He Stood In The Midst

     Now I know I can't possibly be the only one who is like this, but there are a couple people in Heaven I basically must meet. Jesus will be a big one (obviously). Paul is definitely on the list, along with John the Baptist, and Jonah (I mean, how many guys do you know that have caught a fish from the inside!). But I have to tell you, the guy I was reading about today is a must-see. First of all, he's listed as one of David's mighty men. The guy gets huge man-points just for that. But look what he does.
     2 Sam. 23:11. And after him was Shammah the son of Agee the Hararite. And the Philistines were gathered together in a troop, where was a piece of ground full of lentils: and the people fled from the Philistines.
     12. But he stood in the midst of the ground, and defended it, and slew the Philistines: and the LORD wrought a great victory.
     Let's paint a picture here. So Shammah is with this group of people, maybe foragers, when a force of Philistines come over the hill. The people with Shammah pull on their New Balances and go tearing off in to the sunset, leaving Shammah all alone. Now put yourself in Shammah's shoes: you're all alone, facing an enemy army, and you're left with the decision to run for it or defend a pea patch. There are definitely some things I would die for. Bible? Yes. Family? Yes. Pizza? Obviously. Peas? Nope. Not happening. Sorry, but there is no way I would die for peas, and unless Shammah was some radical sort of devout vegetarian, I have a feeling he wasn't super inclined to make a great last stand on a vegetable garden. But he stays. Why? That was where God had put him. He was sent for a reason, whether it be to protect the foragers in the garden or to lead a scouting mission against the Philistines. Ultimately, it doesn't matter why. Shammah defended what was given to him even at risk of his life.
     My question for you is: what would you die for? The neighbor you're witnessing to, your unsaved coworker, or your children? Each of us has given a pea patch: a mission to accomplish or ground to hold at all costs. Even if it means giving up your life, but not in the sense you are thinking. All throughout the Bible, we are called to give up our lives on a daily basis; putting aside our old, sinful tendencies and loving people as Christ Himself. So I encourage you to read the story of Shammah, remember where God has called you, and daily lay down your lives for what God has called you to do.

Holy Ground

     He could have chosen the house of the Levite. Or the palace. Or the tent of the Midian high priest. Or He could have chosen Pizza Hut for that matter. However, as we see God doing so many different times in Scripture, God chose somewhere unusual, plain, unsuspected, and just plain ugly. The backside of the desert.
     Exodus 3:1 Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father in law, the priest of Midian: and he led the flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of God, even to Horeb.
     2 And the Angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed.
     Moses was destined to be the future leader of Israel and to lead them out of Egypt and into the Promised Land in the name of the Lord. He was spared from Pharaoh's extermination of Hebrew children and was brought up in safety under Pharaoh's own roof. However, he was not ready to handle the task to which God had called him. Moses' action in killing the Egyptian in Exodus 2:11-12 proved that not only was he unprepared, but we also see in 2:14 that the Hebrews were not ready for him to be their leader. So Moses was led to a place where he would meet God; a place where Moses' past, pedigree, and former position were null and void. He became a shepherd in the backside of the desert. Not exactly a flashy position, but in leading sheep around the wilderness of Horeb, Moses was being prepared to lead a nation into the Promised Land.
     So what is the application here? Moses had a job to do; a big job. He had a massive calling on his life that he could not deny or fail to undertake. But God's strategy was not to put an ill-prepared soldier in the breach; there was a preparation period in which God hand-crafted His servant. All of us have hit those sections of life that could most definitely be classified as "backside of desert" equivalents. Whether those seem to be hard times in ministry, sickness, financial difficulties, or having to live in the heat, we will all spend a tour of duty being prepared for what God has for us. We look at situations or locations and call them God-forsaken, but Christian, if you lift up your eyes, you may realize that, like Moses, the place you are standing is holy ground.
    

The Believer's Creed

Not Without Strength

     Listen to the words of the songs we sing in church. Consider the words of many sermons and books. Look at the most well-known verses about Christ. Search "Jesus Christ" on the  internet. What do you find? Most often, themes such as His love, His compassion, His meekness, and His forgiveness are highlighted. All of these are amazing qualities of the Lord we serve, so don't misunderstand the point of this post; nevertheless, I think that we as believers are missing something crucial.
     Let me illustrate. Suppose someone is trying to describe me to you; they talk about how much I love potato chips. And cinnamon rolls. And Dr. Pepper. And cookies. And my First Love of Food: pizza. What is the image you are going to get? You'll probably start to envision me as a lazy, incredibly unhealthy couch potato lounging on a stack of pizza take-out boxes. While the above facts may be true, they aren't the whole story.
     Then there's the guy who only talks about how I love to play paintball, shoot, run and go to the gym. After talking to that guy, you'll think of me as a no-nonsense, tough-as-nails cross between John Wayne, a Marine, and Captain America. Obviously I'm far closer to the latter, but that's not exactly an accurate picture either.
     I went through all that to say: if you stress one part of a person's nature and neglect another, you don't get an accurate picture of who that person is. And unfortunately, I believe that we have done that with the person of Jesus Christ. The main focus of our songs, sermons, and illustrations are His "gentler" qualities. Again, don't get me wrong, we have not overemphasized these qualities, but we have neglected elements of His character that we see manifested in John 18:2-12.


   2 And Judas also, which betrayed him, knew the place: for Jesus ofttimes resorted thither with his disciples.
   3 Judas then, having received a band of men and officers from the chief priests and Pharisees, cometh thither with lanterns and torches and weapons.
   4 Jesus therefore, knowing all things that should come upon him, went forth, and said unto them, Whom seek ye?
   5 They answered him, Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus saith unto them, I am he. And Judas also, which betrayed him, stood with them.
   6 As soon then as he had said unto them, I am he, they went backward, and fell to the ground.
   7 Then asked he them again, Whom seek ye? And they said, Jesus of Nazareth.
   8 Jesus answered, I have told you that I am he: if therefore ye seek me, let these go their way:
   9 That the saying might be fulfilled, which he spake, Of them which thou gavest me have I lost none.
   10 Then Simon Peter having a sword drew it, and smote the high priest's servant, and cut off his right ear. The servant's name was Malchus.
   11 Then said Jesus unto Peter, Put up thy sword into the sheath: the cup which my Father hath given me, shall I not drink it?
   12 Then the band and the captain and officers of the Jews took Jesus, and bound him.

