(Watchmen Who Warn With The Bible)


Today's Reading - Ezekiel 1 - 3

(Ezek 3:17 KJV) "Son of man, I have made thee a watchman unto the house of Israel: therefore hear the word at my mouth, and give them warning from me."

In today's reading, we come across this verse as we begin the Book of Ezekiel. Ezekiel is a prophetic book akin to Daniel and Revelation, which contains much symbolic pictures. It begins sadly with Ezekiel being among the captives, but ends with the picture of the plans for the temple, which really is language describing the body of believers, as God molds it, one Christian at a time. One of the key responsibilities that Ezekiel had is given to us in our daily verse. God had appointed him to be a Watchman to the house of Israel. Notice the message that God had appointed Ezekiel to bring. It is the message of warning about their sins. We don't see God concerning Himself, nor sending Ezekiel to preach a prosperity message. The true prosperity message is the message of driving sin from our lives, so that we may prosper in the Gospel. Ezekiel was told that he was to warn those who were still in sin. The Watchman has only one purpose --and that is to give an advance warning of oncoming trouble. Ezekiel was to bring the message that God had ordained for him to bring. Ezekiel, like the other prophets, was to be ignored and treated badly. That principle has never been put aside. Anytime someone brings the Truth from God's Word, they can expect to be treated badly, and even ostracized.

The moniker of 'Watchman' can be applied to those who are in leadership positions in churches, or even ministries, but it is better applied to every Christian who brings the True Gospel. God has given every Christian their own microcosm to work in, and maybe your ministry may only extend to a few people, but nevertheless, no matter how Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego or large your group is, you still have the same responsibility, and that is to be a faithful Watchman. A true Watchman cannot be concerned about a person's "feelings" when they are holding to a false teaching. Their responsibility is to wake them up before they become fully enveloped in false teachings, which may eventually lead to eternal disaster. If a person is warned about holding to a false religion, and the true Christian attempts to wake them up, they will have no excuse on Judgment Day like, "I didn't know."

As Watchmen, we are to be concerned totally about our deliverance of Truth. No longer do we receive verbal communication from God as Ezekiel did, but we have the entire revelation from God in our hands, the Bible. That is the source of our messages, because it is the only thing upon this earth that convicts the unbeliever of their sins. We can invent all kinds of cutesy Christian plans and programs, but if they do not include the teaching of God's Word, then you have a hollow arrangement, which couldn't convict a weed to grow. The reason the prophets were so hated is because they brought the exact message that God gave them. Today, God gave us the Bible, because that is the only message we are to bring. (1 Ki 8:26 KJV) "And now, O God of Israel, let thy word, I pray thee, be verified, which thou spakest unto thy servant David my father." God verifies His Word as it is spoken correctly through His Children. If everyone likes you, then you are probably bringing the wrong gospel. Even Jesus warned, (Luke 6:26 KJV) "Woe unto you, when all men shall speak well of you! for so did their fathers to the false prophets." False gospels will gain a greater hearing than the True Gospel. This point is well attested to in Scripture. Remember, being a faithful Watchman will not yield you popularity. Instead, it may yield you loneliness. Even so, to God be the Glory for His Truth's Sake!

(Publicly Chastised By God)

September 12

Today's Reading - Ezekiel 4 - 7

(Ezek 5:8 KJV) "Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I, even I, am against thee, and will execute judgments in the midst of thee in the sight of the nations."

In today's reading, we come across this verse, which teaches us that whenever God's People need chastising, He personally will do it. Sometimes He will allow Satan to do it, and sometimes He uses one of His angels to bring judgment, as He did when David sinned.

The one calming element in this verse is that God knows exactly the type and duration of punishment a person or a nation needs to bring them back to obedience. Some may feel that Satan is chastising them, but Satan has no authority to lay his hands on any of God's Children. If he had a free hand to do whatever he wanted to Christians, then he wouldn't stop until he killed everyone he attacked. This is why Satan is under God's control and can do nothing on his own. When God chastises someone, He may do it in private, but the majority of the time, the judgments are going to come publicly. He will place them out there for the world to see.

