Scripture Isaiah 6:1-8
In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a throne,
high and exalted, and the train of his robe filled the temple. 2
Above him were seraphs, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their
faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying. 3
And they were calling to one another: "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord
Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory."
4 At the sound of their voices the doorposts
and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke. 5
"Woe to me!" I cried. "I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live
among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord
Almighty."
6 Then one of the seraphs
flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the
altar. 7 With it he touched my mouth and said, "See,
this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for."
8 Then I heard the voice of
the Lord saying, "Whom shall I send? And who
will go for us?" And I said,
"Here am I. Send me!"
About the time that King Uzziah
died (having reigned 52 years since age 16), Isaiah saw this vision of God upon
a throne; for when an earthly king dies, the Lord reigns forever. Israel's king
dies, but Israel's God still lives. King Uzziah died under a cloud, he was a
leper till the day of his death; basically died in a hospital, but the King of
kings still sits upon his throne.
When the kingdom looks bleak – that
is because we are looking at the wrong kingdom. Look past this world to the one
that is to come. Imagine life as a slave – things could not be worse – but many
of them looked beyond this world to a greater one where the King of glory
reigns on high which is why we have great and hope spirituals sung form despair
into hope.
John 12:41 Isaiah
said this because he saw Jesus' glory and spoke about him.
Now Let Me
Fly which references the biblical story of Ezekiel's Wheels. The song
talks mostly of a promised land. This song might have boosted the morale and
spirit of the slaves, giving them hope that there was a place waiting that was
better than where they were. Go
Down Moses, a spiritual that depicts the biblical story
of Moses in Exodus leading
his people to freedom, is believed by some to be a coded reference to the
conductors on the Underground Railroad. The oppressor in the
song is the pharaoh,
but in real life would have been the slave owner. Swing low…
What is the
single most important thing about spiritual fishing? About fishing for people?
About fishing because Jesus said from now on you will fish for people? The
single most important thing is Jesus! If you don’t have a relationship with Jesus –
then having a boat doesn’t matter – knowing how to hoist the sails doesn’t
matter, knowing how to catch the wind doesn’t matter. Properly mending your
nets doesn’t matter. Washing your nets doesn’t matter. Knowing when to fish;
where to fish; how to fish just doesn’t matter if you don’t know WHY you are
fishing. You are fishing because Jesus wants EVERYONE to be caught by His
spirit so that every fish might be forgiven of their sins (living the opposite
way from how God created you to live [STOP sidebar: not from how God says you
have to live or because God made rules and laws to follow – but because God
created you to live in a way that not only is pleasing to Him but is ABSOLUTELY
BEST IN EVERY WAY for you! Heavenly Father does know best.]
WHY FISH? So
that someone may have their sins forgiven which means they will also get
ETERNAL LIFE. Fishy fishes are caught to be killed – people fish are caught to
be given Abundant and Eternal life.
Even before
Christ walked the earth – Isaiah understood what was important – there are few
people who are neutral on the upcoming presidential election – they either feel
strongly about one candidate or the other – love or hate – or they feel
strongly that neither candidate is a good one…KNOW WHAT? Jesus is my president
– he is my king – Jesus was way less interested in who ruled the land than he
was in who ruled people’s hearts. If the heart is submitted to king Jesus – the
other stuff will be in place according to his will. God voted for a theocracy
where HE is King – the people demanded an earthly king and the world has known
nothing but government strife ever since.
How do you know if you have a
relationship with Jesus? I’m not asking if you are saved – the bible does say
1 Corinthians 3:10-17
By the grace God has given me, I laid a
foundation as an expert builder, and someone else is building on it. But each
one should be careful how he builds. 11 For no one can lay any foundation other
than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12 If any man builds on this
foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, 13
his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light.
It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man's
work. 14 If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. 15
If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as
one escaping through the flames.
16
Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives
in you? 17 If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him; for God's
temple is sacred, and you are that temple.
So, to become the best possible
fishermen for Jesus – you first need to work on your foundation – knowing Jesus
– be careful to never have pride that you are a better Christian or know Jesus
better than someone else – that is called pride (Uzziah pride went into the
temple to burn incense – 80 priests followed and ushered him out because the
Lord struck him with leprosy for disobedience and his son took over his reign)
How do you know if you have a good
personal relationship with Jesus?
How do you know if you have a good
personal relationship with anyone?
) 1)Be
interested in that person’s life (triumphs and tragedies) Bible
Study
2) Spend
time together (Intentional and casual time together) Fellowship
3) Honor
that person (Gifts and Encouragement) Worship
4) Share
your life with that person – honestly (triumphs and tragedies)Prayer
5) Introduce
that person to other people in your life (Family & Friends)Fishing for People
ACTS 2:42
They devoted themselves to the apostles'
teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Acts 2:46-47
Every day they continued to meet
together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together
with glad and sincere hearts, 47 praising God and enjoying the favor of all the
people. (Fishing for people) And the
Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
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