Jeremiah 6:10 To whom shall I speak and give warning, That they may hear? Indeed their ear is uncircumcised, And they cannot give heed. Behold, the word of the LORD is a reproach to them; They have no delight in it.
Jeremiah learned a long time ago the reason. And that is the fact that the
people refuse to hear what God is telling them. God sent the prophets and others
to warn the people of the danger of disobedience, and these people did not listen,
but even turned and killed or harmed those trying to help them.
Jeremiah tried to help those who had lost their way, or for the purpose of our
application, the people who have left God for the world. These people need the
strongest warnings, for their souls are in jeopardy. There are also those who
have never obeyed the gospel that are lost, and we preach to them, and try to
teach them, yet they turn their back on the words of God. In fact, it is as
Jeremiah wrote; the word of the LORD is a reproach to them.
And then we need to give warnings to those who are faithful to God,. Even though
they do not stray from the truth, there is always a danger that they could stray
from it, and become lost.
The gospel of Jesus Christ not only offers hope, but carries a stern warning
to those who will reject the gospel message, and turn their back on God. Jesus
said in Matthew 7:21: *Not everyone who says to me Lord, Lord, shall
enter the kingdom of heaven, but he that does the will of the Father which is
in heaven.*
God told Ezekiel to give a warning to the people. Notice in Ezekiel
3:18 "When I say to the wicked, 'You shall surely die,' and you give him
no warning, nor speak to warn the wicked from his wicked way, to save his life,
that same wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood I will require
at your hand.
Ezekiel 3:20 "Again, when a righteous man turns from his righteousness
and commits iniquity, and I lay a stumbling block before him, he shall die;
because you did not give him warning, he shall die in his sin, and his righteousness
which he has done shall not be remembered; but his blood I will require at your
hand.
Ezekiel 3:21 "Nevertheless if you warn the righteous man that the righteous
should not sin, and he does not sin, he shall surely live because he took warning;
also you will have delivered your soul."
As Christians, we are given the responsibility to be concerned for the souls
of those around us. We should take every opportunity to warn these people about
the dangers of living in sin. We should warn them of the consequences of living
without God in their life. I am sure that if a physical danger was hanging around,
like an electric line on the ground, that someone would offer warning, even
to the point of shouting to make people aware of the danger of the electric
line. But sadly, many people are on a pathway to a more horrible danger than
anything this world could offer.
Yes, sometimes we warn them, and they choose to continue in sin, and there is
little we can do about that. The fact that we warned them places the burden
upon their own heads, and we are not held accountable, but when we fail to warn
them, God said that He would hold us accountable for that soul.
Do you want this hanging over you? I would hope not. Yes, it can be frustrating
to speak to people and they disregard you, but they really are disregarding
God. God appreciates those who will warn souls of the danger they face. So at
least make the effort every opportunity you have. God will reward your efforts.
But you place your own soul in jeopardy if you do not warn others. Don't take
that chance, heed the warning.
By Carey Scott
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