When We See His Glory

Reflection

One of the things I love most about where I live is that we experience all four seasons. While we don't receive much snow, I enjoy watching the landscape change throughout the year. There is something breathtaking about seeing the mountains painted with the brilliant colors of autumn or walking through a field covered with wildflowers in the spring. Every season displays the beauty of God's creation in its own unique way.

Standing before the vastness of creation, I cannot help but marvel at the greatness of the One who spoke it all into existence.

Moments like those have a way of reminding me just how small I really am. Yet as magnificent as mountains, valleys, forests, and oceans may be, they are only a small reflection of the glory of their Creator.

Isaiah was given a glimpse of something far greater. He saw the Lord seated upon His throne, high and lifted up, while the train of His robe filled the temple. The heavenly seraphim surrounded His throne, crying out: "Holy, holy, holy, is the LORD of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory."

A Glimpse of Perfect Purity

Their worship reminds us that God's holiness is unlike anything we have ever known. There is no one who compares to Him. His purity is perfect. His righteousness is complete. His majesty is beyond human description. Even the heavenly beings covered their faces before His glory.

Isaiah's response is one that every one of us would have had: "Woe is me! for I am undone..."

The closer Isaiah came to God's holiness, the more aware he became of his own sinfulness. He wasn't comparing himself to other people anymore. He wasn't measuring himself against the culture around him. He was standing before the holy God of heaven, and suddenly every illusion of personal goodness disappeared.

Cleansed and Brought Near

Left to ourselves, we have no hope of standing before a God so holy. But praise God, the story does not end there.

One of the seraphim took a live coal from the altar and touched Isaiah's lips, declaring that his iniquity had been taken away and his sin purged. The altar pointed to God's provision for sin, reminding us that forgiveness has always come through the sacrifice God Himself provides. For us, that sacrifice is Jesus Christ.

The cross accomplished what no amount of human effort ever could. Jesus bore our sins, satisfied God's righteous judgment, and made a way for sinners to be forgiven and brought near to the holy God whom Isaiah saw upon His throne. Through Christ, we no longer stand condemned. We stand cleansed, clothed in His righteousness, and welcomed into God's presence.

That is why this vision fills my heart with both reverence and hope. The God who is high and lifted up is the same God who, through His Son, invites us to come near. His holiness has not changed, nor has His glory diminished. What has changed is our standing before Him because of the finished work of Jesus Christ.

The One who is high and lifted up has drawn near to us.
We stand completely cleansed and welcomed because of Jesus Christ.

Before You Go

Perhaps today you feel overwhelmed by your own shortcomings or painfully aware of how far you fall short of God's holiness. Remember that Isaiah's vision did not end with his confession. God provided what Isaiah could never provide for himself. The same is true for you.

Through Jesus Christ, your sins have been forgiven, your guilt has been removed, and you have been welcomed into the presence of the holy God who sits upon the throne. Let that truth fill your heart with worship today, knowing that the One who is high and lifted up has also drawn near through His Son.