“Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the
house of Israel. Whenever you hear a word from my mouth, you shall give
them warning from me. If I say to the wicked, ‘You shall surely
die,’ and you give him no warning, nor speak to warn the wicked from his
wicked way, in order to save his life, that wicked person shall die
for his iniquity, but his blood I will require at your
hand. But if you warn the wicked, and he does not turn from his
wickedness, or from his wicked way, he shall die for his iniquity, but
you will have delivered your soul.
1 Peter 2:9, But you are a chosen race, a
royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own
possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called
you out of darkness into his marvelous light.
Ezekiel is a book in the Holy scriptures that is
ignored much today. When I read Ezekiel, I can understand, to a certain extent,
why. Some crazy visions are going on in Ezekiel that are difficult to
understand. As for me, the difficulty lies elsewhere. Not that I have a grasp
on these visions, but I am working on them, and our Pastor is teaching through
Ezekiel right now, which helps. The scripture reference above is repeated in
Ezekiel more than once. Ezekiel 3:17-19 is a grave warning to Ezekiel about his
responsibility as a servant of the most high God. If you warn them and they do
not repent, their blood is on their own hands, but if you don’t warn them it
will be on yours Ezekiel 33:2-6, another warning is more explicit. But
basically, say’s almost precisely what 3:17-19 says.
Why is this a problem for me? 1 Peter 2:9, But you are a chosen race, a
royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own
possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called
you out of darkness into his marvelous light.
If
you’re a believer 1 Peter 2:9 applies to you, as surely as it applies to me. The
question, believers, is how many have gone unwarned by you? This is where my
problem lies. When I think of all the blood that will be required at my hand, it
is overwhelming, and I fear being called into account for those I did not warn.
I have to often chosen to stay silent when I should have spoken. We are a holy
priesthood, a holy nation, a people for His own possession. Why? That we may
proclaim the excellencies of Him, who called you out of darkness into His
marvelous light. If we fail to do so, are we not as responsible as Ezekiel? I
will tell you this by way of comfort, but not excuse. We are in Christ, and
because we are in Christ, we need not fear eternal damnation. We should take
this warning to heart and proclaim the Gospel of the righteousness of God and
the Lord Jesus Christ earnestly and strive never to fail to speak the truth, no
matter the consequences. For we serve a risen savior, not a dead one, and in
the power of His love, we Can do all things.
I
haven’t blogged for a while, and this is a short one. Be encouraged, put on the
full armor of God Ephesians 6:10-20. And faithfully represent our Lord.
For
the unbelievers, there is only one way, only one name under heaven and earth by
which man can and must be saved. Acts 4:12 And there is salvation in no one else,
for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which
we must be saved.
His
peace be with you, His blessing be upon you, may His salvation and His holy
name be Glorified on earth as it is in heaven.
