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[0:00] Let us now turn to the chapter which we have already read in the book of the prophet Isaiah, chapter 6.

[0:10] In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple.

[0:28] This vision that Isaiah had at this particular time, as if a new experience in Christian experience.

[0:47] This vision that he saw, and he tells us the time in which this vision had taken place, that it was the year that King Uzziah died.

[1:06] And it would appear that the death of King Uzziah had a great impact upon the prophet Isaiah.

[1:18] We believe, and have every reason to believe, that Isaiah was a converted man at this time, a man of God, but yet he was greatly moved or impressed by the death of Uzziah.

[1:38] Now this can happen in families and in communities, that people are impressed or maybe moved when they hear the death of someone well known to them, or even when death comes into the family circle.

[2:04] We understand that the Reverend Robert Murray McChain, the godly minister of St. Peter's, and indeed that was one thing that moved him as a young man, the loss of a brother.

[2:19] He began to think, and coming home to him increasingly, that here we have no continuing cities.

[2:30] And as we said in prayer, how suddenly death comes. You are mentioning Lucy Mardum, the Roman Catholic, but a very nice family indeed that I found very nice.

[2:45] And also Lucy, and I met her in my daughter's shop last Wednesday. And telling us how she enjoyed her nephew's wedding, so on and so forth, and how pleasant things were.

[2:59] And the next news we had, that Lucy was in a car accident and passed on to the great eternity. So Isaiah was deeply moved through the death of King Uzziah, when he saw the empty throne, of which the great King Uzziah once reigned and ruled.

[3:33] And we have the history of King Uzziah in 2 Chronicles and chapter 26. But the people took Uzziah, who was 16 years old, and made him king in the room of his father Amaziah.

[3:54] 16 years old was Uzziah when he began to reign, and he reigned 52 years in Jerusalem. And he sought God in the days of Zechariah.

[4:08] And he did what was right in the sight of God. And God prospered King Uzziah. When King Uzziah was dependent upon God, God helped him greatly, and his name spread far abroad.

[4:31] For he was marvelously helped. And then there is a sudden stop, or a sudden change, till he was strong.

[4:42] Till he was strong. But when he was strong, his heart was lifted up to his own destruction. When he felt that he could go it alone, that's when tragedy struck.

[5:00] When he became strong, when he felt strong, he felt that he could go it alone. But when he was strong, his heart was lifted up to his own destruction.

[5:11] For it has dressed against the Lord his God. He overstepped his kingly power by going into the temple to burn incense.

[5:23] And he was told by these other priests that he didn't appartain to him to do this very thing.

[5:35] That he went beyond what he ought to do, even although he was a king. But you see, King Uzziah was so proud now that he took offense when he was rebuked.

[5:52] He didn't take it like David as a precious ointment that wouldn't break his head. He was offended because he was given good advice.

[6:06] But he didn't take it. He was rough. He was displeased. You remember David was different. He said, let the righteous might be. It shall be a precious ointment which shall not break my head.

[6:23] So he became rough. And God laid his hand upon him. He became a leper. And he was a leper until the day of his death.

[6:37] So this is the background to this particular portion of scripture. In the year that King Uzziah died.

[6:48] It was under these circumstances, as it were, that Isaiah had this vision. He said, I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne.

[7:03] The king of Israel dies. But Israel's God lives, as Matthew Henry said.

[7:14] He saw the empty throne on which the great king Uzziah sat. But when he was thinking of these things and these tragic happenings, His soul was lifted up.

[7:30] His eyes were lifted up to another throne. On which sat the king of kings and Lord of lords.

[7:42] This lifting up of the Lord was, as we read in John's Gospel, chapter 12 and at verse 16, It was the Lord Jesus that Isaiah saw lifted up.

[7:59] The one who was dead and is alive forevermore. The one who was delivered for our offenses and was raised again for our justification.

[8:13] And so we read in John 12 and 16, These things understood not his disciples of the first.

[8:25] But when Jesus was glorified, they remembered that these things were written of him and that they had done these things unto him.

[8:36] And at verse, it tells us that Isaiah saw Jesus high and lifted up.

[8:49] He saw this vision of God's holiness. No one has seen God, we said already, at any time.

[9:02] But Jesus said to Philip, He that hath seen me hath seen the Father. Isaiah saw God through the risen Christ.

[9:18] He that hath seen me hath seen the Father. But Jesus is the brightness of the Father's glory and the express image of his person.

[9:35] And so he's telling us something about this risen Christ. Above his two seraphims, each one had six wings. With twain he covered his face, and with twain he covered his feet, and with twain he did five.

