“Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me.” (Isaiah 6:8.)
In Isaiah 6:1-10 the prophet had a glorious, awesome vision of God in His splendid majesty. Immediately he felt his doom was sealed. He had been God’s faithful prophet, serving the Lord. But being brought into God’s holy presence had caused him to realize how sinful he was. His conscience smote him because he discovered he was a man of unclean lips, and his nation were an unclean, cursing people. Deeply convicted, he audibly confessed his sin to God as well as the sin of his nation. Upon hearing his confession, God commanded one of the seraphs and it flew to the altar, took a pair of tongs, and picked a live, burning coal from the fire under the altar. The blood, the fat and the flesh of the sacrificial lamb had been roasted on those coals. The seraph flew to Isaiah’s side and applied the red-hot coal to the prophet’s lips, saying:
“Look, this has touched your lips, your iniquity is taken away and all your sins are purged and forgiven!”
Then, and only then, God enabled him to overhear this conversation between the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit:
“Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?”
Unable to refrain himself, Isaiah blurted out:
“Here am I; send me!”
The Divine answer was:
“Go, and tell…”
You may think you are pretty good, at least not too bad, an average person. But the moment you stand in God’s holy presence you will instantly perceive what a great sinner you are! You will feel like hiding under a big rock! It is good to repent now and tell God frankly about your sins. Before your inner ears are able to hear God, your sins need to be purged, cleansed, and washed away by the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the whole world. The Lord’s precious blood cleanses us from sin, gives us boldness to stand in His presence, clean and unashamed, and enables us, as we read the Scriptures, to overhear the lively conversations among the Trinity. He does not mind! In fact, He loves for us to eavesdrop on God as we read the Bible. He delights when we overhear the personal conversation among the Triune God. He loves to include us with His intimate friends; we belong to His inner circle. This intimate fellowship enables us to perceive His will for us. And, wonder of all wonders, we can respond! Yes, we can actually participate in the conversations of the Trinity. Isaiah spontaneously said: “Here am I; send me!” Yes, you too can respond! God invites all of us doubting Thomases to reach forth our hand of faith, through the wound the Roman soldier lanced, into the heart of Christ. Yes! Come in, inside the very heart of God! Come in, past the rent temple veil, into the holy of holies, into the “shekinah glory” of the presence of God Himself, and stay there, abide there, in the secret place of the Most High where the Trinity converses, where the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit talk together, and there, like Isaiah, you too can talk with God!
The message God told Isaiah to preach was harsh. It was not easy to be an Old Testament prophet announcing judgment. Such prophets were always persecuted, imprisoned, and executed. It is far more enjoyable to be a New Testament prophet. Our message is a joyous one; it is the Good News! God cleanses us by the Blood of the Lord Jesus Christ, so we can talk with God! When you read His Word, He speaks to you. When you pray His Word, you speak to Him. Thus, you converse with God, you dialogue with Him. He speaks and you respond. Like with Isaiah, it is now possible to discern God’s will, and to pray in full accord with His wishes!
Let’s pray:
“Father, thank You for this encouragement. Like Isaiah, I too am a sinner. How I thank You that Your Son, my Lord Jesus Christ, was sacrificed in my stead as the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world, and specifically all my own sins. Thank You that the hell-fire He suffered on the altar of the cross, caused the red-hot coals of His sufferings to purge all my sins. I have been washed by the blood of Jesus! I can now stand in Your awesome presence with boldness, clean and unashamed, enabled to hear Your still, small voice speaking in my inner being, particularly when I prayerfully read Your Word. Thank You, Father, that when I prayerfully read Your Word, like Isaiah, I am ushered into the secret councils of the Trinity and I can hear what You three are saying. It is there, as I read Your Word, that You love to talk with me. It is there that I can answer You in prayer. You and I now can converse daily, we can dialogue frequently, we can talk constantly. Do talk to me in Your Word! I will respond to You in prayer! I love You, my living and speaking God! Lord of the harvest, I also recognize Your present call for laborers to go out into the field and reap those that will believe. Even now, You are still seeking such. I respond: “Lord of the harvest, send workers to Your harvest. Here am I; send me!”
From Dialogues With God – Chapter 10