Good morning friends, if you'd like to grab your Bibles, if you haven't got them open, I'd be very grateful if you did.
More than me being grateful, it's actually crucial that you have your Bibles open.
We want to see God's glory, we want to see God's glory in the face of Christ, and we get that by gazing upon the Word of God.
So let me pray.
Father God, we have just been warned from John 12 about the unbelief of the Jews who saw the Lord Jesus in all his glory, they saw his miraculous signs, they did it in their presence, and yet, Father, they did not believe.
Their eyes were blind, their hearts were dead, and so Lord, we pray that you would rescue us from such unbelief, from an inability to hear, from an inability to see your glory.
And as we come now, particularly, Father, I ask, Lord, that you would help us to be amazed at who you are.
We ask, Lord, that you would give us that appropriate awe and reverence as we understand who you are.
And if our view of you, Father, is smaller than who you are, Lord, I pray that you would so bless us with insight this day that our lives would be changed.
We pray, Lord, that we might respond as Isaiah did, woe to me, I am ruined.
So bless us with such humility, we ask in Jesus' name.
Amen.
In the United States, you can buy a Jesus doll, pre-packaged, with a sawn-off shotgun.
That's right, Jesus doll, sawn-off shotgun, buffed up, no shirt, just a pair of tight little shorts, lovely shotgun there.
Now, if that's a bit butch for you, that's not the image of Jesus you want.
You can buy the huggable Jesus.
He's obviously much softer, and you can push him and squeeze him at certain points, and he says nice things to you, much like some of the teddy bears that we got at home.
You push him and says, I love you, and all sorts of nice things like that.
And so you can get the huggable Jesus, which you push, and it'll say nice and cute things which make you feel good.
It's particularly helpful if you're feeling a little low.
You can't help but think that in much of modern Christianity, we have domesticated God.
You can't help but think that bit by bit, God's majesty has been chipped away with, and now he fits into nice little Christian products which sit on our shelves,
which I pull off the shelf in order to give me a little bit of a boost when I'm feeling a little low.
Jesus has been turned into a social worker who wants to hear from me how I'm feeling more than anything else.
So I want to ask you this morning, what does the glory of Christ mean to you?
What does the glory of Christ mean to you?
You see, the big problem is that when you make little of God's majesty and his glory,
then you make little of your sin and your brokenness.
The two are connected, intertwined.
You cannot separate them.
And I believe that this is the reason why much of the Christian church today is dying, dead, or impotent.
So let me suggest to you that revival happens, and let me be frank,
I want revival to come to St. Paul's and to my life and to yours.
Revival happens in our lives when we see God majestic in holiness,
and when we see ourselves as disobedient dust.
Brokenness, repentance, unspeakable joy of forgiveness,
the taste of the magnificence of God,
a hunger for his holiness,
to see these things more and to live them more and more.
That is revival.
And it comes from seeing God.
So let's do that now.
Isaiah chapter 6.
If you have not got a Bible,
there should be one in the pews in front of you there somewhere.
Or shift seats now
to be with someone who's got one on their lap.
And let us gaze at the glory of God.
Isaiah 6, verse 1.
In the year that King Uzziah died,
I saw the Lord sit on a throne,
high and exalted.
And the train of his robe filled the temple.
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.
And they were calling to one another,
holy,
holy
is the Lord Almighty.
The whole earth is full of his glory.
At the sound of their voices,
the doorposts and thresholds shook
and the temple was filled with smoke.
There are at least seven glimpses of God
in those first four verses.
So let's look at those seven things.
Firstly, God is alive.
King Uzziah is dead,
but God lives on.
Psalm 90, verse 2.
Before the mountains were born,
or you brought forth the earth and the world,
from everlasting to everlasting,
you are God.
God was the living God
when this universe banged into existence.
He was the living God
when Socrates drank his poison.
He was the living God
when Captain James Cook
first put his boot on Australian soil.
He was the living God in 1966
when Time magazine put out a front cover
which said,
God is dead.
And he will be the living God
10 trillion ages from now
when all of our collective puny potshots
at him
against his reality
will have sunk into oblivion
like a pebble in the bottom of the Pacific Ocean.
He is alive.
In the year that King Uzziah died,
I saw the Lord.
