Called to Be a Watchman

This is what watchmen are to do; to declare both God's mercy and judgment, to prepare all people for the coming King, and to build up the bride of Christ, the church.

God's Judgment

“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. "Again, if a righteous person turns from his righteousness and commits injustice, and I lay a stumbling block before him, he shall die. Because you have not warned him, he shall die for his sin, and his righteous deeds that he has done shall not be remembered, but his blood I will require at your hand. But if you warn the righteous person not to sin, and he does not sin, he shall surely live, because he took warning, and you will have delivered your soul.” ~Ezekiel 3:17-21

The watchman is morally obligated to warn others in love, in order to avoid sinning themselves. Essentially, God is saying "If you see something, say something!" "Whenever you hear a word from my mouth, you shall give them warning from me." I understand this scripture as being for anyone who hears Gods' word and believes it. Believing God's words will propel us into action if our faith is genuine. Sometimes that means warning others of a danger that God says is real.

God only warns people he loves; If He didn't care about us, He wouldn't say anything!

As I live, declares the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live; turn back, turn back from your evil ways, for why will you die, O house of Israel? ~Ezekiel 33:11

Accountable to God, Not Men

The reason why warnings are so hard for people to hear is that they don't want to believe that their life choices are really putting them in danger, both presently and eternally. No one is exempt from these warnings either, because all people are born into a broken condition because of sin (Romans 3:10). That includes me, by the way. I need to hear warnings. I need to be corrected! That's why the Bible is so essential to keep me close to God: it separates my own thoughts from the real truth.

For the Word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul [my thoughts, emotions, and personality] and of spirit [what comes from God], of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account. ~Hebrews 4:12-13

That same Word of God, which helps to keep us anchored in the truth, tends to stand in stark contrast to our view of ourselves. Because of our shared broken condition, it says a lot of true things about us that make me and everyone else uncomfortable. Let me tell you, when people are uncomfortable or offended, they always let you know sooner or later. I've received a lot of backlash over the things I say, both on this blog and in more personal settings. I've been accused of being holier-than-thou, self-righteous, preachy, you name it. I've had people separate from me for talking about repenting from sin and living a holy life before a very good God.

But at the end of my life, when I step off from this earth and enter into the mystery of eternity, I'm not going to be standing in front of any of those people. I'm going to be standing in front of Jesus Christ. At the end of the day, I'm accountable to Him. He knows my heart perfectly well and He says:

Rescue those who are being taken away to death; hold back those who are stumbling to the slaughter. If you say, "Behold, we did not know this," does not he who weighs the heart perceive it? Does not he who keeps watch over your soul know it, and will he not repay man according to his work? ~Proverbs 24:11‭-‬12

Proverbs 24 tells us that we're accountable for the truths that we know.

"Being a watchman is an old testament concept," some may say. "We just need to love people by communicating God's grace for them. There's no need to point out sin or warn others. We don't want to be judgmental."

The biggest problem with these statements is the idea that repentance (turning from our sins) and the grace (unearned favor) of God are opposed to each other. Actually, God's grace is designed to lead us to repent! The apostle Paul, who was instrumental in communicating the gospel to the world, said this:

...Do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience [which we don't deserve, it's God's grace], not knowing that God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance? But because of your hard and impenitent heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath when God's righteous judgment will be revealed. He will render to each one according to his works: to those who by patience in well-doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, he will give eternal life; but for those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness [sin], there will be wrath and fury. ~Romans 2:4-8

The way we receive the gospel of grace and are saved is to turn from sin and live for God! Paul understood this, but did you know that Paul also saw himself as a watchman? Like Ezekiel, God told him to warn people that they should repent of sin, which ultimately made him responsible for the blood of all people.

"You yourselves know how I lived among you the whole time from the first day that I set foot in Asia, serving the Lord with all humility and with tears and with trials that happened to me through the plots of the Jews; how I did not shrink from declaring to you anything that was profitable, and teaching you in public and from house to house, testifying both to Jews and to Greeks of repentance toward God and of faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. And now, behold, I am going to Jerusalem, constrained by the Spirit, not knowing what will happen to me there, except that the Holy Spirit testifies to me in every city that imprisonment and afflictions await me. But I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God. And now, behold, I know that none of you among whom I have gone about proclaiming the kingdom will see my face again. Therefore I testify to you this day that I am innocent of the blood of all, for I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole counsel of God. ~Acts 20:18‭-‬27

The gospel of the grace of God that Paul was entrusted with is the very same gospel that Christians are to declare today. Jesus said:

“Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel [of the grace of God] to the whole creation. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned..." ~Mark 16:15-16

God's Mercy

On your walls, O Jerusalem, I have set watchmen; all the day and all the night they shall never be silent. You who put the Lord in remembrance, take no rest, and give him no rest until he establishes Jerusalem and makes it a praise in the earth. The Lord has sworn by his right hand and by his mighty arm: “I will not again give your grain to be food for your enemies, and foreigners shall not drink your wine for which you have labored; but those who garner it shall eat it and praise the Lord, and those who gather it shall drink it in the courts of my sanctuary." Go through, go through the gates; prepare the way for the people; build up, build up the highway; clear it of stones; lift up a signal over the peoples. Behold, the Lord has proclaimed to the end of the earth. Say to the daughter of Zion: “Behold, your salvation comes; behold, his reward is with him, and his recompense before him.” And they shall be called The Holy People, The Redeemed of the Lord; and you shall be called Sought Out, A City Not Forsaken. ~Isaiah 62:6-12

Watchmen also are looking for the coming of the Lord, who will reward His people and restore what the world has taken away or broken. This will always be a joy to me! I will warn out of necessity, but I'll tell of God's mercy because that's where my hope comes from; I want to do it! :)

Wailing Wall, East Jerusalem

Eagerly waiting for Him,

~Daniel