The Election Count – Part 24
Time to wake up and watch!
Romans 13:11 And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed.
Ephesians 5:14 Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light.
Unsaved people are dead. Saved people are alive. But some saved people are still sleeping.
Now that you have been awaken, and raised from the dead, and given light, now, you ought to stay awake and watch. Don’t go back to sleep with the lost!
That is what unsaved people do: sleep on in the night. And this is why they will be destroyed. The sword is approaching, but because their watchmen can’t wake up and watch in the night, they can’t see the sword coming. They can’t sound the alarm, blow the trumpet to wake up the men who are dead and sleeping. We ought to wake up and watch, or we are allowing our house to be broken up. You will lose your treasures, your rewards,
Matthew 24:43-44 But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up. 44 Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.
I have a hard time with Jesus being the thief in this parable. I think the goodman was Adam, and the thief was Satan. But, likewise, Jesus will come on Satan’s house AS a thief.
Jesus is coming “as a thief in the night” to break up and destroy the house of Satan, the house of mankind, while he sleeps.
If we sleep with the dead instead of watch with the living and awake, what happens? I don’t know for sure. But, we may lose our house. Lose our treasures and rewards. If this parable is applicable to soul-winning, and likely it is, then we’d say that if we sleep, we will lose lives, souls.
If you’re not WATCHING, then you will lose those people that you thought were safe; saved.
“In what watch” – Satan came in the night. Jesus is coming in the night.
Luke 12:37-38 Blessed are those servants, whom the lord when he cometh shall find watching: … 38 And if he shall come in the second watch, or come in the third watch, and find them so, blessed are those servants.
He’s not coming in the daytime. He is coming in the night.
The night is divided up into “watches”.
These watches, even the final one called “the morning watch”, are all in the night.
Lamentations 2:19 Arise, cry out in the night: in the beginning of the watches pour out thine heart like water before the face of the Lord: …
So it is in the night that the Lord will come. And it is in the night that we are to watch.
Micah 3:6-7 Therefore night shall be unto you, that ye shall not have a vision; and it shall be dark unto you, that ye shall not divine; and the sun shall go down over the prophets, and the day shall be dark over them. 7 Then shall the seers be ashamed, and the diviners confounded: yea, they shall all cover their lips; for there is no answer of God.
Remember the “falling away first”? The day of the Lord is coming when the true gospel is almost completely hidden.
Jesus is coming when it is NIGHT. When there is no vision, prophecy, divination. There is no revelation, no understanding, no word of the Lord. There is no LIGHT, but it is DARK.
“The day shall be dark over them” – its supposed to be day. The Son has risen. But instead the day is dark over the lost. The day is become the night unto the lost.
Most Christian historians/scholars believe there were about 400 years were between the writing of the last book of the OT and the first coming of Christ. Similarly, it has been about 400 years since the publication of the King James Bible. One could say that man has not been given additional revelation from the Lord since 1611. The Lord has once again been silent for about 400 years. Possibly further evidence (maybe a bit speculatory) that the Lord could be coming back really soon.
There was also 430 years from the promise of Abraham to when the Israelites were delivered from Egypt and the law of Moses was given to them.
Have you thought about why men are wearing face masks? Scripturally? Have you thought about whether face coverings have significance scripturally? I have..
I think there is something Biblical about face coverings. Something we can watch over in Scripture, and see the day approaching, “watching” for the coming of the Lord.
Micah 3:7 Then shall the seers be ashamed, and the diviners confounded: yea, they shall all cover their lips; [WHY?] for there is no answer of God.
The whole world has been literally covering their faces. Has that ever happened before?
Maybe its not random at all. Maybe God has us covering our faces for a different reason than to stop the spread of a virus. Maybe its there is no light of the gospel. Because there is no answer of God. God is done speaking until the end. Maybe He is letting the transgressors come to the full. He is watching for the harvest to be come. For the fullness of wickedness to be accomplished. Maybe He is ready to judge in furious rebukes. Maybe these masks are a sign of the day of the Lord being at hand.
