Holy Trinity Isaiah 6:1-8 June 7, 2009
According to the prophet Isaiah it was the seraphs who first sang out the words, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth if full of his glory.”
In somewhat similar fashion we began this morning’s worship with the classic hymn,
“Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty!
Early in the morning our song shall rise to thee.
Holy, holy, holy, merciful and mighty!
God in three persons, blessed Trinity!”
The combination of our reading from Isaiah and the singing of our Gathering Hymn often remind me of the awesomeness of God. I say “awesome” because it is a word that, at least in my mind, reaches to the pinnacle of our adjectives, a word used to express goodness, power, grandeur, beauty and amazement. It is a word that sums up the sense of our breath being taken away.
It is a word we love to use when no other word or words capture the essence of what we are experiencing. So we say that something is “Totally awesome, incredibly awesome, mysteriously awesome.” And because we love to use this word, it is sometimes over used and diluted of its magnitude and majesty.
If you listen to everyday language you will hear it used to describe everything from the latest sports car to hit the road, to a pair of funky new shoes in the store window, to a song that catches our ear on the radio. When all else fails, it is awesome.
On another level we use the word awesome to describe creations of artistic beauty.
Many years ago I had the opportunity to visit Paris, France with a couple of buddies when we were exchange students in Germany. During our time in Paris we made a point to visit a number of the cathedrals like Notre Dame and yet, the one that stands out in my mind is that of Sainte Chapelle, a Gothic cathedral with the some awesome stained glass windows that fill the chapel with both light and color. There was something about standing in that ancient chapel that simply took your breath away and caused you to stand there in holy silence.
Each December I try to make a point to get down to the campus of Gustavus Adolphus College to take in the annual Christmas at Christ Chapel. It is both a worship service and a concert integrating all the choirs, the orchestra and those of us attending. And each year at the close of the service those guys with the long herald trumpets begin the introduction of “Oh Come All Ye Faithful” and that is followed by the orchestra and then the massive pipe organ that could rock the house on its own and then the choirs and finally the congregation. It is a cacophony of instruments and voices joined together in what has become my all time favorite Christmas hymn.
Suffice it to say, it is totally awesome!
The word, awesome, is often used to talk about science. How many of you recall watching the first time one of our astronauts took a step on the moon? Would not the word; ‘awesome’ sum up your response? In fact each time I watch as yet another space shuttle takes off and even more so, return safely, I find the word, awesome, crossing my lips.
The word awesome is often used to capture those moments when nature overwhelms and inspires us. A couple years back when some of our youth went out to the Pine Ridge Reservation, we took time out to visit the Badlands, as well as Black Hills. In both occasions, I recall hearing the word, ’awesome’ being used to capture the moment. If you have ever been out to California and seen those huge Redwoods that are centuries old and tower up like sky scrappers, you might have uttered the word, awesome to describe the experience. And then there are those canoe trips to the BWCA with the pristine lakes, the occasional moose and the awesome sunsets over the glass-like lakes.
And then the word awesome is used to capture those special moments that happen to us.
The birth of a child, his or her first steps, graduating from high school, heading out into the world, each milestone, awesome, in its own right. Those occasions when you are privileged to particiapte in a historic moment, one of those events where you can say, “I was there, and it was awesome!”
The word awesome is used to describe everything from sports cars, current fashion, and both classic and modern art. It is used to describe the first step for mankind and every step in between.
The word awesome is used to describe almost everything great and wonderful.
The word, awesome, is also used to describe God and experiences with God. Sometimes when you have experiences with God, or see God’s miracles in the making, the only word you can use is, awesome.
A pastor colleague of mine wrote about a trip to the Holy Land. He wrote about a cliff outside the walled city of Jerusalem, a cliff that had a number of sockets or caves. He went on to describe how if you stepped back away from the cliff, it strikes a remarkable resembles to a skull, and for that reason it is referred to as Golgotha, “Place of the Skull”, the very same place where Jesus died on a cross. At the top of the cliff are these gorgeous old trees, with their gnarled branches that are thousands of years old. And my colleague had to wonder, if these trees could tell secrets, they would tell you an awesome story of an empty tomb, a burial tomb, where Jesus was buried but later resurrected. Then he wrote about how he and others joined together in singing the old hymn, “Were You There?” and when they came to the last stanza, “Were you there when God raised him from the tomb?” and how they felt the awesomeness of God, the awesomeness of God who died on a cross, but then turned around and conquered death once and for all.
For those who are led by the Spirit, the awesomeness of God is not completely unfamiliar.
And yet, it is safe to say that every person in every culture in every generation experiences the awesomeness of God in a different way.
For the prophet Isaiah his experience with the holiness and awesomeness of God is unlike any we might ever encounter. And yet, it is also safe to say he never experienced the awesomeness of God sitting around a campfire in the BWCA or in the singing of a hymn outside the tomb of Christ’s resurrection.
