By Jamin Roller
Scripture Reading: Isaiah 6:1-13, Isaiah 7:1-25, Isaiah 8:1-10, 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24
“I need a volunteer.”
If I said this when my kids were younger, hands would shoot up in the air; they would jump on their toes and shout “me, me, me” until I chose one of them to help. It’s not quite like that anymore. My kids are older, and they have learned that what I need a volunteer for is not always something they want to do. Nowadays when I say, “I need a volunteer,” most often the response back is, “for what?” They want to know if this is a “take out the trash, unload the dishwasher, take the dog out” kind of invitation or if it is something they’d actually enjoy. They want to know the nature of the work before they give their answer.
This passage is one of the most well-known in the whole book of Isaiah. The words, “Here I am. Send me,” have become precious to so many missionaries, ministers, and faithful Jesus followers who want to be used by God.
What struck me reading it this morning was the fact that Isaiah gave God his yes before he knew all that God was asking him to do. The message he was to take to God’s people was filled with hard words about God’s coming justice. Isaiah was told many would respond to his words with deaf ears and hardened hearts. But Isaiah didn’t wait to have all those pieces put together for him before he raised his hand to be God’s helper.
Why? Because he had just experienced the glory and grace of God. He saw the Lord in all His beauty. He heard the worship offered to a deserving God. He was humbled by the true weight of sin, and instead of being destroyed in the presence of God, he was purified.
He got caught up in the glory and grace of almighty God.
He was not sure about the nature of the work, but he was sure about the nature of His God.
I am humbled by this. Far too often my heart toward obeying God feels more like my kids’, “for what?” and less like Isaiah faithfully saying, “here I am.” I need the reminder of the glory and grace of God that I have also experienced. I know God to be holy and worthy of worship. I also know that my sin has been met with the grace of God through our Lord Jesus.
After reading our passage, I am praying that God will grow in me a greater love for His glory and a more intimate experience of His grace that I may obey with joy all that He has called me to.
Written by Jamin Roller
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