Sermon 2: The Fog
I have shared about being in the fog and the dangers of fog but we have compared natural fog to the eerie dense spiritual fog that has invaded the landscape of western culture and even churches in the last 50 years.
Thesis: The eerie spiritual fog has rolled in over the Western church and Christian culture, it has descended on us because, “There is no fear of God before people’s eyes today.” This created the right atmosphere for fog to roll in and engulf our nation.”
Main Scriptures: Romans 3:18, and Psalms 36:1
Power Points 13-15
Romans 3:18: “There is no fear of God before their eyes.”
Psalm 36:1: “An oracle is within my heart concerning the sinfulness of the wicked: There is no fear of God before his eyes.”
Scripture Texts:
Romans 1-3 and Psalm 32-34
Summary of Romans 1-3: I read this at IHOP in Kansas City.
Paul makes the case in Romans 1-3 that God will judge and condemn sinful humanity and all who practice sin – some of the sins are highlighted – sexual impurity – homosexuality, LGBT sins are addressed here, idol worshippers, refusing to believe and obey God’s truth, people thinking they are wiser than God but yet they were actually fools (prideful/arrogant toward God), a refusal to retain the knowledge of God, greedy, envious, murderers (abortion), filled with strife, deceit, God haters, prideful, disobedient to parents, no love and no mercy for others, and even people who approve of other people’s sins as if it’s okay. Paul notes God’s kindness is to lead you to repentance not into more sin. Their unrepentant hearts are storing up God’s wrath on them for when the day of judgment come, He also addresses religious traditions – the misrepresentation of God’s law and salvation by works, which is not rooted in God. Paul concludes no one is righteous for all have sinned and fall short. Therefore, they need God! But Paul makes it clear the big problem is there is no fear of God. He pushes faith as the key for salvation not religious works. But we do need to repent and seek to live a holy life with the help of God.
Summary of Psalms 32-34: I was reading this at our bed and breakfast in Tn.
Blessed is the one who is forgiven by God when they repent of their sins. God’s word will direct and keep you from sin and bring blessing in your life. The Lord is to be feared and revered throughout the earth. Be aware His eyes are on those who fear him and revere Him. When you seek God with a pure heart he will answer, and he will deliver you from the fear of the world. David reminds his readers that The Angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him, and he will deliver them from evil. David continues saying “Fear the Lord” you his holy people because those who fear God will lack nothing from Him. He also says come and let me teach you the truth of the goodness of the fear of the Lord.
Proverbs 9:10: “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.”
Proverbs 10:27: “The fear of the LORD adds length to life, but the years of the wicked are cut short.”
Hebrews 12:28-29: “Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our “God is a consuming fire.”
Reference the Maui fires! The church which did not burn from the wildfires modern day miracle? – fox report!
Introduction:
We have seen and now heard about the danger of fog. But I want to talk about the other spiritual fog that the Holy Spirit opened my eyes to on sabbatical.
The eerie spiritual fog of spiritual fogginess has descended on America today and seeped its way into many families, many churches, and many communities. This fog has been creeping into our society and many of our churches for about 40 years. I have seen it hinder perspectives, block out the truth of God’s Word, hinder the ability to see clearly, it has distorted people’s vision spiritually and has engulfed our society in an eerie evil and twisted way. Many people are engulfed in this dense fog of evil and they have no idea of the dangers around them. They speed along doing life with no clue that they are headed for a horrendous deadly crash.
John Bevere stated in his book “The Awe of God” this fact of what has happened to the Christian Church in America over the last 20 years. John quotes a George Barna survey which came out in 2021: “The Barna Group reported that more than forty million Americans departed from the faith from the years 2000 to 2020! Half now profess to be non-Christians-atheists and agnostics.”
We see the result of this falling away which is caused by the eerie spiritual fog which has descended on this nation spiritually.
John Bevere wonders if this is what was predicted in the Bible as the great falling away, he writes, “Paul writes that the antichrist cannot be revealed until “the apostasy comes first (this is the predicted great falling away of those who professed to be Christians has occurred)” 2 Thessalonians 2:3. John has wondered if this falling away has occurred because the message of truth – the Word of God has been twisted and dumbed down – I think of the book “The Bible for dummies” – We have heard things preached all over the western world that say, “Out salvation is worked out with love and kindness, rather than as Scriptures says with fear and trembling” We have eliminated from many pulpits “eternal judgment” having a “holy healthy fear of God.”
