"These passages in Isaiah paint an image of godly people who are given unique vision into the world of today and the world to come. They understand the universal application of the gospel of the Kingdom of God. They see that God will bring that Kingdom to earth and will offer salvation not just to Israel, but also to all nations. They see the reuniting of the tribes of Israel in the Promised Land as the beginning of the times of restoration of all things spoken of by Peter in Acts 3.
But they also have insight into the world at the end of this age. They see the dark gathering clouds on the world’s horizon that spell the end of Satan’s reign as the god of this world and author of all its evil. This leads them to mount the “walls” of society and shout a warning to any who will hear. To say: “God is sovereign. He will bring a time of judgment on the world to prove that He alone is God. All other gods erected by people to hide His truth will be destroyed.”
This message includes teaching that will show any who listen the way to personal peace. It will show the true teaching of God and the way to salvation. It is also a message of how one can choose to escape the time of judgment God will bring on the world."
"God charges this group to watch for the safety of the city and its citizens.
These special servants understand the dangers of the present world. They see the dark clouds gathering on the world’s horizon and are moved to proclaim a warning message to all who will hear.
The message would also include teaching the way to personal peace for those who listen. It will show the true teaching of God and the way to salvation. It will show how one could choose to escape the judgment God will bring on the world.
Do you see yourself in this group of watchmen? Is there a role for you among those who watch today’s world and yearn to make it better? Putting a number of scriptural commands and principles together, it becomes clear that today’s true Christians are meant to shoulder this grave responsibility now in the last days. We are to share in the role of standing vigil like a watchman of old, and showing the way forward through the suffering and evil in much of our world.
God warns us through the message of the prophets that sins will demand a day of reckoning. People cannot continue worshipping the false gods of materialism and self, blindly stumbling along in their own righteousness, and expect their affluent standard of living to continue.
God’s Word confirms there will be an accounting; the lesson of history is that any people who corrupt their moral core will eventually fade from power."
Those who “grieve” and “sigh and cry” over societal sins are called to a unique role. They are part of God’s elect, called to the duty of proclaiming the announcement of the Kingdom of God. That message includes the good news of Jesus Christ’s return to restore all things (see Acts 3:19-21). The message also contains a warning to repent and receive God’s blessing or ignore the warning and face the judgment of God. It is a double-edged message—plain-spoken, yet full of hope.
By prayer and righteous living, we stay tuned to Jesus Christ. Through this way of life one can discern the moral climate of the times and avoid being tossed around with every shifting ideology of modern culture. Walking in God’s laws and instruction insulates us from the course of the world and its deceptions.
Jesus pronounces a blessing for those who, during mankind’s darkest moment, watch. That is, they are living prudently and properly. The natural by-product of this close relationship with God is being alert to religious deception. Those who frame their life around the coming Kingdom of God will watch and keep themselves from the wiles of the devil.
This is the end result of fulfilling the role of a watchman within the Body of Christ—to be found standing in the faith, blessed of God at the dawn of His Kingdom on this earth.
Our world is moving toward this time of global cataclysm.
No comments:
Post a Comment