March 6, 9:00 a.m. 
Speaker: H.B. Charles
Topic: How the Majestic Holiness of God Motivates Missionary Zeal
Passage: Isaiah 6:1–8

Message Summary: 

Your view of God is everything. If you do not have a proper view of God, you have nothing. But when God is seen as He truly is, everything else falls into its proper place.

This chapter records Isaiah’s life-transforming vision of God and his subsequent call to prophetic ministry. And it also records 3 essential elements of what it means to have a high view of God:

#1. God Is Sovereign (Isaiah 6:1)

In his vision, Isaiah clearly saw that God is in charge, and he gives us a descriptive definition of divine sovereignty.

God Is Eternal — As Psalm 90:2 says, “Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.” The Lord is in charge of everything because the Lord is eternal.

God Is Transcendent — Isaiah declares the transcendence of God by noting the infinite height of God’s sovereign throne. He is telling us that there is no one on God’s level.

God Is Majestic — The train of God’s robe fills the temple. He has infinite majesty.

#2. God Is Holy (Isaiah 6:2–4)

In the Bible, holiness is the central, definitive, foundational attribute of God. In a real sense, to say that God is holy is just to say that God is God. The word used most to describe God in the Bible is "holy. And God is so holy that things associated with Him are all called holy. Our God is a holy God.

God’s holiness in Isaiah’s vision is:

Displayed by the Seraphim’s Posture (6:2) — God’s holiness is so infinite, God’s separation is so great, and God’s moral excellence is so brilliant that the holy angels could not bear to have God look directly at them, or to look directly at God.

Declared in the Seraphim's Praise (6:3) — We have a graphic statement of God’s holiness from the seraphim. To say once that God is holy is enough. To say twice that God is holy is emphatic. To say three times that God is holy is superlative. The angels are declaring that God is so holy our minds cannot fully comprehend it and our words cannot properly express it.

#3. God Is Gracious (6:5–8)

The grace of God is described in this text by a shift of focus in heavenly furniture. The focus of verses 1–4 is the throne. The focus of verses 5–8 is the altar.

Thank God both are there. If there was a throne but no altar, this would’ve been a living nightmare of condemnation, judgment, and wrath. Praise God that here there is a throne and an altar. There is holiness and grace. There is guilt and forgiveness.

We see a glimpse of God’s grace in:

Isaiah’s Contrition (6:5) — Isaiah knew that the truth that the seraphim were singing about God was the ultimate reality and he thought he was going to die. But he didn’t. And that’s the mercy and grace of God.

Isaiah’s Cleansing (6:6–7) — We see in Isaiah's cleansing a remarkable picture here of the sovereign grace of God. It shows that salvation happens by God’s will and God’s work, and it is affirmed by God’s word. God gets all the glory.

Isaiah’s Commission — This passage is a reminder that the gospel is about God and His glory, not man and his needs. Isaiah knows he should’ve been dead, but he is alive. He should’ve been doomed in his guilt, but the sovereign grace of God has cleansed him and cleared him. So, Isaiah volunteers for world missions.

Isaiah signs up not knowing where God is going to send him. He will actually be sent to a hard place, among a rebellious people, into a hard assignment (6:9–13). But his preoccupation is not the people he is called to—it is the God that called him.

Our God is sovereign, our God is holy, and our God is gracious, wherever the calling is. Tell Him today “Here am I, send me.”