For Isaiah that encounter took place in the temple in the year 740 B.C. Perhaps much like Sainte Chapelle in Paris, the temple was a beautiful building and there he stood looking up high at the hundred and fifty foot high ceiling. And there in the temple he had a vision of God seated on a throne. The robes of God came cascading down into the temple as water comes cascading down a waterfall. All around Isaiah was the robe of God, flowing like streams of silk, curling around him. He looked up into the face of God, and he couldn’t quite see the face of God, but he saw two seraphim, winged creatures and they were singing in their deep magical voices, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of Hosts.’ The voices rumbles, “Heaven and earth are full of God’s glory. Holy, holy, holy, awesome is the Lord God of heaven.”
Surrounded by the awesomeness of God, Isaiah is suddenly humbled and struck by the reality of his sinfulness and mere mortal-ness. And he sinks to his kneels in humble submission to one exceedingly far greater than him self. In the presence of God, he submits, he kneels, he confesses his sinfulness, and he is aware of his unclean lips as well as the unclean lips of others.
And the seraphim, reading Isaiah’s thoughts flies down with a hot coal from the altar and touches Isaiah’s lips and then announcing that his guilt is removed, his sins are forgiven. At which point, the voice of God raises the question: “Whom shall I send? Who will go out into the world to be with my people?” And Isaiah, having experienced the holiness of God, having experienced the forgiveness of God, raises his hand and says, “Here I am, Lord. Send me”
It is amazing what can happen when we experience the awesomeness of God, the holiness of God, the forgiveness of God. It can change us, transform us, and compel us to step up and step out in the name of God.
But you know what? Every experience is unique; each of us experiences God’s awesomeness in our own way. For Isaiah it was in the temple.
For Simon Peter, the fisherman, it was different. His encounter was not in a temple; it was in a fishing boat. After a long night of nothing to bring home, Jesus enters his boat and gives him some divine fishing tips and the next thing you know the nets are bursting and the boats are at risk of sinking under the heavy load of the catch. And what does Peter do? He realizes that he is in the midst of a miracle, he is in the company of holiness and he too falls to his knees and confesses his sinfulness. And Jesus blesses him, forgives him, and he gives him a commission to fish for the children of God.
For a woman who had a somewhat less that stellar reputation and her list of former husbands was the talk of the town—the holiness of God did not happen in a temple or on a lake. It happened at a village well. In a brief, yet feisty exchange of words, the woman came to understand that she was in the presence of one who came from God. She too fell down, worshiped Jesus and then serves as one of the first evangelists to tell of God’s awesome grace and mercy.
The list goes on. Through out history, countless numbers of people have encountered the awesomeness of God and their lives have never been the same. And yet, each encounter was unique. For Martin Luther it was in the opening of scripture and delving into Paul’s letter to the Romans that he was seized by the awesome grace of God. For some, the awesomeness of God came within worship, for others it might have been a wilderness experience, and for others in the act of service and compassion.
So, how have you experienced the awesomeness of God? Where have you encountered the holiness of God? Do you recall a specific time and place where the words, “You are forgiven” have stood out as being particularly earth moving, life altering, and eye opening?
At the heart of today’s worship is the reminder that the awesomeness of God cannot and will not be tightly confined and neatly boxed up. It cannot and will not be summarized in some simple corporate mission statement or sound byte. And despite how hard we preachers might try to come up with helpful analogies to explain and illustrate the full nature and awesomeness of God, in the end, while they might be helpful, they all fall short and ultimately apart.
Today’s reading from Isaiah serves as a reminder that God Almighty is worthy of our songs of praise, as well as our humble submission and heartfelt repentance. It also raises the daily question, so what? So what difference is this going to make in your life? Will it drive you to your knees? Will it open your eyes to see the need for repentance? Will it cause you to desire a new life, a life born of the Spirit, a life filled with God’s grace? Will it propel you to step forward and offer your life to the glory of God and service to your neighbor? I can’t answer that for you, only you can answer that.
In the week to come, take some time, some quiet reflective time to ponder your encounters with the awesomeness of God, those moments in your life when you came face to face with the holiness of our God. Those blessed occasions when the still small voice of God spoke to you, those experiences that allowed you to see the face of Christ in your neighbor in need, those exciting and yet, unnerving occasions when the Holy Spirit moved you to acts of uncommon faith and courage. And then ponder and prayerfully consider how those encounters have touched your life and the lives of others. And then give thanks to God. Give thanks, knowing that while there is much about this Triune God we can never fully fathom, we still have the assurance that as children of God, as brothers and sisters with Christ, we are each and everyone of us knit together in a mystical body of God’s awesome grace. And because we have received this gift and inheritance from God we too might join Isaiah in stepping forward and saying, “Here am I, send me”! And with Paul we too might cry out, “Abba! Father!” And with the seraphim we too might sing, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth if full of his glory.” Amen.
Pastor Stephen Blenkush
Zion Lutheran Church
Milaca, MN
www.ZionMilaca.org
(Sermon Archive)