Jonathan Cahn in his book “Return of the Gods” has also addressed this deceptive spiritual fog which has come over the western church – its origin is demonic – he even looks at Old Testament examples of specific demonic spirits and aspects of idol worship from Israels past sins and falling away as an example. Cahn says these same demonic spirits have been unleased on the western church and society. Blinding people to truth – to common sense – to biological science – to what is natural – to God – to the truth of Jesus.
One editor reviewed the book this way, “Summed up in a sentence, this book describes how the United States, is kicking God out of the schools and public life since the 1960s, and they have replaced the one True God with three ancient deities (Baal, Ishtar, and Molech), each of whom has wreaked havoc upon our culture and morality.” (Just like it did Israel) … It’s a book meant to open our eyes to the “principalities, powers, and spiritual wickedness in heavenly places.” (Eph. 6:10-13)
see https://thelittlemanreviews.wordpress.com/2022/10/07/book-review-the-return-of-the-gods-by-jonathan-cahn-2022/
Then I read the book “Irresistible” by Andy Stanley who in the middle of his book tells us Christians we need to unhitch our faith from the OT. No, he seriously said it in the book and in other sermons – I love to read and I have read some of Stanley’s other books -great reads – but I cannot agree that Christians need to unhitch their faith from the OT – It’s God’s Word – Jesus quoted from it! History teaches us valuable lessons to learn spiritually, and Stanley is saying using these lessons is dangerous to our faith - we should only be in the New Testament. I am like what happened to you Stanley. Then it dawned on me the fog is spreading to churches and pastors too – do you see it? I then thought about Andy, “I learned from your dad! I grew spiritually from his ministry! I have read his books; I have listened to him on the radio for years. Andy’s dad Charles Stanley would not approve of this statement. I thought to myself “What is going on – Lord?” – then I saw the fog again – no not the literal fog – the spiritual fog of deception over our society and churches. Over some clergy, pastors, and politicians!
Then I reflected back to Jonathan Cahn’s book “Return of the Gods” He wrote this book – inspired by the Lord – it was written by him because he is a messianic rabbi - it is a prophetic book to clarify what’s happening in America today and how we need to open our eyes – we wrestle not against flesh and blood but principalities and powers – we need to learn from the failures of Israel – we need to see through the fog of deception with the help of the Holy Spirit! The warning: I want to shout to Christians and Un-Christians: “Stop” “Slow down” “Wake up” “The hurry up sickness will kill you!” “Look and see you are about to have a fatal crash!” – “Warning the evil fog is blinding you to the danger ahead!” “Danger – Danger - the fog is hindering your vision and perception!” “They are after your children to confuse them and twist their minds to their God given identities.” I wish I could say it in a way that caused a spiritual urgency and people really slowed down, opened their spiritual eyes, opened their Bibles, connected with Jesus, and saw through the fog- why? Because this fog is really the enemy of your soul, your spirit, and your body! It’s out to destroy the Biblical family. So please stop, become aware of the danger of the eerie fog, and go to the higher ground to get out of the fog!” So that you can see clearly! Rise up – get out of the valleys – climb out of the lowlands! Ascend to the top so you see the Son shining!
Question – Do you see the fog? Do you see how it obscures your spiritual vision? Are you aware of it hindering your view of the Bible and truth? Have you noticed how the fog has washed out Jesus from your life? Do you see how the toxic fog is rewriting truth? Biological truth, scientific truth, social truth, the truth about addictions? Do you see how -evil is called good and good is called evil?