There is not a single head of state
in all of the world
right now
who will be ruling in 100 years.
The turnover in world leadership
is 100%.
In a brief 120 years,
this planet will be populated
by more than 10 billion new people,
brand new people,
and all of us
and the current 6.5 to 7 billion of us
at the moment
will have vanished off the face of the earth
just like Uzziah.
But not God.
He never had a beginning
and therefore depends on nothing
for existence.
He will never have an end.
He always has been
and he always will be
alive.
Secondly,
I saw the Lord seated
on a throne.
We see that God here
is authoritative.
It is no mistake
that throughout the Bible
there is no vision of heaven
where you ever catch
a glimpse of God
ploughing a field,
cutting the grass,
shining his shoes,
filling out reports
or loading a truck.
Heaven does not require maintenance.
God is never at his wit's end
in his heavenly realm.
He sits.
And he sits on a throne.
All is at peace.
All is in control.
The throne is his right to rule.
We do not give God authority
over our lives.
He has it
whether we like it or not.
What utter folly
it is to act
as though we had any rights
to call God into question
or his authority
into question.
Few things,
I believe,
are more humbling.
Few things give us
more of a sense
than the raw
of the raw majesty of God
than that he is
utterly authoritative.
After him,
there is nowhere to run.
There is no appeal.
Nowhere else to turn to.
Thirdly,
we see here
that God is all-powerful.
The throne
of his authority
is not one
among many thrones.
It is high
and lifted up.
I saw the Lord
seated on a throne
high
and
exalted.
That God's throne
is higher
than every other throne
signifies God's
superior power
to exercise
his authority.
no opposing authority
can nullify
the decrees
of God.
What he purposes,
he accomplishes.
God says a little later
in Isaiah 46,
I make known
the end
from the beginning,
from ancient times,
what is still
yet to come.
I say,
my purposes
will stand
and I will do
all that
I please.
in Daniel 4.35,
speaking about God,
he does
as he pleases
with the powers
of heaven
and
the peoples
of the earth.
To be gripped
by the all-powerful
sovereignty of God
is either
marvellous
because he's
with you
or
absolutely
terrifying
because he's
against you.
indifference,
my friends,
to his
all-encompassing
power
simply means
that you have
not seen
God.
The sovereign
authority
of the living
God
is a refuge
full of joy
and power
for those
that are his.
fourthly,
we see that
God is
magnificent,
he is
gorgeous,
he is
glittering,
he is
dazzling.
I saw
the Lord
sit on a
throne,
high and
exalted
and the
train of
his robe
filled the
temple.
Now you
may have
sat up
all night
and watched
the wedding
of Charles
and Diana
back in
1981
as many
Australians
did
and I
remember
on that
day
as a
kid
trying to
work out
why I
was up
all night
but also
the talk
I remember
when she
came out
of the
carriage
and the
train
of her
dress
just kept
going
and of
course
there was
a number
of women
in the
room
just going
ah,
ooh,
ah,
look at
that
and I'm
like
it's a
dress
you know
as a
kid
it's a
dress
but I
still see
it now
25 feet
long
it seemed
to have
covered
all the
steps of
St.
Paul's
Cathedral
in London
at that
time
but what
would it
mean
if she
walked
in
and she
kept
going
and the
train
of her
dress
filled
the
choir
stalls
the
pews
the
pulpit
everything
and it
was all
made
from one
fabric
what would
you say
then
wow
and that
the fact
that God's
robe fills
the entire
heavenly temple
not St.
