Scripture Reading: Isa. 6:1-8; John 12:39-41
Ⅰ
The vision of Christ in glory was seen by Isaiah in his depression—Isa. 6:1, 5; cf. 22:1; 2 Chron. 26:4-5, 16-22:
A
In spite of the rebellion, iniquities, and corruptions of God's chosen and beloved people, Christ is still sitting on a high and lofty throne in glory—Isa. 6:1-4; cf. Lam. 5:19; Rev. 22:1.
B
In the midst of the satanic chaos in the old creation, the human history, there is the divine economy for the new creation, the divine history—1:5; 17:14; 2 Thes. 2:7; 1 Tim. 3:15-16.
C
Christ is the unique good thing in the universe; we must look at Him with undivided attention by turning away from every other object; we should not look at anything or anyone other than Christ—Heb. 12:1-2a.
Ⅱ
John, in his account of Christ's living and working on earth, said that Isaiah "saw His glory and spoke concerning Him" —12:41:
A
In order to see the vision of the glorious enthroned Christ, we need to take heed to Isaiah's warning word by exercising our spirit to pray that the Lord would open our inner eyes, soften our heart, and keep our heart turned to Him that we may receive His inner healing of our blindness and sickness—vv. 39-40; Matt. 13:14-17; Isa. 6:10; Rev. 3:18.
B
"Immediately I was in spirit; and behold, there was a throne set in heaven, and upon the throne there was One sitting"—4:2.
C
"Whenever their heart turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away….But we all with unveiled face, beholding and reflecting like a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, even as from the Lord Spirit"—2 Cor. 3:16, 18.
Ⅲ
In Isaiah 6 Christ is seen in His divine glory with His human virtues and His holiness based on His righteousne ss:
A
Christ's long robe signifies His splendor in His virtues, expressed mainly in and through His humanity—v. 1.
B
That Christ was wearing a long robe indicates that He appeared to Isaiah in the image of a man; Christ is the enthroned God-man with the divine glory expressed in His human virtues—cf. Ezek. 1:26, 22; Acts 2:36; Heb. 2:9a.
C
The seraphim signify or represent the holiness of Christ, the embodiment of the Triune God—Isa. 6:2-3.
D
Christ's holiness is based on His righteousness; because Christ was always righteous, He was sanctified, separated, from the common people —5:16.
Ⅳ
As a result of seeing this vision, Isaiah was terminated, finished, realizing that he was a man of unclean lips, dwelling in the midst of a people of unclean lips—6:5:
A
Seeing God transforms us because in seeing God, we gain God and receive His element into us—2 Cor. 3:18:
１
The more we see God, the more we see what we are and the more we deny ourselves and hate ourselves—Job 42:5-6; Psa. 36:9; Eph. 5:13; Luke 5:8.
２
How much we realize concerning ourselves depends upon how much we see the Lord; for this reason we need a revival every morning; morning revival is the time for us to see the Lord—Matt. 5:8; Psa. 27:4, 8.
B
A great percentage of the words we speak are evil because most of the words are words of criticism; if we eliminate gossip, murmuring, and reasoning, we may find that we have very little to talk about—Phil. 2:12-14; cf. Luke 6:45; Eph. 4:29-30; 1 Pet. 1:15-16.
C
The divine light enlightens us, exposes us, supplies us with life, and kills in us all that is not of God—Isa. 6:5; Matt. 6:22; John 8:12.
D
Revelation comprises seeing as well as killing; the greatest thing in the Christian experience is the killing that comes from light—Isa. 6:5.
E
The more we see the Lord and are measured by the Lord, the more we are cleansed, supplied, and transformed—Ezek. 40:3; 47:3-5.
Ⅴ
Seeing God issues in being purged and cleansed by God, and being cleansed by God issues in being sent by God—Isa. 6:6-8; 1 John 1:7-9:
A
After Isaiah realized that he was uncle an, he was purged by one of the seraphim, signifying the holiness of God—Isa. 6:6a.
B
Isaiah was purged with an ember from the altar; the application of this ember by the seraphim signifies the effectiveness of Christ's redemption accomplished on the cross and applied by the Spirit, the Holy, in His burning and sanctifying power—vv. 6b-7a; 4:4; cf. Luke 12:49; Rev. 4:5.
C
This purging by the seraphim with an ember from the altar took away Isaiah's iniquity and purged his sin—Isa. 6:7b.
D
After Isaiah was purged, he received a commission from the Triune God:
１
"Whom shall I send? Who will go for Us?"—the words I and Us indicate that the One speaking here is the Triune God—v. 8a; Col. 2:9.
２
"And I said, Here am I; send me"—the Triune God sends us to bring God's chosen people into a state of living Christ that they might express Him in His glory, be saturated with His holiness, and live in His righteousness—Isa. 6:8b; Acts 13:47; Isa. 49:6; Phil. 1:21a.