I’m starting to understand the prophet Isaiah a little better lately. I’ve always wondered what it must have been like to have a calling like his. To hear from God and yet know that most of the nation of Israel would ignore your message. That was a tough calling to walk in.
Of all the Israelites living at that time, Isaiah was probably the most committed to the ways of the Lord. Yet when he had a face to face encounter with God, his reaction was immediate.
“Woe to me!” I cried. “I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty.”
Isaiah 6:5
The fact is that the prophet had received a view of the very throne room of God. He saw the Seraphim declaring the holiness of the Lord. He saw the glory, might, and perfection of the one true God.
The whole experience was overwhelming to his senses. That’s what made him cry out from the depths of his being.
“Woe to me! I am ruined!”
In that moment he saw the perfection of the Kingdom of God in stark contrast to the level at which he and the children of Israel were living at that time. When he said, “I am ruined,” I don’t think that he meant he was going to be judged and killed by God.
It’s more than that. He knew that from that point on, he could never go back to what his life was like even one day before. He could never unsee what he has just witnessed. The vision of the exalted Lord would overshadow everything he did from that day forward.
That’s why we need to see God’s vision for our lives. It changes everything and propels us forward.
It’s why I can’t stop praying for and speaking about revival. In my spirit, the Lord has shown me the victorious church. I’ve seen God’s people hearing a clear Word from God and walking in it. Through the eyes of faith I see a mighty manifestation of the Holy Spirit’s power. It’s on the way.
Sure, I get frustrated when I see how far I am from where I need to be. I wonder how Christ will ever bring His church to this level.
But I can’t stop now. I can’t unsee what I’ve seen in the spirit. Though I’ve sometimes thought about what it would be like if I was just a normal person sitting in a pew each week. Smiling, clapping, and singing on Sunday; then chasing the world for the rest of the week.
I know in my heart that could never happen. I’ve seen the glory of God manifest in His church. I can’t stop moving forward until that day arrives.
We need vision. It only comes from time in the presence of the Holy Spirit. That where we see the unseen. Then, once you’ve seen it – God’s will for your life – you’ll never be the same.
Question: What’s the vision God’s placed in your heart?
© Nick Zaccardi 2015
The Spirit and the Word 