And I said: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!” (Isaiah 6:5)
I. Confession
The moment Isaiah encountered the holiness of God (v1 to 4), his first response was confession: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips”.
Realizing and confessing how unholy we are is the proper response when we have a glimpse of the holiness of God. Just like when Peter beheld the holiness of Jesus through the miracle of having a large number of fishes after an unfruitful night of fishing and responded to Him: “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.” (Luke 5:8)
The greater our awareness of God’s holiness, the lower our assessment of ourselves. That is why we should meditate on God’s holiness every day to remind us how sinful we are. As we are reminded, let us humbly confess our sins to God and give thanks for His finished sacrifice on the cross.
II. Condescension
There are times when we think that Isaiah is different from us because he was set apart to be a prophet of God. But take note of what he said: “I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips.” His life-altering encounter with God resulted to confession and condescension. The holiness of God crushed any self-righteousness that Isaiah had. He considered himself as sinful as anybody else.
Truly, a true encounter with God crushes our self-righteousness because of the humbling realization of how sinful we are in comparison to the purity of God.
Let us lay aside every ounce of self-righteousness. Let us not look down on others because we think we are more spiritual than others. Let us not be like the Pharisee who looked down on the tax collector and took pride in his righteousness. (Luke 18:9-14) Self-righteousness is the greatest hindrance towards salvation because it promotes trusting in oneself rather than trusting the merits of Christ.
III. Cause
The cause for Isaiah’s confession and condescension is that He encountered the holiness of God. He exclaimed, “for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!” He encountered the Lord of hosts in verses 1 to 4. He saw the King on his throne with the train of his robe filling the temple. Seraphims even worshipped Him and ascribed glory due to Him: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts;
the whole earth is full of his glory!” (Isa. 6:3)
Indeed, a true encounter with God alters the course of our lives in the right direction. It humbles us down and makes us aware of who we truly are: depraved people. This life-altering event happened when Saul also encountered the risen Christ on his way to the road of Damascus to persecute Christians. (Acts 9)
Let us meditate on the greatness of God in the fullness of His attributes. Let us marvel at His majesty. And as we gaze upon the beauty of our God, may we forget ourselves and be consumed by the weightiness of the King of hosts. And let us put the psalm of David in our hearts and say, “One thing have I asked of the Lord, that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in his temple.” (Psalm 27:4)
By grace alone 