by Dr. Richard Blackaby
During biblical times, your life depended upon watchmen. Enemies abounded. Foreign armies would sweep across the country leaving villages and cities in smoldering ruins in their wake. People did not have amber alerts going off on their I Phone when Assyrian hordes were spotted crossing the Jordan River, not did they have radios or 24-hour news channels to keep them abreast of world events. Your life depended upon the diligence of watchmen.
Watchmen were posted at the highest points along the city walls. They would peer out on the horizon watching for the first sign of a threat to the city. What might appear to only be a tiny spot on the horizon might in fact be a cavalry detachment racing toward the city before the gates could be closed. Or it might be the advance guard of a massive army that was steamrolling across the countryside. What appeared to be a speck in the distance could ultimately result in the city’s destruction.
From the time the watchman first noticed something unusual on the horizon, there might only be minutes to respond before people began losing their lives. The watchman would have to hurriedly discern if the distant object was nothing more than a shepherd bringing his flock to market, or a caravan bringing exotic goods from the East for sale in the marketplace. However, if the watchman discerned that the approaching object was a military force, every minute was critical.
Once the watchman sounded the alarm, nothing was more important than racing inside the city walls. Sentries would begin the laborious process of shutting the gate before the enemy arrived. People living outside the walls had precious little time to make it inside before the gate was shut tight. If left outside the walls, villagers could expect no mercy from the rapacious hordes thirsting for loot and murder.
Not just anyone could be a watchman. Those with poor eyesight were disqualified. People who dozed off on duty or who were easily distracted were poor candidates for the position. It mattered not that such volunteers were nice people or well intentioned. Too many lives depended upon watchmen for the responsibility to be entrusted to anyone but those who were the most trustworthy and perceptive.
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The prophet Isaiah lived in a tumultuous time. His nation, Israel, was surrounded by nations who were prepared to pounce upon them at the first sign of weakness. Many of Israel’s neighbors had age-old grudges they intended to repay at the first opportunity. The aging power of Egypt seemed to be continually lurking, waiting for the right moment to sweep into Israel, dispensing destruction once more. Then there was the colossal Assyrian Empire that was gobbling up smaller states like Israel and inflicting horrific torture and punishment to its unfortunate victims. Isaiah lived in an age when an enemy might appear on the horizon at any moment. Isaiah stated: “I stand continually on the watchtower in the daytime; I have sat at my post every night . . . He calls to me out of Seir, ‘Watchman, what of the night? Watchman, what of the night?’” (Is. 21:8, 11).
God appointed Isaiah to serve as a watchman for his people. Someone needed to stay alert. The people needed someone who could gaze into the darkness and detect an enemy approaching. Isaiah was to be that person.
Despite the fact that Isaiah was one of the most eloquent and insightful prophets of any age, many of his contemporaries refused to heed his warnings. People saw him as reactionary or overly worrisome. Isaiah warned that the source of the people’s greatest concern was not the dreaded Assyrians, but holy God. For God could destroy the people far more quickly and thoroughly than any of their mortal enemies could. Isaiah continually proclaimed that the people had forsaken their covenant with God and that, if they did not return to Him with all of their hearts, judgment would be forthcoming. Few listened.
Nevertheless, God commanded the prophet to keep his spiritual senses alert and to report to the people everything he saw. Some of what God called him to do was extremely difficult. At times his home life and even the way he dressed became a divine sign to his society (Is. 20). Isaiah’s long life served as a continual reminder and warning to his nation that God would surely hold them accountable for their actions. At times his nation’s leaders, such as the godly king Hezekiah, listened to him. At other times they did not (Is. 7:10-13). Nevertheless, Isaiah faithfully remained at his post, on his nation’s watchtower, always prepared to issue a warning when he knew danger was near.
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Throughout history, God has assigned people to serve as His watchmen for their society. However, God has a strong warning for those who serve in that role: If you hear a word from God and neglect to issue a warning, God will hold you accountable (Ezek. 3:16-21). It has always been an awesome assignment to be appointed a watchman.
In our day, society needs watchmen more than ever. Dangers abound. Terrorists desperately plot to bring widespread destruction to America. Violence can suddenly erupt in ordinary, seemingly safe places such as public schools, movie theaters, marathons, and shopping centers. Though medical breakthroughs are occurring, illnesses such as cancer and heart attacks continue to fell people by the thousands.
Even more pervasive than the threats to our physical lives is the plethora of dangers to our moral and spiritual wellbeing. Pornography insidiously pervades every corner of the land. Corruption, infidelity, and falsehood permeate society at every turn. Marriage is under attack both by infidelity and self-centeredness as well as by those who adamantly demand the right to redefine the very nature of the institution. Today everyone from atheists to the morally perverted insist that they have the right to blaspheme God and His standards, all the while becoming furiously indignant when anyone questions the appropriateness of their own conduct.
We live in a morally and spiritually darkened world. Many live in fear as well as in moral ambiguity. There are many today who are asking “What of the night?” People wonder how long and how far society can degenerate before God sends judgment. Everywhere people are seeking answers. To fill that void, society offers 24-hour new channels filled with self-proclaimed experts who eagerly present their view of reality. The Internet teems with blogs and websites promoting answers and viewpoints to every possible question. Social media has reduced common wisdom to convenient sound bites for those who do not feel inclined to do any heavy cognitive lifting.
More than ever, people need a word from God. They must hear from those who are faithfully at their post, watching for danger. They are depending on watchmen to fearlessly wound the alarm, even if what they are saying is politically incorrect. We live at a time when a word from God has never been any more needed, or any less appreciated.
The key question is: has God called you to be a watchman?
Perhaps you work in the marketplace or in the professional world. You may have colleagues who have no idea what spiritual peril they are in. Perhaps your boss is so concerned with financial and personnel issues that she has not given attention to the danger her marriage is facing. Perhaps you have customers or clients who are struggling to stay afloat financially, but who are unaware of their spiritual bankruptcy.
Or perhaps you serve as a leader in your church. It may be that while your fellow church members vehemently debate a theological fine point, or a denominational oddity, darkness is inexorably creeping into your neighborhood. Or perhaps while church committees debate for hours whether to paint the sanctuary light green or beige, a dozen marriages in your congregation are at the brink of ruin.
As watchmen, you do not have the luxury to be caught dozing. There are no vacation days for watchmen. Watchmen do not get to pick and choose which messages they will deliver and which ones they pass on. Furthermore, the message is never about the watchman. The warnings issued aren’t determined by the watchman’s preferences, likes or dislikes. It matters not if the watchman feels comfortable delivering certain messages. The watchmen’s task is to keep their spiritual senses alert and to be quick to issue a warning when danger approaches.
How safe are your children, having you as a watchman on the walls of your home? How secure are your colleagues at work or congregants at your church, having you peering into the darkness on their behalf?
Could it be that you have been distracted? Have you been slumbering when you should have been alert? Has the enemy made inroads into your family or church or neighborhood on your watch? If so, be aware that if evil destroys someone under your care, that person’s life may be ruined, but God will hold you accountable for your dereliction of duty.
It is a high calling to be a watchman. Make certain that you perform your duty well.