Illustration from “The Duties Of A Watchman”By Michael Erickson on sermoncentral.com:
On March 23, 1983, Ronald Reagan gave a speech in which he outlined a national plan of defense that became known as “Star Wars”. In the speech, he said, “What if free people could live secure in the knowledge that we could intercept and destroy any strategic ballistic missiles before they reached our own soil?” The plan was that instead of retaliation, any incoming missiles would be detected and shot down before they could cause damage. President Clinton tried to sell the National Missile Defense System to fend off missiles from Rogue states.OUR NATIONAL SECURITY DEPENDS ON OUR ALERTNESS. At this moment, every satellite, airplane and other objects of flight are being tracked before they ever enter our airspace. Teams stand at the ready to launch defensive maneuvers and counterattacks. But what if after all the money and time have been spent in developing these systems, those responsible for watching out for our welfare for some reason decided not to pay attention? What if they decided not to alert the president or military of impending attacks? All the systems were working correctly, radars tracking, satellites sending correct information, computers functioning properly, lights flashing and warning sirens going off but those responsible for passing along the warnings were too afraid of causing panic, or were sleeping because they stayed up too late, or were engrossed in some recreational activity with others and didn’t want to tend to their duties, too busy on the phone or just simply didn’t take it seriously? What would happen to all those under their watch, those they were to protect? How does the old saying go? An ounce of protection is worth a pound of cure? As watchmen on the wall, we are there to serve as an alert system, a protection the deals with a problem rather than to retaliate against it. But we have to be watching diligently for it. We cannot allow the enemy to distract us from our duties. We can get so busy doing stuff that we miss on the primary things God wants us to do. And our focus is diverted and we miss the advancing enemy.
I. G Not only are we so often diverted, but we are complacent and lethargic when it comes to the things of God. Deception always leads to and is connected to the Darkside with a connection to the 3 D’s of death.
a. Deception - is what the Devil has been using from the beginning of time as a strategy to separate God’s children from Him. Satan in his rebellion against God uses this tactic to break up the family of God. His process of recruiting humans (God’s children) to participate with him in the deception and rebellion has not changed in centuries. We saw this scenario with Adam and Eve in Genesis 3. He always uses deception to get people to question God’s Word!
i. Deception blinds people to the truth of God.
1. It always will – deception when embraced robs people of the blessings of God and a relationship with God.
2. Let’s recall the definition of deception - the act of causing someone to accept as true or valid what is false or invalid: the act of deceiving. resorting to falsehood and deception. Example: He used deception to leak classified information. b: the fact or condition of being deceived (Webster Dictionary)
ii. In the Bible, there are many stories of deception. The Lord placed them in the Bible to make us aware of the fog of deception and the destructive power of deception to a life and a person’s spiritual destiny.
1. One of the most famous stories is that of Adam and Eve.
a. Jacob deceives his father into giving him Esau’s birthright (Genesis 27).
i. The mother helped with this – by the way deception never leads to God’s blessings for a family!
b. Potiphar’s wife falsely accuses Joseph- In Genesis 39, Potiphar’s wife tries to seduce Joseph, but he refuses her advances. She then falsely accuses him of attempted rape, and he is sent to prison as a result.
i. The strategy to destroy Joseph a child of God – lies and deception.
c. In the Old Testament and New Testament, Satan is called the Father of Lies, deceiving religious people of the ancient world and in the New Testament thru false prophets, false teachers, false apostles, the Devil even come disguised as an angel of light.
iii. I read an article called: Spiritual Warfare & Satan, The Master of Deception
1. It stated, “Webster defines a strategy as “a careful plan or method: a clever stratagem.” Strategies in general can be applied to every area of our lives. Strategies invoke plans, goals and achieving ultimate purposes. A stratagem goes a step further in definition and means “an artifice or trick in war for deceiving and outwitting the enemy, a cleverly contrived trick or scheme for gaining an end.” Satan is the master of deception, tricks and schemes and he will do anything he can to win the battle. Satan waged war against the Lord the moment he was cast out of heaven. We entered that war the moment Adam and Eve succumbed to his temptation to eat from the Tree of Knowledge. Genesis 3:1 says, “Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made.” The Bible is clear in its description of Satan from Genesis to Revelation, and we have no excuse for our ignorance of his strategies. We must shine the light of truth into the darkness of Satan’s lies and deceptions. The Word of God is our light of truth, and we are the soldiers who must know it and live it out everyday.”
a. (from https://www.biblestudytools.com/bible-study/topical-studies/spiritual-warfare-lesson-2-the-strategies-of-satan-11580094.html).
iv. The Deceiver Satan seeks to get people fixated on their problems, their lives and in the process, he gets their eyes off of God’s truth, God’s mission and God’s presence in their life.