But the covering of our faces is not for our health. It’s for our shame.
Jeremiah 51:51 We are confounded, because we have heard reproach: shame hath covered our faces: for strangers are come into the sanctuaries of the LORD’S house.
Shame is here on all faces, not because of a virus, but because of the strangers, the false brethren, the false prophets who have come into the Lord’s house, the Church.
Psalms 44:15 My confusion is continually before me, and the shame of my face hath covered me,
Mankind is confused and is brought to shame without the true gospel.
Psalms 69:7-9 Because for thy sake I have borne reproach; shame hath covered my face. 8 I am become a stranger unto my brethren, and an alien unto my mother’s children. 9 For the zeal of thine house hath eaten me up; and the reproaches of them that reproached thee are fallen upon me.
This is a passage about the Lord Jesus. His face was covered, to bear OUR shame.
The fulfillment of this prophecy is in the NT.
The only time “cover” and “face” are in the same verse of the NT.
Mark 14:65 And some began to spit on him, and to cover his face, and to buffet him, and to say unto him, Prophesy: and the servants did strike him with the palms of their hands.
Man wants to cover his face for his health, but it is actually for his shame. Jesus took our shame, as His face was covered for us. But unsaved man’s face will be covered for eternity in the Lake of Fire.
1 Thessalonians 5:4-11 But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. 5 Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness. [We are not dead, and we are not children of the night. We are “night and day” different than the lost] 6 Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; [quit sleeping! Quit resting. Quit being at ease in Zion] but let us watch and be sober. 7 For they that sleep sleep in the night; and they that be drunken are drunken in the night. [don’t sleep with the world, don’t be drunken with the world’s drinks] 8 But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation. [wake up, open your spiritual eyes and watch; be humble/serious/vigilant/wise/adult, put on your armour! pick up the sword (of the Lord) and put on your shoes (preparation of the gospel of peace!] 9 For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ, [if we get wrath, its not what God has appointed for this world!] 10 Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him. [you have eternal security. you will be saved either way, because you have been given light and life. But still, don’t sleep as those who are in the night, rather, watch!] 11 Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, even as also ye do.
The day is approaching. The time is short. This life is a vapour. Just a little time. Doesn’t feel like it, but God says it is so: I come quickly!
It is time to wake up and WATCH! What does that mean? Watch the sky?
Ecclesiastes 11:4 He that observeth the wind shall not sow; and he that regardeth the clouds shall not reap.
If you sit there and watch the sky, you won’t be sowing and reaping. You won’t be WATCHING.
How do we watch? By 1) edifying and 2) praying!
Firstly, we watch in edifying: building the church. By learning and teaching doctrine.
It is by doctrine that we watch.
But what do we watch for and what do we watch against… in the doctrine?
There are 3 jobs of the Christian. There are 3 ways in which we are to watch in EDIFICATION.
Firstly, the Bible says that we are the shepherds and the sheep of his pasture.
Now as shepherds and sheep, how do we watch in EDIFICATION?
As shepherds, what do we watch for, and what do we watch against?
What do we watch for? We watch for the flock!
What do we watch against? We watch against wolves coming.
Acts 20:28-31 Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood. 29 For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. 30 Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them. 31 Therefore watch, and remember, that by the space of three years I ceased not to warn every one night and day with tears.
Feed my sheep! Give the sheep life, and protect the sheep from the wolves who would take away their life. WATCH the house!
To watch, is to watch over the sheep, and watch against the wolves.
Even if you’re not a pastor, watch for those YOU oversee. Watch for yourself, watch for your wife, children, your friends, your family, for the lost which YOU have been given the unique position to help save. Watch in the church!
Why can’t the sheep can watch too?! When the wolf comes, he comes with subtlety. Call attention to the shepherd so he can warn and deliver the sheep. Warn the Pastor so He can protect the sheepfold.
Matthew 7:15-16 Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. 16 Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?
