“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.” Isaiah 6:1
The prophet Isaiah is certainly known for the book that he wrote, than by all other accounts of him in history. One thing is certain, his writings are unparalleled in their scope, depth, personableness of God, and God’s gracious dealings with men. Rarely in Scripture do we see someone so gifted, and gracious as Isaiah, and yet so sensitive and receptive to the revelation of God to his heart. From the opening chapters of his book we are brought face to face, as was Isaiah himself, with a vision that changed everything in his life. The impact of that vision, in essence, has changed the world, for the book that God gave him to write has been passed down through the centuries, revealing to mankind the hidden things of God, Christ’s work on the Calvary, the great truths of the the compassionate heart of God, but also, His justice. The vision that Isaiah had of the Lord sitting upon the throne of heaven was overwhelming, great and glorious. What a contrast to see the lowliness of Christ, God in the flesh, unveiled as the suffering Servant, the sacrificial lamb. From the heights of heaven we see Him reigning. Then, plunged into the depths of human despair and depravity, we see the lowly Christ coming to save His creation. How can anyone not be moved by the fact that the King of Heaven did completely laid aside His diadem, His crown, His robes of royalty and distinction, to take upon Himself the garb of a baby wrapped in swaddling clothes, and eventually, a carpenter’s work clothes? But this was not the greatest mark of His humiltiy, as opposed to His greatness. It was when He was stripped of even the lowliest of garbs, and clothing, to be not only rejected by those whom He came to save, but delivered over to death, to “…taste of death for all men.” Innocent, just, and holy, there being absolutely no guile or deceit in His mouth, He delivered Himself up, by the grace of His Father, and the power of the eternal Spirit, to become the sin-bearer of mankind. The King of heaven had come, riding on a donkey, only to be the receiver of insults, criticisms, and mockings. Isaiah would write of Christ, and this portrait of Him, at least six hundred years before He came to earth. The validity that Isaiah’s book was inspired of God has been proven over the centuries by the comfort, blessing, and salvation that it has brought to countless thousands, and perhaps millions. Very few author’s writings can last so long, never diminishing in their message or mission by God in giving them, as the book of Isaiah. Very few authors could ever come so close to being able to portray God, the heart of God, and His compassion and mercy in dealing with sinful, lost men, as was Isaiah, or rather, the Spirit of God in and through him. Why then, in God’s dealings with Isaiah, did He give to Isaiah such a precise vision of Himself on the throne of heaven in such a magnificent way? There is no doubt on that day, God set in stone a work in Isaiah’s heart that totally transformed him from being just a highly intelligent and capable individual, to becoming the spokesperson of God to the world.
Scripture tells us that, “…without a vision the people perish.” The opposite is true also. With a vision, a knowledge of the truth of God, given by the Spirit, there will always be a transforming effect. The Lord through Isaiah tells us with regard to His Word, that when it goes forth out of His mouth, it will NOT return unto Him void, or without effect. There is in the vision of God that He gives, a power to transform, change, and thrust forward. The calling of Isaiah by God followed his vision.
Dear Father, Grip us with Thy glory. In Jesus’ name, Amen.