Holy, Holy, Holy

Adagio six angels called to each other in the throne room of God. This is the only time that an attribute of God is elevated to the 3rd° to the superlative level. The Bible doesn't say that God is love love love or justice, justice, justice or mercy mercy mercy but that he is holy, holy, holy, and when we forgive we lose perspective on everything.

It is vital that we see God for who we use our sovereign Lord all-powerful and majestic nightly web welcome to Renewing Your Mind on this Tuesday all week we are featuring Dr. RC school series fear and trembling the trauma of God's holiness. Let's join them now as we discover why the angels sing holy, holy, holy. I had the opportunity to visit Rome eternal city and I think the most dramatic moment for me in my visit to Rome was in looking at the Roman forum, the ruins of the Roman form where the Senate sat and met to decide the policies of the Roman Empire. They had all of these busts remaining from the famous Caesar's from Julius Caesar and Caesar Augustus, Nero, Flavian Diocletian, Titus, and all the rest of them and then right across the street. There was this little known area that you had to go down below ground into what was originally a cistern hewn out of the rock, a place that held water for the city but in that hole in the ground and that cistern was the place of the apostle Paul was held prisoner while he was awaiting his execution from the Senate standing in the place here were Paul was in chains and were Paul who doesn't have a monument to him here in the forum represented something that far outlasted the power of Imperial and I remember that the city of Rome. According to legend them according to the tradition of the Romans began centuries earlier than the first century with the story of Romulus and Remus and for years before that village was founded.

According to Roman historian. The prophet Isaiah and Israel had an experience that would change his life forever and would change history forever as he predicted during his ministry. The coming of the Christ who would upset the Roman Empire.

The record for that we find in the book of Isaiah. In the sixth chapter where he tells us what happened on that occasion.

We read in the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on the throne, high and lifted up in the train of his robe filled the temple. He notes that this experience that he had took place when a particular king died. His name was you design maybe never even heard of things I've heard of David, you heard of Saul nard. Some of the other kings.

Maybe Hezekiah, but you desire rained for over 50 years. Imagine that having the same king when you go to school same King is on the throne when you graduate from high school the same things there when you get married.

The same things that we have your children same kings ever.

Your daughter gets married 50 years same King when he died.

It was a time of trauma for the people of his Isaiah said in the year the King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord know something significant here that we could easily miss when he says I saw the Lord. The word Lord is spelled like this in the text that I'm reading from L little low little are little be and then in the very next verse he talks about seeing the Lord and their spelled capital LORE why is that whenever you see that in the Bible what the translator is trying to tell you is that even though the same English words being used two different Hebrew words are behind the text that are being translated by the word Lord and when you see the word Lord in capital letters LORD that usually indicates that the Hebrew word that is in the text.

There is the word Yahweh, which is the sacred name of God. It's not his title it's his name to remember when Moses met God in the wilderness. There, and God spoke to him out of the burning bush and Moses said to God, who are you what's your name, and God answered him by saying I am who I am, Yahweh.

I am, and he said this will be my Memorial name for all generations no, it's that name Yahweh that's protected by the law of God by the 10 Commandments were one of the commandments specifies what thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain.

In the New Testament the disciples come to Jesus and they say Lord, teach us how to pray. Remember that. And Jesus gives the Lord's prayer when asking here. What is the first petition of the Lord's prayer. What is the very first thing Jesus told his disciples to pray for was think about the Lord's brows got our father who art in heaven, now that's the address so I start a prayer but naming God who is so, and this is one thing more. Pray father who art in heaven first petition how I would be thy name is Emily Jesus is saying when you pray, the first thing you should pray for is that the name of my father treated with reverence that it be regarded as holy because indeed, holy is is name that's the LORE Yahweh, the sacred name that before we even mention the name of God, we should pause and only speak of it with reverence, but I know that's not the way it works in our culture you can turn on your television attorney ready, go to movies and there are certain things that are banned on the radio. Certain language things that you can hear in the movies but can't hear it on the radio but is still okay on the radio to use the word God in a flippant cavalier casual way because we don't have a sense in our culture with the name of God is holy.

Nothing. Nothing reveals more clearly what your hearts attitude is towards God and how you use his name. There is no way that you can be a person who is been grasped by the character of God, the holiness of God and turn around and use his name and the blessings will all the other name is really not a name. It's a title L little low little art little be and normally when you see that title in the English language what lies behind it. In the Hebrew text is some form of the Hebrew word add-on.

Adam and I now the Old Testament Jews had a whole list of titles that they used for God.