We watch for wolves in sheep’s clothing. WE all need to know how to identify them: by their FRUITS.
Their FRUIT is their WORDS. The fruit of their LIPS. Their fruit of a man’s mouth.
Hebrews 13:17 Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves: for they watch for your souls, as they that must give account, that they may do it with joy, and not with grief: for that is unprofitable for you.
We watch for souls; for eternal life. For the sheep and against the wolves.
What is the second way in which we are to watch in EDIFICATION?
Secondly, the Bible says that we are like watchmen, upon the walls of the city.
Ezekiel 3:17 Son of man, I have made thee a watchman unto the house of Israel: therefore hear the word at my mouth, and give them warning from me.
So then now as watchmen, what do we watch for, and what do we watch against?
We watch against the sword coming. And we watch for salvation!
Ezekiel 33:2-7 Son of man, speak to the children of thy people, and say unto them, When I bring the sword upon a land, if the people of the land take a man of their coasts, and set him for their watchman: 3 If when he seeth the sword come upon the land, he blow the trumpet, and warn the people; 4 Then whosoever heareth the sound of the trumpet, and taketh not warning; if the sword come, and take him away, his blood shall be upon his own head. … 5 … But he that taketh warning shall deliver his soul. … 7 So thou, O son of man, I have set thee a watchman unto the house of Israel; therefore thou shalt hear the word at my mouth, and warn them from me.
When The Lord comes, He comes with a sword. He comes as a thief. The watchman’s job is to watch for the sword coming, and to sound the trumpet, sound the alarm of war, to warn the people!
Jeremiah 4:19 My bowels, my bowels! I am pained at my very heart; my heart maketh a noise in me; I cannot hold my peace, because thou hast heard, O my soul, the sound of the trumpet, the alarm of war.
I think that is what the trumpet always is to the Lord. Think about the rapture, think about the resurrection.
1 Corinthians 15:52 In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
1 Thessalonians 4:16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
See also: Isa 26:19-20 (hide thyself), Revelation 4:1-2 (a trumpet talking with me)
The trump, the sound of the trumpet, is a warning: an alarm of war.
The Lord calls with the trumpet to His people to come out from among the wicked city before He destroys her (Revelation 18:4, Song of Solomon 2:10-13).
Our job is to hear the word of God, and WARN the people from Him.
Lastly, the Bible also says that we are stewards of The Lord’s house, and thus, we watch for our Lord Jesus to return!
Luke 12:42 And the Lord said, Who then is that faithful and wise steward, whom his lord shall make ruler over his household, to give them their portion of meat in due season?
We are “to feed the church of God”. But we don’t physically give them meat and drink. As the apostles said, “it is not meet that we should leave the word of God and serve tables”. Well then what are we stewards over? What do we minister to the house?
1 Corinthians 4:1 Let a man so account of us, as of the ministers of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries of God.
Stewards like shepherds are to 1) feed the house with doctrine – with the body of Christ 2) oversee and protect the house.
Matthew 24:42-43 Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come. 43 But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up.
So the first thing we watch in is in EDIFICATION in the Word. For the flock against the wolves. Over the house, against the sword. We watch to edify, to feed the house, to feed the flock of God.
Secondly, we watch in PRAYER.
Colossians 4:2 Continue in prayer, and watch in the same with thanksgiving;
1 Peter 4:7 But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer.
Matthew 26:40-41 And he cometh unto the disciples, and findeth them asleep, and saith unto Peter, What, could ye not watch with me one hour? 41 Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.
Ephesians 6:13-18 Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. 14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; 15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. 17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: 18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints; 19 And for me, that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel,
As soldiers, we are to put on our whole armour, and watch in PRAYER for the people of God; for yourself and for the brethren. And for me!
Pray for those under your care. Pray that souls may be saved. Pray that you might have strength and wisdom to win them.
Its not just for pastors to watch. He says to all: watch!
Mark 13:37 And what I say unto you I say unto all, Watch.
Hear the word at His mouth and “give them warning from me”.