1. They even ignore the truth of what is revealed in Nature all around them – which is placed there by God – they refute biological evidence as truth – look at cities supplying drug addicts with needles and stuff – Proverbs call these kind of people fools – Paul addresses the truth of God thru nature in Romans too. But people are deceived by the fog.
2. Satan said to Eve and Adam, “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” (Genesis 3:1-5)
a. Interesting his choice of deceptive words – you will know good and evil – why because when you listen to lies you discover the power and deception of evil.
3. Craig states, “In 2 Corinthians 11:3, our thought ology professor Paul said, “I am afraid that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent’s cunning, your minds may somehow be led astray from your sincere and pure devotion to Christ.”
v. Satan schemes to twist your mind, because if he can, he then does the following according to Craig Groeschel.
1. Diverts you from your purpose.
a. The Devil is always out to steal people’s identity away!
i. This is what is happening in the secular educational world today.
1. He is stealing kids identities away!
ii. This is what is happening in the political world today.
iii. This is what is happening through mainstream media today.
1. They are engulfed and saturated by the evil fog of deception and lies.
b. The Devil does not want you to know who you are in Christ.
c. He wants you separated from your Father and isolated so he can manipulate you to promote evil and cause more destruction.
2. Distracts you from God’s voice.
a. The Devil is always trying to get you to doubt God’s voice – deny God’s voice – he is there to distort God’s voice to you.
b. He is also out to deafen you to God’s voice as well.
c. He is out there trying to get you to dismiss God’s voice!
3. Destroys your potential.
a. When you take God out of a person’s life you remove all their God given potential to change and transform this world.
b. The Devils knows this so he works hard to breakup your relations with the Lord and break from the family.
c. If he can’t get you to believe a lie, your life will be affected as if that lie was true. (Groeschel, Winning the War in Your Mind, page 44).
i. Romans 12:2 CEV: “Don’t be like the people of this world, but let God change the way you think. Then you will know how to do everything that is good and pleasing to him.”
ii. Colossians 2:8 CEV: “Don’t let anyone fool you by using senseless arguments. These arguments may sound wise, but they are only human teachings. They come from the powers of this world and not from Christ.”
b. The eerie spiritual fog of spiritual fogginess has descended on America today and seeped its way into many families, many churches, and many communities. It has taken root in politics, government, education, media and the list go on.
i. Open your spiritual eyes! Have you seen it?
1. Many people are being engulfed in this dense fog and they have no idea of the dangers all around them. They speed along doing life with no clue that they are headed for a horrendous crash.
ii. I wish I could say it in a way that caused a spiritual urgency for people and people really slowed down opened their eyes and their Bibles.
1. Because the fog is really the enemy of your soul, spirit and body! So please stop, become aware of the danger of the fog and go to the higher ground to get out of the fog!”
iii. So, I have preached about the fog – I have never called it “The Fog” – but I talked about it – discussed it with others – went to seminars on it.
1. But it seems that “The Fog” is not being burned off by the Son any more. To me it seems to have rolled in and its staying put engulfing people in it. I look around and the valleys are filled with this thick fog! We all know fog hovers in the Valleys and in the low places. Christian and non-Christian alike are trapped in it and speeding around hurriedly heading for a disaster.
a. So, I have said it, I have written about it, even preached about it and yes I have been in the fog too – but I am amazed how many people like the spiritual fogginess. They like being surprised by what’s around the corner as they plow into it. They like tripping over things and banging their heads into lamp posts and even others. Some have even lost their lives in the fog but still people speed through the fog!
iv. The sinister fog does not really look like real fog – case in point– but it does look like this:
1. Distorted and deceit filled news is eroding the value system of America each day and night.
2. Many Tv shows and movies are releasing the fog of a sin filled agenda, trapping people into the fog of sexual immorality, lust, deception about God, stealing God given identities and even promoting pride and selfishness.
3. Some Cartoons are releasing the fog on the younger generation to get them confused about who they are or who they were created by God to be. These so called, harmless cartoons are challenging attacking biblical mindsets and even challenging their identity. This dark fog is lurking – engulfing – distorting – clamping on to young hearts and minds with the purpose of distorting their view of life and of themselves.
a. Disney is involved in this so are many other media companies!
