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Commitment to service
In His Messages the Christ leaves no doubt that He is calling us to a thorough-going
commitment to Soul-level service ---- service to the Plan and thus to humanity. We may think of this as
something new. And indeed it may be a new and much needed emphasis on something too long neglected. But this
need for commitment to service is really ancient. It is clearly voiced by many of the Old Testament prophets.
And none spells it out better than Isaiah. Let us look at his graphic description of the process.
Here we find spelled out for us the essential steps for a classical transformation of character. (In
religion some would call it a conversion experience.) The initial step, in the prophet's quest for 'something
more' (is this all there is?), is implied rather than being spelled out. He and his nation had reached a time
of crisis: the head of the government had just died. So Isaiah's search for meaning had led him to the temple
and into deep meditation or contemplation. Out of this deep probing the spiritual vision unfolded with its
powerful symbolism. Isaiah became both clairvoyant and clairaudient. After 'seeing' the Lord on a throne high and lifted up, he
hears the seraph's song. As is typical in such experiences, the individual is struck with a sense of his own
unworthiness. In his confession, true to his calling as a prophet, he speaks not only for himself but for his
people: not only does he feel lost, because of being a man of unclean lips, but he confesses the lostness and
uncleanness of his people. He feels overwhelmed, ''For I have seen the King, the Lord of hosts.'' Similarly, when the apostle Peter came face to face with Jesus' 'miracle-working' power, he cried out,
''Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.'' But the representative of God does not depart. Instead, in
Isaiah's case, after his confession, he has the powerful experience of cleansing through fire from the altar.
(Don't we all have to experience cleansing by fire, in one way or another?) After all this he is able to hear
the comforting assurance, ''Your guilt is taken away and your sin forgiven.'' There is much misunderstanding among theologians about the meaning of forgiveness. Some interpret it as a
means of 'getting off scot free', so to speak, by a supposed setting aside of the law of cause and
effect. What a travesty. Fortunately there is no possibility of setting aside the law of cause and effect. If
that were to happen we would become only pawns or puppets ---- if indeed it were even possible for us to live
outside this law. But forgiveness is nonetheless important. As Isaiah understood, it lifts from our shoulders
the heavy burden of guilt, freeing us from fear of 'the wrath of an angry God'. A realization of
forgiveness thus frees us because it enables us to stand aside as the observer, viewing our life, with its ups
and downs, objectively, and seeing other lives objectively also. Note that it is only after all these steps ---- the search, the vision, the sense of unworthiness, the
confession, and the cleansing by fire ---- that the prophet is able to hear the clear call of the Lord to
service. Ready at last he responds, ''Here I am. Send me.'' When we honestly take the steps Isaiah took we too will discover what our mission is, and will have the
courage to do it. Are we listening to Christ's call as He urges:
Let us joyously renew our dedication of ourselves and all that we have to the service of the world, the
service of our brothers and sisters everywhere. This article is a chapter from The Joy of Christ's Coming. This book by the late Rev. Howard Ray Carey was published by Share International Foundation in 1988. It is not currently available in hard copy form. Copyright © Share International Foundation. Biblical quotations are taken from the Revised Standard version unless otherwise indicated. Download a copy of this book:
Copyright © Share International Foundation
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