Meeting The King Of The Universe At The Doorway To Heaven

150927AM Sabbath Pictures HFG-17 Meet the King .docx

HFG-17

Meeting the King of the Universe

At the Doorway to Heaven

Exodus 24:14-16

The Old Testament explains how GOD WANTS US Meeting HIM as the King of the Universe at the Doorway to Heaven. God wants to dwell with us and us to dwell with Him. Jesus is named Immanuel, God with us in Matthew 1.

Heaven is described as the dwelling place of God is with men at the end of the Bible. Today we are confronted with what it means to dwell with God. God’s purpose is to dwell with us until we can dwell with Him. The start of the TabernacleScriptures states: Ex 25:8 (NKJV) And let them make Me a sanctuary, that I may dwell among them.

In Exodus, God sent the plans to build a portable Doorway to Heaven where humans could come face to face with God, by way of substitutionary sacrifices. Coming before God is awesome. That is what we need to think about more often, what it means to come face to face with God, which is only through Christ. The Tabernacle was a reminder for us who live on Earth, of the reality of God upon His Throne. Today, what response does God expect of us when we see Him as He is this moment, seated upon His Throne?

Meeting the King of the Universe at the Doorway to Heaven: The plan for the Doorway to Heaven that God gave is a guide for us to understand Christ’s work. When God came down from Heaven to the Earth, the mountain began quaking, a cloud of fire surrounding God was burning the top of the mountain, and a pillar of smoke rose like from a blast furnace.

Each of the elements surrounding God’s Holy Throne, speak of a scene so awesome, and so massively powerful that frail creatures like we are as humans would have trouble surviving. God left a visible plan of salvation for the world. For 500 years it was a tent that Moses built. Then it was in a Temple that Solomon built. Both portrayed: The Plan God Displayed

Transcript

Let’s just take a moment to go to John chapter 7. This has nothing to do with anything I’m saying this morning. It just has to do with the date today. And if you have a calendar that especially electronic ones, where you can check off all the different holidays. If you check off the Jewish holidays the majority of the Jewish holidays are actually biblical holidays right out of the Bible. And today is one of them. Today is if it’s checked off on your calendar, it’s Aravah Sukkot, which means this is the launch of the Feast of Booths. And the whole fall schedule has been cycling through, and the Rosh Hashanah, we’ve already gone through. I’ve mentioned all those, but this is the conclusion of the fall feast cycle.

Now, I want to show it to you in the Bible, chapter 7 of John’s Gospel. It says in verse 2, now the Jews feast of Tabernacles was at hand. That’s the feast that the Jews are just in the process of finishing up. It’s an amazing time where the whole nation builds these little temporary structures and eats outside in them to remember the time of living in tents in the wilderness. It’s right in this time period, the September to October time. Now turn the page in your Bible, look at verse 14, wherever that is in your Bible. In the middle of the feast, that would have been on Wednesday, Jesus went into the temple. So, you’re tracking right through the events that were 2,000 years ago. And look what He does at the end. Look at verse 37 in chapter 7. On the last day, the great day of the feast, again Sukkot, this feast week that we’re in, Jesus stood and cried out saying, if anyone thirsts let him come to Me and drink. And by the way, that is a present, active, indicative verb form, which means constantly drinking of Me. And see the thing about Christianity is that we have a river of living, life giving water that never runs dry. And we are constantly drinking of Christ. He is constantly satisfying our souls.

And look what Jesus says in verse 38. He who believes in Me, as the scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water. So, He’s talking about, He was the rock, the water out of the rock. They commemorate that during this feast. Remember from Exodus, Moses hitting the rock and the water coming out. Jesus said, I’m the rock, the water comes out of Me. And then in chapter 8, the next chapter, He says, I’m the light of the world. Do you remember there was the pillar of fire by night? And that whole, Jesus was tracking with all the events from Exodus. And He said, all of them were pointing at Me. And that’s what’s on our calendars right now. It’s an amazing thing when you see that full moon out there. You think of the lunar calendar of the biblical holidays.

Let’s go to Exodus. We’ll be flip flopping between Exodus and the Gospel by John, so if you want to put a marker where you just were, you can do that. But this morning as we meet, I know that all of you have come different ways and for different purposes. I know some of you walked. I know some of you rode our church shuttle over here. I saw it offloading. I was talking to those coming in. I know many of you drove. And I know that we all came for different reasons. I met several people before the service and I said, do I know you? They said, I don’t think you do because it was our first time. And so I say, oh, and what brought you here? And they say a friend or I work with someone or we read online or we’re doing the church circuit in Kalamazoo or whatever. But I know we’re all here for different reasons. And some of you have been here for decades and decades and decades. But this morning there’s one truth we’re going to look at, that we can meet the King of the Universe and that He shows to us the doorway to Heaven. And we’re going to see that in the Bible. And we’re going to see that in Christ.

But just hearing facts just makes us proud. Knowledge puffs up. You have to be very careful, especially with the internet. People can… bits and pieces and get all this knowledge, and that just makes us proud. But the scriptures say when we hear truth, we have a very serious choice. Are we going to become doers of that truth? So, this morning, each of these points we’re going to look at is a constant choice on our part. Are we going to just hear all this? Have Bible trivia at lunch, know more than the people at the other table that didn’t get as much at their message as we got from ours, and do a little pride thing? Or are we going to be stunned like they were in front of the God of the universe? And are we going to allow Him to change our lives as we yield to Him?

Okay, Exodus 24 is where we’re going. On the way, remind ourself of last week. This actually starts in chapter 19. This starts when God comes down from Heaven. Remember, in flaming fire, consuming fire, actually, the Bible uses. And God was coming down to reveal Himself to Israel. To the chosen people of promise that were to be His witnesses in the whole world. He put them on the hinge of the three continents between Africa, Europe, and Asia, and all through that land bridge that connects the three continents. He put them right there where all the trade routes would go from Africa to Asia and Europe, and from Europe and Asia to Africa, and He put them right there to be a light to the Gentiles. And so, to show them how important it was, He comes down on that mountain. And as God is approaching the top of the mountain, the mountain begins to quake, and that fire touches down, it starts consuming the mountain. And a pillar of smoke like out of a blast furnace rises up. And there’s this loud screeching noise, and it scared the people to death. That was last week.

This week, Almighty God When He touches down, after He unloads chapter 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, all those rules and regulations, He’s still burning away and quaking and fire and everything else. And now, look at chapter 24, and I’m going to start in verse 9, and then we are going to read this, and I want you to think of the immensity of this moment.

