The Responsibility Of The Watchman Series

IN ANCIENT DAYS: There would be a watchman on the city wall to warn of impending danger.

- Ezekiel 3:17.

- 2 Samuel 18:24-27; 2 Kings 9:17-20.

- In ancient times there was literally a watchman on the city wall, scanning the horizon for danger. When an army appeared, the quick alarm spread by the faithful sentry might be the difference between the town repelling the attack or being destroyed. The job was literally one of life and death.

- Here in our passage God uses that analogy as a picture of the duty that Ezekiel has to share God’s warning with Israel.

A WARNING TO A SPIRITUAL WATCHMAN: What God calls us to do is not just an opportunity – it’s also a responsibility.

- Ezekiel 3:17-21.

- The four specific situations mentioned:

a. The wicked man who Ezekiel doesn’t warn.

- v. 18.

b. The wicked man who Ezekiel does warn.

- v. 19.

c. The backslidden righteous person who Ezekiel doesn’t warn.

- v. 20.

d. The backslidden righteous person who Ezekiel does warn.

- v. 21.

- The main thing we want to concentrate on in this sermon is the different outcomes for Ezekiel. God warns there will be “blood” on his hands, so to speak. (There’s another sermon to be preached about the different outcome for the one who Ezekiel warns.)

- Ezekiel has a responsibility to warn if he’s received the call from God to issue a warning.

- Now it’s important to recognize that this is a specific situation. I don’t think we can fully translate what God demands of Ezekiel here to our lives.

- There is even a possibility in translating this that God was threatening to take Ezekiel’s life if he didn’t deliver the needed message.

- Are there New Testament passages that echo this idea?

a. There are no any that generally make the same threat that God made to Ezekiel here. But I do think there are some that speak to accountability and responsibility.

b. “Teachers will be judged more strictly.”

- James 3:1.

- This passage speaks to the idea that there is accountability and judgment that comes with increased responsibility.

- It echoes somewhat the idea of Ezekiel being in the important role of watchman and the consequences that come with that.

c. “Buried talent.”

- Matthew 25:24-28.

- In the parable of the talents, the third servant buries his talent instead of putting it to work for the master and is sharply rebuked for his laziness.

d. “Sins of omission.”

- We often divide sin into “sins of commission” and “sins of omission.” The sins of omission play into the Ezekiel situation. He is responsible for giving this warning. Failure to do that will result in rebuke from God.

WHERE MIGHT THIS APPLY TODAY? Two major areas are evangelism and church discipline.

- Again, let me state that Ezekiel’s context is different than ours and therefore we can’t directly apply what God says to him to us. But there is a parallel concerning our responsibility. I’m going to limit myself to two applications of that general idea.

a. Evangelism.

- An obvious one is evangelism. Those around us who are unsaved are in spiritual danger. We have the obligation of the Great Commission to “go and make disciples.”

- Will there be those at Final Judgment who look forlornly at us and ask with tears, “Why didn’t you tell me?”

b. Church discipline.

- Within the church, there are times when we are called to speak to our brothers and sisters in Christ who have fallen into serious sin. In Ezekiel 3 some of those he is called to speak to are those who used to live in a “righteous” way.

- This is almost universally neglected in the modern American church. We just wink at each other’s sins. In fact, we tend to condemn the world’s sin while excusing the church’s sin.

WHY DO WE NEGLECT OUR DUTY? Three reasons are laziness, fear of being considered judgmental, and desiring for people to like us.

a. Laziness.

- We know there are a bunch of things that God expects us to do but we’re not in the habit of doing them. Often it’s not even the hard things – like what we’re discussing here – that hold us back. It can be the simple, straightforward things, like reading the Bible every day.

b. Fear of being considered judgmental.

- If we tell someone that something they’re doing is wrong, we may be considered judgmental. We’d rather not put ourselves in that situation.

c. Desiring for people to like us.

- We don’t like be confrontation in part because we like being liked. The thought that someone might be mad at us is debilitating for some people. Often that means even if we have to make God mad we choose people’s approval.