4. Many Newspapers have joined the band wagon of changing the American Biblical value system, luring people away from their Christian values, actually shaming them against their Biblical value system.
a. I recommend Epoch times Newspaper.
5. Books are being written and published seeking to dismantle Christian and Biblical values today.
6. Movie and TV stars are on a mission to undermine Biblical values front what I see – they are on the attack to distort Christians and a Biblical mindset and a Biblical worldview.
7. Public education has joined the band wagon of releasing the fog on the students they are in trusted with. The “Anything goes cloud.” has replaced science and biology with doubt and fog. The so called, educators release thoughts of there are no absolutes in life! They proclaim that a kid’s foggy imagination tells them what is right and wrong. It’s up to you to decide!
a. We spend less time teaching the core of education and seek to twist their mindsets to sinful ways.
8. Businesses are consumed with the fogginess of greed and making money, forcing their employees to work holidays and Sundays. Forcing them to choose between family and work. It’s all about showing me the money cloud! It’s not about one of the Big Ten – the 10 Commandments of honoring the Lord’s Day!
9. Some parents are even advocating their parenting to the state and the state in some cases believes the parents have no rights over their children. The fog continues to drift into families’ lives and causing blindness to its destruction.
10. Materialism is at an all-time high and this supposedly determines if you are successful or not in life. Many Christian people worship the rich and famous and look down on those who sacrifice their finances for the good of others.
11. Video games are filled with graphic violence and profanity and the fog roles on pouring into more and more young mindsets.
12. We see the American work ethic changing in some areas were people no longer feel they must work. The fog of entitlement has overtaken some people’s minds and hearts. They really believe others should pay their way. Others should pay their bills because it’s their entitlement to live here in America.
13. The spiritual dark fog of deception and the attack on Biblical Values and a Biblical worldview are raging forward and the church people don’t stop it, they get on board with it! I have had people tell me I need to become more culturally relevant – I say “no” because what they are saying is I need to lose by Biblical Value system and Biblical worldview.
a. But they tell me as a pastor if I want to grow my church numerically, I must do this. I scratch my head in amazement – thinking – don’t they see they are in the spiritual dark fog – but I remind myself you cannot clearly see when you are engulfed in the fog! It surrounds and desensitizes you to the real spiritual world around you. So, I am going to say it again “Wake up – Go to higher ground – get out of the dark spiritual fog!” You are in danger! Your soul is in danger!
14. Another example of deception and deceit: By Patricia Tolson – Epoch Times – “What began as drag queen story hour evolved into drag shows for children. Now, naked men peddle bikes in front of children at pride parades in Seattle while LGBT activists in New York City marched through the streets chanting: “We're here. We're queer. We’re coming for your children.” As previously reported by The Epoch Times, the tide is turning on tolerance for transgender ideology. Biological science has been replaced by internal feelings and chosen identities. The clarity of one's sex has been blurred by the ambiguity of "gender." There are now an infinite number of pronouns. Failure to use the correct pronoun can result in losing your job. Men are claiming titles, trophies, scholarships, and accolades in women’s sports. Men are named Woman of the Year and crowned in women's pageants. The backlash started when Anheuser-Busch chose a transgender influence to become a spokesperson for Bud Light. It became a revolt when Target took aim at children. Now, recent surveys confirm that Americans have had their fill of harmful transgender indoctrination and "woke" corporate pride campaigns…
a. …According to a recent survey conducted by Summit.org, in partnership with McLaughlin and Associates, 61 percent of likely voters believe that "introducing young children to ideas like transgenderism, drag shows, and LGBTQ+ themes hurts their emotional and psychological development." Still more, 63 percent believe that the activists pushing transgenderism, drag shows, and LGBT themes to children have an ulterior motive. Conversely, the survey also found that 50.3 percent of TikTok users believe introducing children to transgenderism, drag shows, and LGBT themes is helpful for their emotional and psychological development. Only 33.8 of Facebook users feel the same. In addition, 44.9 percent of TikTok users say introducing children to transgenderism, drag shows, and LGBT themes is "motivated by a desire to help children." Only 31.4 percent of Facebook users believe the effort has altruistic intentions…” From https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/analysis-americans-reject-trans-indoctrination-of-children-and-corporate-pride-campaigns-5360706
c. Deception, denial and deceit is part of the Fog which is generated by the enemy of our souls.
i. Satan deceived Adam and Eve in Genesis to buy into his lie – He is doing the same today on this current issue and with many others.