     Look at verse 6, the verse I underlined. Judas has betrayed Jesus and has led an armed mob to capture Him. Christ asks who they are looking for, and the leaders say "Jesus of Nazareth." Nothing unusual there. Christ says "I am he" and still nothing out of the ordinary. But then we get to verse six. When Christ merely said "I am He," the very force of His words literally blew the mob off its feet! Then the argument comes that the mob was just surprised; once they got on their feet they were strong enough to capture Jesus. Oh no...keep reading. Jesus says He would go with them if they let His disciples go. We know that the disciples escaped, but these verses imply that they were let go. Why? Because this mob of heavily-armed soldiers were too scared to tangle with Christ on anything but His terms! Look folks, this isn't "'Tis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus;" this is "You're Cooked if You're on the Wrong Side of Jesus!"
     The examples could go on and on. The demon named Legion crawling before Christ and begging for his life. Christ's cleansing of the temple with a whip and God-load of righteous anger. The picture of the returning Christ in Revelation 19. Christ is as mighty and valiant and powerful and wild and uncontrollable as He is loving, compassionate,  and meek.
     The Jesus we serve is not to be laughed at or taken lightly. He is not to be deemed irrelevant or weak at best. He is above all and second to none. This is the Jesus that we all will face before the Judgement Seat. But this is also the Jesus that defends, sustains, and guides those that have put their trust in Him. Just as we cannot fathom a Jesus without grace, realize that the same Jesus is also not without strength.

The Cup

     Ever wondered what was in the cup? We hear about it, we read about it, and we study the context, but have you ever thought about what was inside of it? Just hours before His death, we see Jesus in a way that the gospels rarely portray Him. Matthew says that Christ “began to be sorrowful and very [distressed].” Luke 22:44 has Him sweating “as it were great drops of blood falling to the ground.” In the Garden of Gethsemane, we see Jesus suffering in a way He did not even as Pilate proclaimed His death sentence. The reason for His suffering? A cup. Just a cup. Christ engages in three rounds of intense prayer in the garden, and all three times He begs of the Father, “If it be possible, let this cup pass from me…” What was in the cup?

Talk to some theologians and skim the religion section in the library, and you’ll here mostly about the nails, the soldiers, and crown of thorns. Go to an Easter service in an average church and you’ll get the parting of Christ’s raiment, the spear in His side, and the beating He received. You’ll hear that Christ could see the physical suffering coming, and it caused Him this great agony. This was what the cup held.

Honestly, it sounds pretty good, but there’s a hitch. Thousands of believers suffered in horrible ways for their faith. Most of them exhibited a\n unbelievable amount of peace in their deaths. Some forgave their oppressors, others died singing hymns. And you think that the same future had the Commander of the Heavenly Hosts cowering in a garden?? No, the cup was a far greater penalty.

     Turn to Isaiah 51:17. “Awake, awake, stand up, O Jerusalem, which hast drunk at the hand of the LORD the cup of his fury; thou hast drunken the dregs of the cup of trembling, and wrung them out.” Revelation 14:10: “The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb.” Speaking of an apostate city known as Babylon in the end times, Revelation 18:5-6: “For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities. Reward her even as she rewarded you, and double unto her double according to her works: in the cup which she hath filled fill to her double.” I know this is a lot of hard, symbolic language, but look for the common denominator in reference to the cup. Let me give you one last verse, Revelation 16:19. “And the great city was divided into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell: and great Babylon came in remembrance before God, to give unto her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of his wrath.”

     What was in the cup? All throughout Scripture, this symbolic cup is filled to the brim with God’s wrath against sin. Every sinful motive, thought, word, and deed are stored up carefully, waiting to be revealed against unrighteous men who commit them (Romans 1:19). We wonder why wickedness seems to take the upper hand. On the basis of Scripture, I can tell you with full assurance that any victory or prosperity gained by unrighteous individuals and entities is a façade, and one day, the veil will be lifted. God, from His throne will bring forth the cup of His wrath against their sin, and they will be forced to drink the consequences.

In the cup was the wrath of God against sin. That’s what Christ suffered. In comparison, the nails were trivial. The crown? Secondary. The thorns? Peripheral. Even the cross itself? Nothing compared to the perfect Son of God drinking down the wrath of God in our place. His response in the garden to the mere thought of the wrath we had stored up is a testimony to what He endured. Christ, on the cross, drank down every drop of the wrath we deserve. The wrath of God is not simply appeased for a time or held back by Christ’s sacrifice. For you who have put your faith in Jesus, there is no more wrath stored up against you. Christ took the cup from the hand of the Father, and when it fell to the ground, not even a drop was left to ever be brought against you.

Here I Come, Ready Or Not

     So the question of the day is: can a person write a blog dedicated to the truths and implications of the gospel and somehow forget to write a post about Easter? Yup...pretty much. With that said, I apologize for not doing something to honor the resurrection of Jesus Christ. With that said, who cares when the calender tells me to think about Christ's resurrection; I'm going to do it today!
     Imagine someone ran up to you and said, "They just found Jesus' bones! The disciples moved His body and pretended He had risen from the dead. Your 'Lord' is nothing but a dead lie!" That's the kind of news that tends to put a damper on any day. No amount of pizza would fix that, and that's strong language coming from me. Why? Because our whole faith is wrapped up in the fact that Jesus is the Son of God, He was perfect enough to atone for all of our sins, and He was powerful enough to over come death. If He stayed dead, none of the above would be true. Paul said it pretty well in 1 Corinthians 15:17-19.
     17 And if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins.
     18 Then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished.
     19 If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable.
At the end of the day, if Christ was never raised from the dead, we are in for a world o' hurt. Paul gets us with a back-to-back-to-back triple whammy right here. First off, if Christ isn't raised from the dead, He wasn't powerful enough to overcome the penalty for your sins and all those thoughts, words, and actions that you thought you would never have to answer for again are all outstanding! You're still guilty! He follows that up with the nice sunny statement that everyone who died believing in Christ are suffering eternal punishment in Hell because they trusted in an insufficient sacrifice for their sin. To top it off, not only can we not have eternal joy like we thought, but we can't even enjoy life now because we constantly have eternal judgement hanging over our heads. I mean, how exactly would you end that memo? "Enjoy your week" sounds a little lame at the tail end of that bombshell.
     If you think the above paragraph a little on the ridiculous and "waste of time" side, I want you to take a moment and think about what exactly was going on here. Take a moment, and read a couple passages for me. For starters, take a look at Matthew 20:18-19, Mark 9:31, John 2:20, and John 10:17-18. Common denominator here? All of them are prophecies by Jesus Himself regarding His resurrection from the dead. If Jesus never rose from the dead, He is a liar, a false prophet, and guilty of leading millions astray. That doesn't sound like a person perfect enough for God to lay on Him the sins of us all. If Jesus is not raised, our sins are still outstanding. Not only that, but Romans 6:23 says that the wages of sin is death. If Christ remained dead, He would not have overcome the full penalty of our sin. Basically, if Christ is not raised from the dead, our sins our still outstanding and there will be no hope for us before the Judgement Seat.
     Lest I be labeled as a downer, I want to show you what Paul says right after 1 Corinthians 15:17-19. Verse 20a reads,
     20 BUT NOW IS CHRIST RISEN FROM THE DEAD!!!
     Sorry, I just thought that needed some bigger font, capital letters, and exclamation points. I mean, talk about a shift. Christ is risen from the dead. He stormed the gates of Hell and stayed just long enough to trash the place. They carried Him in the tomb, but He came out of there with enough style to knock out elite Roman guards. Your sins are payed for, those who have died in Christ are covered under the blood, and we can have hope for what happens after death. Notice the verb tense in that verse...now is. Right this second, we have an untiring, unceasing, very much alive advocate constantly defending us against every accusation Satan brings against us. And who says we should only celebrate that once a year...
   

