Send me?

In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and exalted, and the train of his robe filled the temple. Above him were seraphs, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying. And they were calling to one another: "Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory." At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke.

"Woe to me!" I cried. "I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the LORD Almighty."

Then one of the seraphs flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. With it he touched my mouth and said, "See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for."

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 6:1-8)

There is an old legend—and it is of course only a legend—that after Jesus had ascended into heaven, the angel Gabriel asked Him, "Who is going to carry on Your work of teaching and preaching now?" Jesus answered, "I have left it to John and Peter and Andrew and the others." Then Gabriel asked, "What if they don’t do it?" Jesus answered, "I have made no other plans."

Jesus left the preaching and teaching of His salvation in the hands of sinful men and women--it's a frightening thought! There is nothing more important than a person’s eternal destiny. Whether he or she spends eternity suffering pain and despair in hell or enjoying love and happiness in heaven, that decision is made right here, right now, while that person is still drawing breath. That person you work with every day—will he or she join you in heaven one day, or will death separate the two of you forever? Has someone told that person about Jesus, the Son of God who forgives sins and promises unending life in heaven? If not, that person has only hell to look forward to after death.

Who will God send to such a person, to tell them about Jesus? Is God sending you? But how could God leave such an important job in your hands? You’re not trained as a parochial school teacher. You didn’t go to school to be a pastor. You’re sure that you are not the best person to represent Jesus to that man or woman at work. You don’t think that you know the Bible well enough. You’re concerned that you won’t know what to say. You’re afraid that you’ll mess things up, and end up offending that man or woman—then they’ll never come to church.

If you feel this way, Isaiah could relate to you. He knew exactly what you’re feeling, thinking about doing God’s work. Isaiah knew that he was not worthy to stand in God’s presence, let alone represent God to the people; when God appeared to him, Isaiah said, "Woe to me! I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the LORD Almighty." Isaiah knew that the things that came out of his mouth made him a sinner in the sight of God; in Mark chapter 7 Jesus says, "What comes out of a man is what makes him `unclean.' For from within, out of men's hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. All these evils come from inside and make a man `unclean.' " Have you ever heard someone swear or curse, and another person replied, "Do you kiss your mother with that mouth?" That is exactly how Isaiah felt when he was shown God’s throne room.

But Isaiah did not have to be afraid. God was well aware that Isaiah was a sinner, and God had a solution. We read, Then one of the seraphs flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. With it he touched my mouth and said, "See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for." Just like that, Isaiah had been purified. The moment that he admitted his sinful unworthiness to God, Isaiah was freed from the guilt and punishment that sin brings. This happened because he had been touched by a live coal from God’s altar.

An altar is where a sacrifice is made. An altar is a place where lifeblood is poured out to pay for the crimes of another person’s sins. And on God’s altar, the altar of the cross, Jesus Christ submitted to the greatest sacrifice of all time. Jesus, who was the actual Son of God, who was just as much God as His Father, poured out His lifeblood to pay for the crimes of another person’s sins—He died to pay the price for your sins. And because of Jesus’ sacrifice, what was true for Isaiah is also true for you: "See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for." Like Isaiah, we no longer need fear God’s anger at our unworthiness. Because Jesus died for us and has returned from death to life, He has earned the right to forgive our sins. When we tell Jesus that we are unworthy sinners, He touches us with His forgiveness and our guilt is burned away as if touched by a live coal.

What a tremendous blessing! What incredible relief, to know that it is just that easy—tell Jesus in all truth that you are unworthy to stand before him, and He will give you worth. This salvation is a gift beyond measure—there is no way we can earn it, no way we can possibly repay Jesus for it. We can only stand in awe of what God has done for us, as Isaiah stood in awe of God in His holy temple.

But God was not done with Isaiah. While Isaiah was standing there, forgiven, awestruck, overjoyed in the great gift of forgiveness that he had been given, the Son of God speaks for the Father, Himself, and the Holy Spirit. The Lord says, "Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?" Our Lord did not give Isaiah orders. God forgave Isaiah his sins, and now He lets Isaiah know that there is work to be done on the Lord’s behalf. How will Isaiah respond to the offer to help do God’s work? Isaiah’s excited reply is, "Here am I. Send me!"

Yes, Isaiah was excited. God had done such a great thing for him—how could he not want to give his hands, his feet, his lips to God in thanks? Isaiah dedicated the rest of his life to God to serve as His representative to the people of the earth. Isaiah’s "thank you" to God was to become God’s prophet. But not everyone is called by God to be a prophet. In the New Testament, Saint Paul tells us that God’s people are given the ability to serve in a number of different ways: "It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ" (Ephesians 4:11-13).

Which brings us back to you, and the person that you work with. Who will tell that man or woman about the joy and peace that comes from being forgiven by Jesus? You know what that joy and peace is like. You have been confronted by God and wondrously forgiven, just as Isaiah was. There is excitement within you, a desire to serve God in some way just as Isaiah ached to serve. But your excitement is muffled by fear that you are not up to the job, that you will let God down. Your fear of failure stifles your enthusiasm to serve.

First of all, you must remember Jesus’ words: "do not worry about what to say or how to say it. At that time you will be given what to say, for it will not be you speaking, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you" (Matthew 10:19-20). Jesus has promised us that the Holy Spirit can use our mouths to be an effective witness to others, regardless of how well prepared we are. So don't be afraid to talk about Jesus at break time, or while working side by side on the procuction line. Don't be afraid to speak of your faith with a friend while you are out shopping or walking the greens at a golf course.

But there is one other thing that you can do. You can study God’s word. You can commit yourself to regular Bible study. You can take religion classes at a Christian college. No matter what skills you have, the Spirit can use you to do heaven's work--but why not make yourself even more useful to the Spirit than you are right now by becoming even more skilled in the ways of God?

Our Lord says to us, "Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?" It is my prayer that, motivated by the joy in your heart that comes from having your sins forgiven, you will be moved to say, "Here am I. Send me!"