The Only Way to Become Clean (Isaiah 63:15-64:11)

Isaiah 63:15-64:11 reads as a prayer with two parts.  In the first part Isaiah calls upon God to return to His servants — Israel.  In the second part the climax of the prayer of intercession is “We have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment.  We all fade like a leaf, and all our iniquities, like the wind, take us away” (Isaiah 64:6).  The vision that Isaiah had at the beginning of his ministry made it obvious to him that he was a man of unclean lips deserving death.  And if we are honest and really know ourselves well, we would have to admit that we are right there with Isaiah — apart from Christ.  Those who do not know themselves very well might think that they are clean people — after all, they may actually avoid dirty movies and foul language, but we are ALL like one who is unclean.  Those who are the dirtiest may find Him and His gospel the most attractive, but we all need Jesus.

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