(Num 32:23 KJV) "But if ye will not do so, behold, ye have sinned against the LORD: and be sure your sin will find you out."

Judah had become a wicked nation with the false gods and religions of the surrounding nations. They made groves and high places and used them for their idol worship. So since they were public in their disobedience, God was now going to make their judgments public. He was going to let the rest of the world know that if God deals with His Children in the area of judgments, then He would also hold the unbelievers who corrupted them culpable before His Throne.

Another comforting fact of God handling all His own penalties is that He knows exactly what method to use. For example, for cheapness, He may allow a person's funds to dry up; for pride, He may allow another --the most humble Christian-- to take an office instead, which they craved; for intellectual pride, He may allow another to teach Sunday School, etc. God knows how to handle every bit of chastisement of His Children, and He knows very well how to bring us back to the straight and narrow. The way that He dealt with Judah and Israel is to serve as a warning to us that none of us are above the correcting Hand of God. Even though we are redeemed by the Blood of the Lamb, we are expected to act in accordance with that redemption. God sent many prophets to Israel and Judah for the purpose of warning them that if they did not adhere to the Word of God, then judgment was looming on the horizon. Well, today we have the great witness of Scripture to guide us through any problems we may encounter in our lives, so we will not take the wrong road. It is imperative that we remain as strong as possible, because we must be a testimony to the world, and a testimony to God's salvation. But we can be neither if we are fooling around with the world. --So let us do an inventory today!

(Ps 94:12 KJV) "Blessed is the man whom thou chastenest, O LORD, and teachest him out of thy law;"

(De 8:5 KJV) "Thou shalt also consider in thine heart, that, as a man chasteneth his son, so the LORD thy God chasteneth thee."

(Heb 12:6, 7 KJV) "For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. {7} If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not?"

Today's Reading - Ezekiel 12 - 14

(Ezek 14:9 KJV) "And if the prophet be deceived when he hath spoken a thing, I the LORD have deceived that prophet, and I will stretch out my hand upon him, and will destroy him from the midst of my people Israel."

In today's reading, we come across this verse, which teaches us a sad truth, but should cause every Christian to be on their spiritual toes. In the days we live in, there are many people going around and claiming to have new teachings, in which no one has ever discovered in the last couple thousand years. One man is claiming that we should all leave our churches because the church age ended in 1994. Another person is claiming that Grace did not appear until the New Testament. Another person I know claims Adam was created with sin. Personally, I get very concerned when people come up with all these new teachings. The scary part is that these teachings are not coming from outside Christianity, but are coming from within. These people use the Bible and manipulate verses to the best of their ability to try and prove their case.

Now, coupled with this knowledge that your spiritual life is always a target by these teachers of new things, to compound it, God says that He Himself will deceive these teachers. Why would He do that? He is not doing it to be mean or to play a game with us. He is doing it for our benefit, so we may know how faithful we are to Him and how well we know His Word. If we know the Word of God pretty well, then these deceptions will be of no threat to us.

The chief method that Satan will utilize in these Final Days will be deception. He is not going to take these teachings from the Urantia Book, or the Divine Principle by Moon, but he is going to use the Bible to try and deceive Christians. The worst and most dangerous element of this deception is that he will be using Christians to deceive Christians. This is why we are to personally know our Bibles, because satanic deception is going to continue to increase until we hit the Last Day. The reason Satan has this authority is because God has given it to him in these Final Days. Satan cannot prevent anyone from becoming saved, but he can really confuse interpretation and cause new teachings to be born.

God said that even though He was the One who was deceiving that prophet, He will also destroy that prophet. So it seems that God is going to deceive and destroy that person. It almost doesn't sound right. But the reason God is just in doing this is because God will never deceive those who know His Word, but instead, will bring judgment upon the unsaved. That is, those who are unsaved will eventually be destroyed in Hell.