[9:50] And one cried to another and said, Holy, holy is the Lord of hosts. The whole earth is full of his glory.

[10:06] And the posts of the door moved at the voice of him that cried, and the house was filled with smoke. The incense of God's presence was filled with smoke.

[10:20] The incense of God's presence was filled with smoke. The incense of God's presence was filled with smoke. I'm sure in the temple here below, where Isaiah and the people we believe were waiting upon God.

[10:30] God manifested his presence. The incense of his glory filled the whole temple. When the thoughts of Isaiah were raised up even above the earthly temple, and the earthly throne to the temple above, and to the throne on which Christ is sitting at God's right hand.

[11:02] And now we can see the effect that this vision, we said the effect that Isaiah's death had upon, Isaiah's death had upon Isaiah, but it went further.

[11:20] And that is what happens still. When people are moved by some particular incident of tragedy, by the Spirit of God, it doesn't stop there.

[11:30] It moves on to greater things. And so it was with the prophet Isaiah. He was moved within by the Spirit of God.

[11:43] And he said, Woe is me, for I am undone. What a poor, frail creature I am.

[11:58] And so we are. Man at best is holy vanity. How frail we are. How poor we are.

[12:11] And how helpless we are. How poor we find ourselves when tragedy strikes. When bereavement comes.

[12:23] How utterly and altogether helpless. And so this man of God is saying, Woe is me. Or perhaps indeed, Lord pity me.

[12:36] For I am undone. I feel my utter healthfulness. Healthlessness. Because I am a man of unclean lips.

[12:52] In other words, I am a sinner, Lord. And furthermore, I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips.

[13:06] Godliness abounds. A people who have erred in heart. A people who are departing from the only living and true God.

[13:20] And I myself feel my own sin increasingly. I am a man of unclean lips.

[13:31] And I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips. For mine eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts.

[13:44] In God's light. I see light. And that's the only way that we can see ourselves.

[13:56] If the light in us be darkness, how great is that darkness. But in God's light, we shall see light.

[14:07] We shall see ourselves as we really are. And with the prophet Isaiah, we will say, I am a man of unclean lips.

[14:23] In other words, we will say, I am a sinner. Peter said it, Depart from me, O Lord, for I am a sinful man.

[14:38] But we are assured if we confess our sins. But God is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

[15:00] That is the promise. That there is plenteous redemption ever found within and from all his iniquities he, Israel, shall redeem.

[15:14] We may never be able to forget some of the sins we ourselves have committed long ago or maybe quite recently.

[15:27] We just cannot forget like David saying, my sin I ever sin. and maybe that is a good thing to keep us humble and to save us from criticizing our fellow man.

[15:50] This is the danger that we are prone to point the finger at someone else who has fallen by by the wayside.

[16:00] I met a man yesterday around the cooperative shop in Alders. I was introduced to him the first time of course and we spoke for a while and there was a time in his life when he appeared to follow the Lord but not so much now.

[16:20] but he did still believe in the power of prayer and then he said you might point your finger at the other man but he says there are still four fingers that point to yourself.

[16:34] we are so prone to see that we speck in our brother's eye and we do not see the beam that is in our own eye.

[16:50] And recently it has come to me increasingly do I pray for those who have backslidden those who were prominent maybe in our own church or in other churches but have backslidden am I praying earnestly for the return of that person?

[17:14] Is it my longing to see that person back in the fellowship of God's people even to the preaching of God's word?

[17:25] That it would be our prayer that the backsliding would be healed. Rescue the perishing said the hymn writer care for the dying snatch them in pity from sin and the grave weep over the erring one lift up the fall tell them of Jesus the mighty to save.

[17:50] Maybe that has come home to me because of my own shortcomings and sinful ways but I have felt increasingly that there are those that I never prayed for knowing that they had backslidden.

[18:06] Now that's not right. It's our duty to pray for anyone who has sadly fallen by the wayside.

[18:17] when we think of what we were and what we still are ourselves with me for I am undone.

[18:30] I am a man of unclean lips. I am just a sinner but hoping that I am a sinner saved by grace and that the love of Christ would constrain us that the love of Christ would endeavour us help us to pray for the perishing to rescue them and those who are fallen by the wayside.

[19:04] I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips for my eyes have seen the King the Lord of hosts.

[19:16] And so there is to be a confession of sin. If we say that we have no sin we deceive ourselves and I'm quite sure there is not one in here today who say that they have no sin or that we have not sin we were born in sin and shaped in iniquity and in our flesh today there dwelleth no good thing.

[19:49] When I would be good said the Apostle Paul evil is present with me and isn't that true and sometimes you may have experienced when you're on the mountain top and feeling so uplifted then suddenly you're plunged down.