Watching is done in prayer and in edification; in praying, in studying, and in teaching doctrine.
How does a man find wisdom? Pray and search! Cry out and seek after it!
Mark 14:41-42 And he cometh the third time, and saith unto them, Sleep on now, and take your rest: it is enough, the hour is come; behold, the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. 42 Rise up, let us go; lo, he that betrayeth me is at hand.
Jesus said sleep on and take your “rest”. Where do men “rest”?
Ruth 1:9 The LORD grant you that ye may find rest, each of you in the house of her husband. Then she kissed them; and they lifted up their voice, and wept.
Luke 11:24 When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest; and finding none, he saith, I will return unto my house whence I came out.
We rest when we are home. We are not to be at ease, we are not to be at home, at rest, in this world.
Matthew 11:28-29 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
Salvation without works is rest. Our spirits are at rest in heaven because they are home.
But what we have here, with our soul and spirit which is here in our bodies on the earth, we ought to labor until we are also taken home. It is not yet a time of rest.
Proverbs 24:30-34 I went by the field of the slothful, and by the vineyard of the man void of understanding; 31 And, lo, it was all grown over with thorns, and nettles had covered the face thereof, and the stone wall thereof was broken down. 32 Then I saw, and considered it well: I looked upon it, and received instruction. 33 Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep: 34 So shall thy poverty come as one that travelleth; and thy want as an armed man.
Sleeping, instead of waking and tending the fruit of the vineyard, will cause the vineyard to be ruined.
Sleeping will make you poor. Sleeping will allow the sheep to be scattered by the wolves.
Sleeping is what the lost do. Just a little more sleep! Just a few more minutes. I’ll wake up soon. This is why people lose their jobs!
Romans 13:11-14 And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed. 12 The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light. 13 Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying. 14 But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof.
What manner of persons ought ye to be? And how can you be those persons, without awaking and watching? In edification, and in prayer.
May 16 2021
The Election Count – Part 24
Downloadable Word document:
The Election Count – Part 24
The Election Count – Part 24
Time to wake up and watch!
Romans 13:11 And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed.
Ephesians 5:14 Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light.
Unsaved people are dead. Saved people are alive. But some saved people are still sleeping.
Now that you have been awaken, and raised from the dead, and given light, now, you ought to stay awake and watch. Don’t go back to sleep with the lost!
That is what unsaved people do: sleep on in the night. And this is why they will be destroyed. The sword is approaching, but because their watchmen can’t wake up and watch in the night, they can’t see the sword coming. They can’t sound the alarm, blow the trumpet to wake up the men who are dead and sleeping. We ought to wake up and watch, or we are allowing our house to be broken up. You will lose your treasures, your rewards,
Matthew 24:43-44 But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up. 44 Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.
I have a hard time with Jesus being the thief in this parable. I think the goodman was Adam, and the thief was Satan. But, likewise, Jesus will come on Satan’s house AS a thief.
Jesus is coming “as a thief in the night” to break up and destroy the house of Satan, the house of mankind, while he sleeps.
If we sleep with the dead instead of watch with the living and awake, what happens? I don’t know for sure. But, we may lose our house. Lose our treasures and rewards. If this parable is applicable to soul-winning, and likely it is, then we’d say that if we sleep, we will lose lives, souls.
If you’re not WATCHING, then you will lose those people that you thought were safe; saved.
“In what watch” – Satan came in the night. Jesus is coming in the night.
Luke 12:37-38 Blessed are those servants, whom the lord when he cometh shall find watching: … 38 And if he shall come in the second watch, or come in the third watch, and find them so, blessed are those servants.
He’s not coming in the daytime. He is coming in the night.
The night is divided up into “watches”.
These watches, even the final one called “the morning watch”, are all in the night.
Lamentations 2:19 Arise, cry out in the night: in the beginning of the watches pour out thine heart like water before the face of the Lord: …
So it is in the night that the Lord will come. And it is in the night that we are to watch.
