Scripture: Isaiah 6:5
Song: Show us the ancient path
“Then said I, Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell among a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts.”
The presence of God was never meant to be a religious atmosphere a man visits and leaves unchanged; it was meant to bring him into collision with truth.
Isaiah had heard the cry around the throne; he had seen majesty too great for language, holiness that shook the threshold, and glory filling the temple, but the encounter was not complete until the presence of God reached into him personally.
Then he cried, “Woe is me! for I am undone.” That cry did not come from fear of punishment; rather, it came from suddenly standing before a purity so real that every hidden thing inside him became visible, even when no one accused him. In the light of God’s holiness, Isaiah saw himself clearly. The light around the throne was no longer only revealing God’s greatness; it was revealing Isaiah himself.
The presence of God is not only meant to make us feel emotional, excited, or inspired but also meant to bring us face to face with what we have hidden, excused, and borne like a burden for long. When we encounter God, masks fall off, and the true spiritual state of man is revealed.
As a result, the closer Isaiah came to holiness, the more aware he became of everything in him that did not belong there.
Then Isaiah broke down and cried, “I am a man of unclean lips.” The prophet who had spoken to others now became conscious of his own mouth. In the same room where holy beings cried, “Holy, holy, holy,” Isaiah could no longer pretend that his own lips were pure. But the encounter did not expose only him. He added, “and I dwell among a people of unclean lips.” His eyes had opened to the condition of the atmosphere around him too. What may have looked normal among men was unclean before God. This is a revelation of a man whose inner life had just been opened before the light of God.
Many people want encounters because they desire power, answers, or spiritual experiences. However, throughout Scripture, encounters with God first broke men before they built them. Men like Moses removed sandals in the holy place, Peter cried, “Depart from me,” and Isaiah said, “Woe is me,” because encounters do not leave a man blind to himself. They bring him to the place where he can finally stop pretending and cry honestly before God.
The tragedy today is that many people can stay around spiritual things while remaining untouched inwardly. They sing, pray, preach, and gather around the language of God without ever allowing His presence to confront who they are. But one true encounter with God can break through years of hidden darkness and awaken a man to the realities of heaven.
Prayer:
Lord, bring me into a true encounter with You. Let me see You until every hidden thing in me comes into Your light. Amen.
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