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Alright, it's great to be here this evening. First I want to thank Pastor Shelley, as always, for giving me the opportunity to preach. Definitely is an honor and privilege. And this evening I'd like to do a Bible study since it's Wednesday through Ezekiel chapter 2. And as we get into the book of Ezekiel, let's look first at the context of the book of Ezekiel. In Ezekiel chapter 1, let's read verses 1 through 3. Now it came to pass in the thirteenth year in the fourth month, in the fifth day of the month, as I was among the captives by the river of Kibar, that the heavens were opened and I saw visions of God. In the fifth day of the month, which was the fifth year of King Jehoiachin's captivity, the word of the Lord came expressly unto Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzai, in the land of the Chaldeans by the river Kibar, and the hand of the Lord was there upon him. So, first we see that Ezekiel was among the captives, those taken captive by Babylon, who's now living in exile. He's also a priest, and he obviously is a prophet as well. And in chapter 1, he receives just these crazy and mind-boggling visions from the Lord. He sees a tornado of fire, he sees the visions of cherry-bims and all these just crazy things. And then in chapter 2, he gets his call as a preacher. And that's what I want to focus on tonight. The title of my sermon is How to Be a Preacher Like Ezekiel. How to Be a Preacher Like Ezekiel. Now, I don't want you to tune this out because I'm sure some of you are thinking, well, I'm not a preacher, I don't ever want to be a preacher. But the truth is, God wants every single person to be a preacher. Let's keep your place there, and let's turn to Numbers chapter 11. We get a story in Numbers 11 of these two men, who the Spirit came upon them and they began preaching. They were not priests, they were not prophets, they were just normal guys. And the Spirit came upon them, they were preaching the word of God, and here's what happens. Numbers 11, verse 27. Someone sees this in verse 27. And there ran a young man and told Moses and said, Eldad and Medad do prophesy in the camp. And Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of Moses, one of his young men answered and said, My Lord Moses, forbid them. And Moses said unto him, Envious thou for my sake? Would God that all the Lord's people were prophets, and that the Lord would put His Spirit upon them. So the truth is, God wants every single person, man, woman, boy, and girl, to be a preacher. Whether that's as a soul winner, and of course for the men there's other opportunities to preach behind the pulpit. Whether that's just as a preacher, or a pastor, evangelist, a deacon. But the truth is, God wants every single person to be a preacher. So I think we can learn some lessons from this chapter, Ezekiel chapter 2, on how to be a preacher like Ezekiel. Let's look at Ezekiel chapter 2, and let's look at verse 1. And he said unto me, Son of man, stand upon thy feet and I will speak unto thee. And the Spirit entered into me when He spake unto me, and He sent me upon my feet, that I heard Him that spake unto me. Now before we get into the lessons of this chapter, I just want to point out that we can obviously trust the book of Ezekiel as God's word, because the Bible here says that the Spirit entered into Ezekiel. I'll read for you 2 Peter 121, the Bible says, For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man, but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost. So right here, the Bible tells us plainly, the Spirit entered into Ezekiel. That's how we know what we're about to read is the words of God. We can trust the book of Ezekiel completely. So let's look at verse number 3. Verse number 3. And he said unto me, Son of man, I send thee to the children of Israel, to a rebellious nation that hath rebelled against me. They and their fathers have transgressed against me, even unto this very day. So what can we notice so far from this verse? He's given his mission as a prophet, and he's being told his job is to preach to his own people. There's only one problem with that. His people are a very rebellious people. And if you read the Old Testament, or the whole Bible in fact, that's the word that describes the Jews. A rebellious people. I'll read for you Romans 10, verse 20, But Isaiah is very bold, and saith, I was found of them that sought me not. I was made manifest to them that asked not after me. But to Israel he saith, all day long I have stretched forth my hands unto a disobedient and gainsaying people. So Isaiah in the Old Testament described Israel the same way. That they're disobedient. That they're gainsaying people. And if you read the Bible, that's absolutely what they are like. Let's look at verse 4. For they are impudent children, and stiff-hearted. I do send thee unto them, and thou shalt say unto them, Thus saith the Lord. That word impudent is not something we hear very commonly used in our modern vernacular. But the dictionary definition of this word is impudent. Marked by contemptuous, or cocky boldness, or disregard of others. So God is describing the children of Israel as being impudent children. As in being disrespectful children. A child that would be cocky, and just arrogant to their parents, and back-talk them, and have no respect for them. That's how God said that Israel was like. Impudent children. And that's Ezekiel's mission. Is to go preach to them. Sounds fun, right? Sounds like a really fun mission. Let's look at John chapter 1. Keep your place there throughout the sermon. Let's turn to John chapter 1. Because really this is just a foreshadowing of the ministry that the Lord Jesus Christ would have. To preach to impudent children. To preach to a people that would reject him. John chapter 1, look at verse 6. There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. The same came for a witness to bear witness of the light that all men through him might believe. He was not that light, but was sent to bear witness of that light. That was the true light which lighteth every man that cometh into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. He came unto his own, and his own received him not. So just like Ezekiel is told to go preach to this impudent, disrespectful, disobedient house. The Lord Jesus Christ did the same thing. He came and he preached to the children of Israel, and they rejected him. He came unto his own, and his own received him not. Let's look at Matthew chapter 23. We'll get a glimpse of Jesus Christ preaching to these people. And let's see what he thinks about this house. This impudent house. Verse 28. Verse 28 the Bible reads, Matthew 23, Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For ye build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish the sepulchers of the righteous, and say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets. Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves that ye are the children of them which killed the prophets. Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers, ye serpents, ye generation of vipers. How can ye escape the damnation of hell? Wherefore behold I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes, and some of them ye shall kill and crucify, and some of them ye shall scourge in your synagogues and persecute them from city to city. So Jesus is letting these people know. You're saying that if you were around in the days of the prophets, you wouldn't have killed them. But guess what? You're their kids. And in the future, you're going to be persecuting God's people. And what did they do to Jesus? They killed him. They said, Let his blood be on us. Let his blood be upon our children. Crucify him, crucify him. So in the Old Testament, they persecuted and killed God's prophets. When Jesus came on the scene, they said, His blood be on us and on our children. And then in the future, Jesus is saying you're going to do the same thing in the future. Why? Because this is an impudent children right here. This is an unreceptive house. So lesson number one, if you want to be a preacher like Ezekiel, prepare to preach to an unreceptive audience. Prepare to preach to an unreceptive audience. Show me the prophet in the Bible that everyone loved. Show me the prophet in the Bible that everyone wanted to hear their message, that everyone liked their message, that everyone willingly just received their message. Was it Moses and Aaron? Was Pharaoh a very receptive person? No, absolutely not. And then the children of Israel themselves were constantly saying, You know, Moses and Aaron are trying to kill us. So even their own people were disobedient to them. Was it Elijah when Jezebel was trying to kill him? You know, Ahab calls him him that troubles Israel. Elisha, the king of Israel, made a vow to kill him. Isaiah, he's the one that said, Hey, I preach to a disobedient and gainsaying people. Was it Jeremiah who was thrown in the dungeon? Was it Ezekiel who's preaching to the impudent and disobedient children? You know, was it the Lord Jesus Christ? Was it Stephen, the one that was stoned? Was it John, the one that was put in exile? You know, and if you read these secular books, like I believe it's Foxe's Book of Martyrs, if you believe that record, that book basically says that all the apostles were murdered, and all the apostles were killed in a horrific way. So, we don't see a theme in the Bible of people liking the man of God. We don't see people in the Bible just being very receptive to what the man of God has to say. No, the man of God is constantly preaching to an unreceptive audience. Go to 1 Thessalonians chapter 2. 1 Thessalonians chapter 2, look at verse 14. ...persecuted us, and they pleased not God, and are contrary to all men, forbidding us to speak to the Gentiles, that they might be saved to fill up their sins always, for the wrath has come upon them to the uttermost. So Paul is writing to the church at Thessalonica, and he's saying, these Jews are persecuting you, and they're trying to get you to stop speaking to the Gentiles. And that's what persecution normally is, trying to get us to stop speaking the Word of God. Stop preaching the Word of God, stop evangelizing. Why? Because they're an unreceptive people. But, notice, it was not only the Jews that were persecuting them. Look back at verse 14. It says, So, persecution is not just limited to the Jews. Obviously, we read the New Testament, they absolutely are the number one aggressor of persecution against God's people. But here, even in 1 Thessalonians, he's telling them, you've suffered these things not only of the Jews, but also of your own countrymen. So what does that tell me? Hey, it doesn't matter where we live, generally the people are going to be, as a whole, unreceptive to our message. And people, as a whole, no matter if we're living in Judea, or Thessalonica, or the United States of America, we have to be prepared to preach to an unreceptive audience. It was the mission of Ezekiel, it was the mission of every prophet in the Bible, it's no different for us today. You know, if you've never been soul winning before, if you're new to Christianity, or you've never been soul winning, hey, you better be prepared to preach to the unreceptive. Because people, as a whole, will reject you. People, as a whole, are not going to want to hear what you have to say, they're going to be against your message. But hey, that's our job, is to go and preach to the unreceptive. And you know, you're going to face opposition as a soul winner. I'm sure everyone in here has had the cops called on them, the door slammed on them, had that crazy Karen jump out of her house and scream and yell at you and follow you around, right? It all happens. Right now though, our persecution is light, but hey, the truth remains the same. Our job is to preach to an unreceptive people, and that never ever changes. Here, I'll read for you, this is what our mission is, Matthew 28 verse 19. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Go ahead and turn to Romans chapter 3. Our job is to preach the Bible and to preach the gospel to the whole world, whether they want to hear it or not. You know, Isaiah said that he was very bold, and he was found of them that asked not after him. He was found of them that sought not after him, and that asked not after him. Romans chapter 3, the Bible gives us a description of what the world is like as a whole. And let's see if this sounds like a people that's impudent children and stiff-hearted, or if they're a people that's receptive and want to hear the word of God. Romans 3 verse 10. There is no fear of God before their eyes. You know, the world likes to put on this front that the world is just so nice and so loving and so good, and a lot of liberals believe that people are just generally good as a whole. The Bible says the exact opposite. You know, the world has that front, and they're able to keep that front until the word of God is confronted to them. Then the fangs come out. Then we see what they're really like, and they match what Romans chapter 3 says about them. When you actually start preaching what the Bible says about sin, when you actually bring them the gospel that is very exclusive, that it's not just accept any light that's given to you and you'll be saved. No, there's one way to heaven. It's believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved. Then you see what the world is really like. And no matter where you are, the world is going to condemn that message. It doesn't matter if it's