of king that people followed. He was strong, a good leader, and a godly man. Uzziah built cities, strengthened his army, and overthrew his enemies. However, near the end of Uzziah's life, he failed miserably when he attempted to do something that which was reserved only for the priests. Because of this failure, he lived as a leper the rest of his days. For Isaiah, Uzziah's death would have been a milestone, a date to remember. Uzziah would have been a hero of sorts for Isaiah. After Uzziah's death, Isaiah saw the Lord. Sometimes God has to remove our heroes before we can truly see the Lord in His majesty.

Secondly, notice Isaiah's response to this vision. Isaiah acknowledges his utter sinfulness in the presence of a holy God. Here we see a man that is broken because of his sin. Isaiah is literally undone at this revelation of God's holiness. Repeatedly in the Scriptures we see this same pattern. Joshua fell on his face before the commander of the armies of the Lord. Moses fell on his face at the burning bush. Paul fell on his face before the risen Christ on the road to Damascus. Isaiah see himself for who he really is as he sees the majesty of God. This is true of us as well. As we look to the Lord of hosts and see him in all his splendor and holiness, we get a very accurate picture of our own sinfulness and inadequacy to stand before a holy God. 

Third, I want you to notice Isaiah' cleansing. This angel brought cleansing to Isaiah's unclean lips by the coal from the altar. As Isaiah saw this vision of God and reeled back because of his own sinfulness, God extended grace to Isaiah and cleansed him, forgiving Isaiah of his sin. If we are to truly see God's majesty, we must do so on the basis of God's grace in Christ Jesus. In Ephesians 2 we are told that by Jesus Christ we have access to the Father. We can be forgiven of our sins and experience fellowship with God because of grace. God has done something for us that we could not do ourselves. Isaiah was undone--there was nothing Isaiah could do to fix his sinfulness. We to are undone before the holiness of God, but in Christ we can be forgiven and cleansed just as Isaiah was. 

Last, notice Isaiah's willingness to serve. When he saw the majesty of God and recognized his own sinfulness and received forgiveness of sins, Isaiah responded by offering himself in the service of the true King of heaven. Uzziah was dead. The earthly hero was no more. But Isaiah learned that God is the King and that He was looking for a messenger. 

Believer, I urge you to see the majesty of God. Don't settle for a small view of God. See him in all His glory. He is the only true God, the God of whom the angels sing night and day, "Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord of Hosts: The whole earth is full of His glory!" Only when we see the Lord in all His fullness do we understand who we are in all our sinfulness. Lord break us, undo us, and forgive and cleanse us. Make us suitable for your service.

Perseverance and Prayer

“So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.” –Luke 11:9-10

Perseverance is a quality that we must develop in prayer. When a need arises, the natural tendency in prayer is to pray once or even to neglect prayer altogether. In the weakness of our flesh we often succumb to the pressures to start striving on our own apart from God. Our flesh wants to attempt to control the circumstances we face. God would have us pray and rely upon Him as we go through each trial. When things get difficult and we are tempted to give up in prayer, we are to keep on praying and keep on relying on God.

The Bible has much to say about continuing and being constant in prayer. We are told that it is God’s will for us to pray without ceasing. We are commanded to pray. In another place, we are told to be watchful in prayer. Here in Luke 11, we are told to ask, seek, and knock when it comes to prayer. These verbs are in the present tense, which indicates that we are supposed to keep on asking, keep on seeking and keep on knocking. Perseverance is continuing in that course of action with little or no indication of change. Prayer often feels this way. We pray and expect God to act immediately, but He doesn’t operate on our time schedule. We pray and then wait, and then pray, and then wait some more. Sometimes this results in us giving up on praying. But when we persevere in prayer, we begin to see God answer and fulfill our prayers in ways that we could never imagine.

