Focus: Isaiah 6:1-8

In Isaiah 6, when Isaiah was first in the presence of God and was exposed to the glory of God, he was immediately and acutely aware of his sin. That was all he could focus on - his sin, how much he had sinned against God, how unworthy his was.

"Woe is me, for I am undone!
Because I am a man of unclean lips" - Isaiah 6:5

But then, God reminded him of His grace and forgiveness.

"Behold, this has touched your lips;
Your iniquity is taken away,
And your sin purged" - Isaiah 6:7

After God had reminded Isaiah of his cleansing power, and that He was the God who sanctifies him, Isaiah was then able to turn his focus from his past, from his sin, from his unworthiness, to God's call upon his life which was not tied to his worthiness.

"Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying:
Whom shall I send,
And who will go for Us?
Then I said, Here am I! Send me" - Isaiah 6:8

Sometimes when God calls us, we are so focused on the fact that we have failed God in the past, and our unworthiness, much like Moses who focused on his speech impediment when God called him to deliver Israel from Egypt (Exodus 4:10). Like Isaiah, we need to turn our focus to God's work of sanctification in us and say "send me".

So Jotham became mighty, because he prepared his ways before the LORD his God.


King Jotham became powerful because he was careful to live in obedience to the Lord his God.

- 2 Chronicles 27:6

 When you are weighed down with guilt remember that God is the one who sanctifies you.

"...That they may know that I am the LORD who sanctifies them." (New King James Version)
"to show them that I, God, am in the business of making them holy." (Message translation)
- Ezekiel 20:12

And I gave them My statutes and showed them My judgments, 'which if a man does, he shall live by them'
- Ezekiel 20:11

But you must be careful so that your freedom does not cause others with a weaker conscience to stumble.
For if others see you—with your “superior knowledge”—eating in the temple of an idol, won’t they be encouraged to violate their conscience by eating food that has been offered to an idol?
So because of your superior knowledge, a weak believer for whom Christ died will be destroyed.
And when you sin against other believers by encouraging them to do something they believe is wrong, you are sinning against Christ.
- 1 Corinthians 8:9-11

You have lovingly delivered my soul from the pit of corruption
For You have cast all my sins behind Your back
- Isaiah 38:17

As long as he sought the LORD,
God made him prosper.

And as long as the king sought guidance from the Lord, God gave him success.

- 2 Chronicles 26:5