Unfortunately, there are many Christians who believe much false doctrine, simply because they do not know the Word of God well enough to defend themselves. This is sad, because if they become caught up in false teachings, it may blind them for life, and they will not live a stable Christian life. For example, they will either go from vision to vision, dream to dream, or if they follow a false teacher, then they must hear every word to make sure they are not missing anything their false teacher is saying. These things all lead to a life of bondage. --But Christ freed us from bondage! However, for various reasons, many Christians still choose to live their lives in bondage --either to a false teaching, or to a false teacher. --So take heed, Christian! Do a personal inspection today, and pray that your spiritual life is not in jeopardy. It is a shame that some professing Christians live their lives 30, 40, 50 years, and the fruit they end up producing is self-bondage. --Be careful NOT to let this happen to you.

(Psa 51:12 KJV) "Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit."

(God Takes No Pleasure In Dealing With Sin)

September 15

Today's Reading - Ezekiel 15 - 18

(Ezek 18:32 KJV) "For I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth, saith the Lord GOD: wherefore turn yourselves, and live ye."

In today's reading, we come across this verse, which gives us an insight into God's feelings toward what He had to do with the nation of Israel and Judah. When some read the Old Testament, they accuse God of being a despot, in that He always seems to be destroying somebody or something. This verse is teaching us that God takes no pleasure in the fact that He must deal with sin.

(Lam 3:33 KJV) "For he doth not afflict willingly nor grieve the children of men."

This Lamentations verse is telling us that God is not sitting in Heaven waiting to afflict or grieve people. What God is doing in all these judgments is responding judicially to the sins of His People and those unbelievers who afflict them. The judgments that we see in the Scriptures are Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in comparison to what the Final Judgment will be when God brings every work into judgment.

(Eccl 12:14 KJV) "For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil."

God does not enjoy having to send anyone to Hell, but the demands and penalties of His holy law must be kept, and God's Holiness must be vindicated. When the Lord Jesus Christ went to the Cross, He paid the penalty for all the people He came to save. His Sacrifice was an equivalent to spending an eternity in Hell.

Those that the Lord Jesus Christ did not atone for must stand in the Judgment on the Last Day and give an account for their sins, and then will have to pay for their own sins with an eternity in Hell. God has no pleasure in this, nor does He look forward to having to do that. The problem is that we do not look upon sin and sinful acts as God does. He views them from a point of pure holiness. We view sinful acts from the point of being a sinner. But ALL sin is rebellion against God, no matter how Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego it seems to be in our sight. God is not sending anyone to Hell because He wants to, but because He has to.

As an example, in our own system of law, when a person breaks the law, he or she has to go to jail and pay a penalty. Barring false testimony and tainted forensic evidence, normally, innocent people do not go to jail. And the police do not normally go around picking up innocent people off the streets and throw them in jail, just for the fun of it. Instead, their job is to pursue those who break the law, and once the law is broken, a penalty is demanded by the laws of the land. It is the same with God's law. When a person violates His law, then a penalty is demanded. Since there is not one person on this earth who does not sin, then everyone is culpable. However, by God's electing grace and mercy, those who have been redeemed by the Lord Jesus Christ will not have to pay the penalty for their sins, because that is what Christ did. But for those who have no Savior, they must face the full penalty of the law on their own. This brings no pleasure to God, but it must be done.

(Understanding The Parables)

September 16

Today's Reading - Ezekiel 19 - 21

(Ezek 20:49 KJV) "Then said I, Ah Lord GOD! they say of me, Doth he not speak parables?"

In today’s reading, we come across this verse, which tells us that Ezekiel had been accused of speaking in parables. That is because Bible language is parabolic to the world, and the unsaved are unable to understand the Bible. The Lord Jesus had spoken in parables on a consistent basis.

(Lu 8:4 KJV) "And when much people were gathered together, and were come to him out of every city, he spake by a parable:"

(Mr 4:2 KJV) "And he taught them many things by parables, and said unto them in his doctrine,"

(Mat 13:34,35 KJV) "All these things spake Jesus unto the multitude in parables; and without a parable spake he not unto them: {35} That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, I will open my mouth in parables; I will utter things which have been kept secret from the foundation of the world."

The parable is used by Jesus to convey a heavenly meaning with earthly objects. This is so we can understand the teachings of the Bible better. However, the unbeliever is unable to understand, because the only way that anyone can understand a spiritual teaching is when God opens up their spiritual ears.