Eyes and Lives On The Savior

     Well this is it. For three or four posts now, we have been looking at some of the latter verses in Jude. Like I said in the first post, Jude is one of those books you can blink and miss, but contains a truckload of truth. Here we come to verses 24-25, which read,

24 Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy.

25 To the only wise God our Saviour, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and forever. Amen.

So here we go. Jude bookends this entire passage, not by sharing five ways to hook your listeners, but by focusing on the believer’s spiritual health. In looking at verse 20-21, we talked about “keeping ourselves in the love of God.” And here we see that the author highlights the foundational element of holiness in a believer’s life. This is a critical point. Evangelism isn’t primarily about the pitch or eloquent public speaking. Successful witnessing is carried out by the believer who is abiding in Christ and living a life committed to holiness. Only such a life will bring God’s blessing on our efforts.

Notice the wording of the verse. It is not “work harder to keep from falling, and present yourself faultless.” Jude offers praise to the One who keeps us from falling and is able to present us to Himself as faultless. This is obviously none other than Jesus Christ. By His death, He presents us faultless and cleansed of our sin. We are no longer under condemnation, and we are “spotless to stand before the throne.”

Jesus Christ not only cleanses us forensically, but He is also the power by which we can lead lives pleasing to Him on Earth. In my opinion, this is one of the trickiest applications in the Bible. If you try to lead a holy life in your own strength, you will fall flat on your face. Guaranteed. However, you don’t see “Let go and let God” anywhere in the Bible either. The biblical doctrine of abiding in Christ involves fervent prayer for Christ to strengthen us in temptation, solid study in the Word of God, and a daily, conscious decision to live as He desires.

I don’t pretend to have all the answers to this in-depth application of an even more in-depth doctrine, but I do know this: we will only be successful in our evangelism when our eyes and lives are focused on Him who is able to keep us in the righteousness He gave us.

Tripping Gets You Farther Than Sitting

     I just thought I would briefly share a quote with you that I found this morning by Charles Spurgeon (my personal favorite preacher).
     “Let eloquence be flung to the dogs rather than souls be lost. What we want is to win souls. They are not won by flowery speeches.”
     First Corinthians 2:1-5 says,  
 1 And I, brethren, when I came to you, came not with excellency of speech or of wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God.
 2 For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified.
 3 And I was with you in weakness, and in fear, and in much trembling.
 4 And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power: 
 5 That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.
    From experience, I can safely say that when we as Christians get motivated or inspired to witness, the automatic thought is "Hey, I oughta learn how to witness better." What Paul is saying and Spurgeon is seconding is that we don't need more knowledge or training courses; we need action. The model we see in the book of Acts is that evangelism was a natural outflow of what God was doing in the believers' lives. So, if you are one of the people like me and you want to memorize all of the "right answers" to those difficult questions that unbelievers ask before you witness, this is for you. God has already given you everything necessary to effectively witness: power, knowledge, and support straight from the throne room of the Almighty. God's truth doesn't need eloquent and polished speech to enhance it. Do we need to be constantly in the Word as our source of truth? Yes. Do we need to be prayed up? Absolutely. Should we have an idea of what we are going to say? Probably wise. That said, we (I say "we" because this is something I struggle with) will never be effective evangelists if we are constantly in preparation and never in practice. There needs to be a balance. I hate to say this, but no matter how many books you read and how many times you rehearse your delivery in front of the mirror, you won't get it right every time. Nevertheless, we serve a God who is capable of using us despite our shortcomings. The application is simple and direct: get out and do it.

Elevators and Evangelists

     Today, we'll be moving ahead in our study of Jude 20-25. This'll be a little shorter than some of the other posts in this particular study, but hey, I hear short is the new long.
     Jude 23 says,
23 And others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire...
     Suppose you're walking in the middle of New York City and you happen to see a construction team working on a new skyscraper. You and a hundred of your closest friends stop to watch. The main frame of the building is up, and the workers are putting the touches on the elevator shaft. They start to test the lift and send the elevator from the top floor to the bottom floor. As the elevator is sliding down toward the bottom, you look down and see two little children playing right where the elevator will land. What will you do? Chances are good that you are going to push your way through the crowd and sprint for the children. The only thing on your mind when you see those two children is to pull them out of there.
     Same idea.
     We've spent some time looking at the passages about Hell and God's wrath, so I won't rehash all that here. Let me just say this and leave it there. There are a lot of people that we come in contact with on a daily basis that are playing right under the elevator, so to speak. When we see lost men, women, and children playing around and living each day in danger of God's judgment, we should experience some of the same type of fear as described above. Jude uses a similar analogy of pulling someone away from a fire.
     So all of that said, my challenge to you today is to pray that God will allow you to see people as souls in danger of destruction. I guarantee that's all the motivation you'll need.
     Not only does this passage describe one of the things we should feel about the lost, but it tells us that people can be pulled out of the fire. There is hope, and we have to rest in that. So let this verse both challenge and encourage you.

