305
T H E K I N G ’ S B U S I N E S S
August, 1939
I N T E R N A T I O N A L L E S S O N Commentary Outline and Exposition Blackboard Lesson Childrens Division Golden Text Illustration Object LeSson B y B. B. S utcliffe B y G retchen S ibley B y H elen G ailey B y A lan S. P earce B y E lmer L. W ilder Points and Problems B y A lva J. M c C lain , President of Grace Theological Seminary, Winona Lake, Ind. SEPTEMBER 3, 1939 ISAIAH: A LIFE DEDICATED TO GOD I saiah 6:1-13 scripts in His service. All who serve Him in truth serve willingly, even as our Lord Jesus served (cf. Matt. 20:28; Psa, 40:8).
And Isaiah replied, “Here am I”-—the servant, the volunteer—“send me.” In this declaration he transferred his per sonal rights to Another, and his service he dedicated to the One who called him. How simple, and yet how profound, is God’s method with His own! He con tinues to call for workers, but He waits for that surrender on the part of each one which enables Him to send them forth. Many believers do not recognize the servant relationship, and some who recognize it do not respond to it, but all who truly can say, “Here am I, send me,” find the will of God to be good and perfect and acceptable (cf, Rom. 12:1-3). IV. His C ommission (9-13) Isaiah had a hard task. Not the softening but rather the hardening of hearts would result from his ministry. Instead' of drawing the people to his Lord, he would see them go further away. But the lack of seeming success need not discourage any of the Lord’s faithful ones. The servant’s business is simply to obey by proclaiming the Word, and then to allow the Lord to produce whatever results are good in His sight. However, Isaiah had a hint of the future blessing of his people even though the immediate result of his preaching appeared other than good. We, too, have the promise that the Lord’s Word will not return void, but will accomplish just what He pleases (Isa. 55:1-1). Points and Problems There are many suggested ways of approach to this passage in Isaiah 6, but it is Clear that back of the prophet’s dedication of his life there was a four- fpld revelation of the true God: 1. A revelation of divine sovereignty. “In the year that King Uzziah died,” the prophet writes, “I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne” (v. 1). There is little doubt but that, because of Uzziah’s greatness, his death w as» a crushing blow to the hopes of Isaiah. Like men in all ages, the prophet was prone to associate the welfare of his nation with the continuance of an able ruler. Even the chosen prophets of the Lord need to learn that “the Most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will” (Dan. 4:17). We are not ready to dedicate
One upon the throne. With veiled faces they saw only the Lord, with covered feet they did only the .bidding of the Lord, and with flying wings they en gaged only in the service of the Lord. The holiness of the triune God was the theme of their worship as they cried, “Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory.” When Isaiah realized something of the holiness of the Lord, a sense of his own sinfulness was borne in upon him. As to his character as a man, he might compare favorably with Uzziah or others,, but in the presence of the holy God, his own goodness faded away and he cried, “Woe is me! for I am undone.” . He declared, “I am a man of unclean lips,” being able to offer no excuse for his sinfulness. He took his place with Job who, in the same Pre sence cried, “I abhor rfiyself” (Job 42:6), and he was like Paul, who later af- firmed: “In me dwelleth no good thing” (Rom. 7:18). Ndr did Isaiah show any false courtesy in speaking of his people; they, too, were a “people of unclean lips” (cf. Isa. 64:6; 1 John 1:8, 10; Job 42:5, 6; Dan. 10:8). n . His C leansing (6, 7) Isaiah’s cleansing immediately fol lowed his conviction and confession. No body ever made a true confession of sinfulness without at once receiving the needed cleansing. The prophet’s purification came by means of his being touched with a coal from the altar. It was the Lord’s altar, and it speaks of judgment past, of expiation complete, and of cleansing for all who will accept it. III. His C all (8) “Whom shall I send?” It was the Lord’s question. A sent one was needed. Such an individual as this is merely an agent, or a servant of the one who sends. The business to be engaged in and the sphere of activity are both to be decided by the sending one, not by the one sent. We are reminded of John the Baptist of whom it was said, “There was a man sent from God, whose name was John" (John 1:6). In stead of the word “John” each believer may insert his own name. “Who will go for us?” A willing one was needed. There is no forced labor accepted by the Lord. He has no con
Isaiah 6:1 In the year th a t king Uzziah died I saw also th e Lord sittin g upon a th rone, high and lifted up, and his train filled th e temple. 2 Above it stood the seraphim : each one had six w in gs; w ith tw ain he covered his face, and w ith tw ain he covered his feet, and w ith tw ain he did fly. \ 3 And one cried unto another, and said. Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts: the whole e arth is full of his glory. 4 And th e posts of th e door moved at the voice of him th a t cried, and th e house w as filled w ith smoke. 5 Then said I, W oe is m e! for I am undone; because I am a m an of unclean lips, and I dwell in the m idst of a people of unclean lips; for m ine eyes have seen th e K in g, th e Lord of hosts. 6 Then flew one of th e seraphim unto m e, having a live coal in his hand, which he had tak en w ith th e tongs from off the a lta r: 7 And he laid it upon my mouth, and said, Lo, th is hath touched th y lips; and thine iniquity is tak en aw ay, and th y sin purged. 8 Also I heard th e voice of th e Lord, sayin g, W hom shall I send, and who w ill go for us? Then said I, H ere am I ; send me. 9 And he said, Go, and tell th is people. H ear ye indeed, but understand not, and see ye indeed, but perceive not. 10 Make th e h eart of th is people fat, and m ake th eir ea rs heavy, and shut th eir eyes; le st th ey see w ith th eir eyes, and h ear w ith th eir ears, and understand w ith th eir h eart, and convert, and be healed. 11 Then said I, Lord, how long? And he answ ered, Until th e cities be w asted w ithout Inhabitant, and th e houses w ith out man, and th e land be u tte rly desolate, 12 And th e Lord have removed men fa r aw ay, and th ere be a g re a t fo r sakin g in the m idst Of th e land. 13 B u t y e t in it shall be a ten th, and it shall retu rn , and shall be eaten : as a te ll tree, and as an oak, whose sub stan ce is in them , when th ey c a st their leav es: so th e holy seed shall be the substance thereof. GOLDEN T E X T : «H ere am I ; send me” (Isa . 6 :8 )., DEVOTIONAL READ ING : P sa. 47:1-9. Outline and Exposition I. His C onviction (1-5) U ZZIAH died, his throne was va Then it was that he' was given the vision in which he saw the Lord upon His throne. Uzziah’s throne might be empty, but the Lord’s throne is never vacant. The prophet saw also the sera phim engaged in their worship of the (These lessons are developed from outlines prepared by the Committee on Improved Uniform Lessons of the In ternational Council. The outlines are copyrighted by the International Coun cil of Religious Education and used by permission. T h e Scripture portions quoted are from the King James Ver sion unless otherwise stated.)
cant, and Isaiah was left with out the support of this human leader upon whom he naturally leaned.
Made with FlippingBook Online newsletter