Micah 3:6-7 Therefore night shall be unto you, that ye shall not have a vision; and it shall be dark unto you, that ye shall not divine; and the sun shall go down over the prophets, and the day shall be dark over them. 7 Then shall the seers be ashamed, and the diviners confounded: yea, they shall all cover their lips; for there is no answer of God.
Remember the “falling away first”? The day of the Lord is coming when the true gospel is almost completely hidden.
Jesus is coming when it is NIGHT. When there is no vision, prophecy, divination. There is no revelation, no understanding, no word of the Lord. There is no LIGHT, but it is DARK.
“The day shall be dark over them” – its supposed to be day. The Son has risen. But instead the day is dark over the lost. The day is become the night unto the lost.
Most Christian historians/scholars believe there were about 400 years were between the writing of the last book of the OT and the first coming of Christ. Similarly, it has been about 400 years since the publication of the King James Bible. One could say that man has not been given additional revelation from the Lord since 1611. The Lord has once again been silent for about 400 years. Possibly further evidence (maybe a bit speculatory) that the Lord could be coming back really soon.
There was also 430 years from the promise of Abraham to when the Israelites were delivered from Egypt and the law of Moses was given to them.
Have you thought about why men are wearing face masks? Scripturally? Have you thought about whether face coverings have significance scripturally? I have..
I think there is something Biblical about face coverings. Something we can watch over in Scripture, and see the day approaching, “watching” for the coming of the Lord.
Micah 3:7 Then shall the seers be ashamed, and the diviners confounded: yea, they shall all cover their lips; [WHY?] for there is no answer of God.
The whole world has been literally covering their faces. Has that ever happened before?
Maybe its not random at all. Maybe God has us covering our faces for a different reason than to stop the spread of a virus. Maybe its there is no light of the gospel. Because there is no answer of God. God is done speaking until the end. Maybe He is letting the transgressors come to the full. He is watching for the harvest to be come. For the fullness of wickedness to be accomplished. Maybe He is ready to judge in furious rebukes. Maybe these masks are a sign of the day of the Lord being at hand.
But the covering of our faces is not for our health. It’s for our shame.
Jeremiah 51:51 We are confounded, because we have heard reproach: shame hath covered our faces: for strangers are come into the sanctuaries of the LORD’S house.
Shame is here on all faces, not because of a virus, but because of the strangers, the false brethren, the false prophets who have come into the Lord’s house, the Church.
Psalms 44:15 My confusion is continually before me, and the shame of my face hath covered me,
Mankind is confused and is brought to shame without the true gospel.
Psalms 69:7-9 Because for thy sake I have borne reproach; shame hath covered my face. 8 I am become a stranger unto my brethren, and an alien unto my mother’s children. 9 For the zeal of thine house hath eaten me up; and the reproaches of them that reproached thee are fallen upon me.
This is a passage about the Lord Jesus. His face was covered, to bear OUR shame.
The fulfillment of this prophecy is in the NT.
The only time “cover” and “face” are in the same verse of the NT.
Mark 14:65 And some began to spit on him, and to cover his face, and to buffet him, and to say unto him, Prophesy: and the servants did strike him with the palms of their hands.
Man wants to cover his face for his health, but it is actually for his shame. Jesus took our shame, as His face was covered for us. But unsaved man’s face will be covered for eternity in the Lake of Fire.
1 Thessalonians 5:4-11 But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. 5 Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness. [We are not dead, and we are not children of the night. We are “night and day” different than the lost] 6 Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; [quit sleeping! Quit resting. Quit being at ease in Zion] but let us watch and be sober. 7 For they that sleep sleep in the night; and they that be drunken are drunken in the night. [don’t sleep with the world, don’t be drunken with the world’s drinks] 8 But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation. [wake up, open your spiritual eyes and watch; be humble/serious/vigilant/wise/adult, put on your armour! pick up the sword (of the Lord) and put on your shoes (preparation of the gospel of peace!] 9 For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ, [if we get wrath, its not what God has appointed for this world!] 10 Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him. [you have eternal security. you will be saved either way, because you have been given light and life. But still, don’t sleep as those who are in the night, rather, watch!] 11 Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, even as also ye do.