The Ram of God

     I just want to take a brief respite from our study in Jude and share with you something I came across recently in my Bible study. If you have your Bible, turn to Genesis 22. This is a fairly familiar account in the Old Testament that is often used as a picture of Christ's sacrifice. Long story short, God comes to Abraham and tells him to go atop a mountain and sacrifice his only son Isaac. Abraham obeys and sets off the next morning for the mountain. Abraham and Isaac go on alone, they build the altar, and Isaac is laid upon it with the wood. Abraham readies his knife and prepares to sacrifice his only son, the son that God had so long promised him. Just before Abraham kills his son, a voice speaks out from heaven, staying his hand. Paraphrasing, God commends Abraham's faith, and that He had seen that Abraham was unwilling to hold anything back from Him.
     Again, it is a fairly familiar story and has great implications as a picture of Christ; however, I think that this account can reveal more about the heart of God than we often see. Look at who commands Abraham to sacrifice his Son. It's God. No surprise there. The person of the Trinity that is also termed God that Father makes this command, but look at verses 11-13, when the voice calls out from Heaven. In verse 12, the voice says that Abraham had not witheld his son from "me," so we see that this is God speaking, but look at the proper noun in verse 11. It says that the angel of the LORD is speaking. A while back, I wrote a post entitled "The Way" looking at something in the Old Testament called a theophany. I would recommend your going back to that post to get a little more detail on this particular truth, but, simply put, the angel of the LORD is the preincarnate Christ. Do you see the symbolism. God the Father demands the sacrifice, and the Son saves the victim, and in verse 13, provides a substitutionary ram. Thousands of years later, God the Father still demands that His holiness and wrath be appeased, but in His love, God sends another Ram to be offered up in the stead of the transgressors, and once again, it is the Son who provides this substitute.

Of Some Have Compassion...

     It's been a little bit since I last posted, but we'll pretty much just pick up where we left off last time.
     We're in the middle of studying Jude 20-25. Like I said in the previous post, this is one of my favorite passages regarding evangelism. In this post, we'll be taking a look at verse 22.
     22 And of some have compassion, making a difference.
At this point, we will be discussing one of the most critical truths in regard to evangelism: compassion. I say it is critical because you cannot do without it and be effective in witnessing. If your motive isn't love for God and compassion for the lost, you're doing it wrong. Why? Because we are to emulate our Lord in everything we do (Eph. 5:1-2). Notice that God didn't send His Son to earth because of theology. Christ didn't go to the cross because He was forced to. He came for the sake of His love toward us and His pity toward our condition (Rom. 5:6-8). Looking at God's love doesn't serve to downplay or deemphasize His holiness and wrath against sin. However, love and compassion are integral parts of God's nature that cannot be ignored.
     So why do we as witnesses show compassion? We touched on the first one briefly. It is simply this: we have and show compassion towards others in imitation of Christ. Several times throughout the gospel accounts, the Bible specifically highlights Christ's compassion toward those with whom He was dealing. A few of these are Mark 1:40, Matt. 9:35-36, and Luke 7:13. We are to show compassion simply because Christ did.
     The second reason we are to show compassion is closely tied to the first. Compassion is to play a major role in our lives once we recognize how Christ viewed the lost. This is seeing people through the eyes of God. In the previous point, we see that Christ had compassion. Now, we go a little deeper and see why Christ had compassion. In Matt. 9, Christ had compassion because the people were scattered and without a shepherd. Is. 53 says that we all like sheep have gone astray. Heb. 2:14-15 says that we were under the power of death. When Christ sees someone who is lost, His wrath is stoked by their sin, but His love is activated by their pitiful condition. This is the way we are to view the unsaved: as lost. This love of Christ is one of the major factors that is to drive our witness (2 Cor. 5:14-15).
     Lastly, we are to have compassion for the lost because we know the whole story. God, in His foreknowledge, has revealed to us the destiny of unbelievers. If they do not accept the gift of eternal life through Christ alone, God will not spare them. Once they die, the time for mercy is over. They have rejected the Son of God who gave Himself as their sacrifice. They have rejected the God who sent His one and only Son. God will call into account every thought, word, and action, and they will pay for every one. Read the account of Christ on the cross. Look at His agony in Gethsemane, His cry of "Why have You forsaken me?" That wasn't because of the nails. That wasn't because of the crown of thorns. It was because of our sin. God placed all our sin, past and present, and poured out every drop of His wrath against Christ. Every curse ever put on sinful man's head was heaped on Christ. And here is where the lost come in. If they reject Christ's sacrifice, they will suffer God's wrath for their own sin because they have not come under the blood of the Lamb. They will spend an eternity in Hell receiving the same justice that was placed on Christ. This is the plight and destiny of the lost. Even a casual perusal of the doctrine of Hell should be more than enough to make our hearts ache for those who do not know Christ. And this compassion should drive us to tell them.
     As a final thought, the last phrase in verse 22 of Jude is "making a difference." Compassion makes a difference. People can disagree with every word you say, but if you demonstrate genuine compassion, they will most likely walk away with a respect for you that God can use to reach them later down the road. Also, if we honestly witness to someone with compassion as our motivation, that is a heart whose service God can bless.

