Isaiah 6:8 Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me. I. Let us gaze upon THE VISION OF GLORY which Isaiah saw. It was necessary for him to see it in order that he might be brought into the condition of heart out of which should come the full consecration expressed in — "Here am I; send me." Observe what he saw. 1. The supreme glory of God. See the patience of His infinite majesty, — He sits in calm glory upon His eternal throne. Nor is it a mean throne either, nor one of little dignity; it is "high and lifted up." It is not merely above all other thrones by way of greater power, but over them all by way of supreme dominion over them. 2. The court of the great King. He beheld the glorious attendants who perpetually perform homage, nearest to His throne. 3. The perpetual song, for these sacred beings continually cried, "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts, the whole earth is full of His glory." While you praise His holiness do not forget His power, but adore Him as "Jehovah of hosts." And then dwell, that you may feel a missionary spirit, on that last part of the song, "The whole earth is filled with His glory," for so it really is in one sense. "Jehovah of hosts is the fulness of the whole earth." Turn this ascription, for it may be so read, into a wish: "Let the whole earth be filled with His glory." Read it, if you please, as a prophecy: "The whole earth shall be filled with His glory," and then go you forward, O ye servants of the Most High, with this resolve, that in His hands you will be the means of fulfilling the prophecy by spreading abroad the knowledge of His name among the sons of men. II. Let us now turn our thoughts to THE VISION OF ORDINATION. This man Isaiah was to go forth in Jehovah's name, but in order to preparation for so high an embassage he must undergo a process peculiar but necessary. III. When a man is prepared for sacred work he is not long before he receives a commission. We come, then, to think of THE DIVINE CALL. Notice the particular kind of man for whom this voice is seeking. It is a man who must be sent, a man under impulse, a man under authority — "Whom shall I send?" But it is a man who is quite willing to go, a volunteer, one who in his inmost heart rejoices to obey — "Who will go for Us? "What a strange mingling this is!" Woe is me if I preach not the Gospel," and yet "taking the oversight of the flock of God not by constraint but willingly." IV. Now comes the last point, THE EARNEST RESPONSE. "Here am I; send me." 1. I think I see in that response a consciousness of his being in a certain position which no one else occupied, which rendered it incumbent upon him to say, "Here am I." 2. Then, he makes a full surrender of himself. Isaiah gave himself up to the Lord none the less completely because his errand was so full of sadness. He was not to win men, but to seal their doom by putting before them truth which they would be sure to reject. 3. Then comes Isaiah's prayer for authority and anointing. If we read this passage rightly we shall not always throw the emphasis upon the last word, "me," but read it also thus, "Here am I, send me." He is willing to go, but he does not want to go without being sent. ( C. H. Spurgeon.) Parallel Verses KJV: Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me. |
    |