Pentecost 22A

Epiphany 5C

February 7, 2010

Rev. Ken Wratten at St. Stephen’s, San Jose

Isaiah 6:1-8 &= nbsp; Isaiah is awed by God’s majesty and grace.

Psalm 138 &= nbsp; O Lord, your love endures forever. = ;

1 Cor 15:1-11 &= nbsp; Paul tells of his unworthiness, God’s empowering.

Luke 5:1-11 &= nbsp; The large catch of fish; Peter’s hesitation, Jesus’ empowering.

The prophet Isaiah’s description of his vision of God is fill= ed with awe over the majesty he witnesses. The scene is God’s heavenly temple. But God is so grand that only the hem of his robe completely fills = the temple. The seraphs fly above God, but they are so overcome with the majest= y of God that they cover their faces and their feet with two sets of their six w= ings. One seraph cries out ‘Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord of hosts’. To say the word holy twice in Hebr= ew is to describe someone as ‘most holy’. To say the word holy three times intensifies the i= dea to the highest level. In other words, the holiness of God is not describable in human language. So the song of the seraphim is a constant refrain, filling = the heavens, that the transcendence of God is indescribable. =

Isaiah’s response to what surrounds him is an overwhelming se= nse of unworthiness; to be loved so much by God, unconditionally. But God’= ;s seraph reassures him; and Isaiah becomes empowered to serve God, and to lead people to God.

How does your concept of the greatness of God compare to that of Isaiah? Our culture has domesticated God. We have down-sized the vision of = Him to a god who is not offensive, not unpredictable, not irrational by our standards; a God who is tamed to the point of being able to be understood. =

But then we wonder why God doesn’t seem more in control or powerful or impressive.

Judah had been prosperous for generations; at peace with her neighbors, wealthy, controlling the trade routes through the middle east, and very self-satisfied. Religion had become routine, tamed, domesticated. The people assumed that going through the motions of public worship would ensure that God’s fav= or would continue. But now Isaiah was called by God to prophesy to them that God was= very displeased with their apathy.

Isaiah described to the people of Judah a God of majesty beyond description; f= ar greater than the watered-down God they had become used to, comfortable with= , in their abundance.

The people of Judah needed their full-powered God of majes= ty and grace in order to find their way through the transitions that were waiting = for them; defeat by Assyria, destruction by Syria, exile to = Babylon= , and scattering into the diaspora.

You and I need to claim that same full-powered God if we are going = to find our way through the transitions we face.

Peter expected to learn God’s ways from this teacher named Je= sus. But it seems that he didn’t expect God to reach out and touch Peter&#= 8217;s life in such a personal way as to fill his boat with the catch of fish of a lifetime. This was not just an impressive miracle about a bunch of fish. Pe= ter was a professional fisherman. I am sure he had dreamed that his ultimate ‘fine day’, would be a day when he caught so many fish that his boat couldn’t even contain them all. God showed in this miracle that he = cared personally about Peter. And Peter’s immediate response was to realize how unwort= hy he was (like Isaiah) to be loved so much by God; to have his dreams be made= so abundantly real. But Jesus reassured him, and Peter was emp= owered to follow Jesus, and to lead people to God.

Paul says in 1 Corinthians 15, “I am the least of the apostle= s, unfit to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the <= st1:PlaceType>church of God. But by the grace of God, I am what= I am, and his grace toward me has not been in vain.” God forgave Paul’= ;s persecution of the church, and empowered him to lead people to God.

Do you feel empowered? Jesus clearly taught that God empowers you, through your decision of faith. God empowers you to bring self-sacrificing = love to somebody who may have felt un-loved for their whole life.
God empowers you to bring forgiveness to someone who has never escaped the = weight of guilt for something they have done and cannot undo.
God empowers you to bring physical comfort to someone who has not felt warm= , or dry, or fully fed, or clean, in months, or years.
God empowers you to serve as the mirror to reflect His grace in hundreds of ways, in every situation you encounter.

These men; Isaiah, Peter, and Paul encountered the most Holy God; a= god with majesty and power that fills the room, fills the earth, fills the heav= ens, and filled their hearts. Have you domesticated God so he only fits where it= is comfortable? Or is the God you know big enough to fill your heart?

May you feel empowered to say, ‘By the grace of God, I am wha= t I am, and His grace toward me has not been in vain.” Amen. <= /span>