Holiness "evokes awe and amazement. It draws us, yet frightens us. There is both dread and curiosity when one encounters the holy." As a country, I believe that we have put aside awe and amazement. When I say awe and amazement, I don't mean being in awe of the way someone plays a musical instrument or the speed at which one can run a race. I mean true awe. True amazement. Awe and amazement aimed at the only being who evokes authentic awe. Unadulterated amazement. I hate to jump ahead and discuss Isaiah's experience, but I cannot help but briefly mention one thing about his experience. Isaiah 6:5 says the following:
And I said: "Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!"
The King James Vesion of the Bible uses the word "undone" instead of "lost". He was undone in the presence of the Lord. In the presence of the Lord we see Him as He is, and as a result we see more clearly who we truly are in light of His perfections, His transcendant holiness. Peter had a similar experience in Luke 5. Christ told the men to cast their nets into the water, and they caught so many fish that their boat and the boat they called to help haul in the fish began to sink. Peter saw a glimpse of who Christ really was.
But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, "Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord" (verse 8).
My desire as we continue this study is that we would see more clearly who the Lord is, and as a result, see more clearly who we truly are. When that happens, we are much more thankful for the grace we've been given, and are provoked to praise.
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
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