Jesus is a prime example to us of perseverance in prayer. In the garden of Gethsemane, Jesus prayed with perseverance. Remember, He was agonizing over the impending suffering that He would face on the cross. He prayed for another way but He also submitted Himself to the Father’s will and not His own. He didn’t leave the place of prayer until He had prayed three times and sweat drops of blood as He prayed. The disciples were not so diligent. They couldn’t even stay awake and watch as Jesus prayed. This is a great picture of the struggle we face in prayer. Jesus is the ideal. We want to pray with endurance and perseverance like He does, but we usually end up asleep like the disciples.

Lord, teach us to pray and to pray with perseverance.

Perseverance and Persecution

What does it mean to persevere? The word itself means to “continue in a course of action in spite of difficulty or with little or no indication of success.” Perseverance is an action word that describes the way a person lives. It is the action of the one who has the qualities of endurance and patience. It communicates to us that the one who perseveres has endured a task or trial for a period of time with some measure of difficulty or distress. We have many examples of perseverance given to us in the Scriptures or illustrated for us in society. It could be the marathon runner, the gladiator fighting to the death, or the soldier in battle. It also could be the mother raising her children, the father working hard to provide for his family, the pastor shepherding his church, the firefighter extinguishing the flames of a house fire, or the politician taking a stand for morality in a Godless culture. In the passage below, we have the idea of perseverance illustrated.

“Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name’s sake. And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another. And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many. And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.” –Matthew 24:9-14

What you've just read is a small portion of the Lord Jesus instruction to his followers on the idea of persecution. Persecution means that Christians will suffer at the hand of unbelievers because of their faith. Jesus promised this to all those who would follow him. Paul echoes the same thing to Timothy by saying that “all who will live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution. Here Jesus says that there is coming a time when the unbelieving world will be angry with Christians, they will hate them, and the world will will afflict them physically, and they will even kill Christians for their faith. There is coming a time when Christians won’t even trust each other. Instead professing Christians will betray and hate other Christians. There will be deception by false teachers, and Christian love will grow cold. There is suffering in store for Christians in the world. Jesus says here that the one that endures to the end will be saved. Jesus is not advocating that in order to be saved eternally you must endure to the end. This would be a works-based salvation. Rather, he is describing a future time of persecution called the great tribulation. During this time persecution will become so intense that there will be many professors of Christianity that will apostatize and leave the faith. What Jesus means here is that those who endure—those that persevere through this time of intense tribulation—shall be saved at the second advent of Jesus Christ. Jesus will return to the earth and put an end to all the fighting and persecution that will occur.

While this passage describes for us a yet future time of suffering for Christians, we can be encouraged right now to learn to persevere. Perseverance is connected with the Christian life. After all, once a person trusts in Christ for salvation, they begin a journey that will last the rest of life. Perseverance means that you will continue in your Christian faith until your dying breath. It means that you will remain faithful to the Lord your whole life. Perseverance is the idea of continuance. It is the idea of moving forward, running the spiritual race, walking with the Lord with patience and endurance. In the Scriptures God clearly communicates that He wants Christians to persevere. Peter tells us to grow in grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. Paul told Timothy to endure hardness as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. The writer of Hebrews urges us to go on to perfection, to keep moving forward and not to draw back. James tells us to let the trials of life perfect us by giving us endurance.

Think of the coming tribulation and of those who will suffer to the point of death for the Lord Jesus. Christians we need to pray that we will gain that sort of perseverance in our faith. Are you persevering? Are you gaining the qualities of endurance and patience in your life? Let the trials of your life and the suffering at the hands of unbelievers encourage you to keep moving forward and not to draw back. Don’t be discouraged. Be a good soldier. Endure hardship for the Lord Jesus Christ. 

