Holiness (MPLS)

Isaiah 6:1–8

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.” The pivots on the thresholds shook at the voices of those who called, and the house filled with smoke.

And I said: “Woe is me! I am lost, for I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips; yet my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!” Then one of the seraphs flew to me, holding a live coal that had been taken from the altar with a pair of tongs. The seraph touched my mouth with it and said: “Now that this has touched your lips, your guilt has departed and your sin is blotted out.” 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!”

‘Text Message’ Reflection:
From Meta Herrick Carlson

Isaiah’s call story is one of the more dramatic and confident ones we hear in the Hebrew Scriptures. The celestial imagery is terrifying and awe-inspiring. The refrain is a song straight out of the Throne Room of heaven. 

The mortal instinct might be to turn one’s face from the vision or hide from the sheer power of this divine question, “Whom shall I send? Who will go for us?” But Isaiah steps forward and musters, “Here am I. Send me!”

Perhaps his assurance and willing spirit are born of that moment when the live coal touches his lips. His sins are forgiven and his guilt dismissed. He is set free from something beyond his own identity, fears and limitations. He is set free to answer the call.

‘Text Message’ Reflection Questions:

• This is the gift of absolution we receive in worship on communion Sundays. What do those words mean to you? Do they impact the way you worship and live in the world from week to week? 
• What call would you answer if you knew you could not fail? 
• How is this story’s framework for purification different from the “purity culture” or expectations of chasteness we see upheld in Christian culture today?

Prayer:
Holy Wisdom, grant us visions of the freedom you desire for your people and give us the courage to answer the call to be life and liberation for the world you love, through Jesus Christ. Amen.