The day is approaching. The time is short. This life is a vapour. Just a little time. Doesn’t feel like it, but God says it is so: I come quickly!
It is time to wake up and WATCH! What does that mean? Watch the sky?
Ecclesiastes 11:4 He that observeth the wind shall not sow; and he that regardeth the clouds shall not reap.
If you sit there and watch the sky, you won’t be sowing and reaping. You won’t be WATCHING.
How do we watch? By 1) edifying and 2) praying!
Firstly, we watch in edifying: building the church. By learning and teaching doctrine.
It is by doctrine that we watch.
But what do we watch for and what do we watch against… in the doctrine?
There are 3 jobs of the Christian. There are 3 ways in which we are to watch in EDIFICATION.
Firstly, the Bible says that we are the shepherds and the sheep of his pasture.
Now as shepherds and sheep, how do we watch in EDIFICATION?
As shepherds, what do we watch for, and what do we watch against?
What do we watch for? We watch for the flock!
What do we watch against? We watch against wolves coming.
Acts 20:28-31 Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood. 29 For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. 30 Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them. 31 Therefore watch, and remember, that by the space of three years I ceased not to warn every one night and day with tears.
Feed my sheep! Give the sheep life, and protect the sheep from the wolves who would take away their life. WATCH the house!
To watch, is to watch over the sheep, and watch against the wolves.
Even if you’re not a pastor, watch for those YOU oversee. Watch for yourself, watch for your wife, children, your friends, your family, for the lost which YOU have been given the unique position to help save. Watch in the church!
Why can’t the sheep can watch too?! When the wolf comes, he comes with subtlety. Call attention to the shepherd so he can warn and deliver the sheep. Warn the Pastor so He can protect the sheepfold.
Matthew 7:15-16 Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. 16 Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?
We watch for wolves in sheep’s clothing. WE all need to know how to identify them: by their FRUITS.
Their FRUIT is their WORDS. The fruit of their LIPS. Their fruit of a man’s mouth.
Hebrews 13:17 Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves: for they watch for your souls, as they that must give account, that they may do it with joy, and not with grief: for that is unprofitable for you.
We watch for souls; for eternal life. For the sheep and against the wolves.
What is the second way in which we are to watch in EDIFICATION?
Secondly, the Bible says that we are like watchmen, upon the walls of the city.
Ezekiel 3:17 Son of man, I have made thee a watchman unto the house of Israel: therefore hear the word at my mouth, and give them warning from me.
So then now as watchmen, what do we watch for, and what do we watch against?
We watch against the sword coming. And we watch for salvation!
Ezekiel 33:2-7 Son of man, speak to the children of thy people, and say unto them, When I bring the sword upon a land, if the people of the land take a man of their coasts, and set him for their watchman: 3 If when he seeth the sword come upon the land, he blow the trumpet, and warn the people; 4 Then whosoever heareth the sound of the trumpet, and taketh not warning; if the sword come, and take him away, his blood shall be upon his own head. … 5 … But he that taketh warning shall deliver his soul. … 7 So thou, O son of man, I have set thee a watchman unto the house of Israel; therefore thou shalt hear the word at my mouth, and warn them from me.
When The Lord comes, He comes with a sword. He comes as a thief. The watchman’s job is to watch for the sword coming, and to sound the trumpet, sound the alarm of war, to warn the people!
Jeremiah 4:19 My bowels, my bowels! I am pained at my very heart; my heart maketh a noise in me; I cannot hold my peace, because thou hast heard, O my soul, the sound of the trumpet, the alarm of war.
I think that is what the trumpet always is to the Lord. Think about the rapture, think about the resurrection.
1 Corinthians 15:52 In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
1 Thessalonians 4:16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
See also: Isa 26:19-20 (hide thyself), Revelation 4:1-2 (a trumpet talking with me)
The trump, the sound of the trumpet, is a warning: an alarm of war.