1. Romans 1 speaks to this:
ii. Satan and His host of demons are at the center of “Wokeism” in the world – these people are being used by demonic forces to destroy society read Jonathan Cahn’s book “Return of the Gods”:
1. Remember He is a master of deceit. Because the people of the world are so ignorant of God, Satan can tell them virtually anything, and they will believe it. But with us he generally does not directly challenge or obviously and blatantly misquote Scripture. His confrontation with Jesus, beginning in Matthew 4:1, is a classic example.
2. Proverbs 26:24-26:
a. 24A malicious man disguises himself with his lips, but in his heart he harbors deceit. 25Though his speech is charming, do not believe him, for seven abominations fill his heart. 26His malice may be concealed by deception, but his wickedness will be exposed in the assembly.
iii. The Bible makes it clear that deceit is an act that God hates!
1. 1 Peter 2:1
a. 1Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind.
2. 1 Peter 3:10
a. 10For, “Whoever would love life and see good days must keep his tongue from evil and his lips from deceitful speech.
3. 2 Corinthians 11:13-15
a. 13For such men are false apostles, deceitful workmen, masquerading as apostles of Christ.
b. 14And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light.
c. 15It is not surprising, then, if his servants masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will be what their actions deserve.
4. Ephesians 5:6-7
a. 6Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things God’s wrath comes on those who are disobedient.
b. 7Therefore do not be partners with them.
5. Psalm 5:6
a. 6You destroy those who tell lies; bloodthirsty and deceitful men the LORD abhors.
6. Psalm 101:7: 7No one who practices deceit will dwell in my house;
d. The problem we are facing today is tied into this survey - Illustration: Someone has estimated that the average member of the church has heard 6,000 sermons, 8,000 congregational songs and led zero people to Jesus Christ! Here is the way the problem stacks up in a Church with 200 members:
i. 20 are too old to work, that leaves 180 left to work, but of the rest, 18 are too timid to accept much responsibility that leaves 162 left to work, but 12 are out of town or away for school, so that leaves 150 left to work, but 25 of those work long hours six or seven days a week, so that leaves 125 left to work, but 20 of those are tied down with children that leaves 105 left to work, but 20 of those are unable to work because of poor health, that leaves 85 left to work, but 55 are unfaithful, do not attend regularly, or don’t care... that leaves 30 left to work, but 20 of those will attend church...but they refuse to work...that leaves 10 left to work, 8 of those are very tired of doing all the work and have asked to be relieved. That leaves 2 people, you and me...But I’m too busy with other things, so you do the work. (author unknown)
1. Many Christians are engulfed in the fog – they don’t share the truth – even have a desire reach out to others.
2. They put their heads down and keep silent.
II. So, what are we to do as we see the fog invading our families, schools, society, churches, cities, and national politics?
a. I believe we are called today to be His watchman’s on the wall to warn people of the fog, the danger in the fog and the destruction the fog will cause. I found 23 verses about watchman’s in the Bible which highlight what we should be doing to warn others from eternal destruction as part of the Kingdom of Heaven.
i. Who is the Watchman?
1. Ezekiel 3:17-19: and 20-27
a. Warning to Israel
b. 16At the end of seven days the word of the LORD came to me:
c. 17“Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel; so, hear the word I speak and give them warning from me.
i. A watchman warns people of danger!
ii. The watchman hears God’s voice and shares it with others to warn them of danger and lies.
d. 18When I say to a wicked man, ‘You will surely die,’ and you do not warn him or speak out to dissuade him from his evil ways in order to save his life, that wicked man will die for his sin, and I will hold you accountable for his blood.
i. A watchman needs to do their God given job – which is to warn others of danger – or you are held accountable by the Lord for remaining silent.
