To Be a Watchman

Say to them, 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 ESV

We are living in strange and unusual times.  That sounds redundant, and, in fact, is.  It is also not completely accurate, as I think about it.  The adage that “history repeats itself” seems particularly applicable.

To most of us, the days in which we are living seem far removed from the life we once knew.  We see things and we hear things that seem unimaginable in the world we grew up in, and in America in particular.  So many things seem to be happening at once that it is hard to focus, and thus hard to process any individual concern.  Thoughts swirl nonstop in my head around issues of safety and freedom – for myself, my family, my nation, and my world.  I find discussion of times like these in my Bible, and that serves to add an additional layer to my already overwhelmed thought process.

I can easily find myself drawn into discussion and debate on any one particular issue at hand, but mostly, I am trying to avoid engaging specific topics too often.  As a whole, we - humanity collective – seem to have lost the ability to consider anything from another’s perspective.  We – individually – make up our minds about how we feel on a particular topic, and in turn judge everyone else as incorrect.  I have been shocked, saddened, and even angered at times as I’ve seen how people with whom I once had much in common manage to line up in complete disagreement with things I believe to be simple truth.

Even as I was contemplating this post this morning, I found myself engaged in conversation wherein we determined that the term “common sense” is pretty much obsolete at this point.  So the question that remains is, “What are thinking people to do in times such as these?”

The most simple and direct answer I can come up with does not address the practical concerns of the question.  That will have to wait for another day.  Today, I want to consider the true heart of the matter.

Old Testament history and prophecy serve to remind us that what we are currently experiencing is not unique.  Throughout history, plagues and wars and godless living have been commonplace.  It was not unusual in times past for a faction within a nation to attempt – often successfully – to overthrow a rightful leader.  Neither was it unusual for an ungodly leader to rise to power and do unthinkable things.  It was not uncommon for a people group to be enslaved by another people group, or for an entire nation to be overtaken in response to poor leadership from the ruling authority.

The thirty-third chapter of Ezekiel serves to give us an idea as to what we might do in times such as we find ourselves.

The Lord appointed Ezekiel as a “watchman” over the people of Israel (Ezekiel 33:7).  He was instructed to be diligent in communicating the words of the Lord to the people.  If he failed to follow this simple instruction, Ezekiel would be accountable.

God wanted very much to restore a rebellious people to Himself.  He had extended many chances for the people to turn from their sin and avoid the circumstances in which they found themselves in Ezekiel’s day.  They chose to continue in sin and rebellion, and ultimately, the Lord ceased shielding them from the consequences of their actions.  But He never stopped calling them to repentance.

As the Lord instructed Ezekiel to warn the people of Israel, I believe He is calling the Church today to warn the people of our day.  Our God is still not willing that any should perish (2 Peter 3:9), and He still desires that people come to repentance. 

The call for repentance is certainly a call for the lost to be saved.  (In Ezekiel’s day, pre- Christ’s sacrifice on the cross for our redemption, the people were identified as either “righteous” or “wicked.”  Quite simply, the righteous were those who consistently followed the law, while the wicked were those who did not.)  In fact, the call for repentance is not just a call for the lost to come to salvation…

 And you, son of man, say to your people, “The righteousness of the righteous shall not deliver him when he transgresses, and as for the wickedness of the wicked, he shall not fall by it when he turns from his wickedness, and the righteous shall not be able to live by his righteousness when he sins.”   Ezekiel 33:12 ESV

First, we are called ourselves to repent – daily, moment-by-moment, or with whatever frequency is necessary – for our righteousness comes only through the work of Christ on the cross.  Then we are called to warn the world around us, helping others to understand the offensiveness of sin to a holy God, leading them to an understanding of repentance and salvation as holy God’s free gift through Christ His Son.

And so, in the interest or drawing some instruction from the Word without further digression, I believe that God is calling us to be the “watchmen” of our day.  Judgment is coming.  We can debate the signs and the times and the ramifications at another time, because the “when” is irrelevant.  Whether today, tomorrow, next week, next year, a thousand years from now (though none of us is likely to live that long, so we will face judgment sooner than that!) – judgment is certain.   The only question is the matter of readiness.

So the thought today is that when tempted to fall into debate over masks or vaccines or politics or social issues, perhaps I should set my focus on the greater need of the world around me, taking serious the call to stand watch.  That which is of eternal consequence is where I must direct my attention.  Whatever may happen in my country and my world, I do not want my inaction to leave me guilty of losing souls for the Kingdom of God.

Be a watchman.

…Just a thought…