Paul's Cathedral
in London
the entire
heavenly temple
means that
God
is
incomparable
in splendor
he is
magnificent
he is
dazzling
the fullness
of God's
splendor
shows itself
in so many
ways
in this
world
one
little
example
is the
species
of fish
who live
in the
dark
depths
of the
ocean
that we
cannot
even see
with our
physical
we cannot
go there
you need
machines
to go there
and take
photos
of these
things
these
species
of fish
have their
own
built
in
lights
some
of them
have got
lamps
which hang
from their
chins
some
of them
have
noses
which
glow
some
of them
have
eyes
which are
kind of
like
headlights
they can
see
around
in the
darkness
they are
spectacularly
weird
and beautiful
and there's
not just
one or
two
there is
thousands
of these
species
down there
why
are they
there
when I
can't get
my fishing
line to
them
why are
they there
and why
are there
thousands
of them
there
because
God
is
lavish
in
his
splendor
and his
creative
fullness
spills
over
into
excessive
beauty
and if
that is
the way
the world
is
how much
more
magnificent
must this
God be
who thought
it up
and brought
it into
being
just by
a word
and
therefore
fifthly
God
is
revered
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
no one
knows
what these
strange
sixth wing
creatures
with feet
and eyes
and intelligence
are
they never
appear again
in the Bible
at least
not under
the name
seraphim
one thing
is for sure
given the
grandeur
of the
scene
and the
power
of these
angelic
hosts
we had
best not
picture
chubby
winged
babies
fluttering
around the
ears
of our
Lord
according
to verse
four
when one
of these
creatures
speaks
the
foundations
of the
temple
shake
and if
I ask
Samira
to turn
this
speaker
up
right
now
as far
as he
could
go
I
could
not
do
that
here
at
St.
Paul's
Chatswood
even
with the
aid
of
this
thing
there
are
no
puny
or
silly
creatures
in
heaven
only
magnificent
ones
and
the
point
is
this
not
even
they
can
look
upon
the
Lord
nor
do
they
feel
worthy
enough
to be
in his
presence
to even
leave
their
feet
unexposed
to leave
their feet
exposed
they
cover up
in his
presence
great
and as
good
as they
are
untainted
by human
sin
as they
are
as
powerful
as they
are
as
splendid
as
they
are
they
revere
their
maker
in
great
humility
and
if
one
of
these
creatures
was
to
appear
at
the
foot
of
your
bed
tonight
in
all
its
brilliance
and
all
its
power
you
would
want
to
die
in
its
presence
with
the
fear
would
be
horrendous
how much
more
will we
shudder
and quake
in
his
presence
who
cannot
even
endure
the
splendour
of
one
of
his
creatures
oh friends how far have we moved away
from the glorious and splendour of this God
when Australian Christian television puts out little jingles like
when we get to heaven what do you think he'll say
he'll say g'day
I don't know what he'll say but it won't be g'day
six God is holy
and they were calling to one another
holy holy holy
is the Lord almighty and the whole earth
is full of his glory
what to say about that
the possibilities of language to carry the meaning of God
eventually run out
and it spills over the edge of the world into the vast unknown
the word holy carries us to the brink
and from there the experience of God is beyond our words
there is nothing more to say
the reason I say this
is that every effort to define the holiness of God
ultimately winds me up
coming straight back to the first point
and saying God is holy
means
that he's God
God is God
the root meaning of the word holy
is probably to cut or to separate
a holy thing is cut off and separated
from common
we would use the word secular use
earthly things and persons are holy
as they are distinct from the world
and they are devoted to God
and so the Bible speaks of things like
holy ground and holy assemblies
and holy Sabbath
and holy nation
and holy garments
and holy city
and holy promises
and holy men
and holy women
and holy scriptures
and holy hands
and holy kisses
and I'm not sure what a holy kiss is
the only definition I can describe
between a kiss and a holy kiss
is probably two minutes
that's all I can work it out
I'm not really sure
but
almost anything can be holy
providing it's separated
from the common
and it's devoted to God
but what do you do
when you apply that definition
to God himself
from what can you separate God
in order to make him holy
the very godness of God
means that he is separate
from all that is not God
God is one of a kind
in a class of himself
in that sense he is utterly holy
and then in the end
all you've said is that he's God
or if the holiness of man
derives from being separated
from the world
and devoted to God
to whom
is God devoted
so as to derive his holiness
no one but himself
it is blasphemy to say
that there is a higher reality
than God
to which we must conform
in order to be holy
God is the absolute reality
beyond which
there is only
