I ask you:
The apostle Paul could say unequivocally, Wherefore I take you to record this day, that I am pure from the blood of all men, Acts 20:26. He follows this assertion with a qualifying statement in verse 27: For I have not shunned to declare unto you all the counsel of God.
The counsel of God, dear reader! That is what gives Paul the right, to adamantly proclaim I am pure from the blood of men.
I am considering seriously whether or not I can make similarly bold statements, as this man of God. When I think of Paul, previously known as Saul, jealous for his faith as a Jewish man, committed to old testament fervour for the law, so much so that he was persecuting Christians with holy misplaced zeal, and compare him to the humble, meek, willing to be beaten, be thrown into prison, suffer ill tempered malignant misuse, and ultimately be martyred as a servant of the living God, I am stunned at the transformation. I confess, my "transformation" has been snail slow, with lots of stunted growth, missteps, and periodic regressions, and I do believe I am not alone, meaning; sanctification isn't a rapid get holy quick schema, it is more like a progressive plan over a lifetime of getting to know the Lord, and following in his ways.
Paul had single minded focus, directed at sharing all he knew about God, declaring unto attentive listeners, those that wanted to hear and receive truth, the counsel of our God. Many a folk don't want to read or hear that God is our God, the One and Only, and yet, it is impossible to avoid, no matter how much magical thinking people engage in ... God is undeniably Creator and Sovereign, and Paul knew it with such confidence, he had to share this wisdom with all, so that he was more then qualified to state: I am pure from the blood of all men. For I have not shunned to declare unto you all the counsel of God.
Think with me now about the first question I asked you above, Are you an accessory to the ruin of precious souls? I hope you are not, and I sure do hope I am not an accessory to this type of crime either! This begs the question: Who are these accessories to the ruin of precious souls?
Well there aren't enough blank screen pages available to place all the names on, dear reader. Suffice it to say, that all who deny the living God, all that insist upon others turning their backs to him, all that lead and mislead people they say they love, away from him, ruin precious souls, or at least, they attempt to ruin precious souls, whether they are cognizant of the fact or not.
I think back to the days when I attended Village Green Community Church, here in London Ontario, Canada. During the week, space in the church was rented as a place of second language learning for immigrants, mainly Muslims. Since devote Muslims pray at specified times during the day, and they were in a church, the staff faced a moral dilemma, with the question: Do we allow this praying to a foreign entity, in a church dedicated to Christ and his followers? The sound decision of No, this must not be permitted, was arrived at, and subsequently, the contract, and income for rental of the facility, were respectively terminated, and discontinued.
Fast forward to 2020, and the very same people shamelessly locked their doors to their parishioners, while performing church "on-line", in compliance with lockdown demands from the government they bowed before, without hesitation, or seeming regret. These people were not on-line, they were out-of-line, and the abominable behaviour continued when they opened their doors as a vaccination clinic, thus turning themselves into accessories to the ruin of precious souls, and they weren't the only ones.
Men of God are commissioned by God to share his counsel. Men of God do the work of believing in the One that God sent, namely, in Jesus as Christ, the promised Saviour of the world. Men of God proclaim the King at all costs, without worrying about their next meal, or what others think, say, or believe. Men of God suffer hardship willingly, and never ever, acquiesce to wicked governmental imposition at the expense of their flock. Here is what Paul had to say in parting to the Ephesians, Acts 20:28-31:
Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood. For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them. Therefore watch, and remember, that by the space of three years I ceased not to warn everyone night and day with tears.
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