The hindrance to deeper realms

Call To Prayer

Title: The hindrance to deeper realms

By: Owusu Clifford S.

Date: 03/09/2022

6 Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a live coal which he had taken with the tongs from the altar. 7 And he touched my mouth with it, and said:“Behold, this has touched your lips; Your iniquity is taken away, And your sin purged.” 8 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 6:6-8

In God’s communication with humans, it is widely known that there are various levels/realms and dimensions. God in His wisdom often chooses a way that He communicates with His children. Over time, this way becomes familiar to the receiver and God usually speaks through that channel. And as we know, prophets or believers in general are the mouthpiece of God; they receive messages from God and deliver to the world, hence accuracy of what they hear is paramount. In as much as God may speak to a man through a channel of communication (visions, dreams, etc) which the man is familiar with, that pattern might not be the most accurate. It should be noted that, the inaccuracy is not on the part of God but the man.

There is something very intriguing the Holy Spirit drew my attention to as I was reading the book of Isaiah. From Isaiah chapter 1 to 5, there was a pattern through which God spoke to Isaiah and that pattern was visions. Now, fast forward, from verse 6, Isaiah again saw a vision of the Lord God almighty in His glory. Right there and then, Isaiah realised he was a man of unclean lips dwelling among people with unclean lips (Isaiah 6:5). Isaiah heard the seraphims worshiping God, but He could not hear God himself. In our verses for the day, we read about where the change of dimensions occurred. When Isaiah realised and accepted his sin, the seraphim touched his lips with a coal taken from the altar and declared that his sins have been forgiven.

Right after this, Isaiah heard the voice of God in verse 8, and thereafter, the pattern of communication changed from him (Isaiah) seeing visions to directly hearing from God. Isaiah could see visions and hear from the angels but he could not hear from God directly. Why? Because of his sin. God, in His glory and holiness, could not speak directly to him, his sin had to be taken away first. Visions are good and they are one of the key ways God speaks to His children, but I believe it cannot be compared to hearing directly from God, as a man hears from his friend during a conversation. Also, visions may be misinterpreted by the receiver unlike spoken words.

So, when Isaiah’s sin was taken away, he moved from the realm of visions to the realm of direct conversation with God. What prevented this ascension to the higher realm of direct communication? Sin! Beloved, the greatest hindrance to accessing the deeper realms of God is sin. Irrespective of how well we try to justify sin, it is still sin and it displeases God. Dear friend, if only we will eschew sin and let go of all the things that draw us away from God, we can be rest assured that God has greater things for us. On the cross, God could not look at His son Jesus because he was carrying the sins of the world, how much more me and you. Let us endeavour to let go of our sins, especially the secret ones we always cry about but feel ashamed to talk about. It takes effort through the grace and mercies of God to overcome. It is possible to overcome all sins. There is nothing that has come upon us that is beyond us (1st Corinthians 10:13). You can overcome, dear believer. Let go, so that God can give you better things. May we be blessed!

Prayer Point:

Let us thank God for the answers to our prayers. Let us pray for the grace to overcome every sin that hinders us from accessing the good things God has for us.