You’re looking up at Mount Sinai. You’ve been there for an extended period of time with all of the vibrations and the fire show. And now, God says Moses, why don’t you bring up a little delegation into the fire cloud. And what this is, is a visual of what you and I get to do. We get to come into the presence of God every time we pray. In fact, I was meeting with someone in first service who next week is their 91st birthday. And they mentioned that to me. And they said on October 4th I’ll be 91. And I said, will you come back next week and I’ll read the 91st psalm to you. And I said, did you know that you, because they’re very elderly and weak and were telling me everything they can’t do anymore and they can’t drive and all this, I said, what can you do? And this person said, I can pray. I said, and your prayers drop right into the bowl at the feet of Almighty God. I said, you can’t get any closer than that. And all those busy younger people that don’t have time to pray, they’re out doing their busy stuff, most of which won’t last forever. But you, at 91, who can’t do all that fluttering around and buying and shopping and tanning and everything, all you can do is pray. And everything in your life is pouring at the feet of God and He’s collecting every one of those prayers. She looked at me and went, oh… wow. For a while when you’re old you think, oh, I can’t go to the mall. I can’t fly. I can’t drive anymore. I can’t whatever. Nothing tastes good. Can’t sleep. But like Anna, the prophetess, she didn’t do anything but fast and pray. And God collects all that offering to Him.

Let’s go to chapter 24. Are you there? If you’re there, say yes. Okay, let’s stand and we’ll start reading in verse 9 and just feel this setting. God writes so picturesquely. And it’s just amazing. Verse 9, then Moses went up, also Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel. I’m in verse 9 of chapter 24 of Exodus. Verse 10, and they saw the God of Israel. And there was under His feet, as it were, a paved work of sapphire stone. And it was like the very heavens in its clarity. Now look up for a second. Nothing else is said. We don’t see His face. We don’t see anything. Why? Probably they didn’t even look up. Can you imagine coming up into that quaking, flaming, burning, thinking you weren’t going to survive? And you get up there, and you just go, whoa. And all they saw were God’s feet on that pavement that John and Daniel, and everybody else sees.

Okay, back down. Verse 11, But on the nobles of the children of Israel, He did not lay His hand. So, they saw God, and they ate and drank. Then the Lord said to Moses, come up to me on the mountain and be there, and I will give you tablets of stone, and the law and the commandments which have been written that you may teach them. So, Moses arose with his assistant Joshua, and Moses went up to the mountain of God. And he said to the elders, wait here for us until we come back to you. Indeed, Aaron and Hur are with you, and if anyone has any difficulty, let him go to them. Then Moses, verse 15, went up into the mountain, and a cloud covered the mountain. Now the glory of the Lord rested on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it six days. And on the seventh day, he called to Moses out of the midst of the cloud.

Now, look up for a second. Did you catch that? This is so important. Moses had to wait. Wait, in the waiting room, six days. Now you thought your wait in the line at Wal Mart was long. He had to wait in that cloud and that smoke and that fire and everything else. And finally, He called on the seventh day, at the end of verse 16, to Moses out of the midst of the cloud. And the sight of the glory of the Lord was like a consuming fire, there we are again, on the top of the mountain in the eyes of the children of Israel. So, Moses went into the midst of the cloud and went up into the mountain. And Moses was on the mountain 40 days and 40 nights. Wow. It was so important that God went through that big light show and waiting room for what He’s going to show us today.

Let’s bow before Him in prayer. Father, I pray that we would be receptive. I pray that we would be as in awe and wonder as those 70 elders must have been to see You. And to be so overwhelmed to not even be able to look up, but just to see Your feet. I pray that we would often fall at Your feet, fall on our faces before You, to be overwhelmed that You allow us to come before You. I pray that we’d measure today how important You are by how much we do set aside time to meet with You. To come and set everything else aside and to wait like Moses did. Because those that wait upon the Lord have their strength renewed and can mount up and go through life and not get weary with life. But we have to learn to wait. I pray that You teach us about coming into Your holy presence today. In the name of Jesus we ask it. Amen. You may be seated.

As you’re seated Almighty God invites us to enter His presence.

Third point. God explains the doorway to Heaven. Now, I want you to think about this. God came down from the everlasting habitations where He eternally exists, and He came down and burned up the top of the mountain, and quaked, and smoked, and loud trumpeted, and did it, and then sent down the Ten Commandments, and wrote them with His finger. We already saw that 20, and all that. And now, in 25, He’s invited Moses up for a 40 day Seminar on the doorway to Heaven, that Moses was looking at. Hebrews says Moses saw all this stuff He built or had built in the tabernacle.

Moses saw all those in the Heavenly sanctuary. Saw them. In fact, we saw them last time in Revelation. They’re all still up there. The Ark, the censers, all that stuff is in Heaven. And he made a copy of them for Earth.

And this is what God was portraying. For by grace are you saved, God, through the covenant He has made, through the mercy seat where the blood is applied; through the intercessory work of Christ, which is the altar of incense; through Christ the light of the world, John 8; through Christ the bread of life, John 6; that is the grace of God. For by grace are you saved through faith.

What is faith? Obediently coming to Christ as the one and only sacrifice. That He was offered once and for all. The difference between religion and revelation is religion says that you have to achieve. You have to achieve. You’ve got to go. In fact, did you read the news this week about that industrious policeman? The Pope, he was guarding him, I don’t know whether it was Philadelphia or where else was he… New York City? I forget. But this policeman was guarding the Pope and they were taking care of the Pope, and he got this glass of mineral water, a beautiful glass, for him to drink before he spoke, and he took a sip of it and set it down. And as he turned to go and be guarded and escorted, the policeman grabbed that glass and took it home to his wife, half full of water. And the papers are all over it. This woman got to actually drink the water that the lips of the Pope had touched. And they say there’s no comprehension in Christendom of how blessed that woman was.

That’s amazing, that the current Pope doesn’t say what Peter said, who said, don’t bow down to me, I’m just a man like you. Bow down to Him, the one who in His grace has made a covenant, who has interceded, who is lit, and who feeds all who come through His once and for all sacrifice. Religion has a perpetual sacrifice. Religion says you’ve got to, you never quite do enough, and you’ve got to keep trying harder and harder, and God says no. Hebrews 10, by one sacrifice forever He’s perfected all who come in faith through Christ. And so, we come through the cross, and we, once and for all are sanctified by the offering of the body of Jesus Christ.

But we need constant, endless cleansing. That’s the laver there. The laver is a picture of the sanctified Christian life. The cross is a picture of our salvation that was once and for all. So, Jesus was only crucified once, and it covers our sin, but He cleanses us constantly, and that’s the way of faith where we appropriate the grace of God.

