SEND FORWARD – 6 …who have borne witness of your love before the church. If you send them forward on their journey in a manner worthy of God, you will do well… 3 John 1:6 NKJV
In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord, high and exalted, seated on a throne; and the train of his robe filled the temple. 2 Above him were seraphim, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying. 3 And they were calling to one another: “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.” 4 At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke. 5 “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.” 6 Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. 7 With it he touched my mouth and said, “See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.” 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!” Isaiah 6:1-8 NIV
It all comes down to our obedience to the Lord and what He’s called us to do.
You’ve made it! Today is day 40! Yesterday we began to bring this journey to a close, concluding that the ultimate way to go, step, reach, look, and send forward is to obey. It all comes down to our obedience to the Lord and what He’s called us to do.
In today’s passage, Isaiah has a vision in which he sees the Lord. In the first few verses he recognizes the Lord’s holiness. Do you recognize the Lord’s holiness? Pause for a minute and reflect on who God is. In verse 5, Isaiah recognizes his own sinfulness, especially compared to the Lord. Think for a minute about all that our holy God has done for you and all the ways He has made you new. In the last few verses, Isaiah, now cleansed and forgiven, readily answers the Lord’s call. Are you answering the Lord’s call?
“The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few” (Matt. 9:37 NIV). When the Lord asks who will go, will you? When He asks who will give, will you? When He asks who will serve, will you? When He asks who will share, will you? Oh, that our response might be that of Isaiah’s, “Here am I. Send me!” May we know the sweet goodness of the Lord and may we offer all that we are, and all that we have, in worship back to Him!
“Here am I. Send me!”
APPLICATION
– Think about what the Lord is calling you to do. Does He want you to tell someone about Him, to give to His work on earth, to serve in a Connect Group or volunteer position? Offer yourself to Him now and commit to do exactly what He asks.
– Pray for the services this morning at each Liberty campus. Pray for those who will be making commitments to the Forward initiative. Pray that they would trust God enough to obey. Thank Him for His promise to “throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it” (Mal. 3:10 NIV).
– Thank God for this 40-day journey. Pray that He will use it in your life and in the life of our church for many years to come. Pray that Liberty would always be moving Kb>forward and that we would always do whatever it takes to send the Gospel forward for generations to come. Pray for the vision God has given us of reaching Hampton Roads and beyond with the Gospel.
– Pray that many people from Hampton Roads would come to know Jesus because of our obedience. Pray that their eyes and hearts would be opened to His truth and that they would respond to His invitation.