just more of God
when asked for his name
in Exodus 3
he said
I am who I am
that's it
to me
that doesn't seem
terribly helpful
I am who I am
his being and his character
are utterly
undetermined
by anything
outside of himself
he is not holy
because he keeps the rules
he wrote the rules
God is not only holy
because he keeps the law
the law
the law is holy
because it reveals God
he is absolute
everything else
is derived
from him
in the end
God is holy
in that he is God
and he is not man
he is incomparable
his holiness
determines
all that he is
and he does
and he is determined
by no one
or anything
you can call it
his majesty
you can call it
his divinity
you can call it
his greatness
you can call it
his godness
you can call it
his value
you can call it
whatever you like
but in the end
the language
runs out
in the word
holy
we have sailed
to the end
of the world
of language
and we've got
nowhere else
to go
and so what
do we do
when we sit
there
at the end
of the world
when all
of our language
and all of our
trying to understand
who this god
is
have a cut
220
but the lord
is in his holy
temple
let all the earth
be silent
before him
there is
nothing
more
to add
but before
the silence
and the shaking
of the temple
and the filling
of smoke
we learn
a seventh
and a final
thing about
this god
holy
is the lord
almighty
the whole
earth
is full
of his
glory
this god
is glorious
the glory
of god
is the
manifestation
of his
holiness
god's
holiness
is the
incomparable
perfection
of his
divine
nature
his glory
is the
display
of that
holiness
okay
god
is glorious
means that
god's holiness
has gone
public
it's on
facebook
it's in the
newspapers
it's everywhere
that's what
it is
it's gone
public
his holiness
has gone
public
in leviticus
10 3
god says
among those
who approach
me
i will show
myself
holy
in the sight
of all
people
i will be
honoured
or another
translation
i will be
glorified
when god
shows himself
to be holy
what we see
is his
glory
when the
seraphim
say the
whole earth
is full
of his
glory
it is because
from the
heights of
heaven
you can
see all
the world
you can
see the
whole universe
and you
can see
this universe
reflects the
splendor and
the holiness
and the glory
of this god
from down
here the
view of
this god
is limited
and it's
largely limited
because we
have exchanged
the glory of
god
for things
that
give me
frills right
now
according to
romans
chapter 1
and so
the curtain
of heaven
is open
and is
i gets
a peek
and what
does he
do
verse 5
woe
to me
i cried
i am
ruined
woe
to me
i am
ruined
not
don't hear me
wrong when i
say this
god
i've done
things i
shouldn't have
done and
things that i
did do i
shouldn't have
done and
didn't do
things i
should have
done and
sinned against
you and
against people
and other
things so
woe
to me
i am
ruined
for i'm
a man
of unclean
lips
and i live
among a
people of
unclean
lips
and my
eyes have
seen the
king
the lord
almighty
and what
happened a
little bit
earlier in the
scriptures what
does it say
you may not
gaze upon
the lord
and live
is i
expected to
die in the
presence of
this god
in chapter
five isaiah
pronounced woes
this amazing
thing happens
in chapter
five he
pronounced woe
after woe
curses on
the people
of israel
because they
as it says
in verse
12 there
have no
regard for
the deeds
of the lord
no respect
for the work
of his hands
but isaiah
gets a glimpse
of the glory
of this god
and what does
he say
hang on a
bit just
hold that
thought these
people over
here need
to see this
forget about
their woes
forget about
their curses
woe is
me
having been
confronted with
the glory of
god isaiah
goes downward
in humility
he knows
that he's
not god
when he's
confronted with
god
and friends
is that not
the experience
of peter
that we saw
in this
service last
week with
the kids
talk
he's been
out fishing
catches nothing
jesus takes
him out
gets a load
of fish
up on the
boat and
he doesn't
go wow
fantastic
all this
fish i can
finally buy
that house
i can finally
get off and
finish my
masters of
fishing i can
finally get the
superannuation
thing sorted
out and i can
go and retire
down to egypt
or somewhere
else
forget the
fish
he looks at
jesus and
this is how
when simon peter
saw this he
fell at jesus
knees and
said go away
from me lord
i am a
sinful man
peter saw
glory and
we're confronted
with jesus
peter's own
sinfulness is
the thing that's
exposed again
the apostle john
had a similar
experience revelation
chapter one i
turned around to
see the voice that
was speaking to me
and when i turned i
saw seven golden
lampstands and
among the lampstands
was someone like a
son of man dressed
in a robe reaching
down to his feet and
a gold sash around
his chest his
head and his
hair were white
like wool as
white as snow and
his eyes were like
blazing fire his
feet were like
bronze glowing in a