Your Heart Before Your Service

     If you have your Bible, I would encourage you to turn to the book of Jude. Jude is one of the books you would probably turn to if your pastor told you to memorize an entire book of the Bible. Why? The entire book is shorter than many chapters in the Bible. If you are like me, it probably took you about five minutes to figure out where in the world Jude was because it takes up one side of a page in your 1500 page Bible.
     Despite its small size, Jude contains a huge amount of truth; truth that includes one of my favorite passages on evangelism. Look toward the end of the book (it's not far). We will look at verses 20-25.
     20 But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Ghost,
     21 Keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.
     22 And of some have compassion, making a difference:
     23 And others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire; hating even the garment spotted by the flesh.
     24 Now unto Him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of His glory,
     25 To the only wise God our Saviour, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen.
This is a very short passage of Scripture. Most of you are probably thinking you could read through that in the time it takes for you to sneeze. Nevertheless, over the next couple of weeks, we are going to look at this passage and the truths it contains. You'll see that even these six short lines have huge practical application for the witness.
     Right now, we will start with verse 20-21; what it means and how it applies to the witness. There are four main exhortations in these two verses, and all of them lead up to the same point. We see an exhortation to build our up our faith, pray in the Holy Ghost, keep ourselves in the love of God, and look for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ. In application to the witness, this all leads to one conclusion: we are unable to witness effectively in and of ourselves. We must be prepared.
     Let's take a look at each of these individual principles.
     For starters, we are called to build up our faith. Taking the other statements and the rest of the Word into account, we cannot neglect time in the Bible. If we are to be effective witnesses, we must pour time into increasing our knowledge of God, seeking His face, and preparing our hearts to be used of Him. Romans 10:17 says that faith comes from the Word of God. We need to spend time in the Word so that we are able to recognize opportunities as God provides them, and so that we are able to communicate His truth clearly when the time comes.
     Second, we see the need to spend time in prayer in and with the Holy Spirit.. Romans 8:26 inseparably links the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives to our prayer. The Bible is how God speaks to us; prayer is how we communicate back. John 14:13-14 reads,
     13 And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.
     14 If ye shall ask anything in my name, I will do it. (emphasis mine)
These words were spoken by our Lord. He teaches that if we pray for opportunities to glorify the Father, God will honor those prayers. Not only does prayer open doors for evangelism, the two-way communication of reading the Word and prayer is how we stay attuned to the heart of God.
     Thirdly, we are given an exhortation to keep ourselves in the love of God. Where do we see the love of God most. I would submit that we see the greatest display of God's love on the cross. Romans 5:8 says,
     8 But God commendeth His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
I've said it before, and I will say it again. If we are to be effective as believers in all areas of life, not just evangelism, we must constantly look to the cross. It is to be the focal point of our lives. Even in the very deep, "theological" books of the New Testament, the authors constantly return to the cross. It is the beginning, heart, and end of everything we do and are. We must constantly return to the cross and be reminded of the love of God so that we can show that love to others. We will look at that a little more in the next post.
     Lastly, we are to be looking ahead for the coming of our Lord. We are not of this world. Our Lord is not of this world (John 17:14). When this world sets its face against us, our hope is in the return of our Lord. When trials and tribulations come, our hope is in the return of our Lord. We did not trust Christ for the sole purpose of a better life on earth; our hope is in the return of our Lord. (1 Thess. 4:13-18) We live, not in light of this earh, but in light of eternity with our Lord, glorifying His name (2 Cor. 5).
     I know this has been a long post, but I hope that it has been benficial in some way. If nothing else, remember that we cannot expect or even hope to be effective witnesses without being fully attuned to the will and way of the One we serve.

My Banner Will Be Clear

      I ran across something the other day that was both a challenge and an encouragement to me. I hope it does the same for you.
     The following letter was found in the study of a young pastor in Zimbabwe, not long after he was martyred for the cause of Christ.
         

      "I'm part of the fellowship of the unashamed. I have the Holy Spirit's power. The die has been cast. I have stepped over the line, The decision has been made- I am a disciple of His. I won’t look back, let up, slow down, or be still. My past is redeemed, my present makes sense, my future is secure. I’m finished and done with low living, sight walking, smooth knees, colorless dreams, tamed visions, worldly talking, cheap giving, and dwarfed goals.

    I no longer need preeminence, prosperity, position, promotions, plaudits, or popularity. I don’t
    have to be first, tops, recognized, praised, regarded, or rewarded. I now live by faith, lean in His
    presence, walk by patience, am uplifted by prayer, and I labor with power.
         My face is set, my gait fast, my goal is Heaven, my road is narrow, my way rough, my
    companions few, my Guide reliable, my mission clear. I cannot be bought compromised,
    detoured, lured away, turned back, deluded, or decayed. I will not flinch in the face of
    sacrifices, hesitate in the presence of the enemy, pander at the pool of popularity, or
    meander in the maze of mediocrity.
         I won't give up, shut up, let up, until I have stayed up, stored up, prayed up, paid up, preached
    up for the cause of Christ. I am a disciple of Jesus. I must go till He comes, give till I drop, preach
    till all know, and work till He stops me. And when He comes for His own, He will have no
    problem recognizing me...my banner will be clear."

     The passion of this young man effectively puts the apathy of many Christians in our nation to shame. He said that "the die has been cast." He recognized that, when he made the decision to follow Christ, he cast in his lot with the King of Kings. He obviously felt a desire to serve God, but we also see that he felt himself to be under an obligation to serve God.
     Look what this young pastor says at the end. "And when He comes for His own, He will have no problem recognizing me...my banner will be clear." This young man made an on-purpose effort to be clearly identified with Christ. In Hebrews 11, we find what is known by many as the Hall of Faith. In verse 13, we read,
     "13 These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.
     14 For they that say such things declare plainly that they seek a country. (italics mine)"
These heroes of the faith did not keep their faith hidden. They didn't "hide their candle under a bushel." They were not afraid to be identified with the One they served. Verse 13 says that they confessed the fact that they were not of this world. Verse 14 says that they declared plainly their pilgrimage to the place to which God was calling them.
     I hope and pray that my standard, my affiliation, will be as clear.

Never Cease

     I just thought I would write a quick post and share something with you. Today is an awesome day for me, because it was exactly two years ago that I came to Christ. I was sitting in my Explorer at 0100 in the parking lot of a hotel the day before we were about to move to this base, and I committed my life to my Lord.
     As I was thinking about this, I realized how powerful it truly was to look back on my salvation. I felt almost re-energized as I replayed my conversion experience, what Christ saved me from, and everything God did over the course of my life to bring me to Him.
     That said, I have found that we never outgrow the gospel. We should never cease to be amazed by it. I was listening to a sermon last night about what it took to purchase our salvation, and I was thoroughly blown away. It doesn't get old! The only reason God could show me mercy was because He showed Christ none. And His only Son! Think about that. One Christ suffered for a few hours on the cross to purchase redemption for all of mankind; past, present, and future. How could this be? Simply because He is worth more than all of us put together. Yet God saw fit to make "Him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him." Tell me that's not incredible.
     Think back to when you were saved. Think about where you would be had Christ not gave Himself for you. And never cease to be amazed.