So, let’s look at what the Lord offers and start in Exodus 25 with me and look at verse 8 and we’re just going to get through these introductory elements and then next time, Lord willing, we’re going to look at the actual pieces and see Christ in each one of them.

But the first one, God has explained the doorway to Heaven and God said, first of all, I desire to dwell with you. That’s the statement. Look at verse 8. And let them make Me a sanctuary that I may, what? Dwell among them. Did you catch that? God desires to dwell, to live near, close to all of us. Now we already know He does. The scriptures say He’s omnipresent, so He’s not far from any one of us. In fact, Acts 17 says He’s closer than an arm’s length to everybody on Earth. Everybody that’s ever existed, God is as close as an arm’s length. But most people don’t realize that, so God put this tent, this tabernacle, to show them that He wanted to dwell with them. And God picked out of the whole Earth, He picked His chosen people of promise, the Jews, and said, I’m parking My tent in the middle of yours. And I want you to live knowing I’m next door. I live with you.

Now keep going to chapter 29. So, four chapters over. Look at verse 45. I will dwell among the children of Israel and be their God. And they shall know that I’m the Lord God who brought them out of the land of Egypt. Verse 46. That I may dwell among them. I am the Lord their God. Can you imagine that? Out of all the peoples on the Earth, that’s why these people are still going through agony, that’s why the Jewish people are the target of Iran right now and this week Hezbollah with the new Russian base. Wow, you can see Ezekiel 38 before our eyes. Ezekiel 38 says, Russia and Muslim nations march on Israel. Russia is building the biggest base in the Middle East, just north of Israel and Syria. Boy, is that ever interesting. Isn’t that interesting? That’s why we’re going over there in a week. I don’t want to miss anything. I want to be on the front row, because I know Israel survives. So, you guys watch out, but we’re going to make it if we’re over there, but I’m just teasing you.

God desires to dwell with us but listen to this. Now keep your finger here and go to the Christmas story, Matthew 1. Don’t lose [your place], we’re coming right back. But look at Matthew 1. I want you to see that the God who says, I want to dwell with you; the God who says that, I want to have you build this tent, look at verse 23. Behold, the virgin, Matthew 1:23, shall be with child, and shall bear a son, and they shall call His name Immanuel, which is translated, what? [God with us.] Yeah. God says, I want to dwell with you. I built this tent so that you would remind yourself that I’m dwelling in your presence.

But better than that, now, He dwells with us through Christ. And Jesus said, you don’t need to go into the Sinai desert and find some tent to meet with Me. You can meet with Me anywhere. In fact, in John 14, Jesus said this, Jesus said, and answered them, if anyone loves me, he will keep My Word, and My Father will love him, and we, John 14:23, will come to him and make Our home with him. God desires to dwell with us, and now He dwells with us in Christ. We don’t have to go to the tabernacle, we don’t have to go to the temple, we don’t have to make a pilgrimage and be trampled like the 700 did at Mecca, at the Hajj this week. We don’t have to do that. God says, I’ll dwell with you and make my home with you right where you are.

Now here’s the best. You know how the Bible ends? Revelation 21 and 22. This is what it says. And I saw a new heaven and a new Earth, Revelation 21:1. For the first heaven and the first Earth had passed away. We say that about people. Oh, they passed away. How would you like to be around when the heavens and Earth pass away? It’s going to be amazing. It’s going to be a transformation as sin is finally dealt with and there’s no longer sin permeating the universe and the universe is no longer groaning. Finally, everything will be the way that God designed it to be instead of under the bondage of sin. Everything, the heavens and the first Earth pass away and there’s no more sea.

Verse 2, and I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of Heaven from God, prepared like a bride adorned for her husband. Now, here’s the essence, Revelation 21:3, and I heard a loud voice from Heaven saying, Behold the tabernacle of God is with men. Did you catch that? The tabernacle. That’s why God, when He was building that thing, said, the intention of this is to know I want to live with you. I want to dwell with you. And now, in the future, the tabernacle of God is with men, Revelation 21:3, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God. Wow. That’s what Heaven is. This was the doorway. This was the picture of all that God wanted to do, and that’s the reality.

Verse 4 says, And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and there shall be no more death, no more sorrow, no more crying, no more pain. The former things have passed away. Passed away. Amazing. Number one, God desires to dwell with us.

Number two, God doesn’t just want to live over there. Did you know, where I live with my family in Lawton, we cannot see a single house in any direction, no matter where you look. You cannot see any anybody’s home in any direction. In fact, that’s how it is out there. The people are behind all their grapevines in their forests, and they’re all hidden around in there. And we are so far, only when all the leaves fall off can you see through the forest, little lights, and you know there are people out there somewhere in the distance. That’s not what the tabernacle was meant to be, like God’s over there and far away and disconnected. God also wanted to meet with them. He didn’t want to just be that distant neighbor. Wealthy people, they live in the gated communities, they live in the enclaves, in the guarded areas. They’re the ones that, like at Malibu, don’t even want you walking on their beach. And they get ordinances, and then it takes years of town ordinances, and finally it gets overturned, and people can walk on the waterline and look up at the big people’s guarded perimeters. God’s not like that.

Look what He’s like in verse 22 of chapter 25, Exodus 25:22. Listen to this exchange between God who came down in the burning fire on Mount Sinai and Moses who came up to meet with Him. This is what God says in verse 22. And there, I will meet with you. And I will speak with you above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim, which are on the Ark, about everything which I will give you in commandments to the children of Israel. But emphasis there, verse 22, I will meet with you. I want face time. I want face to face. I want to talk to you. I don’t just want to live near you, drop my tent in your camp. I want to actually meet with you. I want personal time with you.

Now, keep going to chapter 29. It gets better. 29:42 And this shall be a continual burnt offering throughout all your generations at the door of the Tabernacle of Meeting before the Lord.

By the way, that was the name of this place. It was called the Tabernacle of Meeting. God says, I’m naming it that because I want to meet with you. And you want to meet with Me, come to Me. Come to me. Now, things got so bad, if you remember, at one point, they actually had to move the tent outside the camp because they were so bad that the Lord was starting to fire cap… that consuming fire came and Moses says we’re going to move the, we’re going to move the tent. God’s going to burn them all up. They’re so bad and they’re grumbling and complaining and sinning and carrying on. And so, they moved the tent outside the camp You know what? It said, then anybody that wanted to meet with the Lord went outside the camp to meet with God. And, if you remember the story, Joshua was never out of the tent. He just loved it. He lived there. He just couldn’t get enough of the Lord.

