Holiness Much?

Often times I write, sing and preach about the love of God. I will outline points of sermons to adequately explain the justice that we are escaping and the mercy we are receiving from the hands of a totally sovereign, but completely patient Savior. This morning I was confronted with an issue that I do not dwell as much as I should and I definitely don’t teach it as much as I should. The holiness of God… So rich, so deep, so convicting… His holiness is so perfect that when Isaiah came face to face with the holy presence of God the Father all he could do was wail the phrase, “woe is me”, “I am undone”, “and I am a man of unclean lips”…. When Isaiah stood face to face with the King of kings he realized how small he was and how wretched his sin, but God did not leave him in that state. God willed for a piece of coal to be taken from the alter and touched to Isaiah’s lips. It wasn’t a form of torture or torment, but more like a healing touch to cauterize the wound of sin that lay gaping open in Isaiah’s life. I can’t describe how desperate I am today for the Lord to reach down with His merciful fire and touch the wound of sin in my life, in my city, and in the world. To return to Isaiah for a moment it was just after God touched his lips with the coal that God asked this question. “ Who shall I send? Who will go for Us?”… Isaiah’s reply overwhelms me with hope. He says this, “Here I am! Send me.” The same man who moments earlier has been so grief stricken and broken over his sin all he could do is air his dirty laundry, but now he volunteers without hesitation to be the mouthpiece of God. What happened? Well, Isaiah did not run from God’s holiness, nor did he refuse it. Instead he received Gods purging fire from the alter and understood that he had been forgiven. In turn his life shifted to a life consumed and propelled by the glory and holiness of God. My hope for my life today is that I will embrace the holiness of God at all cost, boasting only in the cross of Christ.