God was the king he was this, he was that and yet the favorite title that was reserved for God in the Old Testament was this title Adonai and what it means is the one who is absolutely sovereign, the one who rules all thinks it's even a higher title in the title King and you find these words joined together various points in the Old Testament tickling this also might, for example, where the psalmist says, oh Lord, our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth, and it goes really if you look at it in the Hebrew it's oh Yahweh, our Adam and I owe God, our sovereign one, how majestic is your name in all of the earth now. The irony here is in Israel.

The king has died and humanly speaking, it was you desire. Who was the sovereign in Israel. But he's dead now. Isaiah gets to look beyond the veil and gets a vision into the inner chamber of heaven itself, and he doesn't see you Uzziah what the CC he sees Adonai hi and exalted lifted up their in his heavenly throne. When we read in the text that he says in the train of his robe filled the temple that his garments were so magnificent that they didn't just furled down over the edge of the throne and ended there, but they went back and filled the whole sanctuary and then we read in the text that above it stood the seraphim, each one had six wings with two he covered his face with two he covered his feet and was to a flu now.

Isaiah gives us a graphic description of these angelic beings who specific task is to minister in the presence of God in heaven, and he describes them somewhat bizarre terms that these heavenly creatures have six links and these wings have specific functions know that when God makes creatures he designs them according to the equipment that they need for their environment. For example, when he makes birds he gives them wings figures and feathers and so on so they can fly to the air. We don't have wings would have were not birds when he makes fish, gives him scales and gills and fins as I swim in the water, that's what I live. God makes angels to be in his immediate presence. A designs and constructs them with everything they need for their environment, so gives him six wings and only six wings the flock within a six wings for this essay with two he covered his face some incredible thing to me that even the angels of God who are in the immediate presence of God needs special appendages to cover their face from the brightness of the glory of God. Do you remember Moses when Moses went up on the mountain and had the opportunity to talk to God as it were face to face. But that's just a manner of speaking. He wasn't able really to see God's face and he asked God for the big one, you know, Moses had been there at the Exodus they been there at the Red Sea and all that it seemed God do all these muddy thing now is along the God of the mommy said okay God always around. Let me see your glory. Let me see it with my own eyes what the grandson and Moses tell you what a come over here and I'll carve a little niche hollow place in the rock and I'll put you in that rock and cover you. And then I'll walk past and I'll let you have a momentary brief glance at my backward parts but my face shall not be seen.

Don't you know Moses that nobody can look at my face and live you can enjoy my presence can't see, and so God did exactly what he said and he came by, and for a second. Moses got a backward glance. The back of God's glory. What happened Moses face Moses face began to shine. His countenance began to glow so intensely that when he came down from the mountain, you know, the people think of your face because he been in the presence of the glory of God. One of the most incredible things you can ever do when you study the Scripture is beginning the old to go to the New Testament and notice every time the Bible speaks about the glory of God being manifested visibly like the night in which Christ was born in the glory of God shown round about, and the shepherds were verified because they were beholding a sound and light show such as no one in their generation had ever seen.

When God manifests the light of his glory. It's over whelming.

Even the Angels can't look directly in the face of God, they have to cover and with two we are told through the wings they covered their feet, wise that member again Moses when he was out in the Midianite wilderness and God came to him in the burning bush and he first spoke to Moses what he say he said Moses. Moses put off thy shoes from off thy feet for the ground whereon you are standing is holy, take your shoes off will think that what makes it holy ground, certainly not Moses's presence makes it holy ground. What makes it holy is God has intersected the planet at that point God is meeting Moses right then he says take your shoes will look at the significance the symbolic significance of the feet of human beings in the Bible. What does the Bible tell us in terms of our origins.

We are of the earth earthly, we come from the dust. We have feet of clay and it's our feet, by which we as at work are attached to the world to this earth so that the feet in the symbolism of biblical literature become a sign. Creaturely mass and even the Angels is exalted as they are in their status are still creatures and when they are in the immediate presence of God, they have to cover their curriculums. They have to cover their feet, they have to cover their faces, and with two they fly but when we look at this text. The most important thing we find it is not a lesson in the anatomy of angels or seraphim. It's not how they're constructed and I want you to really pay attention to in terms of what's going on here in this text. It's their message is what the Angels say listen how Isaiah describes it, he said, and one cried to another and said, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts, the whole earth is full of his glory. So the Angels now in the presence of God are singing in antiphonal response back and forth to one another.

Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts. The whole world is filled with his glory.