But look at 29:42, continuing, this tabernacle meeting before the Lord, where I will meet you. God says, that’s where we have our appointments, at the meeting place. I want to meet with you. Verse 43 and there I will meet with the children of Israel. It’s not just Moses, not just the select. It’s everyone. I will meet with the children of Israel and the tabernacle shall be sanctified by My glory. Wow.

Now keep your finger here and go to John 14 because Jesus, Jesus kept bringing these points up. And even His disciples they didn’t get it, often. But look what it says in John 14. This is the ending. He’s been with them three and a half years. This is the last night. They’ve already had the last supper. Now they’re headed, they’re walking on their way to the, to Gethsemane, and Jesus is going to be arrested. And look at this exchange in John 14. Let not your hearts be troubled. You believe in God, believe also in Me. In my Father’s house are many mansions. If it were not, I would have told you. I’m going to prepare a place for you, and if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself. Why? That where I am, there you may be also. I want to dwell with you. And, verse 4, and where I go you know, and the way you know. And aren’t we thankful for Thomas, verse 5. And Thomas said to Him, Lord, we don’t know where you’re going. And how can we know the way? And look what Jesus, this is the context of that famous verse 6. And Jesus said, I’m the way. I’m the exclusive doorway to God, the exclusive doorway to Heaven. I am the only way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.

Wow. That’s pretty sobering. Since Christendom, all the billion whatever of us there are, many of them think the name of Christ is offensive and they’re toning it down. And then all the rest of the religions of the world already think that. And the only doorway to Heaven is being obscured because it’s offensive. And the preaching of the cross is to those whose perish foolishness. But Jesus said, I’m the only way. I am the only truth. And if you get saved, you receive the love of the truth. And no one can come to the Father except through Me. In verse 7, if you’d known Me, you would have known my Father. See, God the Father, desires to meet with you, and the only way He meets with you is through Me. That’s an amazing thought that we need to keep before us. That if we can’t even say the name of Jesus in public, if we can’t talk about the Lord Jesus Christ, how are we pointing people when there is salvation in no other? For there’s no other name, other than the name that’s above every name, the name of Jesus Christ. We should be much speaking of Christ. It shouldn’t be that the only time that Jesus Christ is mentioned in the workplace is when someone hits their finger and they go…, and they invoke His name. And no one is offended then because it’s a curse. But you can’t talk about the God who desires to meet with us through Christ.

And then look at what happens in verse 9. Jesus said, have I been so long with you Philip, you have not known Me? He who has seen Me has seen the Father. There’s this notion that the God of the Old Testament’s a meanie, burning up people, and killing all those Canaanites. That was Jesus Christ. That’s who He is. He hates sin and abomination. He’s the one they had to move out of that tent because He was going to burn up all the Jews. God hates sin. You want to see the Father? It’s Jesus Christ. That holy consuming God of the Old Testament? That’s Jesus Christ. He hasn’t changed. He still hates sin. And He will consume it forever. You know what the worst thing can ever happen to anybody? Let them do their own thing. Let them, as Jesus said, you know what Jesus indicted a group that were there watching Him heal, and they rejected Him and they said, what you’re doing is of the devil. And Jesus said to them, you will die in your sins. That was almost the worst thing. That was an eternal damnation He put upon them. He said, you who hard heartedly watch Me just heal this guy and said it was the devil, you’re going to die in your sins.

Now, what’s so bad about dying in your sins? I meet people all the time. They say, I’m going to go to Hell and be with all my friends. We’re going to have a… We don’t understand the nature of sin. The wrath of God is forever arrayed against sin. Do you remember Vietnam War, Napalm? Remember phosphorous bombs from World War II? Do you remember we would drop [it]. Everyone [knows] warfare’s bad and everyone was doing it, but we’re Americans and we made a lot of those bombs, and we would drop that Napalm, that jellied East Texas gas, and it would burst out and get on people and ignite, and it would just burn. Napalm was horrible. It’s a picture. So is phosphorous. Phosphorous would burn to the bone. You just can’t put [it] out, you pour water on it, it doesn’t go out. And you look at that and you say, that’s horrible. Yeah, but you cut the arm off and you survived. You get sin on you; God’s wrath will burn that forever. And Jesus said, you’re dying with sin on you, which draws the wrath of God forever. Because no sin can be consumed except through Christ’s sacrifice. And if you don’t have, if you haven’t put your hands on Christ in faith and had Him pull off your sin onto Him, and He gets all the wrath of God, if you die with that, you’ll forever be drawing the fiery consuming wrath of God.

Wow. Jesus said, I’m the way to the Father. I consume the wrath of God against your sin. And he who has seen Me, verse 9, has seen the Father. Why do you say, show us the Father? Verse 10. I am the Father.

God also desires, thirdly to receive worship from us. And in the Old Testament, worship is always shown as an offering. An offering of words, an offering of adoration, and a physical offering. Do you know what’s so amazing in Exodus 25? If you look for a moment at Exodus 25 and verse 2, speak to the children that they may bring Me an offering. Wait a minute. They’re on a camp out, a 40 year camp out. They’re living in the most inhospitable place on the planet. Sinai Desert. It’s 120 during the day; it can get down to the 30s at night. It’s just, it’s all these vipers, and there’s no water, and there’s certainly no food. And it’s just baked rock. And they’re camping. You ever gone camping? And there’s no Wal Mart. The nearest Wal Mart is 40 years away, okay? And here you are on this camping trip, trying to hold on to your canteen and your kids, and your flocks and your tent, and you get parked by this burning mountain. And Moses comes down and says, speak to the children of Israel, verse 2 of chapter 25, that they bring Me an offering. Everyone who gives it willingly from his heart, you shall take My offering from them. God says, He says, I want to receive this worship, this offering from you. Do you know how hard it was to give anything to God in the wilderness? You were giving your kids, everything you needed to raise them. You were giving, when He asked for those porpoise skins, whatever they were, it says badger in the Bible, no badgers really lived in Sinai. It’s probably dolphins or, I don’t know, sea creature. But this leather, to make the tabernacle out of. That was your kid’s shoes. Sandals. You’re giving up all this stuff. And He says, I don’t want it unless you will give it willingly from your heart. And did you know, everybody that did, they worshiped God. And God says, I want your worship.

Keep going over to chapter 28, and verse 38, and see what He says there. So, it shall be on Aaron’s forehead that Aaron may bear the iniquity of the holy things which the children of Israel hallow in all their holy gifts. It shall be on his forehead and they will be accepted before the Lord. God desires to receive these offerings of worship from us. We actually can participate. Did you know that there were a group of women that supported Jesus Christ to do His ministry? Jesus could have created bread from the rocks. He could have just had, a constant water fountain following Him. It just floated along and He drank from it and a little something. Giving food. Jesus made the baskets when they were feeding the 5,000 families. When those disciples took out the bread and the fish, every time they took some out, there was more. Jesus could have created food from nothing, but He had a group of women sacrifice to support Him. See, God is into the worship that comes from us in our wilderness existence, sacrificing what we have for Him. And when we do that, it lasts forever.

