Day 2704 of the 7 day Bible verse challenge.

Acts 20:28 NIV

There's been this continually revolving message going through my mind of late that I can't seem to shake off. It's a message from Ezekiel chapter 3. If we don't warn people about the dangers of the sin that is swirling around us and fighting to control us, then not only will they be found guilty upon the culmination of these temporal lives, but we too will bear the guilt of their blood. We will be guilty for having known the truth of the Gospel and failing to share it with those who end up being guilty of the sins that could have been atoned for had they heard the message and believed in Christ.

This world has already made up its mind collectively. The masses have chosen the path of sinful indulgence and they're not only ready but more than willing to fight back against anyone who stands up and shares any message that rattles the comfortable complacency in the wickedness that they have found so appealing. Many simply do not want to change. They do not want to admit their guilt. They will not entertain anyone or any word that speaks against what they've decided in their deceitful hearts is harmless.

So the battle lines have been drawn and as sad and scary and unfortunate as it may be and will likely become, our mission remains unchanged. That's because regardless of who may or may not like the truth of the Gospel, our responsibility is to serve God and warn others about the eternal reality in which we've placed our faith. That reality is that when these lives are over, each of us will either face eternal life or eternal death. And the Bible that sadly some no longer believe in, makes it very clear just how dire our mission is to warn folks of what our choices have fully earned.

Doesn't make it easy, and definitely doesn't make it comfortable. You see, we've all been lost in sin and we know the lengths to which we've gone to convince ourselves that we were doing nothing wrong. We know all the lies we told ourselves to avoid the heaviness of guilt and shame. We know the things that we've spent time trying to keep hidden so that nobody else would ever know. And so we know just how damaging and vengeful it would have felt for someone to come along and point out what we were doing wrong and just how dangerous it was to keep living a lie.

But as hurtful and mean and unloving as it may feel to have someone point out your faults or failures, it doesn't mean they don't care about you. In reality, the ones who are willing to hurt your feelings to help you see the truth are the ones who care the most! They're the ones who aren't willing to go along with this fairy tale you've concocted that allows you the freedom to do as you please without ever having to consider the consequences. They're the ones who are willing to risk losing a friendship or being hated or being judged because they simply care too much to leave you lost in a place that could very well mean your eternal misery.

And if you didn't already know, the fact is that if we're to be the Christians we claim to be, then that's the kind of love we're called to have for everyone around us. Not the worldly love that caters to complacency and comfort. Not this hollow version of caring that simply equates to agreeance. But a love that's willing to risk whatever it takes to help someone know the truth that can set them free. The kind of love that will literally lay down its life if it means helping someone else.

Friends, each of us are called to be shepherds of one another. We're here to help encourage and refine and motivate and rebuke one another because as uncomfortable and uneasy as those things may be, they're all absolutely vital in the scope of eternity. Sadly, our world has long sought comfort and compliance and a willingness to turn a blind eye to the wrongs that many are convinced are right. And so to go against that current is to risk being hated and labeled and persecuted. It's to risk our relationships and potentially even our lives.

But still, our duty remains and if we choose to fail to uphold it, whether out of fear of the angry mob surrounding us or a simple doubt in our ability to make a difference, we're the ones who will bear the responsibility for failing. And also the responsibility for those around us continuing to fall as well.

With as angry and dark as this place is growing, this road ahead of us is only growing more difficult and dangerous as well. Make no mistake, we will lose things along this journey. We will lose friends. We will lose sleep. We will lose comfort. We will lose popularity and acceptance. We may even lose our lives in the fulfillment of the task we've been given. But that's how much it should mean to us. It should be worth losing whatever we lose if it means helping one person come to know Christ and turn onto a path that leads to eternal life.

Sadly, many will not make that choice. But friends, it's on us to ensure that they know they have that choice. And it's on us to find ways to warn others in a loving and compassionate way. They may not see it like that. Many will accuse us of trying to control them or to force our beliefs upon them. Many will lose what little semblance of love they have as they choose to follow their hearts further into the void of sin and depravity and become even more vile toward those who are simply trying to toss them a lifeline. But so be it. It's not about what may happen to us while we're here. It's about what will happen to others should they continue to follow the path of wickedness.

What we need to always keep in mind is that this whole salvation thing meant enough to God that He literally became flesh, bore our sins, took our punishment in our place upon a cross meant for us, and spent three days in the grave so we wouldn't have to. Our God shed His blood for us, and if we're not willing to do the same for Him, then what is our faith really worth?

The church isn't some building where only the perfect gather to celebrate how well they're doing and turn a blind eye to those who remain lost outside the doors. The church is the collective assembly of God's people who are here on this earth with hearts set on doing His will and dying to our own so that we can live out the example we have in Christ with our own lives for all the world to see that the Gospel changes things. Each of us are truly our brother's keeper, and while that may not be an easy thing, it's something we cannot run away from because the cost of doing so is too high.

Be it one or one thousand, every Christian has a flock to which God has made us overseers. It may be a slew of people filling the pews on Sunday morning, or simply the random stranger who you bump into at the grocery store. No matter the case, it's our job to let this world see Christ in us through the way we live, the way we speak, and perhaps most of all, our willingness to adhere to His truth and stand firmly upon His Gospel so that maybe someone can see just how much it means to us and how powerful we truly believe it to be.

As I closed yesterday's post, I asked a rather simple question. If you knew that something bad was about to happen to someone else, would you not warn them? Well, the fact is that because of our sins, something very bad awaits every single one of us. Now thankfully, by God's great mercy and undeserved grace, we've been offered an atoning sacrifice that took our place and gave us the chance at a far better destination than the hell we deserve. But the only way to avoid that suffering is to accept Christ, believe in His salvation, and live our lives changed because of it.

That's why we have to share the Gospel boldly and then simply let the chips fall where they may. Many will reject it, but some will receive it. That choice is ultimately up to each individual. But the choice they make isn't our burden to carry. Our burden is making sure they know they have to make that choice. And that's a responsibility that we simply cannot fail at upholding.

It’s time to get right with the Good Lord above us and then set out on the mission that He’s called us to undertake. There be an ever-increasing number of vicious wolves set on devouring our brothers and sisters in this place. Time for the shepherds to rise and get to work doing what He asks us to do.

#LeaveNoSoulUntold