Judea, Thessalonica, or the United States of America. As a whole, this country rejects the gospel. And it's increasingly becoming that way. More and more and more people are rejecting the gospel and rejecting Bible doctrine. Like Ezekiel was called to preach to people that are largely unreceptive, that's our job too. And that is always going to be our job no matter what generation you're living in. If you want to preach the Bible, prepare to preach to the unreceptive. And you think about where we live now. In the state of Texas, hey, it's a relatively receptive place. I've lived in Idaho, I've lived in Washington, I've been soul winning in California, Arizona. And I believe that this is the most receptive place that I've ever lived. It's a very receptive place relatively speaking. But you know what, America as a whole is not receptive. America as a whole, hey, you know what's receptive is when we leave America and go to the Bahamas. We leave America and go to the Philippines. We leave America and go to Mexico. But America is becoming less and less receptive. America today is hardening its heart against God, is hardening its heart against God's commandments. And not only doing that, but also just spreading its filth all over the world. Not only are we just, you know, we can't just be content rejecting the Bible. You know, America has to go above and beyond and actually project its filth on other countries. It's sick. You know, this week I watched a documentary about Russia. And it was a documentary made by a very liberal, you know, skew. And it's funny because I don't like Vladimir Putin because he propagates a false religion. Because he propagates the Russian Orthodox Church. But you know why the liberals don't like Vladimir Putin and why the liberals don't like Russia? Is because they hate facts in Russia. And because they think that the West is just decadent and full of immortality and has no manners and men have no strength. And they're right about all these things. You know, this liberal documentary was attacking Russia because Vladimir Putin instituted this state-run media source. And they talked about Jesus. Oh no. And they said that homosexuality is a sin. And the Russian government offered any homosexual in the country of Russia that they will pay their flight ticket to go move to the United States. That's why the liberals don't like Russia. But see, America today, that's what we're known as. Russia's like, oh you fags, go ahead and go to America. They'll love you there. You know, they have careers and positions in Russia where their full-time job is to track down sodomites that are in the public school system. And they're basically just detectives that try to find out the sodomites that are teachers in Russia. And they get them fired from their job. And guess what? This person in this documentary who does this for a living, obviously they were, you know, saying that this person's a horrible person. But he's like, oh yeah, I'm not allowed to go to the United States because of my job. So he actually has a righteous job. He actually has a great job. Making sure that there's no fags, that there's no disgusting pedophiles in the public school system, that's a great job. And he's not even allowed in our country because of it. So not only are we so wicked, we have to propagate that garbage onto other nations. They were showing also this young girl. She was in her public school. And her public school didn't allow her to listen to American rock and roll and to all these just wicked American cultural things. But, you know, I guess they followed her to her house and her room was covered with LGBT flags and rock and roll stuff in the United States. And she didn't even know what it meant, but she's like, you know, yeah, I think that we should love gay people just like if someone's skin color is black. Just equating homosexuality to race, right? But it's just like all these poor Russian girls being brainwashed by her country. America needs to go save her and liberate her with our filth. That's what America is doing all over the world. We're not even just content being as wicked as we are here. No, we have to go drag our name through the mud throughout all the world and spread our filth all over the world. It's a really sick thing today, but America is getting less and less receptive. And as time goes on, the people that hear our message are going to hate us more and more and more and more. And things can change really fast. Go to Matthew chapter 24. I want to read to you about the events leading up to the Great Tribulation. Things can change really fast. You know, the United States of America hasn't really felt real affliction in this country for a long, long time. And I don't know who the quote is by, but it's true. Adversity makes men, prosperity makes monsters. Whoever said that, that is a true statement. And our country today has become so full of moral decay because we've had it so good for so long. But things can change fast. This little flowery, delicate little society that we live in, you know, the line between that and utter chaos is so thin, people have no idea. People have no idea how quick things can change in a nation. Look at Matthew 24 verse 6. And ye shall hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that ye be not troubled, for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there shall be famines and pestilences and earthquakes and diverse places. All these are the beginning of sorrows. Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you, and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name's sake. You know, Ezekiel's job was to preach to an impudent children, to a disrespectful house, to a disobedient house. But someday, our job is going to be to preach to a whole world that is like that. And we're already almost there. The whole world almost already is just extremely wicked, rejecting the principles of God. And you know what? They're going to deliver us up to be afflicted and kill us, and we'll be hated of all nations for Christ's sake. Sounds like our job is to preach to the unreceptive. That's not a receptive group of people right there. Verse 10, then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another, and many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many. And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations, and then shall the end come. See, the gospel is still going out. Before the great tribulation, the gospel is still going out, so the job of every single Christian will be the exact same job of Ezekiel to preach to an unreceptive audience. So prepare your heart for that right now. Just get used to the fact that people are going to hate you, people aren't going to accept your message, people aren't going to like you. We have to preach to an