Now, we worship and give our sacrifices through Jesus. John 4, if you’re interested, John 4:21. Remember the woman at the well? Jesus said the hour is coming when you don’t have to go to this mountain nor to Jerusalem to worship the Father. See, we don’t have to go to the tent. We don’t have to go to Sinai. We don’t have to go to Jerusalem. We can worship God right now in Christ, because this is what it says. The hour is coming and now is when true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth. The Father is seeking such to worship Him. God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth.

Now, be careful, every Word of God is inspired and engineered for a reason. She was a what kind of woman? Samaritan. What kind of worship characterized Samaria? Jerusalem was known as the stuffy, stuffed shirt, really strict, by the rules place. Samaria was the freewheeling, hey man, and they were ecstatic in their worship. They were half Jews, and they took the half that was exciting, and they left the drab, detailed stuff. And so, the Jews loved truth and the Samaritans love the Spirit. And God says, if you don’t have both, it’s not acceptable. The dead, cold, orthodox, the ecstatic, vibrant, fiery, if they’re not merged, if the Spirit is not energizing truth, then the worship only gets to the walls of the building. And I’m afraid much of American worship doesn’t get out of the building, because it’s not based on truth. It’s based on experience, ecstatic. God says, I want you to give me worship and I will tell you about My worship, Hebrews 13:15. Offer the sacrifice of praise to God, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name. It’s scripture based, scripture founded truth based worship he receives.

Ongoing, because it’s time to on go. Not only does God want to dwell with us, and He wants to meet with us, and He wants us to worship, He wants to talk to us, regularly. Look at the next verse in chapter 29, in verse 42. Exodus 29, and get over to 42. This shall be a continual burnt offering throughout all your generations at the door of the Tabernacle of Meeting before the Lord. Now what does the next part of verse 42 say of chapter 29? Where I will meet you to speak with you. Did you catch that? God didn’t just want to silently be there. He didn’t want to just have this tent with the fire and the smoke. He wanted to talk, and to guide, and to direct, and have His voice heard.

In fact, look at Leviticus. Keep going past Exodus all the way past 40. Look at chapter 1, verse 1. I love this.

Leviticus 1:1. It says this, now the Lord called to Moses and spoke to him from the Tabernacle of Meeting. The purpose, it was almost like this tent was a receiver that broadcast from Heaven. And if you were in tune and got close enough, you could hear God. If you came to the tent, God would speak. And he spoke from the tent. And Moses heard it, and I’m sure the people could hear something because it scared them. Look at verse 1 the Lord called to Moses and spoke to him from the Tabernacle of Meeting.

Now, I don’t want you to miss this. Turn over to John chapter 8 because Jesus took this and said in John 8, he talked to the most religious people in the world at that moment. These spiritual religious leaders of Judaism. And Jesus said in John 8:43 Why do you not understand My speech? Jesus said, how come you don’t understand My speech? It’s because you are not able to listen to My Word. Now think about that. Did they have the Word of God? You bet, they carried it around. They had it, some of them wore those little plates on their head with the Word of God on it. And others carried around the scrolls, and they intoned, and they chanted, and they quoted, and they prayed, and everything else. They were surrounded by the Word of God. It just, they didn’t really ever hear the Voice of God. It was it was outside of them. It wasn’t, as the Bible says, the engrafted Word of God. Look what Jesus says in chapter 8, verse 24. Therefore, I say unto you, you will die in your sins. Remember I told you how awful that… that’s the worst possible end anybody could have. Why?

For if you did not believe I am He, you will die in your sins. You have to believe. Verse 31. If you abide in My Word, you are My disciples. See, salvation is totally tied to the Word of God. And if you meet, like I had a friend, he went to a Christian meeting, and he said he went to the entire session on their campus, and the Bible was never referred to at all and it was a Christian gathering. And he asked me, what do you think of that? And I said, I don’t think very much of it, and God thought less of it. Okay? Because, look what it says in verse 31. If you abide in My Word, you’re My disciples indeed. So, he went up to the leadership, and he said, how come you guys didn’t do anything in the Bible? He says, we don’t do anything in the Bible for the first month. It drives away people. We want to get a big group, and then we’ll give them the Bible before they all leave, and I thought that’s an interesting method. But look at verse 37 of chapter 8 of John. I know that you are Abraham’s descendants, but you seek to kill Me because My Word has no place in you.

Now look up and ask yourself a question. What place did God’s Word have in you this week? Did this have more priority than this? I’m talking about your cyber life. Your pictures, your tweets, your snaps, your brag a thons of everything you’re doing and your cake and all the stuff we post and everything.

Did this draw you? An email and Excel and everything else, more than this? Because look what Jesus says in verse 37. He says, My Word has no place in you. It you do not have an internal longing for me through My Word. And you can go endlessly playing games, and watching, and music, and sports, and My Word has no place in you.

Oh, now keep going. Verse 51. Most assuredly I say unto you, if anyone keeps My Word, you got it close. It’s in your heart. It’s in your, engrafted into your soul. It’s just right up close, and it’s something we guard, like our wallet, our keys, and our cell phone. And verse 55, yet you have not known Him, but I know Him. And if I say I do not know Him, I’ll be a liar like you, because I know Him. And keep His Word. Jesus didn’t just tell everybody to keep the Word. He says, I do too. Jesus was devoted to God through His Word, just like we’re to be. God desires to speak with us. He speaks with us through His Word. In fact, Hebrews 1 2, God in these last days has spoken by His Son, whom he has appointed heir of all things, by whom He made the world.

And when God speaks to us, He desires to reveal Himself to us. And He, back up, He desires to reveal Himself to us. Look back, let’s go back to Exodus. We won’t leave there. We’ll just finish up. Look at Exodus 29 and see what God says. Exodus 29 and verse 45. We already saw, I will dwell with the children of Israel and will be their God. Look at verse 46. And they shall know that I am the Lord their God. He said, I’m going to reveal Myself to them. It isn’t just they know the facts. It’s not just they’ve seen the tent. I have revealed Myself. They know Me personally. This is life eternal, that they may know Me, Jesus said. Continue in verse 46, And they shall know that I am the Lord their God, who brought them out of the land of Egypt. See they are testifying it’s real. We’re the ones he brought out of Egypt. I know that God, He split the water, He plagued the country. He delivered. He’s fed me. He’s guiding me. That’s why, let the redeemed of the Lord say so.

