SERMON “Here I Am Lord”
Introduction
There is something majestic about the violence and power of a blizzard. It reminds us that we are subject to the powers of nature. And there is something peaceful about the quiet beauty when the storm is passed and the land is covered with fresh white snow. All the dirty debris and rotting leaves are hidden by a pure loveliness.
It reminds me of the grace of God which covers all the brokenness of the world and covers our sinfulness and reveals a purity and innocence that only God can give.
We know that eventually the snow will melt and the debris and decomposing leaves will be revealed again. But still underneath the snow and the leaves there is something stirring. The bulbs of daffodils and tulips, the root balls of irises and peonies, the deeper roots of shrubs and trees are getting ready, and sap is already forming so that when the snow melts, and eventually the soil warms, new life will push upwards toward the sunlight when spring erupts.
The purity of God’s grace, however, never melts, and is always available, and underneath God’s grace there is something stirring, and, eventually, where God’s grace is present there will be new life, a life that more closely reflects life as God meant it to be.
In the name of Jesus Christ, and on behalf of a gracious creator God who makes all things new, I greet you with God’s grace, God’s mercy, and God’s peace.
Text: Isaiah 6:8
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!"
Prayer: Psalm 19:14
May the words of my mouth, and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, our rock and our redeemer. Amen.
This is the season of Epiphany, as a matter of fact, the 5th Sunday after the Epiphany. The word ‘epiphany’ is from the Greek language and means ‘revealing’. Epiphany is the season when we remember and celebrate the fact that God has revealed himself in Jesus Christ. It is that time of the year when our scripture lessons tell of Jesus being revealed to shepherds and wise men, and Simeon and Anna in the temple. It is the time of year when we remember that Jesus was revealed as the son of God to John the Baptist in the wilderness, and to those who would become his disciples.
We also read Old Testament scripture about God revealing himself. Last Sunday Pastor Ted read about God revealing himself to Moses in wilderness of the land of Midian by the burning bush. And he read about God’s call to the Prophet Jeremiah. It seems that when God reveals himself it is often accompanied by a summons, a call, a demand for a response.
When God revealed himself to Moses at the burning bush he called Moses to go back to Egypt, back to Pharaoh, to demand that Pharaoh let God’s people go free. When God revealed himself to Jeremiah it was accompanied by a call. Jeremiah was called to prophecy God’s word.
This morning we heard two other epiphany accounts. We heard about Jesus revealing himself to Peter, James, and John at the Sea of Gennesaret. The fishermen snag a miraculous catch of fish, and Jesus calls Peter telling him that from now on he would be a fisher of people rather than of fish.
The other account was from the Old Testament, from the sixth chapter of Isaiah’s prophecy. In this portion of scripture Isaiah tells how he had a vision of the Lord God Almighty in the temple, and how he responded to God’s call.
It’s a dramatic account: In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lofty; and the hem of his robe filled the temple. Seraphs were in attendance above him; each had six wings: with two they covered their faces, and with two they covered their feet, and with two they flew. And one called to another and said: "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory."
In the year that King Uzziah died, Isaiah had an epiphany. The year that King Uzziah died was a traumatic year, a scary year, signaling an uncertain time. King Uzziah, a good king, had reigned on the throne for forty years.
For forty years there had been stability and peace. For forty years the people had prospered. And now, in the year that King Uzziah died, there was sadness and grief, there was anxiety and uncertainty. At the time of this calamity Isaiah goes to the temple. In the temple Isaiah is reminded that kings and monarchs come and go, that earthly rulers are mere mortals. But, the Lord God Almighty, the Lord of Israel is forever on his throne.
In the temple, in the year that King Uzziah died, Isaiah has a vision. God sits on his throne in his temple, and the foundations shake. God’s sits on his throne and the seraphim sing praises: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God of hosts. Heaven and earth are full of his glory!” The foundations are shaken and Isaiah is smitten by the holiness and power of the Lord God Almighty.
The vision of God was awesome. The holiness of God was breathtaking. The righteousness of God was overpowering. Isaiah is overwhelmed. Isaiah is struck by a sense of unworthiness, a sense of guilt. “Woe is me. I am a man of unclean lips and I dwell in the midst of a people with unclean lips, yet my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts.”
This sense of guilt and unworthiness is often present when God reveals himself or when we enter into the presence of God. Remember last week’s telling of Moses at the burning bush. God tells Moses that he is to go back to Egypt, to pharaoh to secure the freedom of God’s people. Moses doesn’t feel up to it. God calls Moses and Moses says, “Who? Me?” God calls Moses and Moses says, “I can’t do that.” God calls Moses and Moses says, “But I’m not eloquent. I don’t know how to speak very well.” But God doesn’t let him off the hook. When God calls Jeremiah to be a prophet, Jeremiah demurs, “Ah, Lord God! Truly I do not know how to speak, for I am only a boy.” But God doesn’t let Jeremiah off the hook. “Do not say, ‘I am only a boy’; for you shall go to all to whom I send you, and you shall speak whatever I command you.” When God confronts Isaiah in the temple, he too feels unworthy, “Woe is me. I am a man of unclean lips and I dwell in the midst of a people with unclean lips.”
Last week the congregation of the Middletown Reformed Church selected four persons, two to serve as elders and two to serve as deacons. If I were to ask them what they think about this, I suspect they will tell me what hundreds of others have told me over the years, “I don’t think I am worthy of the honor.”
I remember telling a friend of mine when I began to sense a call to ministry. He said to me, “I’ve often thought about entering the ministry, but I don’t think I’m good enough.” I remember getting angry with him and saying, “I know I’m not good enough, but it’s got nothing to do with me being good enough. It has to do with what God wants me to do.”
None of us is good enough. That’s where God’s grace enters in. God’s grace covers our unworthiness. God’s grace covers our guilt. God’s grace covers our brokenness like a blanket of pure snow. And under the snow, underneath the grace of God, something new begins to stir, and something new begins to emerge.
God uses ordinary folk, everyday people, men and women, to make something extraordinary happen. God uses Moses, a fugitive. God uses Jeremiah, a farm hand, God uses Isaiah, God uses fishermen like Peter, James and John to preach his word and build his kingdom.
By his grace God calls you and me, and by grace we respond, “Here I am, Lord. Send me.