“Here am I! Send me.”

Those are probably the best-known words from Isaiah 6. They sound bold and courageous, like the response of someone eager to do great things for God.

But if we begin there, we miss what makes Isaiah’s response possible.

Just a few moments earlier, Isaiah wasn’t volunteering for anything.

He had seen a vision of the Lord seated upon His throne, surrounded by angels crying,

“Holy, holy, holy.”

The foundations shook, and the temple filled with smoke. Confronted with the holiness of God, Isaiah became painfully aware of his own sin.

“Woe is me!”

Isaiah doesn’t try to convince God that he is qualified to be a prophet or even try to clean himself up. There’s really nothing for him to do except admit it. He simply confesses the truth: he is a sinful man standing before the holy God.

Then God does something about it.

One of the seraphim takes a burning coal from the altar and touches Isaiah’s mouth. Isaiah is told that his guilt has been taken away and his sin atoned for. Only then does Isaiah hear the Lord ask,

“Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?”

Now Isaiah responds,

“Here am I! Send me.”

The order matters. Isaiah volunteers because he has been forgiven.

That’s an important pattern for the Christian life. Sometimes we can begin to think of Christianity primarily in terms of what we are supposed to do for God. We should serve more, give more, tell others about Jesus, care for our neighbors, help at church, and live according to God’s commands.

Those are good things. God really does call us to serve.

But our service begins with what God has done for us.

Like Isaiah, we cannot make ourselves worthy to stand before a holy God. We come with real sin and real guilt. We’re not even worthy to serve God. Yet God has provided the atonement for our sins. Jesus offered Himself as the sacrifice for our sin. Because of His death and resurrection, God speaks His forgiveness to us.

Our guilt is taken away. Then God sends us.

I’ve been to several churches over the years that have a great sign at the edge of their property that you see when you are pulling out of the church parking lot. The sign says,

“You are now entering the mission field.”

For most Christians, being sent won’t mean becoming a missionary in a distant country or entering church work. God sends us back into the places where He has already put us: our homes, workplaces, schools, neighborhoods, churches, and communities. There we have opportunities to love our neighbors, speak about Christ, serve people in need, and carry out the responsibilities God has given us right in the places where we already are.

So when opportunities to serve appear, we can answer with Isaiah, not as people trying to prove ourselves to God, but as forgiven people who are free to say:

“Here am I! Send me.”

Let’s pray…

Holy God,

I confess that I am a sinner and cannot make myself worthy to stand before You. Thank You for taking away my guilt through the death and resurrection of Jesus. Clean my lips and clean my life. Because You have forgiven me and made me Your own, help me to recognize the people and opportunities You place before me each day. Send me to love and serve my neighbor and to bear witness to Christ wherever You have placed me.

Amen.

As part of your devotion time, I encourage you to also pray for at least some of the following:

• Your family
• Your local church
• Your pastor
• Some of your fellow church members
• The people on your B.L.E.S.S. list
• Your country and her leaders
• Your community

After praying for these people, you may want to finish your devotion time with the Lord’s Prayer…

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. They will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom and the power, and the glory, forever and every. Amen.