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[The Lord said,] “So you, son of man, I have made a watchman for the house of Israel. Whenever you hear a word from My mouth, you shall give them warning from Me. If I say to the wicked, O wicked one, you shall surely die, and you do not speak to warn the wicked to turn from his way, that wicked person shall die in his iniquity, but his blood I will require at your hand. But if you warn the wicked to turn from his way, and he does not turn from his way, that person shall die in his iniquity, but you will have delivered your soul.” (Ezekiel 33:7-9)
This is one passage of the Bible that I really don’t like. Not because there’s anything wrong about it! I don’t like it because it scares me—because it asks me to do something really hard, to confront someone else about a serious mess in their life. And I hate doing that. I mean, they’re almost certain to get angry with me, and I don’t know how that’s going to affect our relationship going forward. And so I wish I could chicken out.
But I can’t. Because the Lord has made every Christian a watchman of sorts for other Christians around us. Not that we’re required to keep tabs on every single minor thing they do wrong! But when we see some major sin that has the potential to pull them away from Jesus, and it looks like they aren’t doing a thing to avoid that danger, well … we have to say something. If we love them, we have to speak up.
I’m glad Jesus has given us the Holy Spirit to help us in times like those. Otherwise I’d never find the courage to say or do a single thing. But the Spirit can give us the right words to say (see Matthew 10:19-20), and help us to say those words in love.
And it is love that motivates us when we have to do this very painful thing—not outrage, not a desire to protect the reputation of the family or the church, not even a desire to meddle in someone else’s private affairs. It’s the love of Jesus living in us, reaching out to protect and save, just as He did when He went to the cross for us—taking all our sin and shame upon Himself. He did that so that we could be set free from all of it—so that we could experience the wonderful freedom of the children of God (see Galatians 5:13-14). And now that Jesus has risen from the dead, He gives us life, peace, and forgiveness. And that forgiveness is for all of us, no matter what sin we’ve fallen into. Jesus wants us home and reconciled to God. And He wants all of us—including our brothers and sisters who might be going astray.
WE PRAY: Dear Lord, it’s super hard to talk to people about something so personal as sin. When You want me to do that, please give me Your courage, humility, and love, and speak through me. Amen.
This Daily Devotion was written by Dr. Kari Vo.
Reflection Questions:
- Why is it an act of love to speak to a fellow Christian about some dangerous sin they’re involved in?
- Have you ever had to do this? Where did you find the courage?
- Has anyone ever done this for you? What feelings did you have about it, and why?
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