unreceptive audience. Go to 2 Timothy chapter 3. Even if we don't go through the great tribulation, we can still live in a very wicked time, which we are right now. 2 Timothy chapter 3 describes that. You see, just like in Romans chapter 3 the Bible gives us what they're really like, same thing in 2 Timothy 3. This is what the world is really like. They put on that show, but when you preach the word of God, when you show up like Ezekiel and say, Thus saith the Lord, and show what the Bible actually says, then the thanks come out. Then you realize that this is what the world is really like. So don't let these so sweet and soft-looking liberals deceive you into thinking that they're so loving and, you know, these people just want the best for our country. They don't want a communist revolution or anything like that. No, not at all. No, they do. No, they do. They're wicked as hell. This is what the Bible says that they're actually like. Don't be fooled by them. Hey, the world hates us today. And it'll come out and it'll be more evident as time goes on. Go back to Ezekiel chapter 2. Ezekiel chapter 2. Let's look at verse 5. ...yet shall know that there hath been a prophet among them. And thou, son of man, be not afraid of them, neither be afraid of their words, though briars and thorns be with thee. And though thou dost dwell among scorpions, be not afraid of their words, nor be dismayed at their looks, though they be a rebellious house. And thou shalt speak my words unto them, whether they will hear or whether they will forbear, for they are most rebellious. So what can we observe from this? In verse 5, the Bible says, hey Ezekiel, don't worry about the results of your preaching. Whether they will hear or whether they will forbear, for they are a rebellious house, yet shall know that a prophet hath been among him. He tells him, don't necessarily worry about the results of your preaching, just preach what I tell you to do. Don't be afraid of their looks, don't be afraid of their faces, don't be afraid of them, just say what I tell you to say. And then once again in verse 7, he reminds him again not to worry about the results of his preaching, but just to preach God's word. So number one, to be a preacher like Ezekiel, prepare to preach to the unreceptive. Number two, purpose not to change the message. Purpose not to change the message. If you're a real Christian, if you're actually standing on what the Bible says, there's going to be constant pressure for you to change. You don't see that really with the new evangelical churches today. Everyone's just okay with them existing. They're not saying anything controversial. They're not bringing any heat on themselves. No one really cares that they exist. But you know what, if you're a real preacher like Ezekiel, you're going to have the faces, right? And we'll get into that in a second here. But you know, this point was lost a long time ago in churches to purpose not to change the message. Because churches are not even close to what they used to look like 50, 60, 70 years ago. If you go back in our nation in that time, you'd be hard-pressed to find a church that said homosexuality was okay and that it should be accepted. You'd be hard-pressed to find a church that would not say that they should be put to death. Right? So why is it now that it seems like there's such a few number of churches that are standing on everything that the Bible says? Why does it seem like there's so few of them? It's because churches have lost this point. They have changed the message. They were afraid of people's faces. You know, they thought that they can go and preach to the unreceptive. But once the pressure actually came to them, they just came. And they just completely changed who they are. You know, when it says, be not afraid of their faces, if you're a soul winner, you know exactly what that's talking about. Because you open the door and you see Karen's ugly mug, getting pissed that you're there. But you know what? You cannot be afraid of that face. You have to give Karen the opportunity to accept or reject the gospel. You have to give, you know, the feminists and all the people that are liberals the opportunity to at least accept or reject the gospel. And if you preach behind the pulpit, you know what this is talking about too. I've only been preaching for three years, but I know exactly what this says when it says, be not afraid of their faces. Because I remember very specific times that I've been preaching a sermon and have seen just the contorting of the face. Because you say something from the Word of God. I remember one time we had these visitors in Vancouver, and I believe they were from a Russian church. Vancouver, Washington has, I believe, the second highest Russian population in the US. So, you know, I ran into them a lot. And one of the things about them is they really like alcohol. And even in their churches, when they take communion, they take literal alcohol. I remember one time I was preaching a sermon about alcohol, and I mentioned that there's even churches that take communion with alcohol. And I was preaching about how wicked that is. And I see these Russians just, the face contorts. And that's what this is saying. It's saying don't be afraid of their faces. And you know what that made me do? It made me want to rip even harder. Like, I want to, okay, I see that face. Well, guess what? We're just going to stick on this point now for a little bit. So, you know, if you're ever getting offended by something Pastor Shelley says, I would just advise you not to make a sour face. Because he might just stay on that for as long as possible. Make you feel uncomfortable. Because he's a preacher like Ezekiel is. The Bible says be not afraid of their faces. Don't be dismayed at their looks. People are going to reject you, whether you're a preacher behind the pulpit, whether you're a preacher out there. Let's go to Ezekiel chapter 3. Look at verse 17. Ezekiel chapter 3 verse 17. Yet if thou warn the wicked, and he turn not from his wickedness, nor from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity, but thou hast delivered thy soul. So, you know, I like to apply this verse to soul winning because God has called us to be watchmen and to go warn people of the coming judgment. And to warn people about hell. And our job is to tell people the truth. And whether they will hear or whether they will forbear, yet shall know that a prophet hath been among them. That's our job. And the Bible says that if you warn them and they reject you, then their blood is not on your hands. But if you fail to warn them, then you are guilty of that blood. And so, as soul winners, we got to go out and just tell everyone whether they want to hear it or not. We can't allow being afraid of people's faces, being