Reflection of the Day

"Then I said, 'Woe is me, for I am ruined! Because I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips; For my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts.'"

Isaiah 6:5 (NASB)

"When Isaiah cried out, 'I am undone!' it was a cry of pain. It was the revealing cry of conscious uncleanness. He was experiencing the undoneness of the creature set over against the holiness of the Creator."

Whatever happened to worship?
A.W.Tozer

Such an essential lesson/ experience for us all Christians to learn and/ or experience. Without being brought to our knees with broken hearts and torn spirits at the depth of our sinfulness in comparison to the unattainable purity of God's holiness, how then can we fully appreciate the marvelous and unbelievable grace of God? This brokenness also preserves us in humility - absolute dependence on the grace of God - and we become unable to judge others as though we are more spiritual or more holy, for we truly recognise then that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. In place of such self-righteous judgement, exists only love - the love of Christ that flows in and through us, compelling us to love - for others and a desire for their growth to the glory of God and the expansion of the Kingdom, and understanding and grace for those who fail repeatedly.

How then can one come to such a point of brokenness before the Lord? There is no magic formulat and I do not profess to know the way. Perhaps one way is continuing to seek the Lord above all else. At some point, the Holy Spirit will bring about that conviction. It is the work of God, by His grace and mercy, and a the same time, also very much dependent upon our desire for Him, for His glory above all else (which is also a gift from God). Such a mystery is still beyond me, but as much as I have experienced and learned, I desire to encourage fellow brothers and sisters in Christ to grow into, sharing not as one more mature or more spiritual, but sharing as one who has made more mistakes and sinned more, and hence have come to a fuller understanding of the sin of man and the grace of God.

I am still far from perfect and there is still much to grow in until Christ comes again or He calls me home, whichever is sooner. All praise and glory be to the Father, Son and Holy Spirit - the Triune Godhead.