Weekly Devotional - May 10, 2013

"Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, 'Whom shall I send?
And who will go for us?' And I said, 'Here am I. Send me!'"

Isaiah 6:8 NIV

 

The scene must have been even more dramatic than what today's special effects can produce. Isaiah saw the Lord on his throne. Angels were flying through the air saying, "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty." The sound was so great that Isaiah felt the earth quake. Smoke filled the room.

 

Before Isaiah left the scene he volunteered to go in the service of the Lord. God was looking for someone to go to the people and proclaim a message. Isaiah seems almost enthusiastic. "I'll go! Send me! Pick me!"

 

But think about what brought Isaiah to this point of surrender. The Lord is sitting on his throne. The angels are swirling through the air. The temple shakes and is filled with smoke.

 

Isaiah's first response was not to volunteer to join God's mission. His first response was confession. Can you imagine the arrogance of anyone being in God's presence and not confessing sin? To see the holiness of God exposes our sin. When we see his holiness we realize our sinfulness.

 

Christians sometimes seem reluctant to confess sin. Are you afraid others will find out you are a sinner? Are you ashamed of what you've done? Listen, you are a sinner and everyone knows it because they are too. And you ought to be ashamed of unconfessed sin. Confessing is the best response.

 

Like Isaiah, when you confess your sin God will forgive you. Nothing's better than forgiveness. It releases you from guilt. It frees you to draw near to God. And then God will call you to serve him.

 

I've confessed and been forgiven. Often. But I remember a few times when it seemed like more of a burden was lifted. Probably because the sin actually was a greater burden. I wanted nothing more than to obey God's commands - to volunteer for service. Pray that God will help you feel the freedom to serve him.