afraid of rejection or opposition hinder us from doing our job as watchmen. I'll read for you Colossians 1.27, the Bible says, To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory, whom we preach, warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus. The Bible says that our job is to warn every man. You know, we call what we go and do and when we preach the gospel, soul winning. We call that soul winning. And you know what, praise God, we do win souls. Almost every time we go out, we do win souls. But you know what we're really doing? We're soul warning. That's actually what God has called us to do. You know, if you go out and preach the gospel and every single person rejects you, you've done your job. And God is pleased with you. If every single person, you know, rejects the preaching of this church, if America as a whole just wants to reject Bible doctrine but someone is here preaching the truth, then we have done our job. It doesn't matter if they receive it or if they don't. It matters as if the watchman is actually warning. If the watchman is actually preaching the truth, that is what matters. If every single person rejects us, so be it. We still need to do our job. We still need to warn people. Go to Acts chapter 20 and we'll see the testimony of the apostle Paul that he had in this area. Acts 20 verse 26. Wherefore I take you to record this day that I am pure from the blood of all men. For I have not shunned to declare unto you all the counsel of God. My question is, does that describe you this evening? Does that describe you as a Christian? Are you free from the blood of all your family members that you've had the opportunity to preach the gospel to? Are you free from the blood of all your neighbors, of all your co-workers, of all the people in this community? Obviously we have a big job to do. We're nowhere near completing, knocking every door in this area, but hey, that is our job. And we need to be like the apostle Paul. We need to be able to say, hey, I have not shunned to declare all the counsel of God unto you. I am free from the blood of all men. That should be the goal of every church in America. And notice, he's not just shunned to preach the gospel. He hasn't shunned to preach all the counsel of God. So you know, the watchman's job is not just to preach the gospel. There's plenty of old IFB churches in America that'll preach the gospel every single service from the pulpit. The problem is they don't go out there and do it. So hey, the watchman is free from blood in one area, just him, not the rest of his congregation. Maybe he's clear from blood in that area, but you know what? You're not clear from blood if you don't also preach all the counsel of God. That's also the job that Ezekiel was called to do. He wasn't just there to tell them about heaven and hell. No, whatever God said he was supposed to say. And whatever God has put in this Bible, that is what we should preach, whether people hear or whether they forbear. Let's look at 2 Timothy chapter 4. And we get this instructional passage to a pastor, Timothy, from the apostle Paul. Let's see what the Bible says. Verse 1, 2 Timothy 4. I charge thee, therefore, before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead, that is a pairing in His kingdom, preach the word, be insent in season, out of season, reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers having itching ears. And they shall turn away their ears from the truth and shall be turned unto fables. You know, I believe that that perfectly describes our nation today. That's why people like Joel Osteen has his church packed and there's only, you know, 120 people that come here regularly on a Sunday morning. What's the difference? The difference is because today people want their ears tickled. People don't want to hear the full counsel of God. But what does the Bible say is the job of the pastor is to preach the word, to be instant. What does that mean? To be instant means to be ready in season, out of season. So whether the pastor thinks something needs to be touched on or whether the people want to hear something or whether it's popular or not, the Bible says that you need to preach everything whether it's in season or out of season. Then he goes on and he says, reprove, to tell someone that they're wrong, rebuke, to tell someone they're wrong very strongly, and exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine. So notice, two-thirds of this is negative. And if you read the Bible, a grand majority of the Bible is negative. Negative prophecy, negative preaching, and that's what the pastor and the preacher is supposed to do. Reprove, rebuke, exhort. And another side note, I don't have this in my notes, but in the Gospels when John the Baptist is preaching and he's preaching about hell, he's preaching a face-ripping sermon, the Holy Ghost, the narrator of the Bible, says, and many other things spake he unto them in his exhortation. So people think that exhortation is always positive? Not always. So sometimes it's reprove, rebuke, and exhort like John the Baptist does. It's not always a positive message, and that's why people reject it today. They just want their ears tickled. But our job is to preach to the full counsel of God whether they will hear or whether they will forbear. Let's go to Galatians chapter 1. I want to show you a good example of someone that did this. Galatians chapter 1. Galatians 1, look at verse 6. I marvel that you are soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel, which is not another, but there be some that trouble you and would pervert the gospel of Christ. But though we are an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. As we said before, so say I now again, if any man preach any other gospel unto you than that which he have received, let him be accursed. Here's the key of this scripture. Verse 10. For do I now persuade men or God, or do I seek to please men? For if I yet please men, I should not be the servant of Christ. And this is how you can tell the difference between a preacher, a watchman that wants to please Christ, and a watchman that wants to please men, is are they willing to say the hard truths? Are they willing to preach things that people do not want to hear? Because what he preaches here is a very hard truth, saying if anybody preaches any other gospel to you, let him be accursed. What is he saying? Let him go to hell. Let him be eternally damned. Let him suffer in hell for all of eternity. That's what he's saying about people that would preach a false gospel. That's a hard truth. But why does he do it? Because he seeks to please God. That's why. Why is it that so many churches have changed the message today? They've not purposed in their heart to not change the message. It's because they please