God's Message Never Fails: Isaiah 6:8-13

I have always had the desire to win.  Although it has subsided some as I have become older I’ve always wanted to be first.  When I was younger, whenever I went on a hike with some friends, I had to be the first one to the top of the mountain.  Even as a little kid playing miniature golf I would hit the ball then run ahead to see if my ball went into the hole -- before anyone else had taken their turn.  I must have been very annoying!

We all have the desire to succeed in what we do.  No one wants to be a failure.  That's ultimately why we get out of bed in the morning:  We have an inner (most likely sub-conscious) sense that today might be better than yesterday.  While some people handle failure better than others, the bottom line is, no one wants to fail.

In our passage today we are going to see that God was about to call Isaiah into a ministry that, from a worldly viewpoint, would be a complete failure.

BACKGROUND

In our last study we learned about Isaiah's vision.  It was a future glimpse of heaven for Isaiah.  Jesus, the Son, was sitting on the throne next to God, the Father.  God's Spirit filled the temple and fiery angels were present glorifying each Person of the Trinity as one angel called to another "Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord of hosts".  It was a wonderful picture of the majesty and glory of God. 

The picture of Jesus that Isaiah saw was awe-inspiring.  He was "High and lifted up" indicating his Sovereignty over the entire universe.  There is no other name above the name of Jesus.  The apostle Paul wrote in the book of Philippians,

"Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." (Philippians 2:9-11).

Isaiah was confronted with the Living Christ and as he viewed his majesty and perfection he was immediately aware of his own sin.  That's what happens when we truly "see" God.  We come to the end of ourselves and we become his servant.  We recognize our sin and we confess it before him so that we might be cleansed and become free from guilt (Isaiah 6:7).

And that is where we find Isaiah in our passage today.  The blood of Jesus Christ has atoned for his sin and his guilt has been removed (Atone means to compensate for a wrong.) Now, Isaiah is eager to serve God fully.  God, the Holy Spirit, (See Acts 28:26-27) announces that he is looking for someone to take a message to the people of Israel and Isaiah immediately steps up to tell God that he is ready, "Here I am! Send me." 

THE POINT OF NO RETURN (Isaiah 6:9,10)

Surprisingly, these two verses are quoted more often in the New Testament than any other passage in Isaiah (Matthew 13:14-15; Mark 4:12; Luke 8:10; John 12:40; Acts 28:26-27).  And who quotes these verses in the New Testament?  In Matthew, Mark, Luke and John it is none other than Jesus.  In the book of Acts, Paul quotes the passage giving credit to the Holy Spirit for speaking the words to Isaiah [another indication that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit were present in Isaiah 6.] 

These two verses seem like a strange command from God.  God is essentially saying:

"Isaiah, your message is going to fall on deaf ears."   Your message is going to fail.

What an interesting passage!  Sometimes God's message seems to be a mystery.    Isaiah 55:8 says,

"For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord.  For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts." 

It appears that there is a point in a person's life where God draws the line and pronounces judgment on that person.  The people of Jerusalem, as a nation, had obviously reached that point.  They had chosen to be arrogant and indifferent to the message of the Lord even after they were given clear instructions on how to turn back to God (Remember their false worship back in chapter one?  See God's solution in 1:16-18). 

HOW LONG?  (Isaiah 6:11-13)

The question Isaiah asked is "How long until the people repent?"  The Lord gives a rather startling answer; until the cities become ghost towns and the people are taken far away into captivity (This would happen in 586 B.C. by the Babylonians).

There is a hint of hope.  God compares the people to a tree that is cut down and only the stump remains in the ground.  He tells Isaiah that some of the people (10%) will return (and they did, 70 years after the Babylonian captivity) but again they would be subject to God's judgment, but not complete eradication.  Finally, there will be a small "righteous" group that will survive, "the holy seed" and the promise of the Messiah is guaranteed.

APPLICATION FOR TODAY

1. God wants us to "Go" and leave the message to him.  We tend to get caught up in how we are going to share the good news with a family member or a co-worker.  We analyze the situation and determine the gentlest human way of sharing Christ with that person.  The last thing we want to do is fail or be rejected or made fun of.  We should be gentle and humble when we share the message of Christ, but if we truly believe that God is as real today as he was in Isaiah's day, we should leave the message and the results to him.

When Moses questioned his ability to speak properly God gave him a harsh answer in Exodus 4:11, "Who has made man's mouth?  Who makes him mute, or deaf, or seeing, or blind?  Is it not I, the Lord?  Now therefore go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you shall speak."

The God of the universe who is "high and lifted up" is certainly able to put the proper words in our mouths so that we might speak for him. 

Jesus told us what would happen when persecution comes to us because of our belief in him.  He said, "And you will be dragged before governors and kings for my sake...do not be anxious how you are to speak or what you are to say, for what you are to say will be given to you in that hour.  For it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you." 

Not only does God help us to speak his message to others, he even helps us in times when we are so emotionally and spiritually weak that we don't even know how to pray.  In Romans 8:26 we read,

"Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness.  For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words." 

It is God who puts his message in our mouths.  Stop trying to outthink God and allow him to work through you.

2.  There comes a time when God allows hearts to be hardened.  It is true that God is not willing for any to perish and for all to repent (1 Peter 3:9), but it is also true that God disciplines those he loves.  Look at the repeated warnings that are given in the book of Hebrews:

"How shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation?" Hebrews 2:3
"Today, if you hear his voice do not harden your hearts."  Hebrews 3:8
"Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God."  Hebrews 3:12
"Don't be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin." Hebrews 3:13
"Do not harden your hearts." Hebrews 4:7
"The Lord disciplines the one he loves."  Hebrews 12:6

The point is that God does not deliberately harden a person's heart.  When anyone chooses to reject right, he will be hardened in the wrong.  Here is another way to look at the concept of a hardened heart:  The hearts of people are not hardened so that they can be lost.  Rather, they are hardened because they are lost.  That is why the apostle Paul said in 2 Corinthians 6:2, "Now is the day of salvation."  Those who wait to completely turn their lives over to Jesus might wait too long, causing their hearts to become even more hardened -- But ultimately that is their choice.  When we share the Good News of Jesus Christ with others we never fail.  God always uses it for his glory.

This Week:  Ask God to give you the words to share his message of salvation with someone you love.  Examine yourself to make sure you are not being hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.

Study Questions:

1.  Do you think it is fair that God allows the hearts of some people to become hardened?  Why or why not?

2.  Is it okay to question God?  Explain.

3.  If God loves us, why does he discipline us?