ii. Matthew 12:36-37
e. 19But if you do warn the wicked man and he does not turn from his wickedness or from his evil ways, he will die for his sin; but you will have saved yourself. 20“Again, when a righteous man turns from his righteousness and does evil, and I put a stumbling block before him, he will die. Since you did not warn him, he will die for his sin. The righteous things he did will not be remembered, and I will hold you accountable for his blood.
f. 21But if you do warn the righteous man not to sin and he does not sin, he will surely live because he took warning, and you will have saved yourself.”
g. 22The hand of the LORD was upon me there, and he said to me, “Get up and go out to the plain, and there I will speak to you.”
i. We need to put ourselves in the position to hear from God so we can help others with His words.
h. 23So I got up and went out to the plain. And the glory of the LORD was standing there, like the glory I had seen by the Kebar River, and I fell facedown.
i. When we go and meet with God we bow to Him in reverent fear and humility.
i. 24Then the Spirit came into me and raised me to my feet. He spoke to me and said: “Go, shut yourself inside your house. 25And you, son of man, they will tie with ropes; you will be bound so that you cannot go out among the people. 26I will make your tongue stick to the roof of your mouth so that you will be silent and unable to rebuke them, though they are a rebellious house. 27But when I speak to you, I will open your mouth and you shall say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says.’ Whoever will listen let him listen, and whoever will refuse let him refuse; for they are a rebellious house.
i. We need to do and say what God directs us even if it seems a bit odd. But make sure you hear God’s voice!
2. Isaiah 62:6
a. 6I have posted watchmen on your walls, O Jerusalem; they will never be silent day or night. You who call on the LORD, give yourselves no rest.
i. God has placed us here as watchman’s on the wall.
3. Psalm 127:1-5
a. 1Unless the LORD builds the house, its builders labor in vain. Unless the LORD watches over the city, the watchmen stand guard in vain.
b. 2In vain you rise early and stay up late, toiling for food to eat—for he grants sleep to those he loves.
c. 3Sons are a heritage from the LORD, children a reward from him.
d. 4Like arrows in the hands of a warrior are sons born in one’s youth.
e. 5Blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them. They will not be put to shame when they contend with their enemies in the gate.
i. Watchman’s on God’s wall of truth have to be in connection with Him. The Lord has to be with the watchman or what they do is in vain – of no eternal value.
4. Habakkuk 2:1
a. 1I will stand at my watch and station myself on the ramparts; I will look to see what he will say to me, and what answer I am to give to this complaint.
b. The Lord’s Answer: 2Then the LORD replied: “Write down the revelation and make it plain on tablets so that a herald may run with it.
i. Sometimes we need to write down what the Lord is telling us to do – to share with others – I think about John Bevere’s book and Jonathan Cahn’s book “Return of Gods.”
ii. What do they do on the wall?
1. Ezekiel 33:1-33
a. A watchman warns the people of danger and of enemy attacks – or danger which is just over the horizon. They see things where others on the ground may not see. They warn of marauders also. Raiding parties!
b. They blow trumpets to warn the people.
i. If he blows it as directed by the Lord, then if people pay not attention and are slain or kidnapped it’s on them for not listening.
ii. But if the watchman ignores the threat or falls asleep the damage by the invaders is on their head.
1. Those who become apathetic and fall asleep will be judged by the Lord for not doing their divine tasks.
2. “But they will have to give account to him who is ready to judge the living and the dead” (1 Peter 4:5).
3. 2 Corinthians 5:10: (NASB) “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive compensation for his deeds done through the body, in accordance with what he has done, whether good or bad.”
2. Psalm 130: 5-6-7
a. 5I wait for the LORD, my soul waits, and in his word, I put my hope.
b. 6My soul waits for the Lord more than watchmen wait for the morning, more than watchmen wait for the morning.
c. 7O Israel, put your hope in the LORD, for with the LORD is unfailing love and with him is full redemption.
3. Isa 56:10
a. 10Israel’s watchmen are blind, they all lack knowledge; they are all mute dogs, they cannot bark; they lie around and dream, they love to sleep.
i. This description back in Isaiah’s time reflects to what is happening today with many church people and even leaders.
