Whom Shall I Send

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​​First Presbyterian Church of Blackwood                          
21 E. Church Street
Blackwood, NJ 08012                                                                              
Sermon Notes Sunday ~ September 20 2026
Sermon Title –Whom Shall I Send
Text – Isaiah 6:6-8
Rev Key Min Lee

​I would like to ask you a question.  What do you find yourself saying the most?
When I was young, I had two nicknames:  “Just 100 won” and “Just 500 won.”  There was a snack I really loved when I was a child.  Each one cost about five cents in American money, and I always wanted to buy two of them.  So whenever I saw my father, I would say, “Dad, just 100 won.”  I still remember myself doing that.
When I got a little older, I stopped eating that 100-won snack and started eating another one.  It tasted just like Ritz crackers, and it cost 500 won.  Every time I wanted that snack, whenever I saw my grandfather, I would say, “Grandpa, just 500 won.”  And whenever I saw my father, I would say, “Dad, just 500 won.”  I still remember myself doing that.
Of course, I don’t say, “Just 100 won” or “Just 500 won” anymore, right?  Instead, I say, “Honey, what about this?”  I’m just telling you that to make you smile.
The reason I asked, “What do you find yourself saying the most?” is because I want us to think about how much our words have changed since we came to believe in Jesus.
When we look at the Bible, we see many stories of people whose lives were completely transformed after they came to believe in Jesus.  We also see many people who loved God so much that they offered themselves fully to Him as living sacrifices and spent their entire lives serving Him.
One important thing is that their words changed after they encountered Jesus and experienced the Holy Spirit.
Peter denied Jesus.  But after the Holy Spirit came upon him, he boldly proclaimed the Word of God.
Paul persecuted Christians.  But after he encountered Jesus and received the Holy Spirit, he was transformed into a person who loved God more than anyone and valued people deeply.
If this is true, then shouldn’t it be natural for our words to change after we encounter God and experience the Holy Spirit?
In today’s passage, we read these words in verses 6 and 7:
“Then flew one of the seraphim unto me, having a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with the tongs from off the altar:  and he laid it upon my mouth, and said, Lo, this hath touched thy lips; and thine iniquity is taken away, and thy sin forgiven.”
When God called Isaiah, it was the year that King Uzziah of Judah died.  At the same time, the great empire of Assyria was expanding its power.  Assyria would eventually destroy the northern kingdom of Israel in 722 BC and then continue to put tremendous pressure on the southern kingdom of Judah.
At that time, Israel may have appeared on the outside to be living a prosperous life.  But God revealed that their hearts had already turned away from Him (1:2, 4–5).  He was not pleased with the offerings they brought to Him (v. 13), and He even said that when they prayed, He would hide His eyes from them (v. 15).
In other words, Israel’s worship had become merely outward and formal.  They were worshiping God because they felt they had to, while loving the world more than they loved God.
Then why did the seraph bring the burning coal and touch Isaiah’s lips?
The answer is found in Isaiah 6:5.  Isaiah’s confession accurately described the spiritual condition of Israel at that time.
He said, “I am a man of unclean lips.”
Calvin’s commentary explains this answer in this way:
“Hence also we ought to draw a universal doctrine, that the lips of all men are impure and polluted, till the Lord has cleansed them…”
“And I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips.  This is added by way of explanation; for he includes himself as an individual in the number of the common people, tainted with that pollution which extends to the whole body…”
“But why does he confine the pollution to the lips?  Was he pure in understanding, or in the other parts of the body?  I answer:  the Prophet mentions that which he regarded as the most valuable, his tongue, which was consecrated to God; for God had appointed him to be a Prophet”
To put this simply, our lips are a channel through which God’s Word is proclaimed.  If our lips are polluted, God’s holiness cannot be proclaimed through them.  Therefore, before God sends us, He sanctifies our lips through the work of the Holy Spirit.
In other words, our lips must continually become lips that proclaim the holiness of the Lord and praise the glory of God.  Only then can we fulfill our role not only as instruments through which God works, but also as His messengers.
The Bible says:
“And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity:  so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole body, and setteth on fire the wheel of nature; and it is set on fire of hell.” (James 3:6)
And it also says:  “And the tongue can no man tame; it is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison.” (James 3:8)
Dear brothers and sisters, when the Holy Spirit comes upon us, one of the first evidences is that our words begin to change.
Our lips that once talked about the things of the world become lips that proclaim the holiness of God.
Our lips that once boasted about ourselves become lips that lift up Jesus alone.
Even today, just as He called Isaiah, God is looking for people who love Him and whose lips proclaim His holiness.  I pray that you will believe this in the name of the Lord.
To control our tongues and our lips is impossible without the help of the Holy Spirit.  That is how difficult it is.  That is why we must practice godliness every day (1 Timothy 4:7–8).  This is what we are taught in 1 Thessalonians 5:16–18.
When we practice godliness every day and our lips are transformed into lips that praise the Lord, I pray that the words we proclaim will become a declaration of God’s holiness—words that not only expose and wash away the darkness in others, but also cleanse the darkness within us.  I pray that you will believe this in the name of the Lord.
Beloved brothers and sisters, it seems that many churches today are becoming less concerned with the things toward which God’s eyes are directed.  It also seems that more and more people are saying that they do not even want the cross anymore.
Beloved brothers and sisters, I pray in the name of the Lord that your eyes will be fixed on the places where the Lord is looking.
Let me ask you the question one more time:  What do you find yourself saying the most?
Please remember this:  Before God calls us and uses us, He first changes our words.  He makes our words holy.  And then He sends us.
He sends us to those who are forgotten, those who are hurting, and those who are grieving, so that we can bring them words of hope.
If our lips do not change, nothing will change.
“Whom shall I send?”
May there be a great blessing upon every member of our Blackwood Church, that as we proclaim the language of heaven every day, the light of hope may be proclaimed to everyone.
I bless you in the name of the Lord.