Weekly Devotional: Gems From Pastor Jim 7/6/2020

by Jim Hughes

Ezek. 3:18-19 “If I warn the wicked saying, ‘You are under the penalty of death,’ but you fail to deliver the warning, they will die in their sins. And I will hold you responsible, demanding your blood for theirs. If you warn them and they keep on sinning and refuse to repent, they will die in their sins. But you will have saved your life because you did what you were told to do.”

We are the message bearers. God wants everyone to know that sin leads to hell. He wants everyone to hear what the consequences of disobeying God are. He has placed upon us, His chosen ones, the responsibility to tell them. We cannot control how the wicked will respond to the message, but we can control whether or not we tell them.

If we fail to warn the lost of their lostness, the Lord will hold us responsible for our failure. We may still stay in fellowship with the Lord, but we will not be in His favor. He does not save us so that we will hoard the Good News. If we truly appreciate the wonderful gift of our salvation we will want to tell all we can about it. How can we not be excited enough about our salvation to not want to share it with others?

There are going to be those who will respond positively to the Good News and be saved and there will be those who will keep on sinning and refuse to repent. It should come as no surprise to us that most will reject the message. Jesus made it clear that people in the dark stay in the dark because they know that in the light their deeds will be exposed. And, once deeds are exposed they must be dealt with and changes made in behavior. Most people either fear change or simply do not want to change. Most people will continue to sin and reject the Good News. Only the Holy Spirit can change the heart of man and if He can’t get through to people, why should we expect positive results?

When we obey the Lord and share the Good News, we will be blessed by God. Our obedience assures us of our own salvation. All we can do is plant the seed. It is the Lord alone who can make it grow. The Lord has saved us to be bearers of the Good News. Do not disobey God in this. Spread the Good News whenever and wherever you can. Great will be your reward in heaven when you do.

About the Author:

Spending his formative years in Ft. Wayne, IN, Jim followed the love of his life to southeast Iowa where they married and have spent the majority of their lives. Jim has pastored several churches throughout his life and has worked many years in local factories to help support his family. The father of two married adult children and one son still at home, Jim is a first-time author.

C Through Marriage came into being through many years of pastoral and life experiences. The book first took on a life of its own over 20 years ago when I sought to address the much publicized moral failures of prominent leaders in the church. In the chapter on Chasity, I include the guideliness that I developed then to protect one's self from such failures.

I am a firm believer in order to make sense out of life you have to use much common sense. We need to get back to the basics of what has worked for many, many generations. If is isn't broke, why try to fix it? I strive to return to the basics of what really works in all my writings.