“I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of His robe filled the temple. 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. And one cried to another and said: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of His glory!” And the posts of the door were shaken by the voice of him who cried out, and the house was filled with smoke.” Isaiah 6:1-4
I can only imagine the terror, awe, shock Isaiah experienced as he stood before the throne of God. Angels cry “holy, holy, holy” incessantly before Him. The throne room shakes and fills with smoke as the worship rises to the Lord. Isaiah cried out “I am unclean, a man of unclean lips, a man of an unclean people,” at the sight of Him. He recognizes that he is unworthy to even be in the presence of such a mighty being as God.
To say that it’s difficult for man to visualize God is an understatement. Our minds are incapable of imagining complete perfection. We have tried since Adam and Eve were banned from the garden to figure out who God is. We create Him in our own image; we conjure up whatever makes us feel better; we make Him out to be either a tyrannical monarch who plays games with us from heaven or reduce Him to some broken old grandfatherly man who just wants time with His kids. We fail to see Him, as much as our feeble human minds can, for who He really is. We are called to worship Him, to praise Him, but how can you truly worship someone you don’t even somewhat understand?
This thought struck me during our church pastor’s series on “Come to Worship.” The weeks he shared the message of worship, what it means to worship – whether in song, our talents, our time, etc. – had me considering the reception of the message by a number of people in our congregation, especially when the worship in song part of the message was being shared. How can you worship someone you don’t know? I couldn’t help thinking that maybe a real introduction to the God we are called to worship is in order.
Moses was a man greatly used by God. They spoke to one another. God would send mist or cloud when speaking with Moses. When Moses left God’s presence to return to the people, the light that shone from his very being was so strong that the people couldn’t look at him. Moses had been in God’s presence many times, yet Moses wanted to really see God. “Show me Your face, Lord.” “You can’t see my face,” the Lord replied. God led Moses to a rock. “Stand here. I will cover you and when I pass by I will remove my hand and you may see my back. No one can see my face and live” (Exodus 33). The glory of God is so great that no man can look at Him and survive.
Isaiah was permitted entrance into the very throne room of God. His response: “I am unworthy.” John the apostle was given access to the throne of God. He fell on his face before the Lord. They recognized the power, majesty and worthiness of God.
When I think of God, I see a great being, sitting on the greatest throne, in the most beautiful room. He shines so brightly that my eyes would hurt. In His presence, I would be excited, fearful, joyful, overwhelmed. I would feel unworthy. His justice and righteousness demand perfection. Because of His love, Christ makes me just and righteous. I hear angels singing, smell incense, feel warmth, taste sweetness. It all makes me want to fall on my knees, bend low to the ground and worship Him in His perfection. I want to dance and sing praises for His great love for me, to lift my hands in surrender to Him.
Until we enter eternity and stand before God in His glory, we will never fully comprehend who He is, what He looks like, His voice, etc. Because of the writings left by those prophets who were permitted the honor of entering His presence, we have a small glimpse of Him. The passage from Isaiah is enough to paint a picture. If we can imagine Him, as best we can, for who He truly is, we can’t help but worship Him with full surrender, to honor Him in His greatness and majesty. Meet Him, surrender to Him, and honor Him as He deserves.
