Submitted by Pastor Richard Boettner, Rock Port Baptist Church

In writing this week for “On the Spiritual Side” I want to pass on some teaching that has been a blessing for me. I have been studying the Bible and four attributes of God: His holiness, His power, His love, and His grace or mercy.

In doing so, I recognize that every person has a spirit or is created in the image of God which enables any person to experience God during his/her earthly life. Even if we choose to allow unbelief or rejection of God in our personal lives, it will not change who God is in His very nature or character.

First, as we see God’s holiness we recognize Him as totally without sin, and completely beyond our capacity to approach Him in ourselves. Yet Isaiah had an experience as he sees God in His glory through a personal revelation:

In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord, high and exalted, seated on a throne; and the train of his robe filled the temple. Above him were seraphim, 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.”  (Isaiah 6:1-3)

Second, God demonstrates His power by showing Isaiah that what he is experiencing is meant to build humility and worship in His life, as well as a profound sense of unworthiness. He even recognizes that all the people around him are unclean or unable to do anything to help him, which only God can do:

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.”  (Isaiah 6:4,5)

Third, and in a wonderful and special way, God Himself intervenes to reassure Isaiah that he will not be destroyed or damaged in this process, but that his sin will be removed and he will become a new person:

Then one of the seraphim 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.”  (Isaiah 6:6,7)

In the New Testament, Jesus told Nicodemus that being good, or doing his best, would not be enough as he said “No one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again” (John 3:3).

The conversion of the apostle Paul builds a model for the church of transformation as he experiences Jesus on the road to Damsacus and says: “Who are You, Lord, and what do You want me to do?” (Acts 22:8,10). As He experiences the personal touch of God and the forgiveness of Jesus, he also receives a new calling and a radical change of purpose in his life.

Finally, Isaiah concludes his wonderful experience of God as well with a simple but sincere, volunteer spirit to be available as God’s servant. God gives him a full understanding of His grace and mercy as a changed person:

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 6:8)

I pray as we have shared this article together that you might find God in a new way. He has promised that when we seek Him we will find Him. When we ask we shall receive. May your life purpose and calling be enriched with new energy and vigor to be available for God’s purposes. Please feel free to contact me with questions or comments at rockportbaptistchurch.com.