man. That's why. Because they're more worried about the money coming in and the tithes. They're more worried about having the fancy building than they are about pleasing God. And that's how you can tell who is the prophet that pleases man? Who is the prophet that pleases God? Judged by what he preaches. Is he preaching the unpopular truths? Or is he not? That's how we can tell. Go to Matthew 21. And then let's look at an example of our Lord Jesus Christ doing this. I love this scripture. Matthew 21, verse 41. They say unto him, he will miserably destroy those wicked men. So he's getting done preaching a parable unto them against the Jews. And he will let out his vineyard unto other husbandmen which shall render him the fruits and their seasons. Jesus saith unto them, did you never read in the scriptures the stone which the builders rejected? The same has become the head of the corner. This is the Lord's doing. And it is marvelous in our eyes. Therefore say unto you, the kingdom of God shall be taken from you and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof. And whosoever shall fall on this stone shall be broken. But on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder. Watch this. And when the chief priests and Pharisees had heard his parables, they perceived that he spake of them. But when they sought to lay hands on him, they feared the multitude because they took him for a profit. So what happens? Jesus preaches this face-ripping parable saying that the kingdom of God is going to be taken from the Jews, given to a nation, bringing forth the fruits thereof. The Jews perceive, wow, Jesus is preaching against us right now. And they want to lay hands on him. They want to kill him. Sounds like he's preaching to an unreceptive audience. But he purposes not to change the message. Why? Because look, Matthew 22, verse 1. And Jesus answered and spake unto them again by parables and said. So right after they just realized they're being preached against, they want to kill him. You know what Jesus does? Preaches again. Preaches at him again. Why? Because our Lord Jesus Christ is going to not change the message. The Lord Jesus Christ does not change. Our message does not change. What changes is weak men. That's what changes. Weak leadership. Weak churches that have given into the world, that have given into the love of money, that have given into fear of the enemy. That's what changes. Ezekiel's instruction was not to change. The preacher's instruction is not to change. And Jesus Christ left us the example when people were literally wanting to kill him and he just kept preaching anyways. What a great example from our Lord Jesus Christ. Go back to Ezekiel number 1. Prepare to preach to an unreceptive audience. Number 2. Purpose not to change the message. Number 3. Practice a separated Christian life. Let's look at verse, I'm sorry, I skipped a little bit there. Let's look at verse number 7. Verse number 7. And thou shalt speak my words unto them, whether they will hear or whether they will forbear, for they are most rebellious. But thou, son of man, hear what I say unto thee. Be not thou rebellious like that rebellious house. Open thy mouth and eat that I give thee. So he says, hey, I want you to go preach all my words, whether they will hear or whether they will forbear. I want you to just preach it anyways. Don't worry so much about the results. Just preach what I told you to preach. But then he tells them, hey, son of man, hear what I say unto thee. Be not thou like that rebellious house and eat that I give thee. So he's saying, hey, I don't want you to be an impudent child. I don't want you to be stiff-hearted. I don't want you to be rebellious like them. Why is that? Because us, as God's people, need to be different than the people that we're preaching to. We need to not be like them. Go to 2 Corinthians chapter 5. 2 Corinthians chapter 5 verse 18, the Bible says, And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation. To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them, and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation. Now, then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us. We pray you in Christ's stead. Be ye reconciled to God. So the Bible calls us ambassadors for Christ. So just like Ezekiel, we have a mission and we have a position. He was a prophet. He was a priest. We're prophets. We're spiritual priests. Hey, and we're ambassadors. We have the same mission that he did. Now, what is an ambassador? It's someone that represents a nation, usually. Now, how would an ambassador of a nation act? Hopefully, they would be clean-cut. Hopefully, you know, they would not be like the American ambassadors. Russia would probably spit on them or something. But hopefully, they'd be clean-cut. Hopefully, they'd be moral people. Hopefully, they'd be people of integrity, that they would be, you know, good living people that could give a good, firm handshake and look people in the eye. Someone that would represent their nation well, right? Someone that would represent the strength of the nation. Well, how much more should ambassadors of the Most High God act? If ambassadors of nations act in a certain way where they carry themselves professionally, where they live, hopefully, a straight-laced life. Obviously, they don't, but they should. But how much more should we, as Christians, as ambassadors of the Most High God, be different than the people that we're representing, than the people that we're going to be ambassadors to? Go to Romans chapter number 2. You know, it'd be very unseemly if we're out preaching the gospel to people and we look, talk, act, believe, just like they do. It'd be very unseemly as God's people, if God's men stood behind the pulpit preaching against adultery while they themselves are committing adultery, right? And the Jews actually were like this. Go to Romans chapter 2. Let me get there myself real quick. Romans chapter 2. The Bible actually describes that this is how the Jews were like. Look at verse 17. Behold, thou art called a Jew, and restest in the law, and makest thy boast of God, and knowest his will, and approvest the things that are more excellent, being instructed out of the law, and art confident that thou thyself art a guide of the blind, a light of them which are in darkness, an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of babes, which hast the form of knowledge and of the truth in the law. Thou, therefore, which teachest another, teachest thou not thyself? Thou that preacheth a man should not steal? Dost thou steal? Thou that sayeth a man should not commit adultery? Dost thou commit adultery? Thou that abhorrest idols, dost thou commit sacrilege? Thou that makest thy boast of the law, through breaking the law dishonorous thou God? For