“Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the people of Israel; so hear the word I speak and give them warning from me.”
Ezekiel 33:7
God has established the believers as watchmen, because we can clearly see the coming danger in the spiritual realm. However, we must not be silent prophets. We must warn the people about the difficult times that we are living in and inspire them to abandon sin and turn their hearts towards God.
Many natural disasters have caught different nations by surprise in the last few years, including tsunamis, hurricanes and frequent earthquakes, which have flattened entire cities. These are all signs that God’s judgment, which will take place before Jesus returns to this earth, is approaching. Only those who are prepared will be saved.
What would you do if you saw two small children playing a little distance from their parents who, without realizing, start to walk towards a deep hole? How would you react? Would you say, “That doesn’t matter to me, they are not my children?” Or, would you warn them about the danger? Would you speak in a gentle tone of voice? In that very moment, the only thing I would think about would be trying to avoid an awful accident. I would shout loudly to warn them or try and run to them to pull them away from danger. We must do something similar with those who do not know the Lord. We must preach the Gospel to them in different ways. We need to strive by faith until they receive salvation. You must not fall into indifference, or settle for giving a timid message of salvation. Don’t tell yourself, “I did my part. I gave a word of faith. I already talked to them. I warned them, and if they refuse to believe, that is not my concern.” You must not behave this way. You must fight with all of your strength and appeal with different kinds of strategies to reach them for Christ. You must keep trying, in one way or another, until they are persuaded that Christ is the only choice for them.
One time when I was preaching to the youth in our Church, at the moment of the altar call, more than 800 young people came forward to give their lives to Jesus Christ. What a great blessing it was to be there! My heart was full of joy and I was so grateful to God.
When a sinner repents, there is joy in the Kingdom of Heaven (Luke 15:7). Although I often see many conversions in the ministry, I always feel the same joy and the same compassion. I often warn my disciples not to ever lose their passion for the lost. Even when they see many people being saved in their ministries, they should not be indifferent and despise the opportunity of preaching to just a few people. Jesus preached to the multitudes, but on many occasions He stopped to talk with just one person. He taught us by example that for God, one person is just as important as the thousands. Our Father is not so impressed with what we do, rather, He looks at the attitude of our heart. Therefore, we must always have a compassionate heart.
SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT
The warning given by a nine year old girl was sufficient for hundreds of people to flee into the mountains and be saved when a tsunami hit a coastal town in Chile. May God give us the grace to be able to warn others of the danger that is coming to this world and be able to show them the way of salvation. May we be found faithful to carry the message of redemption to thousands of people.
TODAY’S DECLARATION
“I will rise up and preach about redemption and grace to my generation.”
Today’s post is an excerpt from Pastor Cesar Castellanos’ book, Declarations of Power for 365 Days of the Year: Volume One.
TODAY’S BIBLE READING
- Old Testament: Deuteronomy 4-5; Psalms 63
- New Testament: Matthew 26:17-35; Romans 10