His Job...Not Ours

    I just wanted take a moment a quickly share something that happened to me the other day. I was meeting up with some people and two of my friends showed up with a guy I had never me before. One of my friends was debating with him creation vs. evolution, and we all kind of got in on it. It got to the point where he wasn't really able to answer questions about how life could begin without design, foundations for morals, and things like that, but he would not budge from his position. For starters please pray for this young man.     As a side note, I was reminded something that is easy to forget. There are many different organizations mobilized to help equip believers to defend their faith scientifically, logically, philosophically, etc. These organizations are great and are doing a great work, but at the end of the day, we cannot win someone to Christ by our arguments alone. Without the conviction of the Holy Spirit, no amount of scientific evidence will win someone to Christ. Many scriptures indivisibly link the Holy Spirit to the process of salvation. A few of these are 1 Cor. 6:11; John 3:5; Tit. 3:5; and John 16:7-8. The conviction of the Holy Spirit brings the "godly sorrow [that] worketh repentance" (2 Cor. 7:10). I just thought I would share that with you.

No Heart too Hard

     If you have a Bible, I would definitely recommend grabbing it for this post. I will be running through a lot of Scripture passages, so having a Bible close by will make some of this a little easier to follow and provide good context.
     We'll start off in Isaiah 53. For those who haven't done much reading in Isaiah, this chapter deals heavily with prophecies concerning the death of Christ. Let me draw your attention to verse 9. The first phrase, speaking of Jesus Christ, is "And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in His death..." Later, in verse 11, it foretells that Christ would be "numbered with the transgressors..." There are two prophecies about the Messiah in these verses; today we will look at the first. Its fulfillment is mentioned in all four Gospel books. Matthew 27:38 reads, "then were there two thieves crucified with [Jesus], one on the right hand, and another on the left." (Mark 15:27, Luke 23:32-33, John 19:18) These passages are prophecy fulfilled. Christ died in the presence of two thieves; He died with the wicked, just as Isaiah foretold.
     Now at this point it is tempting to just move on to the next point. "Okay, He was crucified with two thieves; prophecy fulfilled. Check. Moving on." But this is where we will park for the time being. At first glance, these two criminals are of no incredible consequence; they are just the consummation of another foretelling. Placed there to pay for their crimes and stand as yet another proof that the Scriptures can be trusted, and that Christ really was the Messiah. But God had other ideas.
     These thieves were not just fulfillments of another prophecy. They were human. They had wearily trudged up the same road as Christ, had borne an identical cross, and were bleeding from similar wounds. The only difference between their situation and Christ's is their guilt and His innocence.
     Whenever these two are mentioned, they are labeled as thieves or malefactors. These guys are the ones your parents told you to watch out for. They hung around the bad side of town, robbed innocent people, and were probably involved in a murder or two. But their crimes had caught up with them, the judge's gavel fell, and they were paying for their actions, crucified on the same hill as Christ.
     Despite their own pain and humiliation, their evil nature was alive and well. Mark 15 records the derision of the bystanders, priests, and Pharisees (vv. 29-32). This passage ends with the phrase "And they that were crucified with him reviled him." Matthew says, "The thieves also, which were crucified with him, cast the same in his teeth." (27:44) They took their pain and anger out on Christ. Unable to strike at their tormentors they heaped verbal abuse and sarcastic derision on Jesus. At this point, the two thieves fade out of the accounts given by Matthew, Mark, and John.
     But the book of Luke, written by a meticulous physician by that name, reveals a later episode with the criminals. They have faded out of the other accounts, but these men have one more role to play in the drama of the day (Luke 23:39-43). One of the thieves lets loose another shot at Christ, daring Him to save Himself if He were who He claimed to be. Then, from out of nowhere, the other criminal rebukes the other! We cannot know what caused the change. It may have been Christ's cry of  "Father forgive them!" He may have remembered the miracles Jesus had performed. Maybe he had heard the teachings. Whatever his reasons, this condemned thug suddenly came face to face with the reality of his own guilt. The next few verses show a man who had seen himself for who he was and Christ for who He was.
     Speaking to the other malefactor, he says "Dost thou not fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation? And we indeed justly; for we receive the due reward of our deeds:..." He recognizes that he has earned every stitch of his punishment. He has done everything to deserve it. He realizes that, before God and before men, he has nothing to hide behind. His sin and his shame had been laid bare.
     Look at his next words beginning in the latter part of verse 41; "'...but this man hath done nothing amiss.' And he said to Jesus, 'Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.'" This man not only realized his own sinfulness; he also recognized Christ's innocence and perfection.
     He also recognized exactly who Christ was. Look at how he addresses Jesus. He says "Lord". This word in the original Greek is not just a recognition of superiority; it is a word used in reference to God Himself. This man, humbled by his own guilt, recognized what the scribes and Pharisees in their religious pride had missed. This thief knew full well that the One hanging on the cross beside him was the perfect, sinless Son of God.
     This man has come to grips with his guilt. His pain-wracked body constantly reminds him that death is only hours away. He will soon stand before God and give an account. He knows he has no reason to deserve, expect, or even hope for grace, but he still makes the earnest plea, "Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom." He had reached rock bottom...the only place he could look was up.
     Maybe that's you. I have no idea who will find their way to this post. I have no way of knowing where you are in life. Maybe you are at the point where you have come to grips with your sin. You have heard the truth; Christ died to forgive you of your sins and impute His righteousness to your account. Yet you believe God can't forgive you and, what's more, even if He could, why would He want to? I was there once. Face to face with the fact that my "Christianity" was only an act, I truly believed that I had forfeited my right to salvation.
     If that's you, listen to the answer Christ gives in verse 43. "Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise." Instant forgiveness. Eternal security. Grace. This thief was hours from death; he would not go to Bible college and become a pastor. He would not travel the world sharing the gospel. He had nothing to offer Christ in return for grace. He likely died within the day. All he had was an earnest plea.
     It was at this point in my struggle with my own sin, that I read the verse Romans 5:8, which states that "God commended his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." (emphasis mine) Christ did not die for us because we deserved it or had somehow earned a favor from Him. He died for us because of our inability to save ourselves. I accepted this verse as truth and accepted Christ as Savior on September 12, 2010. What God did in the day of the crucified thief, He still does today. What God did for me, He can and will do for you.
     The application of this account does not only reach to those in need of Christ; it also holds a powerful lesson for the believer. There is no man on earth too far gone or too sinful for God to save. God's grace can crack the hardest heart and build bridges over the deepest chasms of guilt and shame. However, from our limited, finite point of view, it is tempting to pass over certain people in our witnessing for exactly those reasons: they are too sinful to be saved, why would God want anything to do with that person, or those people are just not worth the time and effort. The question I want to pose to you is: where would we be if Christ had said the same about us?
      
