by Ronnie Hewitt
Isaiah 6:8, “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!’”
After seeing the vision of the Lord on His throne and proclaiming his sinfulness in the presence of the Almighty, after having his lips touched, his guilt taken away, and his sin atoned for, Isaiah was able to hear the voice of the Lord.
This passage reminds me of what the Lord has done for each of us, and of the Great Commission of our risen Lord to proclaim the gospel of salvation to all the world (Matt 28:18-20). If that command to “go” really grips our hearts, we must respond in the same way as Isaiah, “Here am I. Send me!”
In this call, we find the purpose, responsibility and commissioning of every member of the Lord’s body. The church is to go into all the world and preach the gospel. That’s not something just for the missionary. The preaching of the gospel is to be centered on “repentance and forgiveness of sins” (Lk 24:47), the promise of receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit and the exhortation to separate oneself from this corrupt generation, while we wait for the return of our Lord.
Christ does not intend for us to just swell the numbers of our membership. He intends for our energy to be concentrated on making disciples who separate themselves from the world, as they observe the commands of Christ, and follow Him with all their heart, mind, and will.
Are you an Isaiah? Are you ready to say, “Here am I. Send me!”