The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1911-05-12
(Home Missionary Lesson

Our last lesson was about Uzziah.
And the rest of the acts OF Uzziah
| first and last" says the author of
Chronicles. did Isaiah the prophet, the
son OF Amor. write"
This wonderful prophet came to the
| front In Jerusalem near the end OF
UzziAh's reign. Apparently he was a
| young man, but he was already wise
| in the things OF the world AS some
/ one has said, he was familiar with
! everything Of his time, from court in
! trfgues to q Womans crirlping pins,
| Many have thought that he was OF roy
/ al lineage, so regal was he In character
and manners. He was a courtier of
! the better sore. q far seeing states
! man, prophet, scholar and an ora
! tor of remarkable power. Judah had
/ come TO trying times and man from
God was needed TO point out the way
! through the breakers. We do not
wonder that God chose this man Isaiah
The Lesson Text in Everyday Drsss.
"In the year that Tzziah king of
| judah died" writes Isaiah. II had a
| wonderful vision. II was a vision of
Jehovah himself sitting upon a throne
! in the heavenly temple His robe
| seemed TO fill the temple, and just
above him on either side lowered a
| seraph--a messenger OF Jehovah wait
ing to do his bidding. These seraphs
| had each six wings. With two they
| covered their faces. for great and holy
as they were the sight of the glory of
God was more than they could endure:
and with two they covered their feet
/ III humility. and the remaining two
| they used in flying, as they lowered
above the throne And these holy
beings kept chanting one To another
responsiveiy: Holy, holy. holy is Jeho-
/ Yah of hosts the whole earth is full
OF his glory. And as they sang the
foundations of the portal OF the temple
tremhled IN awe and the temple was
filled with the smoke from the glory Of
God. And when | saw 1t all / cried
! out. Woe Is me! for / am undone;
for | am man of unclean lips, and ]
dwell among people of unclean lips,
and my eyes have looked upon the
King, Jehovah of hosts
But Jehovah, seeing my distress.
ent one of the seraphs to me with a
I hot stone from the altar OF incense
And the seraph touched my lips with
IL and said 10. this has touched your
lips, and your iniquity is taken away
and your sin forgiven. And being
now comforte dand composed ! heard
the voice Of the Lord saying Whom
shall | send. and who will go for us p
I And l answered. Here am l. send me,
! And the Lord told me TO 90 and de-
! clare his message to his rebellous peo-
/ Pile; but he added you may say to
! them, Hear We indeed but understand
not; see indeed but perceive not; for
their hearts VIII be calous, and their
| ears dul and they will close their eyee
, lest they should see and hear and
understand and turn again unto me
and | should heal them. And l said:
! How long. Lord, shall they be in this
! sad state And the Lord said Until
Judgment has been melted out to them.
until the cities have been destroy ed
/ and the people carried away captive
and the land made utterly desoiate.
For even II tenth remain, new 1udg-
! nents shall be sent upon them and
they shall be destroyed. But as there
Is hope for an oak or q terebinth that
has been cut down that II may sprout
again, so there Is hope that new life
may spring out OF the ruined nation. t.
q am not at all sure that | have In
terpreted verses 8. 10 and 10 correctly,
These passages are two obscure for
anyone to speak with certainty OF their
meaninE)
I Tho Heart Of the Lesson.
Here am /, send me-"
/ 1t Is the voice of one who has had
an overwhelming revelation OF the
( holiness OF the Lord, and in that light
n view Of his own sinfulness; of one
who has been forgiven. whose iniquity
has been taken away, and whose lips
have been touched with a coal from
! off the altar
! Ii is the voice of a volunteer who
Is ready to go,
The question forces Itself upon our
( hearts, Why are we so slow TO volun-
teer for Gods service There IL some
one to be taught and we are silent;
/ some one to be led TO Christ, and We
are silent; some one in trouble, and
we are silent, an opportunity to bring
I two estranged friends together, and
we are silent; playmate who needs
I our help In many ways, and we are
/ silent. What Is 1t that seals the lips
when duty calls? Why are we 30 cold
! when the cry for heip In hsarren-
7 ding
| The lesson points tn tho trouble IL
I Ia because we are NOT la n condition
! TO 60. And the lesson tells us what
| we need 10 make M ready
| We need a vision Of the holiness Of
the Lord We need to look upon the
! scene that overwhelmed isaiah and
! made him cry out T am unaone,"
| The reason we have so little concep-
/ ton of sin Is that wa have 30 little
I conception of the holiness 80 God We
/ think lightly of our own needs and of
the needs of others because we do not
realize whom we are under. The mat
! ter needs no argument: you and
/ feel that II our eyes could behold the
vision that Isaiah saw 1t would quick
! en- every fiber Of our being and we