    

Lives For Whom He Died

     It has been some time since I have had a chance to post; I have been on vacation with limited Internet access for the last month or so.
     We were in the middle of discussing some of the main reasons we as Christians should feel an obligation to witness. Recapping, the first two facts that should compel our evangelism were as follows: 1) God Himself has commanded us to do so, and 2) we will give an account for our fervency in this area. Today, I want to share the third point in this series. It differs slightly from the previous two in that, while the former posts dealt mainly with our obedience and accountability before God, this post deals with our relationship and obligation towards the lost. Today we will deal with a sobering reality; people are dying and going to Hell.
     Allow me to share some statistics with you. In the time it took you to read the introductory paragraphs of this post, approximately 60 people died and went to Hell. Each time you breathe, on average, ten people die and go to Hell. In the time it takes for you to watch your favorite TV show, 3600 people die and go to Hell. Every night as you sleep, 72,000. Each year, 76,500,000.
     These numbers are estimates made to represent a point, not necessarily exact amounts. These approximate figures are based on conservative estimates of the world's population, average life span, and an approximation of how many people truly know Christ as their Savior. If you do the math, it works out to be about 2 people every second that die and are forever condemned to a Godless eternity. Using this number to calculate a final staggering statistic, if you live to be seventy years of age, over the course of your life, 4,415,040,000 people will have died and gone to Hell. That is slightly under two-thirds of the world's population.
     There is no way to know exactly how many people are unsaved at death. Not only would the exact number of deaths be a nearly impossible statistic to pinpoint, but, also, only God knows the hearts of men. However, my point is simply this: people, regardless of how many, are dying and going to Hell. Eternal souls for whom Christ bled and died are blindly running full bore into the lake of fire.
     Hell itself is a difficult subject for us to dwell on. The Bible paints very dark pictures when referring to this place of judgment. It is described as a place of torment (Luke 16), containing unquenchable fire (Mark 9), where the worm dieth not (Mark 9). It is called a lake of fire and brimstone (Revelation 20); and it is a place of eternal, perpetual suffering (Rev. 20).
     Such horrors we would not wish on even our worst enemies. This is a place in which God reserves the devil and his angels for judgment (2 Peter 2:4, Jude 6). He is unwilling that any should perish (2 Peter 3:9), however, He makes clear that those who reject Him will suffer the consequences of their decision (Luke 16). This is why Christ came; to, by His death, void the consequences of our rebellion against God by taking the punishment and outpouring of God's wrath against sin on Himself. This is the message with which we have been entrusted. If people do not turn to Christ, Hell is the eternity that awaits them. And we are the only means by which people will hear. Romans 10:13-14 says:
     13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.
     14 How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? (emphasis mine and pronouns referring to Christ capitalized)
     This passage and others make it clear that people can only be saved by grace through faith in Christ alone, and the only way they will hear the truth is by the faithful witness of those who have accepted the truth. God could very well have sent angels to proclaim the gospel, but He didn't. He could have again sent His Son to proclaim the truth, but He didn't. For some reason that we may never truly understand, He has chosen us. The washed, justified, and sanctified sinners (1 Cor. 6: 9-10). The redeemed (Psalm 107:2). God has chosen to make Christians the instruments by which He makes Himself known to a lost and dying world.
     The vast majority of the people around us do not know Christ. We do not have the luxury of watching from the sidelines. God Himself has given you the message, as well as His authority to deliver it (Matthew 28: 18-20). The question is...will you?    
    

God's Plans Above Our Own

     I wanted to write a quick post just to tell a story of something that God did last night. Among some of the guys that I hang out with where I live, there's a guy that God had really been laying on my heart for the past few weeks. For sake of this discussion, we'll call him Joe (creativity never really was my strong suit). During those few weeks, I had been trying to get in touch with him while praying that God would give me a good opportunity to witness. Last night, a bunch of us guys met at the bowling alley and this young man was there. I was sitting at a table with him, looking for a chance to talk to him, but there were two other guys at the table, and it just wasn't the right time. We were talking, and at some point in the conversation, Joe got up and said he was going to go grab his stuff that he had left at another table. I grabbed my Bible and followed him. I asked him if he knew what would happen to him if he died that night. He said he would probably go to Heaven because he had led a good life. I asked him if he were wrong, would he want to know and he said yes. So we sat down at a table and I opened my Bible.
     At this point, God showed that his plans were different than mine. One of the other guys whom we will call Mike came over and sat down with us. I had just met Mike a few minutes before; I had no idea what to do. The only thing going through my mind at the time was that it was the worst thing that could have happened. Not sure what to do and not wanting to miss the opportunity to witness to Joe, I asked Mike the same question. Then God revealed His plan. Mike said he would probably go to Hell. I asked him if that bothered him and he said "Yeah, it really does." I had the opportunity to witness to both Joe and Mike. They both acknowledged their sin and expressed a desire to be saved.
     I don't know if either of these young men truly got saved. The Bible says in Romans 10:9 "that if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt beleive in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved." Neither Mike nor Joe prayed at that moment; they said they would rather do it later at home. But I do know that God's Word does not return void, they both came to grips with their sin, and they both professed a belief that the gospel is true. I can only hope and pray that they truly gave their lives to Christ at that moment or at a later one.
     I learned something very important last night. God's plans are not mine, and His are far better. In my planning to witness to Joe, Mike did not enter the equation at any point. When Mike joined, I thought it was over. Joe would not listen with another guy there and it would just be an awkward exchange. But, contrary to my plans, Mike heard the truth and, at least on the surface, even seemed to take it to heart more than Joe did. Especially in this area of evangelism, God has plans that far exceed our own. Around the corner may be another soul that you had no intention of reaching, yet God is still seeking and saving those who are lost in ways we probably would never have imagined.

