Sermon Tone Analysis

You are Called to be a Watchman

Ezek 33:1:9

1.

The .

.Work of a Watchman.

Exek.

33:1-6

A. The Work of Watching.

v 1-3

B. The Work of Warning.

When the unsinkable Titanic sank, warning after warning had been sent to tell them they were speeding into an ice-field.

But the messages were ignored.

In fact, when a nearby ship sent an urgent warning, the Titanic was talking to Cape Race about the time chauffeurs were to meet arriving passengers at the dock, and what menus were to be ready.

Preoccupied with trivia, the Titanic responded to the warning: "Shut up.

I am talking to Cape Race.

You are jamming my signals."

2.     Application

Let me inject some modern day warnings that people do not heed.

The warnings about Tobacco.

The warnings are increasing; as we get an age limit about purchasing and limits on displaying tobacco products.

The warnings about Alcohol.

The warnings come as we see and hear the problems cause by alcohol and its' abuse on the body.

The work of the watchman is to Watch and Warn..

2. The .

.Witness of a Watchman.

v 7-9

This passage is to the Prophet Ezekiel.

It should be taken seriously by every minister.

It should also be seen as a call to every Christian because we are told all Christians are witnesses.

Look at Acts 8:1-4.

A. The Witness is to . .

Watch.

v 7

B. The Witness is to . .

Warn. v 8-9

1.

A Warning not . .

Heard.

v 8

2. A Warning not . .

Heeded.

v 9

Illustration

Years ago a Pharmacist received a message on his phone that a man was going to be shot.

He sent his son to warn the man to get out of town or to the police station.

It was an urgent message and he told his son not to delay in getting the message to the man.

The boy had his sling shot with him and he decided to shot a rock at a bird on the telegraph wire.

He wounded the bird and stopped to pick it up and try to repair the injury.

He then ran on to deliver the message.

When he got to the home no one answered.

He went back to his father's store and his dad came to him with a very saddened face and said "son did you go straight to the house as I ask you to do."

The boy said "yes but no one was home."

He handed his dad the note and the father saw blood on the note and ask "where did this blood come from."

The boy then told his dad about the bird.

He then said "son this is not the blood of a bird.

It's the blood of a man for as you tarried with a bird a man died."

Application

Do we stop to play when we should be warning?

3. The . .

Wages of a Watchman.

v 8-9

A. Wages for . .

Failure.

v 8

B. Wages for . .

Faithfulness.

v 9

1.

We can be faithful by . .

Cultivating Converts.

2. We can be faithful by . .

Consistent Concern.

3. We can be faithful by . .

Constant Commitment.

a.

All of us have ups and downs.

1) We get slack at times.

2) We need to work at consistency

Illustration A Man Who Keeps the Fire Burning

The other day a friend of mine related to me the inspiring story of an older man who would not move when the Tennessee Valley Authority was creating the large body of water by the Chickamauga Dam near Chattanooga.

Time and time again the authorities tried to persuade the old man to leave his house, but to no avail.

One authority after another came to visit him even explaining to him that everyone else had sold their property to the government, and he must move before that area was flooded.

He still resolutely refused to leave the old home place that was scheduled to soon be under several hundred feet of water.

Finally, one man who seemed to have a great deal of wisdom and grace was chosen to visit the stubborn old man.

He sat down with the old man and asked him why he would not move.

He asked him if the price was too small.

He asked him if he has a dislike for any of the officials that had come to visit him.

He simply said, "No, my only problem is that when my grand dad built this home, he put a fire in the fireplace and he said, 'Son, I've never let the fire go out in that fireplace and don't you ever let it go out.' My dad told him he never would.

When my dad was near death he repeated the words of his father to me.

He said 'Son, I've never let the fire go out in that fireplace and don't you ever let it go out.

Will you promise me?' I told him that I promised.

So, you see sir, I cannot leave this place or the fire will go out."

The man of wisdom who was negotiating for the TVA said, "Well, what if we build you a large beautiful home up on this mountain and I have my friends to come and they will remove that fire very carefully, put it into a wheelbarrow and take it, still burning and put it in your new fireplace and the fire will never go out?"

The old man said with a smile on his face, "Why, if they had told me that in the first place I would have already moved.

I'll be glad to do that as long as we can keep the fire burning."

Application

We are all hired to be Watchman.

We are not to let the fire go out.

It is an assignment from our Lord.