Ttopic:A WATCHMAN FOR GOD
I
Memorise: Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that
your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the
presence of the Lord; Acts 3:19
Read: Ezekiel 33:7-11, Bible in one year: 1st Kings
15:25-17:7
God
called Prophet Ezekiel and set him as a watchman over the house of Israel. As a
watchman for God, he was to hear from Him and warn the people concerning
whatsoever God told him. Just like Ezekiel, believers in these end-times,
particularly ministers of the gospel, are set as watchmen to warm the world of
the impending judgement of God. One of the most important responsibilities of a
watchman for God is that he or she must of necessity here from God (Ezekiel
33:7). You must hear from
God in order to warn on His behalf those who are
perishing. You cannot warn them using your own wisdom; rather, you must tell
them what God is saying to them. How do you hear from God through the revealed
truth, which is the Holy Bible. This holds truth only for those who still
consider the Bible as infallible and having eternal truths of all generations.
As a watchman, you must therefore follow the admonition of 2nd
Timothy 2:15:
“Study
ton shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not a be ashamed,
rightly dividing the word of truth.”
Another
responsibly of a watchman for God is to maintain an intimate relationship with
the One who commissioned you by remaining true to your message, because, you
cannot give what you don’t have. Paul emphasised the need to remain true to our
message in Romans 2:21:
“Thou
therefore which teachest another, teachest thou not thyself? Thou that preachest
a man should not steal, dost thou steal?”
In
Ezekiel 33:8, the Almighty God said His appointed watchman is held accountable
for every soul that perishes if the watchman fails to sound the note of warning
at the appropriate time. This is one aspect of the responsibility of a
watchman, where 21st century preachers need to be careful. We need
to be careful not to be negligent in our responsibility to warn evildoers
without minding whose ox is gored. Beware of the fact that some pastors and
teachers of the word may be condemned to the lake of fire on the last day for
failure to warn the people that God has sent them over against sinful habits
that have become part of popular culture. We are living witnesses to the
tolerance and consideration the Church is showing towards issues like
homosexuality, which brought fire upon Sodom and Gomorrah in the time of old. I
pray that Christians, especially preachers of the word will not go to hell
because of their failure to warn people against sin.
Action Point: Stand your ground in whatever sphere
you find yourself to warn people against a life of sin.
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