the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles through you, as it is written. So what happens when a preacher is a hypocrite? When a soul winner is a hypocrite? It blasphemes God's name in the mouths of the heathen. Because they see you preaching one thing and doing something totally different. Paul's saying, you know, you guys think you're a guide of the blind, that you're an instructor of the foolish, you boast yourself of the law, you preach the law, yet you break all these things. Don't you know that people are blaspheming God because of you? Our testimony as Christians is important, especially as preachers, because it's what gives us credibility. You completely lose your credibility when you go out and just live a wicked life. It's gone. That's why there's qualifications for a pastor, by the way. Because if you don't meet those qualifications, how are you going to lead other people? If you can't lead your house, how are you going to lead other people's homes? How are you going to lead the church of God if you yourself can't even get your own body under subjection? You know, we ought to apply that to ourselves as soul winners too, that the world will blaspheme God if they catch you drinking a beer and preaching the gospel. If they catch you out at the club doing who knows what, it blasphemes the name of God. 1 Corinthians, or I'll read, go to 1 Corinthians, I'll read for you Ecclesiastes 10, 1. Dead flies cause the ointment of the apothecary to send forth a stinking savor. So doth a little folly him that is in reputation of wisdom and honor. What is it saying? It's just saying, if you're known as a person that's wise and that's an honorable person, but you know, you get into just a little bit of folly, a little bit of foolishness, a little bit of sin, you know, it's going to send forth a stinking savor. And if our church, if we're calling ourselves independent, fundamental Baptists that believe every word of God, and we're old-fashioned, we're traditional, we believe in high standards of morality, if we go out and preach that, and then it turns out that everyone in this room is not actually that way, it's going to bring a stink to the name of Steadfast Baptist Church. It's going to bring a stink to our ministry and to our job as watchmen, as preachers. 1 Corinthians 9, Paul was not this way. Look at verse 22. To the weak became I as weak, that I might gain the weak. I am made all things to all men, that I might by all means save some. And this I do for the gospel's sake, that I might be partaker with you. Know you not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain. And every man that striveth for mastery is tempered in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown, but we an incorruptible. I therefore so run, not as uncertainly. So fight I, not as one that beateth the air, but I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection, lest by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway. You know, he's describing people that run a race physically. Someone that would participate in, you know, a sporting event or something like that. And he says that, hey, they're temperate in all things. Someone who's an extreme athlete, they're not going to just eat whatever they see. They're not going to just sleep whenever they want. They're not going to just work out whenever they feel like it. No, they're temperate in all things. And they bring their body under subjection. They do that to obtain an incorruptible crown. Paul did it to obtain a corruptible crown. Paul did it to obtain an incorruptible crown. He brought his body under subjection. Obviously, the Apostle Paul here is not saying that he was sinless. In other places, he says that he's carnal, sold under sin, right? But as a whole, the Apostle Paul was not going around boozing and fornicating and just living a completely life of debauchery. That's not what the Apostle Paul was doing. No, he kept his body under subjection. Why? Because it's what gives him credibility as a man of God. That's why God told Ezekiel, don't be rebellious like them. Because what weight would Ezekiel's words carry to this already disobedient house, to this already unreceptive house, if he was just like them, right? He had a tough enough job as it is. He needs to have some authority behind his words. Go to Hebrews chapter 12. Hebrews chapter 12. Verse number 1. Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight and the sin that doth so easily beset us and let us run with patience the race that is set before us. Patience. That implies a long race. And the Christian life is a long race. It's going soul winning for decades, hopefully. That's the goal, is to serve God for the rest of our life. It's not a sprint. And the Bible says that we need to cast those weights off. Now, I've gone on runs before where I've worn a weighted vest. But guess what? They weren't long runs. They weren't marathons. You wear the weighted vest to go on a short sprint or something like that, you don't exactly want to be wearing the weighted vest on a 3 mile, 5 mile, 10 mile run. And guess what? In the Christian life, if you want to go out and be an effective preacher, whether as a soul winner or a preacher of God's word, hey, you've got to set aside those weights that beset you. You know, Paul said that otherwise he's going to be a castaway. If he did that, he's going to be a castaway. And you see constantly churches where men of God become castaways because the pastor gets involved in some kind of crap, some kind of scandal, and he becomes a castaway because he did not keep his body under subjection. That applies to every single one of us, though, as soul winners. Go to Galatians chapter 5, or go to James 4, I'll read for you Galatians 5. This I say then, walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lusts of the flesh, for the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh, and these are contrary, though one to the other, so that ye cannot do the things that ye would. So the Bible says that the flesh and the Spirit are contrary to one each other, and you're not going to be able to do the things you want to do. So here's the thing, if you want to live a godly life, and you want to be a preacher, and you want to serve God all your life, but you're walking in the flesh, you can't do it. The Bible says you cannot do the things that you would, because they're contrary to each other. Hey, and if you want to live a life of just pleasing the flesh, and just giving your flesh everything that it desires, well guess what you also cannot do? You cannot serve God then. You cannot be an effective preacher. I'm not saying you can't be saved. Obviously, everyone can be saved by believing on the Lord Jesus Christ, you don't have to repent of any of your sins to be