This idea came from Michael Youssef. I trust that it will bless you as much as it did me.
“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.” This is from Isaiah 6. This message is timely for us, just as it was for Isaiah. First, a little background. Uzziah had been the King of Judea for 52 years. He was a godly king and did some outstanding things. Isaiah had ministered during this reign and it the country was stable, at peace, and pleasing to the Lord.
Disclaimer: Uzziah did become proud and that led to a “hiccup” in his reign, but, by and large, he was a good and godly king. Compare this to some of the kings that had the epitaph when they died that went: “Died and was buried, to no one’s regret.” When Uzziah died, Isaiah was grieving and concerned. The nation had enjoyed a long reign of peace and safety. God was glorified and was blessing the land.
Here in chapter 6 Isaiah writes, without saying that he was concerned, but we surely can understand his concern. “Who and what comes next?” “How will they rule?” “Will the country continue to follow the Lord or will they drift away?” (Or in some cases, it was not a drift, but a precipitous leap away from God.)
It does not seem to be a problem to see Isaiah having gone to the Temple to hear from the Lord. The “Temple” in the verse may have been a vision of the “worship center” in heaven, or it was the Temple in Jerusalem. I like the latter idea. Let’s join him.
He trudges into the Temple, wondering what is next. And then the Lord appeared. “I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple.” Judah’s throne was empty, but Isaiah was shown that the Lord was still on His throne. God’s throne is never empty. What a comforting thought.
And this is enough to get us through the day. But he didn’t stop there. The train of His robe filled the temple. (I found a reference to that on this web site. https://nancyaruegg.com/tag/the-train-of-gods-robe/)
“The train of his robe: In ancient times, the flowing train on a monarch’s robe was a symbol of glory and splendor. To understand the importance of a train, we have to remember that in those days, all clothing had to be constructed “from scratch”—fibers of cotton, linen, or wool had to be spun into thread, threads had to be woven into cloth, cloth had to be cut and sewn into garments by hand. It was a time-consuming process.
“Only the rich and powerful could afford to add extra length to their robes. The longer the train, the more glorious and splendid the king. And as he paraded past his subjects, the length of his robe was meant to impress.
“Filled the temple: Isaiah’s statement conveys the magnitude of God’s glory compared to any earthly king or queen. Symbolically, the robe represents God’s infinite splendor and majesty—his glory. As one preacher explained, “air is the atmosphere of earth, God’s glory is the atmosphere of heaven.” One day we will breathe God’s glory!” End quote.
Not much explanation needed there. When the King is gone, the Lord remains. He is eternal, unchanging, and supernal. Glory! Seraphim hovered above Him and cried out:
“Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord of armies. The whole earth is full of His glory.”
Notice that the glory of the Lord, represented in the Temple, was not limited to that spot where Isaiah saw it. The whole earth is resplendent with His glory. Even when things look bleak, we can be assured that it is all for His glory. Isaiah may have been in sorrow, fear, or despair. But that did not last long. Notice that the foundations of the whole place were shaken. (I am assuming that you will look up the passage and read along. Link: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Isaiah+6&version=NASB)
And how did Isaiah respond? Listen to his cry.
“Woe to me, for I am ruined! Because I am a man of unclean lips, And I live among a people of unclean lips; For my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of armies.”
King James says, “I am undone.” That is just not going out with your zipper down. It is like parading down town in a hospital gown. Everything is hanging out. And his confession is a model for us, you and me, to repeat. “Undone, unclean lips, part of a crowd with unclean lips.” We can only turn our eyes to the King, the Lord of Hosts.
And the remedy? Read on:
Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a burning coal in his hand, which he had taken from the altar with tongs. 7 He touched my mouth with it and said, “Behold, this has touched your lips; and your guilt is taken away and atonement is made for your sin.”
The cleansing is spiritual. The Lord will purge the contagion from our “mouths” and thus our lives. We have confessed our sin. And now the guilt is removed. The only thing left for us to do is to make sure that we do not allow that filth back into our system. As Jesus told the Pharisees that what comes out of a man defiles him. (Matthew 15:11) And what comes out is the effluvia of what is inside.
(I last saw that used to describe how the virus spreads from infected people to others. The virus effluviates its spores or what ever. And those virus particles hitch a ride on any moisture droplets that are available and spread wherever they are not contained.)
Isaiah symbolically had an internal purging and that is why we need to confess with him, “Woe is me! I am undone. My lips are unclean and my “crowd” is unclean.” Begin with me. Cleanse myself, my circle and family, my church, my nation, and my world.
We, like Isaiah, have lost a leader. Another one is coming. “In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord, High and lifted up.” Then we will see no one else or anything else. We can also see our own condition and how bad off we are. We can, like Isaiah, take the clear message to all who hear.
“Be of good courage. Do not be afraid. The Lord is with you.” Amen.