The Legacy of Spiritual Growth

"Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen." -Matthew 28:19-20

Jesus commanded his disciples to go and make disciples of the nations. He commanded baptism, and teaching with the goal that these new disciples would be able to observe everything that Jesus commanded. In the early church we see this in action. On the day of Pentecost Peter, empowered by the Holy Spirit, preaches the good news about Jesus Christ and three thousand people were added to the church. In subsequent days, weeks, and months many more were added to the number of believers. But it wasn't just numerical growth that occurred as a result of Peter's preaching and the ministry of the other apostles. We also see spiritual growth in these people. Consider that just a few short chapters later, we see believers all praying together, giving of their possessions to support each other, distributing to widows, more leaders are chosen, and believers--not just the apostles--go everywhere preaching the word of God. This is the result of believers growing into spiritual maturity.

Spiritual growth is never meant to be exclusive to one person. And it is not meant to be contained to the span of your life. It is meant to be spread to others and to be carried through many generations. Your spiritual life is designed to reach out to others with the gospel of Jesus Christ. As you grow into spiritual maturity, you are to pass the truths you have learned on to others. Paul commanded Timothy in this way: "And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also." -2 Timothy 2:2 Spiritual growth is passed on through the teaching of the doctrines of Scripture and the instilling within believers to teach others also.

This growth should span generations. Not only are we to find those faithful men that Paul said to Timothy, but also fathers and mothers are commanded in the Scriptures to teach their children the word of God and bring them up in "the nurture and admonition of the Lord." The family can and should be a powerful tool for promoting spiritual growth. Parents teach children to know and love the Lord, then children get married, have children, and teach their children to know and love the Lord. It is an ongoing process. Spiritual growth is as much a legacy that you can leave behind after you are gone as it is a process that you should see in your life. If we stop and think about it, all believers today are part of a spiritual legacy that has been left by those who have lived spiritual lives before us. The writer of Hebrews put it this way: "Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us," -Hebrews 12:1

Believers, your spiritual growth can be passed on to others by faithfully proclaiming the good news of Jesus Christ and by teaching believers to observe all that He has commanded. May we all "..grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen." -2 Peter 3:18

The Context of Spiritual Growth

"Behold, how good and pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity...for there the Lord commanded the blessing, even life forevermore." -Psalm 133:1, 3

Spiritual life is not meant to be lived alone. Christians are not supposed to live in monasteries and seclude themselves from other Christians. Neither are Christians supposed to stick to themselves and try to 'go it alone' without going to church and fellowshipping with other Christians. No, Christians are supposed to dwell together. We are supposed to live this live in unity and oneness. We are supposed to growth spiritually in the context of community. David says that this community is pleasant. In fact, David concludes that when brethren dwell in unity is when the Lord commands blessing. The blessing described is life for evermore.

Your spiritual growth hinges upon your involvement at church with other believers. In Ephesians 4:15 the Apostle Paul speaks of not being children any longer but speaking the truth in love to each other so that we can grow to maturity in Christ. Christianity was designed by God to be a community made up of people who believe in Jesus Christ as their Savior and who are striving to live like Jesus in every aspect of life.

There are scores of passages in the New Testament that point to the spiritual life in context of community. In fact, most of the epistles of the New Testament are written to churches, not individuals. So the instructions given within those epistles are in the context of community, not singular life. Consider the instruction to the Thessalonian church to "Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you." Most people, myself included, often think of these three verses as instructions for the individual Christian's life. But when we stop and think about what it means in the context of the community of believers, it takes on a whole new level of understanding. How does a church rejoice always? How does a church pray without ceasing? How does a church give thanks in everything?

Even in the earliest beginnings of the church we learn that spiritual growth was meant to happen in a culture of community. Acts 2:42 says, "And they continued steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers." Here in the early church where the majority of the church had only been saved for a matter of hours, we learn that they continued together. They learned the apostles' doctrine together. They had fellowship--community--with each other. They ate together and prayed together. They were a church that was growing together.

So how about you? Are you growing in the context of community? Or are you attempting to go it alone and do this whole spiritual growth thing by yourself? Remember, you might increase in knowledge on your own, but you will not grow spiritually on your own.