furnace and his
voice was like the
sound of rushing
waters in his
right hand he held
seven stars and
out of his mouth
came a sharp
double-edged
sword his face
was like the sun
shining in all
its brilliance
when i saw him
i fell at his
feet as though
dead
this is the same
john
who used to lean
against jesus
and when he sees
jesus in all his
resurrected glory
it's not
g'day
he falls down
as though
dead
and then he
placed his right
hand on me and
said do not be
afraid i am the
first and the
last i'm the
living one i was
dead and behold
i'm alive forever
and ever
i'm not dead
i'm still reigning
but it ought not
be a surprise to
find that peter
and john's
experience is the
same as that as
isaiah because
they got a glimpse
of the same
god
did you see what
was read out to
us mike read out to
us a moment ago
from john
chapter 12
isaiah said this
because he saw
jesus's glory and
spoke about him
isaiah got a glimpse
of jesus
this one that we
just spoke about
is jesus
not the little
package jesus with
the sawn off
shotgun not
huggable jesus
the real jesus
isaiah saw jesus
glory in chapter 6
jesus is god's
holiness gone
public what
isaiah saw is
what peter saw
and what john
saw and this
same jesus is
the one who
calls you and
me to follow
him if the
magnificent
creatures in
the throne room
throne room
approach with
caution with
reverence and
awe and respect
how much more
you and me
in following
the one
this one
jesus
but you know
what the great
news is
is when jesus
says to his
disciples
praise in the
hearing of his
disciples father
the time has
come to glorify
your son
let let your
holiness really
go public now
and he went
to the cross
and in that
jesus humbling
himself to the
death of the
cross is the
reason why we
can stand in
his presence
god in his
ultimate display
of glory is the
reason why we
can actually stand
and gaze upon
his glory and
not be crushed
due to his
perfect humility
and perfect
sacrifice we no
longer need to
fear this god
is judge when
osiah called
out i am
ruined god
deals with that
situation by
atoning for his
sin so that he
can stand in his
presence
in the boat
jesus says to
peter don't be
afraid he says
exactly the same
thing to john
don't be afraid
it is only
possible to stand
in his presence
because god makes
it possible for us
to stand in his
presence god wants
to dwell with
people like you
and me and the
safest place in
the world and i've
said this a number
of times i want to
keep coming back to
it the safest place
in the world is at
the foot of the
cross with your
face in the dust in
humble submission
that is what gets
the gaze of the
sovereign eternal
god that is what
draws his attention
it is my hope and my
prayer that this
church that we
will get such a
glimpse of the
glory of christ
that we will
declare war on
pride let us be
vigilant my friends
let us never forget
that it is humility
that draws the gaze
of this glorious god
it is humility is the
only way that we can
stand in the presence
of this glorious god
it is not our small
groups it is not our
budget it is not the
size of our church
it's not how great the
music is it's not the
strength of the
preaching it's not the
number of congregations
it's not how precise
our liturgy it's not
how well people people
speak of us it's not
even how well we speak
of our history it is
not the eloquence of
our prayers this is
what is i god says at
the end of isaiah this
is the one i esteem in
other words this is the
one who draws my
attention this is the
one who i look highly
upon he who is humble
and contrite in spirit
and trembles at my
word
i am thoroughly convinced
that there could be no
effective christian growth
in our lives
that there can be no
effective ministry or
mission flowing out of
this church without the
cultivation of humility
in the heart and the
weakening of pride in our
lives and so friends
someday this all
powerful sovereign god
will blow
and he will turn away
every single completing
glory and he will make
his holiness known in
awesome splendor to every
creature but there is no
need to wait you see we
don't have to be satisfied
with the cheap frills now
we don't have to exchange
god's glory for something
else
osiah job ezekiel jeremiah
peter john and many of you
have humbled yourselves to
go hard after the holy god
and have developed a taste for
his majesty
and so to you and all the
rest who are just beginning
to know it and just beginning
to feel it
i hold out this promise from
god
this god who is
ever alive
authoritative
all-powerful
spectacular
gorgeous
revered
holy
and glorious
from
is
what the high and
lofty one says
he who lives forever
whose name is holy
i live in a high
and holy place
but also
with him
who is
contrite and lowly
in spirit
in order to revive
the spirit of the lowly
and to revive
the heart of the
contrite
amen
to
so
the
it
we
know
the