Rev. Johnson V

1st January 2012 

There are two kinds of people, one is the group of people who walk about of God’s Presence and the other are those who are sent out by God. 

In Isaiah 6:1-8, the prophet Isaiah tells of his journey of being sent out by God. The prophet had enjoyed the lavish support of King Uzziah for a number of years. When the King died, the prophet was distraught and went into the Temple for prayer. Sometimes God breaks down our support systems, not to destroy us but to make us depend on Him.

Here are a few key things to learn from Isaiah. 

1) He looked up – He had an upward vision. When Isaiah looked up, he saw his Creator (Isaiah 40:28). He saw his Heavenly Father, the One who called us His children (Jeremiah 29:11). He saw a holy and pure God (1 Peter 1:16).

2) After Isaiah looked up and beheld God in His glory, he looked within himself and saw that he was unclean – He had an inward vision. When we have a proper upward vision, we will have a proper inward vision. We must see ourselves for what we are and yet see the potential we have because of God’s grace in our lives. We must acknowledge the good things in our lives (Philippians 1:6) – we must take stock to see how we can work for God. We must acknowledge our position in Christ Jesus (Colossians 2:7), we are rooted in Christ. We must acknowledge our challenges. The Bible exhorts us to grow up in all things - i.e. wholesome growth (Ephesians 4:15). We must know the perfect will of God (Romans 12:2). We must know that we are created for His glory (Isaiah 43:7). God created us in order to show-off. Praise God that He loves us so much and has made us glorious.

3) And then Isaiah had an outward vision, of what he must do for others. Friends help us watch how we speak (Proverbs 22:11 and Proverbs 19:6). Friends can also sometimes take us out of God’s path for our lives. When we know where we are, we can serve lovingly. God will bless us so that we are a blessing to the families of the world. Even if we have enemies, we must bless them the way God wants us to (Romans 12:20). 

We cannot serve others until we know who our God is and who we are in Him. It is important as we step into the New Year that our vision is clear. If any one of the three visions are blurry, it will affect the other two. May Jesus bless us and help us as we start this journey to keep our vision perfect.