I think it’s intriguing to think that people won’t share a verbal testimony. Won’t. Do you know how many people will not be baptized because they said, I’m not going to give one of those testimonies. And they say I don’t think you should be baptized, because if you don’t have a testimony to give, you shouldn’t be baptized. Okay? Wait until you have a testimony to give. Do you know? Look what it says. Do you know? Verse 46. That He is the one who has delivered you out of the land of Egypt. And that He is the one that brought you out and redeemed you. And He is the Lord. Jesus said, if you’d known me, you would have known my Father. When you know Christ, you know the Father.

Jesus desires to accept us. Go to, keep going to the right to Leviticus 1:4. And this is what the Lord says, I love how wonderfully He says, they shall put their hand on the head of the burnt offering, Leviticus 1-4, and it will be accepted on His behalf. Have you ever noticed what people will do to be accepted? They will get pierced like they’re pierced friends, they’ll get tattooed like they’re tattooed friends, they’ll wear the clothes like they’re friends, because they want so desperately to be accepted. They will go through hazing and initiation and horrific things just to be associated and be accepted in a group. And God says, hey, I want to accept you. I want you to place your hands on the sacrifice for us, this side of the cross, on Jesus Christ. And when you do that, I accept you. That’s the ultimate acceptance.

Did you know that’s what kept the Early Church going? Nero said, I’m going to wrap you in animal skins, let the wolves tear you up, and the lions eat you. They said, great, and I’m going to my heavenly home, and the body’s going to wear out anyway. It’ll just be a little faster with those wolves attacking me, so go ahead. He said, I’m going to wrap you up and put you in tar, and I’m going to burn you. And they said, okay, but that just means my body is consumed, but my spirit goes to dwell in the presence of the Lord. So go ahead, I’m not afraid. Because I’m ready to depart and to be with Christ, which is far better.

Because they knew they were accepted. In fact, Paul said this in Ephesians 1, 6, to the praise of his glory, of his grace. Remember, grace is God from his covenant flowing out through the blood of the everlasting offering, through the lampstand, through the intercession of Christ, and through the bread of life offering us life, and we come by faith. And when we respond to that grace by which He has made us, Ephesians 1:6, accepted in the Beloved. And the next verse is, in whom we have redemption through His blood. See, we’re accepted. That’s the best group to be accepted by God.

It’s time to go. So, here’s the last one. God desires to forgive us. You know the most important thing to know about three seconds before your last breath? To know you’re dying forgiven. To know that Jesus became sin for me. To know that the blood of Jesus Christ, God’s Son, cleanses, 1 John 1, 7, from all unrighteousness. Do you know that? You know what the tragedy is today of religion? People are getting close to Christ, about this close. They know the facts. Religion usually is about, especially Christian 99 percent true. It’s 1 percent deadly, false. The truth is it’s Christ. The deadliness is you’ve got to earn it. You’ve got to work it. You’ve got to try it. You can never be sure. You don’t know. Instead of saying, my sin, oh the bliss of this glorious thought, my sin, not in part but the whole, was nailed to his cross, and I bear it no more.

Look what it says in Leviticus 4:20 And it shall be with the bull, as he did with the bull, this sin offering he shall do with it. The priest shall make atonement for them, and it shall be forgiven them. Verse 26, Burn all the fat on the altar, and the priest will make an atonement, and it shall be forgiven him.

Look at verse 31. Remove all of its fat, of chapter 4, for the peace offering. The priest shall put it on as a sweet aroma to the Lord and make an atonement for him. And it shall be forgiven him. Verse 35, he shall remove all its fat, and on and on, look at the end of the verse, and it shall be forgiven him. God temporarily covered their sins. Did you know in the Old Testament it was like using a credit card? You put the credit card in, but you didn’t really pay anything right then. The bill was coming. And you swiped through the offering system, but it just was delayed for another date, a payment date. And the payment date was the cross. This side, it’s like using a debit card. The money’s already there. We just are receiving what’s already done. The Old Testament’s like credit, but Christ is the bank, the processing. And He became sin. And they, by credit, were forgiven. But Ephesians 1:7 says, in Him we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. In 1 John 1:7, if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship because the blood of Christ cleanses us.

We have 48 seconds. I can see the clock up there. How can we apply these truths? We’ll come back, but I’ll tell you ahead of time so you can think about it. When Isaiah got to tour the temple, he says, I’m undone. I see my sin. And he cried out for God to cleanse him and to use him. And we’ll start there and go through all the other pieces. But this week, God says, I want to meet with you. I want to dwell with you. I want to talk to you. I want to forgive you. I want to accept all of your sacrificial offerings to Me. Does God have a place in your life?

Let’s all stand for a closing word of prayer. As you stand, at the end of the service and every service here at Calvary, we have godly men and women who know the Lord, who know Him personally, and also are gifted at leading other people either to begin their walk with the Lord or to renew their walk with the Lord. And if you are here this morning and you feel this far from God, you’ve heard all this, but it’s not… it’s not working, it’s not changing your life, you do not have a hunger for truth, you don’t… you haven’t picked this thing up since last week and you brought it to church, and it’s like a lead weight. This is triage. And they would love to pray with you, point you to the Lord, encourage you, have you share your burden. If God is knocking and you feel Him, while you hear Him knocking don’t harden your heart. He doesn’t keep knocking forever.

Let’s bow. Father, thank you for letting us meet. Thank you for wanting to meet with us. I pray that we’d see You, Your feet on that pavement, and realize that You have invited us forever to dwell with You and You with us. And I pray we would live that way today. In the precious name of Jesus, we pray, and all God’s people said, Amen. God bless you as you go.

NOTES

After God came down from Heaven to the Earth, the mountain began quaking, a cloud of fire surrounding God was burning the top of the mountain, and a pillar of smoke rose like from a blast furnace. Our God is a Consuming Fire.

 

Point 1: Our God is a Consuming Fire

Please go back again to Exodus 19:16-20 (NKJV):

¹⁶ Then it came to pass on the third day, in the morning, that there were thunderings and lightnings, and a thick cloud on the mountain; and the sound of the trumpet was very loud, so that all the people who were in the camp trembled. ¹⁷ And Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet with God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain.¹⁸ Now Mount Sinai was completely in smoke, because the Lord descended upon it in fire. Its smoke ascended like the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mountain quaked greatly.¹⁹ And when the blast of the trumpet sounded long and became louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him by voice. ²⁰ Then the Lord came down upon Mount Sinai, on the top of the mountain. And the Lord called Moses to the top of the mountain, and Moses went up.