4. Nehemiah 4:6-9 – Nehemiah and rebuilding the wall.
a. 6So we rebuilt the wall till all of it reached half its height, for the people worked with all their heart.
b. 7But when Sanballat, Tobiah, the Arabs, the Ammonites and the men of Ashdod heard that the repairs to Jerusalem’s walls had gone ahead and that the gaps were being closed, they were very angry.
c. 8They all plotted together to come and fight against Jerusalem and stir up trouble against it.
d. 9But we prayed to our God and posted a guard day and night to meet this threat.
i. The same threat to the people of God is happening today and we have to pray and post guards to warn the people of danger.
5. John 10:3 – doorkeeper
a. 3The watchman opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.
b. Jesus speaks of the watchmen even in the New Testament.
iii. Why we should be the watchman God called us to be?
1. Ezekiel 33:1-6, 7
a. Ezekiel a Watchman
b. 1The word of the LORD came to me:
c. 2“Son of man, speak to your countrymen and say to them: ‘When I bring the sword against a land, and the people of the land choose one of their men and make him their watchman,
d. 3and he sees the sword coming against the land and blows the trumpet to warn the people,
e. 4then if anyone hears the trumpet but does not take warning and the sword comes and takes his life, his blood will be on his own head.
f. 5Since he heard the sound of the trumpet but did not take warning, his blood will be on his own head. If he had taken warning, he would have saved himself.
g. 6But if the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet to warn the people and the sword comes and takes the life of one of them, that man will be taken away because of his sin, but I will hold the watchman accountable for his blood.’
h. 7“Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel; so hear the word I speak and give them warning from me.
2. Luke 21:33-36 – Jesus said
a. 33Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.
b. 34“Be careful, or your hearts will be weighed down with dissipation, drunkenness and the anxieties of life, and that day will close on you unexpectedly like a trap.
c. 35For it will come upon all those who live on the face of the whole earth.
d. 36Be always on the watch, and pray that you may be able to escape all that is about to happen, and that you may be able to stand before the Son of Man.”
3. 2 Cor. 2: 9-11
a. 9The reason I wrote you was to see if you would stand the test and be obedient in everything.
b. 10If you forgive anyone, I also forgive him. And what I have forgiven—if there was anything to forgive—I have forgiven in the sight of Christ for your sake,
c. 11in order that Satan might not outwit us. For we are not unaware of his schemes.
4. Ephesians 6: 10-12
a. 10Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.
b. 11Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.
c. 12For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.
5. 1 John 4:1
a. 1Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.
Conclusion:
What do we need to know from this message?
Answer: Many have no fear of God, or respect and or awe for God today. This is what causes the fog to roll in and saturate people with deception and blindness to truth and even the order of natural things.
Why do we need to know this?
Answer: We need to have that healthy and holy fear of God, so the fog of deception does not engulf us and cause us to crash and burn with our life. We also must accept the responsibility to be the watchmen on the wall for others to warn them of the dangers of the fog and destruction of the fog. We must make others aware of the lies of the enemy especially our children and family and share with them the truth.
What do we need to do?
Answer: We need to have a healthy respect, awe and fear of God. We need to be aware of the fog and not ignore it. We need to warn people of the deceptions, denial and deceit that come with the fog. We need to tell the truth even if others hate us for it, or get mad at us for it. If we do what God instructed us to do, He will bless us for being faithful if we ignore his word to speak up we will be judged for our silence.
Jesus said in Matthew 5: That we are the Salt and Light to this earth.
13“You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men.
14“You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden.
15Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.
16In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.
Why do we need to do this?
Answer: So, we keep ourselves from crashing and burning with our life and helping prevent our families from crashing and burning. We also need to speak up about what is truth and what is lies. We need to not be lazy or apathetic but be speaking the truth in love to others.
We cannot be like the Church in Sardis from Revelation 3:
1“To the angel of the church in Sardis write: These are the words of him who holds the seven spirits of God and the seven stars. I know your deeds; you have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead.
2Wake up! Strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your deeds complete in the sight of my God.
3Remember, therefore, what you have received and heard; obey it, and repent. But if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what time I will come to you.
4Yet you have a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their clothes. They will walk with me, dressed in white, for they are worthy.
5He who overcomes will, like them, be dressed in white. I will never blot out his name from the book of life, but will acknowledge his name before my Father and his angels.
6He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.