The Lord calls with the trumpet to His people to come out from among the wicked city before He destroys her (Revelation 18:4, Song of Solomon 2:10-13).
Our job is to hear the word of God, and WARN the people from Him.
Lastly, the Bible also says that we are stewards of The Lord’s house, and thus, we watch for our Lord Jesus to return!
Luke 12:42 And the Lord said, Who then is that faithful and wise steward, whom his lord shall make ruler over his household, to give them their portion of meat in due season?
We are “to feed the church of God”. But we don’t physically give them meat and drink. As the apostles said, “it is not meet that we should leave the word of God and serve tables”. Well then what are we stewards over? What do we minister to the house?
1 Corinthians 4:1 Let a man so account of us, as of the ministers of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries of God.
Stewards like shepherds are to 1) feed the house with doctrine – with the body of Christ 2) oversee and protect the house.
Matthew 24:42-43 Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come. 43 But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up.
So the first thing we watch in is in EDIFICATION in the Word. For the flock against the wolves. Over the house, against the sword. We watch to edify, to feed the house, to feed the flock of God.
Secondly, we watch in PRAYER.
Colossians 4:2 Continue in prayer, and watch in the same with thanksgiving;
1 Peter 4:7 But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer.
Matthew 26:40-41 And he cometh unto the disciples, and findeth them asleep, and saith unto Peter, What, could ye not watch with me one hour? 41 Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.
Ephesians 6:13-18 Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. 14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; 15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. 17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: 18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints; 19 And for me, that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel,
As soldiers, we are to put on our whole armour, and watch in PRAYER for the people of God; for yourself and for the brethren. And for me!
Pray for those under your care. Pray that souls may be saved. Pray that you might have strength and wisdom to win them.
Its not just for pastors to watch. He says to all: watch!
Mark 13:37 And what I say unto you I say unto all, Watch.
Hear the word at His mouth and “give them warning from me”.
Watching is done in prayer and in edification; in praying, in studying, and in teaching doctrine.
How does a man find wisdom? Pray and search! Cry out and seek after it!
Mark 14:41-42 And he cometh the third time, and saith unto them, Sleep on now, and take your rest: it is enough, the hour is come; behold, the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. 42 Rise up, let us go; lo, he that betrayeth me is at hand.
Jesus said sleep on and take your “rest”. Where do men “rest”?
Ruth 1:9 The LORD grant you that ye may find rest, each of you in the house of her husband. Then she kissed them; and they lifted up their voice, and wept.
Luke 11:24 When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest; and finding none, he saith, I will return unto my house whence I came out.
We rest when we are home. We are not to be at ease, we are not to be at home, at rest, in this world.
Matthew 11:28-29 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
Salvation without works is rest. Our spirits are at rest in heaven because they are home.
But what we have here, with our soul and spirit which is here in our bodies on the earth, we ought to labor until we are also taken home. It is not yet a time of rest.
Proverbs 24:30-34 I went by the field of the slothful, and by the vineyard of the man void of understanding; 31 And, lo, it was all grown over with thorns, and nettles had covered the face thereof, and the stone wall thereof was broken down. 32 Then I saw, and considered it well: I looked upon it, and received instruction. 33 Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep: 34 So shall thy poverty come as one that travelleth; and thy want as an armed man.
Sleeping, instead of waking and tending the fruit of the vineyard, will cause the vineyard to be ruined.
Sleeping will make you poor. Sleeping will allow the sheep to be scattered by the wolves.
Sleeping is what the lost do. Just a little more sleep! Just a few more minutes. I’ll wake up soon. This is why people lose their jobs!
Romans 13:11-14 And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed. 12 The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light. 13 Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying. 14 But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof.
What manner of persons ought ye to be? And how can you be those persons, without awaking and watching? In edification, and in prayer.
By Pastor • Christian Life, Soul Winning • 0