Each time the Scriptures portray the Holy Atmosphere of Heaven, surrounding our Holy God on the Throne, the same elements are clearly seen. Each of the elements surrounding God’s Holy Throne speak of a scene so awesome, and so massively powerful that frail creatures like we are as humans would have trouble surviving.

So our God who is like a consuming fire, and dwells in unapproachable light (1 Tim. 6:16), whose face shines like the Sun in its brightness (Mt. 17:2; Rev. 1:16) came down to Mt. Sinai to show Moses how to construct a Doorway to Heaven. God was offering an access point for humans to come before Him.

 

Point-2: Almighty God Invites Us To Enter His Presence

Now turn with me to Exodus 24:16, the revelation of the Tabernacle was so sacred, so powerful, so vital to God that He made Moses stand for 6 days and didn’t speak until the 7th day to him.

Exodus 24:14-16 (NKJV) And he said to the elders, “Wait here for us until we come back to you. Indeed, Aaron and Hur are with you. If any man has a difficulty, let him go to them.” ¹⁵ Then Moses went up into the mountain, and a cloud covered the mountain. ¹⁶ Now the glory of the Lord rested on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it six days. And on the seventh day He called to Moses out of the midst of the cloud.

The Doorway to Heaven, called the Tabernacle, was so important to God He went though the amazing, fiery entrance, the quaking mountain, and blast furnace pillar of smoke, them had Moses wait in the waiting room for six days. Finally God begins to speak.

 

Point 3: God Explains The Doorway to Heaven

Now look at Exodus 25:1 where God showed Moses a pattern in the Heavenly Tabernacle.

Exodus 25:1-2, 8-9 (NKJV) Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: ² “Speak to the children of Israel, that they bring Me an offering. From everyone who gives it willingly with his heart you shall take My offering.⁸ And let them make Me a sanctuary, that I may dwell among them. ⁹ According to all that I show you, that is, the pattern of the tabernacle and the pattern of all its furnishings, just so you shall make it.

What does God reveal?

1. God Desires To Dwell With Us.

Exodus 25:8 “And let them make Me a sanctuary, that I may dwell among them.

Exodus 29:45-46 “I will dwell among the children of Israel and will be their God. 46 “And they shall know that I am the Lord their God, who brought them up out of the land of Egypt, that I may dwell among them. I am the Lord their God.

Now He Dwells In Us Through Jesus

Matthew 1:23 “Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which is translated, “God with us.”

John 14:23 Jesus answered and said to him, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.

Rev. 21:1-4 (NKJV) Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea. ² Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. ³ And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God. ⁴ And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.”

 

2. God Desires To Meet With Us.

Listen to the exchange between God, who came down in burning fire to the top of Mt. Sinai, and Moses who came up and waited.

Exodus 25:22 “And there I will meet with you, and I will speak with you from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim which are on the ark of the Testimony, about everything which I will give you in commandment to the children of Israel.

Exodus 29:42-43 “This shall be a continual burnt offering throughout your generations at the door of the tabernacle of meeting before the Lord, where I will meet you to speak with you. 43 “And there I will meet with the children of Israel, and the tabernacle shall be sanctified by My glory.

Now He Meets Us In Jesus

John 14:1-11 (NKJV) “Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. ² In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. ³ And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also. ⁴ And where I go you know, and the way you know.” ⁵ Thomas said to Him, “Lord, we do not know where You are going, and how can we know the way?” ⁶ Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. ⁷ “If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; and from now on you know Him and have seen Him.” ⁸ Philip said to Him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is sufficient for us.” ⁹ Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; so how can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? ¹⁰ Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on My own authority; but the Father who dwells in Me does the works. ¹¹ Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father in Me, or else believe Me for the sake of the works themselves.

 

3. God Desires To Receive Worship From Us.

Exodus 28:38 “So it shall be on Aaron’s forehead, that Aaron may bear the iniquity of the holy things which the children of Israel hallow in all their holy gifts; and it shall always be on his forehead, that they may be accepted before the Lord.

Now He Receives Our Worship In Jesus.

John 4:21-24 (NKJV) Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when you will neither on this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, worship the Father. ²² You worship what you do not know; we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews. ²³ But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. ²⁴ God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”

 

Hebrews 13:15 Therefore by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name.

 

4. God Desires To Speak With Us.

Exodus 29:42 “This shall be a continual burnt offering throughout your generations at the door of the tabernacle of meeting before the Lord, where I will meet you to speak with you.

Leviticus 1:1 Now the Lord called to Moses, and spoke to him from the tabernacle of meeting, saying,

Now He Speaks To Us Through The Word of Jesus

John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

John 8:43 “Why do you not understand My speech? Because you are not able to listen to My word. 47 “He who is of God hears God’s words; therefore you do not hear, because you are not of God.”

Hebrews 1:2 [God] has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds;

 

5. God Desires To Reveal Himself To Us.

Exodus 29:45-46 “I will dwell among the children of Israel and will be their God. 46 “And they shall know that I am the Lord their God, who brought them up out of the land of Egypt, that I may dwell among them. I am the Lord their God.

Now HE REVEALS Himself in Jesus

John 14:7-9 “If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; and from now on you know Him and have seen Him.”8 Philip said to Him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is sufficient for us.”9 Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; so how can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?

 

6. God Desires To Accept Us.

Leviticus 1:4 ‘Then he shall put his hand on the head of the burnt offering, and it will be accepted on his behalf to make atonement for him.

Now He Accepts Us In Jesus.

Ephesians 1:6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He has made us accepted in the Beloved.

 

7. God Desires To Forgive Us.

Leviticus 4:20 ‘And he shall do with the bull as he did with the bull as a sin offering; thus he shall do with it. So the priest shall make atonement for them, and it shall be forgiven them. 26 ‘And he shall burn all its fat on the altar, like the fat of the sacrifice of the peace offering. So the priest shall make atonement for him concerning his sin, and it shall be forgiven him. 31 ‘He shall remove all its fat, as fat is removed from the sacrifice of the peace offering; and the priest shall burn it on the altar for a sweet aroma to the Lord. So the priest shall make atonement for him, and it shall be forgiven him. 35 ‘He shall remove all its fat, as the fat of the lamb is removed from the sacrifice of the peace offering. Then the priest shall burn it on the altar, according to the offerings made by fire to the Lord. So the priest shall make atonement for his sin that he has committed, and it shall be forgiven him.

Now He Forgives Us Through The Sacrifice Of Jesus.

Ephesians 1:7 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace.