saved, praise God for that, but if you want to be an effective preacher, you do have to lay aside those weights, and you do have to be a separated vessel. James chapter 4, verse 7, Submit yourselves therefore to God, resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners, and purify your hearts, ye double-minded. Cleansing your hands is a picture of cleaning up your life, of getting the sin out of your life. Now, it's very simple, but that doesn't make it easy. It's very simple. We know what we've got to do, okay? Hey, as preachers, we've got to be separated. We've got to not live like the world. It's very simple, but that does not make it easy. We have to every day crucify the flesh, walk in the Spirit, singing to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, putting on the new man. That's the only way you're going to make it 10, 20, 30, 40, 50 years in the Christian life. It's not going to be by accident. You have to purposely be a separated vessel for Christ. Let's go back to Ezekiel chapter 2. Ezekiel chapter 2, verse 8. But thou, son of man, hear what I say unto thee. Be not thou rebellious like that rebellious house. Open thy mouth and eat that I give thee. And when I looked, behold, an hand was sent unto me, and lo, a roll of a book was therein. And he spread it before me, and it was written within and without, and there was written therein, Lamentations and mourning and woe. So notice, not only does he say, don't be rebellious like them, don't be sinful like they are, but eat that I give thee. And he gives them this roll, and within this roll is written Lamentations and mourning and woe. And this is an obvious picture of the Word of God. And us as preachers, whether as soul winners or preaching from the high in the pulpit, you must be reading the Word of God. You must be eating the roll in order to be an effective preacher. I'll read for you Psalms 119, verse 9. Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way by taking heed thereto according to thy word. How is it that you're going to live a separated life? The Bible says you're going to clean up your life by taking heed according to the Bible. So guess what? If you're not eating the roll, you're not going to be an effective preacher. You're not going to be a preacher like Ezekiel if you're not eating that which God gave you, the King James Bible. You've got to be spending time in your Bible. If you're relying on the flesh to do the work of the ministry, you will fail. As a soul winner or just as a preacher in any other capacity. You know, I like how the roll that he was given, what's it full of? Lamentations, mourning, woe. Where's the positive message, God? How come you're giving Ezekiel such a negative message? Hey, we need the hard truths in our lives to clean us up. We don't need to be constantly patted on the back telling us how great we are. No, we need the roll to convict us. We need the roll to smite us. And you know who's a perfect example of someone who failed to do this? Donnie Romero. Donnie Romero is the end of going down this road. What happens when you do not eat the roll? You see, Donnie Romero, he was ready to give out the lamentations all day long. He was willing to preach the hard truths all day long. He was willing to give all of you guys the lamentations, the mourning, and the woe. But you know what he wouldn't do? He wouldn't eat of that roll himself. And that's why he failed. And every single person in here that does not eat of the roll themselves will fail. Period. You think that you could be a three to thrive soul winner in an independent fundamental Baptist church going soul winning every single week for 10, 20, 30 years, not reading your Bible, living a secret separate life of the worst sins imaginable? You're out of your mind if you think you're going to be able to do that. The Bible says, be sure your sin will find you out. Don't think that you can get away with living this kind of life and call yourself a Baptist preacher. You know, you could call yourself an independent fundamental Baptist all day long. But if you're not eating the roll, if you're not separate, then you're not an independent fundamental Baptist. You're a fake and a fraud is what you are. And you know what? This country has had too many frauds. There's too many churches where everything's a fraud. The preacher's a fraud. The man of God is living in sin. The man of God is sending pictures to the people in the congregation and getting found out for all this sin. There's churches like that everywhere. The Catholic church full of people that are just pedophiles. We need to be people that actually eat the roll ourselves. Not just say that we're independent fundamental Baptists, but actually take the lamentation, take the woe, take all of the hard truths in the Bible and actually let the Bible rebuke us for a change. Preachers love to rebuke other people and hey, that is part of Ezekiel's mission. Part of Ezekiel's mission is to preach the Bible, preach to the unreceptive audience. Hey, purpose not to change the message, but also he had to live a separated life and he had to eat that roll himself. We don't eat the roll. We will fail as Christians. This church will fail. You cannot succeed in the Christian life by doing it in the flesh. It must be real. Your Christian walk must be real. You must have a real walk with God and actually let the Bible rebuke thee. So in conclusion here, number one, prepare to preach to an unreceptive audience. Number two, purpose not to change the message. Number three, practice a separated Christian life. You've got to realize if you want to be in this thing for the long run, if you want to be a preacher like Ezekiel, it's not going to be easy. It does take hard work. Getting saved, praise God, is easy. Praise God that every single drunk and fornicator and adulterer can just be saved by believing in the Lord Jesus Christ. You know what? We don't need those people in the ministry. We don't need those people becoming pastors. We don't need those people preaching from behind the pulpit. Praise God, salvation is easy, but you know what? If you want to be a preacher like Ezekiel, it's going to take a little more than just believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shall be saved. Let's have a word of prayer. Lord, thank you so much for this day. Thank you for this great chapter in your word. I just pray that we would be a people that would just be in fear of you and of your commandments. I pray that we would read your word every day and that it would let us convict us of the issues that we have in our lives. None of us are perfect. We all sin every single day, Lord. And we need you to help us. We need your spirit to help us to make it through the ministry. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.