There it is again. But again, this is one of those things that we can read in English translation a thousand times and missed the point because there's a literary device going on here. We don't want to miss when I write in English and I get to a place in the page where I want to emphasize the importance of something I have all different, little techniques I can use to draw attention to the importance of a particular statement I can underline it. I can put it in italics right below quotes around bracketed boldface.

The letters put a dozen!

Don't do that only use! For exclamations okay these are the little devices that we use the signal to the reader.

Hey, this is important. Don't miss this all the Jews had all those little tricks to but they had another if they wanted to communicate that something was important. We simply repeat I'm on the New Testament when Jesus is teaching his disciples. And sometimes you hear them say truly what coming truly is a truck truly, truly, or no transit barely barely in the text. It's all main all Maine from which we get the word amen the way we say amen is that after the prayers over with a manner if we like with the preacher says we may say amen.

But Jesus says amen before he gives a sermon was a man a map that is. This is true. This is the truth. The listen up. Truly, truly says it twice. Paul writes to the Galatians and he said out foolish Galatians who was bewitched you because are going after another gospel and he says them. What if anyone preaches any other gospel to you than that which you have received, let him be accursed, let him be on a team anathema and then what's he say again I say to you, if anybody gives any other gospel than that which you received, let him be damned.

He repeats it Old Testament scholar in England development here wrote a commentary on Isaiah tells a story of a text. In the Old Testament where this strange pit is found where some translators.

Transit is an asphalt. Another one is a by Truman. Another one is a big pet.

Another one is a great pet so while these different translations and what material points out is that what you have in the Hebrew is just the Hebrew word for pant repeated I would make sense in English to translate it that people came to this pit pit. What in the world is a pit pit well in Hebrew term say to the Jew their pits and then there pit pits. It's one thing to phone up at your trouble if you fall a bit, but if you fall in the pit pet urine weeds because of pit pit is the piteous pit that you can ever imagine. But that's how the Jew would describe something by emphasizing repeats see the Angels don't say here that God is holy and are not satisfied to say that God is holy, holy. But their message is that he's holy, holy, whole, this is the only time in all of the Bible that an attribute of God is elevated to the 3rd° elevated to the superlative level. The Bible doesn't say that God is love love love or justice, justice, justice or mercy mercy mercy but that he is holy, holy, holy. That's where the emphasis is and what happens at this message. We read in verse four the posts of the door were shaken by the voice of him who cried out, and the house was filled with smoke. These and animate elements of the building. The doors the posts shake at the presence of God in his holy and on Isaiah screams in the Old Testament when God would pronounce his judgment on people he would use a formula: Oracle and it was the oracle of doom may use the word woe, woe unto you, Damascus. Woe unto you, Israel, whatever. But here when I say seeks the on veiled majesty of God pronounces a curse self. Woe is me.

I'm ruined.

I'm coming apart at the seams because I'm a man of unclean lips. I got a dirty mouth and I live in the midst of a people of unclean lips.

Why does he do this.

Here's the point that I saying never ever ever new who Isaiah was until he found out who got us. We don't really know who we are until we find out who God's. And when we do find out who God is. We see the glaring difference between his holiness and corruption is with the message of Scripture is all about and how God addresses that gap between who is and who seeing God for who he truly is.

Is her focus this week on Renewing Your Mind as we feature Dr. Darcy's World Series fear and trembling the trauma of God's holiness. RC1 said that when we begin to understand something of God's holiness. Then we begin to understand the radical character of our sin and helplessness. This series helps us see these things more clearly. That's why we like to send you the six message to DVD set.

Contact us today with a donation of any amount at 800-435-4343. You can also make a request online@renewingyourmind.org and I was talking with some of my colleagues are Renewing Your Mind and we were reflecting on the growing sense of moral change around us. Our culture is shifting and is shifting quickly and not for the better and I think many Christians are growing weary struggling to find the joy they need to serve the Lord faithfully will you your ministries exist to help Christians around the world by giving them trusted teaching that encourages them to press on your gifts make that possible. So we thank you as we look ahead to tomorrow's message by Dr. scroll.

What kind of reaction people have when they encounter God not everybody who meets God in the Scripture has the same reaction.

Some tremble, some get all excited. Some rejoice, some fall in a swoon.

They pass out everything but you will never ever find in the Bible. An example of somebody's leaving the living God, the Lord, I hope you join us tomorrow is Dr. scroll shows us what really means to be in the presence of God that's Wednesday here on Renewing Your Mind