[20:09] Satan gets in. Satan is ever ready to step in when you feel near to God. Satan will come and do something that will temporarily assist distance you from God not God from you but your sin your shortcoming will distance you or me from God.

[20:32] So this is the confession I am a sinful man but if we say that we have no sin we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us but the great news is that if we confess if we confess we are assured that God is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness but the blood of Jesus Christ God's Son can cleanse us from all sin it's not the word of man it's the living word of the living God so that none of us today should despair the blood of Jesus can cleanse us from all sin

[21:33] I'm not saying that gives us license to sin not at all we must be sorry for our sins but in confessing our sins in sincerity and in truth we may rest assured that our sins are forgiven for the blood of Jesus the blood that he shed freely on that cross the love that brought him to the very dust of death that's why he died so that our sins may be forgiven and that's how we should honour his great and glorious name in believing that he died for our sins and that he was raised again for our justification you see that's how Isaiah saw him he saw him high and lifted up the one that was dead and is alive forevermore and John would say we have an advocate with the father

[22:38] Jesus Christ the righteous one who is speaking to the father on our behalf and so this is the impact from the death of Uzziah right through to this point when Isaiah is confessing his own sins and no doubt the sins of all the people and you can see what happened how God responded we read there then through one of the seraphims unto me having a life called in his hand which he had taken with the tongues from off the altar it came from heaven this angel this seraphim was sent with this life called from off the altar and as as we may have said saturated with the blood of

[23:51] Christ and he laid it upon my mouth I am a man of unclean lips he touched the very place that Isaiah made confession of his very lips maybe the sin of his silence and then the sin of saying what he ought not to say and said the angel said no this hath touched thy lips heaven Christ has again come down to thee this hath touched thy lips and because of that thine iniquity is taken away your sins and your iniquities will I remember no more and thy sin perched all is forgiven

[24:51] Isaiah be at peace with God through your Lord and Savior Jesus Christ with thee there is forgiveness that thou mayest be feared it is good news it is wonderful news that Jesus says I know a place where sins are washed away I know a place where night is turned to day burdens are lifted blind eyes made to see for there is wonder working power in the blood of Calvary this hath touched thy lips and thy iniquities taken away and thy sin perched and so he heard his ears are now more unstucked than ever because he's telling us also

[26:02] I heard the voice of the Lord he heard the Lord speaking to him in his soul as you and I can the Lord can speak to us through the power of his Holy Spirit you remember on the great day of Pentecost they all have the voice of the Lord in their own language through the power of the Holy Spirit and so Isaiah is telling us and I also furthermore I heard the voice of the Lord when I received the message of forgiveness my appetite was further fettered for more things of the Spirit of God also I heard the voice of the Lord saying whom shall I send and who will go for us

[27:03] God calling for messengers because the fields are white for harvest but the labor are few God is saying whom shall I send and who will go for us the entire Trinity joining in who will go for us who will answer this call for further service who is willing to spend and be spent for Christ I'm sure that is the challenge for you and for me today or to you and to me are we willing to spend and be spent for Christ the apostle

[28:04] Paul was he was willing to spend and be spent he was willing to die in hardness because he felt that he could not do enough after all that Christ did for him that he died for him that he suffered the cursed death of the cross and that he was wounded for his transgressions and bruised for his iniquities ready to spend and be spent whom shall I send and who will go for us who is going to respond to the appeal from heaven in Isaiah's day and this very day and in this very building while you can see the response that

[29:06] Isaiah gave here am I Sam made what a transformation how wonderful it is when God assures us that our sins and our iniquities are taken away and that God is still calling us to service here am I send me he was cleansed and made meat for the master's use the glory of the mighty Lord continue shall forever here am I send me cost what is made made willing in a day of God's mighty power what a transformation woe is made for I am undone

[30:08] I am a useless helpless hell deserving sinner but now what a change here am I sand way Lord I am willing to spend and be spent so there is always the challenge are we willing to serve the Lord in one way or another there is work for every Christian to do in different areas and in a different capacity but it's the call of God whom shall I send and who will go for us and the blessed response here am I sand me and God is debtor to no man we shall reap if we faint not and at the end of the day by the grace of

[31:18] God we shall hear his voice saying well done thou good and faithful servant enter thou into the joy of thy Lord Amen let us pray O Lord pardon the sins of our holy things remove far from us all hypocrisy and insincerity O make us honest and sincere confessing our manifold transgressions but believing in the efficacy of Christ's shared blood give us grace now to sing our parting song of praise and dismiss us for thy blessing for Jesus name amen as Father condemn only him to hasta pass glory to

[32:21]  Noel