The Way

     For the past couple posts, we have been looking at why we as Christians have an obligation to witness, but I want to divert for a moment and share something that I came across in my Bible study a couple of days ago.
     I have just recently begun the process of studying through the book of Hebrews. Chapter 1 verse 3 says, speaking of Christ,
     "3 Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the majesty on high;"
     I was studying out that first phrase "who being the brightness of his glory...", and I was reminded of the familiar account in Exodus 33 when Moses asks to see God's glory. The account covers a pretty hefty chunk of verses, so I would encourage you to take a couple minutes and read Exodus 33:7-23. In verse 18, Moses makes the now-famous request, "Shew me thy glory." In verses 21-23, God assents to Moses' request with certain limitations (i.e. Moses was only allowed to see God's back). However, this account comes into conflict with John 1:18, in which the apostle states
     "18 No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him."
     If we truly believe that the Bible is inerrant, then reconciliation between the Exodus 33 account and John 1:18 must exist. It is believed that Moses saw was not God the Father, but was actually the incarnate Christ. The fifty cent theological word for such an appearance is a "theophany". Charles Ryrie defines "theophany" as a "self-manifestation of God." There are several other such occurences throughout the Old Testament (Genesis 16:7-13; 18:1-33; Judges 6:11-23; 13:3-21)
     However, as I reading this passage in Exodus, I came across something that I never seen before. Earlier in the passage, before Moses' request to see God's glory, he actually makes another request. Before he said, "Shew me thy glory", Moses said in verse 13, "If I have found grace in thy sight, shew me now thy way, that I may know thee..." In the next few verses, God says that He will grant Moses' request. Then Moses asks to see God's glory, and God describes the manner in which the request will be granted.
     It is very possible that I am the only one who had never noticed this before, but look at Moses' original request and God's answer. Moses says "Shew me now thy way," and God reveals Christ.
     Remember the famous dialogue between Christ and His disciple, Thomas, in John 14?
     "1 Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me.
       2 In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.
       3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also
       4 And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know.
At this point Thomas interjects and asks the famous question.
       5 Thomas saith unto him, Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way?
As Christ hears the sincere question of His disciple, I can just imagine a smile play across Christ's lips as He remembers another follower, thousands of years before, who also wished for God to show the way. As He turns and looks at Thomas with the eyes that Moses was forbidden to see, fully revealed and in the middle of enacting God's plan of salvation, Christ says, "Thomas, I am the way, the truth and the life; no man cometh unto the Father but by me." Christ was the answer in Moses' time, He was the answer in Thomas time, and He is still the answer today. From the time of man's fall to the Millenial kingdom, Christ is the Way.

We Will Give an Account

     We are in the process of looking at why we as believers have an obligation to witness. The first point we discussed was the fact that it is a command given by God. If we truly are believers we should have a passion and a compassion for the lost, drawn from Matthew 9 and 28 as well as 1 John 2.
     Continuing along this line of thought, I want to bring the second point. Today we'll be spending some time in the Old Testament. If you have a Bible, turn to Ezekiel 3. Just for a little context, at this point, Ezekiel is being commissioned by God as a prophet to deliver a message of warning to the people of Israel and Judah. This passage is part of God's commission. We'll start in verse 16.
     "16 And it came to pass at the end of seven days, that the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,
       17 Son of man, I have made thee a watchman unto the house of Israel: there for hear the word at my mouth, and give them warning from me.
       18 When I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt surely die; and thou givest him not warning, nor speakest to warn the wicked from his wicked way, to save his life; the same wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand.
       19 Yet if thou warn the wicked, and he turn not fro his wickedness, nor from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity; but thou has delivered thy soul."
     This portion of Ezekiel is potentially one of the most sobering and convicting passages in all Scripture. The point I wish to bring out of this passage, as well as some others we will look through over the course of this post, is the fact that every believer will give an account for their stewardship of God's message of grace before God Himself.
     God's first words to Ezekiel in this passage read "Son of man, I have made thee a watchman..." This illustration is not as relevant in today's world of security cameras and radars, but in Ezekiel's time, a watchman was a crucial piece of a city's defenses. Positioned in a tower or on a high portion of the wall, the watchman was given the opportunity and responsibility of seeing farther than the citizens of the town. If a storm or an enemy army was seen approaching the city, the watchman would shout a warning and the people could make whatever preparations necessary to ensure their safety, as well as that of their families and possessions.
     What if the watchman was not alert? Those people were his responsibility. If the city was taken by surprise, the chances are pretty good that the watchman was at fault. Worse, what if he didn't care about the city's safety? What it he saw the approaching destruction and willfully chose not to warn the people? Such action (or lack of) would border on treason!
     I realize that this passage and the illustration fo the watchman do not directly refer to Christians' sharing the gospel with unbelievers. Ezekiel's message was to God's people, the inhabitants of Israel and Judah. However, there are transcendant principles pertinent to our discussion here. I will deal with three such principles here.
     First, like the ancient watchman, we have been given the ability to "see" farther than the vast majority of the people around us. Our extra "sight" comes from reading the Bible. God has given us His Word; in it is written the end of the story for unbelievers. Even a casual perusal of passages like Matthew 25 and Revelation 20 should fill us with trepidation at the destiny of those who reject Christ Jesus as Lord.
     Second, we have the responsibility to sound the warning. If we honestly believe the Bible to be true, then we cannot ignore the fact that the majority of the world's population will stand before God and pay the penalty for their own sin instead of coming under the covering of Christ. Just like it would be unthinkable for the watchman to remain silent if he saw an enemy army approach his city, how much more unthinkable is it for believers to remain silent when we see the approach of a Godless eternity for the unsaved?!
     Lastly, we will give an account for our stewardship of the message of God's grace. In 2 Corinthians 5, Paul describes the reckoning every believer will have with his Lord. Verses 10-11 say,
     "10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.
        11 Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men: but we are made manifest unto God: and I trust also are made manifest unto God; and I trust also are made manifest in your conscience." 
     "Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord..." We will stand before God and He will thoroughly review our lives; whether or not we used our time, talents, and opportunities to accomplish His will for our lives. A large part of this is our evangelism. Notice the phrase, "we persuade men". Paul "persuaded men" because he knew the "terror of the Lord". God will hold each and every believer responsible for every opportunity we miss to speak the gospel to those around us.
     Don't misunderstand; every person must make his or her own decision to accept or reject Christ. They will stand before God and be judged for their own life, however, God will hold us accountable for those opportunities of which we did not take advantage. We can not afford to take this responsibility lightly.