(Lu 24:45 KJV) "Then opened he their understanding, that they might understand the scriptures,"

(Mr 4:9 KJV) "And he said unto them, He that hath ears to hear, let him hear."

(Mr 4:33 KJV) "And with many such parables spake he the word unto them, as they were able to hear it."

Parabolic language is the preferred method of teaching the Bible. Have you made a story up to convey the teachings of the Scriptures to someone? It seems that is the only way that some can understand spiritual things. This is why Jesus gave us the parable for the conveyance of those heavenly meanings. The people were apparently not understanding what Ezekiel was telling them, and basically accusing him of using parables. In fact, the term "dark sayings" in the following verse is actually the term for parables.

(Ps 78:2 KJV) "I will open my mouth in a parable: I will utter dark sayings of old:" It is interesting that God used this particular Psalm, since it contains all the sins of the nation of Israel.

Note that Job also used parables.

(Job 29:1 KJV) "Moreover Job continued his parable, and said,"

The use of parables in the Bible is also used in hiding the Truth from the unbeliever. In fact, Jesus hid the Truth from many, and revealed it only unto His disciples.

(Mat 13:13 KJV) "Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand."

(Mr 4:11,12 KJV) "And he said unto them, Unto you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God: but unto them that are without, all these things are done in parables: {12} That seeing they may see, and not perceive; and hearing they may hear, and not understand; lest at any time they should be converted, and their sins should be forgiven them."

Understanding the mystery of the parables is reserved only for those who are children of God. This means that one must have the Holy Spirit living in them to discern the teachings of the parables. If you use the parables in your teaching, the unbelievers will also accuse you of couching Biblical Truth in parabolic terms. God's Children will be the only ones who understand. Jesus gave us the example on how to use parables, and we should have no fears in following the same method of conveying the Truths of Scripture. Make copious use of the parable, as it conveys a heavenly meaning from an earthly story.

(God Prophesies What Will Come To Pass)

September 18

Today's Reading - Ezekiel 25 - 27

(Ezek 26:4 KJV) "And they shall destroy the walls of Tyrus, and break down her towers: I will also scrape her dust from her, and make her like the top of a rock."

In today's reading, we come across this verse, which teaches us that when God prophesies something, it will come to pass, but not necessarily in our timing. This prophecy against Tyrus came to pass 225 years after the prophecy was made, and it was done by Alexander the Great in 332 BC. God prophesied many destructions in Scripture, and they all came to pass. Even when God had declared that Judah would be judged for her sins, they mocked by saying that the Lord will neither do good, nor evil. Yet, they were taken into captivity for seventy years. Prophetic destruction is something that sets the Bible apart from every religious source book. Those books which were written by uninspired people very rarely speak of any type of judgment. If they had as many judgments in them as the Bible does, then no one would want to join their cult. This is why people look at Christianity and call it a "bloody religion." The difference between Christianity and religions, like Islam or Roman Catholicism, is that Christianity's Kingdom is not of this world, whereas these other two religions, in their quest for world domination, create things such as Inquisitions, Crusades, and September 11's.

Even though true Christianity is the true "religion of peace," it does not mean that we are no longer accountable to God. David was a man after God's own heart, a Christian, and he sinned with Bathsheba, resulting in the death of 70,000. We also preach there is a coming Judgment, and viewing the signs of the times, it could be a short time before we go Home to be with the Lord. We preach Judgment and the world laughs. Why? They laugh because they believe religion is archaic and is a crutch for the feeble at heart. How could any religion prevail in the times of such scientific advancements and our own high educational standards. Religion is relegated to the Middle Ages, when priests and sorcerers held sway over very ignorant masses. This came to an end in 1517 when Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses to the door in Wittenburg. Ignorance would now be voluntary. The intellectual community of today is composed of those who are voluntary ignorant, as they rebuff any type of religion. Their mistake is that while religion can be made up of much superstition, Christianity is not. This is why when God pronounces judgments, it will come to pass, because the Bible is not written out of the mind of man, but of the mind of God. Therein is the difference. So when you quote a passage that says "Thus Saith the Lord," you can speak it with confidence that it will come to pass in the Lord's Timing.