1 John 1:7 But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.

 

How Can we Apply these Truths:

Our God is a Consuming Fire, Almighty God Invites Us To Enter His Presence, & God Opens The Doorway to Heaven

Only what is attached to God will last forever. Anything that is not attached to God needs to be detached from our lives. As we open to Isaiah 6, think about the balance sheet of your life. As one famous missionary once said while laying on his deathbed, “Only one life, t’will soon be past; and only what’s done for Christ will last”.

That means the most important measure of life is how useful we are to God. The only enduring parts of our life will be those spent serving God.

When we look closely we see that God’s plan for preparing us to be used as His servants has not changed in thousands of years. Open with me to Isaiah 6, and the amazing call God gave to Isaiah.

God Called Isaiah to Consecration

From the Old Testament we find that our unchanging, immutable God has the same plan. To reach the godless society God called him to reach, Isaiah was told a timeless truth. More than anything you do, God is interested in who you are. The key to usefulness in life, doing what God designed us to do, is first being what God wants us to be.

Listen to God’s voice as He tells us the story of His call and preparation of Isaiah. In this chapter we’ll read we see 5 keys to a life that is useful to God. In the end, that is all that will matter.

Isaiah 6:1-13 In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of His robe filled the temple. 2 Above it stood seraphim; each one had six wings: with two he covered his face, with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. 3 And one cried to another and said: “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; The whole earth is full of His glory!” 4 And the posts of the door were shaken by the voice of him who cried out, and the house was filled with smoke. 5 So I said: “Woe is me, for I am undone! Because 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.” 6 Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a live coal which he had taken with the tongs from the altar. 7 And he touched my mouth with it, and said: “Behold, this has touched your lips; Your iniquity is taken away; And your sin purged.” 8 Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying: “ Whom shall I send, And who will go for Us?” Then I said, “Here am I! Send me.” 9 And He said, “Go, and tell this people: ‘ Keep on hearing, but do not understand; Keep on seeing, but do not perceive.’ 10 “ Make the heart of this people dull, And their ears heavy, And shut their eyes; Lest they see with their eyes, And hear with their ears, And understand with their heart, And return and be healed.” 11 Then I said, “Lord, how long?” And He answered: “ Until the cities are laid waste and without inhabitant, The houses are without a man, The land is utterly desolate, 12 The LORD has removed men far away, And the forsaken places are many in the midst of the land. 13 But yet a tenth will be in it, And will return and be for consuming, As a terebinth tree or as an oak, Whose stump remains when it is cut down. So the holy seed shall be its stump.”

Simply stated we can conclude from a careful study of the Bible that:

 

God’s Desire for Each of us is Consecration

There are 3 stages that are keys to usefulness for God. There is a pathway for each of us who want to follow that leads us into daily, monthly, and life-long usefulness to God.

Here are the stages. Let me tell you what they are and then show them as they are described in these verses. God wants you and me to:

Remember God’s Holiness

Realize my Sinfulness

Receive God’s Cleansing

Now trace these truths into your Bibles with me. Write them down so that you can come back often and remind yourself of these simple truths that have been repeatedly taught and explained to God servants for all of the 2,700 years since God spoke them to Isaiah.

First, to be useful to God we must always:

 

Remember God’s Holiness

That is the message of Isaiah 6:1-4. God is by nature holy. He is separate from sin, perfect, sinless, flawless and pure. So no matter how compassionate He is, no matter how full of grace and overflowing with mercy: God is still Holy, Holy, Holy. In the realm of eternity, around the Throne at the center of the Universe there is one word that is repeated regularly, over and over again. Holy, Holy, Holy is our God.

For many of us, just saying or hearing those words begins a song playing in our hearts and minds. Do you know that song? With just our voices, lift these truths to God, from each voice and heart, agree with what God wants us to do: Remember God’s Holiness.

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 first key to any usefulness for eternity is: Remembering God’s holiness.

Repeat that with me all together: Remember God’s Holiness.

Say it again, louder and confidently so it stays on our hearts: Remember God’s Holiness.

Thinking about His Holy Presence and standing before His Throne, and falling on our faces before Him, leads us to the second key. Being useful to God means thinking long and deeply upon how far we fall short of His Glory, and how much we need His gracious, forgiving, and cleansing touch.

Second, to be useful to God I must always:

 

Realize my Sinfulness

That is the message of Isaiah 6:5. The closer we get to the Light, the more of our sinfulness we can see. When Job came to understand the Almighty El-Shaddai he confessed (Job 42:5-6). When Peter saw the power of God the Son displayed he cried out (Luke 5:8) “depart from me, I am a sinful man”. And when John the Beloved Apostle, saw Christ in his unveiled glory on Patmos, he fell at His feet as if dead (Revelation 1:17). The theme of those who stand around the Throne is that the Lamb who was slain, was slain for their sin. He gave Himself for me (Galatians 2:20) was Paul’s testimony. The closer we are to God’s Holiness the more I Realize my own personal Sinfulness.

Again, the testimony of saints who have walked this path before us can help us frame fitting words to express our need of the Redeeming Lamb’s precious shed blood. In our hymn book turn to # ____ There is a Fountain” and join me again with just your voices declaring that though we are great sinners, our Savior is greater and He washes ALL my sins away.

There is a fountain filled with blood drawn from Emmanuel’s veins;

And sinners plunged beneath that flood lose all their guilty stains.

Lose all their guilty stains, lose all their guilty stains;

And sinners plunged beneath that flood lose all their guilty stains.

 

Thirdly, to be useful to God we need to:

Receive God’s Cleansing

That is the message of Isaiah 6:6-7. When we Remember God’s Holiness, the Light of our Holy God makes us Realize our Sinfulness. That leads us to the work of the Cross, to the sacrifice Christ offered once perfectly and completely to pay the penalty of sin for all who come by faith. Usefulness comes to those who will be cleansed and who will walk in the light and stay full of God’s Spirit.

The most useful servant is a humble believer who readily confesses the complete cleansing that the gracious work of Jesus accomplished. Once we are assured of His cleansing the evil one can’t find a place to plant seeds of doubt and despair. We can affirm that God will never condemn me (Romans 8:1); and that though my sins were as deeply staining me as crimson I am white as snow in God’s sight. That truth makes us full of His hope, welling up with the joy of the Spirit, and kept by His Peace.

To the end of our lives, whether in weakness, sickness, or even dementia (as the great hymn writer John Newton suffered at the last years of his life) we can confidently express our conviction that though we were great sinners, Jesus is a Great Savior. Why not practice stating your testimony aloud with me right now, through his words you know so well:

Amazing grace! How sweet the sound

That saved a wretch like me!

I once was lost, but now am found;

Was blind, but now I see.

 

Meeting the King of the Universe

At the Doorway to Heaven

Slides