Watchmen Arise
True watchman are willing to eat the scroll no matter the outcome!
This morning in my prayer and study time, I felt led to go back and read Ezekiel. Ezekiel was a priest, a prophet, and a watchman called of God. I believe God has been calling His “Watchman Prophets” back to the wall for quite some time, but I’ve not understood why they aren’t rising up and taking their place. As I was reading this morning, I believe He began to show me why… because a watchman prophet is a different breed and requires what many would consider a crazy act of obedience and a determination that isn’t swayed by man. This was a great reminder and encouragement to me to keep going! I pray it is for you also.
A watchman prophet is a prophet that is set in place to literally lean forward into the voice of God in order to peer into the distance spiritually and see what is happening. They have the job of calling out danger, speaking things back into order, sometimes being that voice of rebuke (as Ezekiel was to the Israelites) and keeping watch over the sphere which God places them in Again, this requires one who is crazily obedient and determined through the Spirit of God.
“A watchman prophet is a different breed and requires what many would consider a crazy obedience and a determination that isn’t swayed by man.”
As I was reading this morning, I realized that a true watchman prophet is willing to eat the scroll and become the message/voice of God to those He sends them. But because eating the scroll can cause a bitter feeling in the gut or even anger and frustration towards those He’s sending them to, many called to this arena give up and walk away from the call. They aren’t willing to sacrifice self in order to follow through.
Ezekiel was a watchman prophet, called of God to sound the alarm to the house of Israel. He was told, “They are a rebellious people – they may or may not listen BUT you still have to speak! If you do not and they die in their iniquity, their blood is on YOUR hands. If you do and they still die in their iniquity, you have delivered your own soul.” Knowing that you will be speaking to a people that may or may not listen is a part of the sacrifice of self. Our selfish flesh will say, “if they aren’t going to listen, I’m not going to waste my time!” but let’s look at what He told Ezekiel about this, “Do not be afraid of them nor be afraid of their words… do not be dismayed by their looks… YOU hear what I say to you. Do not be rebellious like them; open your mouth and eat what I have given you.” This is where setting our face as a flint becomes important. Ezekiel wasn’t sent to those who were ignorant of God, he was sent to God’s chosen people. There are prophetic voices right now that are set in place to speak to the church of the living God and just as Ezekiel was warned, we are warned… “as for them, whether they hear or whether they refuse – for they are rebellious – yet they will know that a prophet has been among them.” Listen watchmen, now is not the time to cower to the fear of man, it’s not the time to cower to the looks, their words of disapproval, their false accusations, or our own selfishness. It’s time to open our mouth and let Him fill it.
As Ezekiel at the scroll, it was sweet to taste but quickly became bitter on his stomach and anger filled his heart. The Spirit of God took him to the River Chebar – meaning a far-off place – and he set for 7 days deeply distressed. I believe he was feeling the heart of God toward the people. He had eaten the scroll and was becoming the message of God to the people! BUT HE SET ON IT! This is where some go wrong. They get the message from God and run with it without first becoming it. This causes us to get too much flesh stirred within the message God is asking us to become. After Ezekiel set on it for 7 days, God spoke to him and gave him the instructions of his next step – “Ezekiel, I have made you a watchman – hear the words of My mouth, and give them warning from Me.” Now he was released to be God’s spokesman.
To eat the scroll has a few different facets… if you look at the life of Ezekiel you see that he first walked through or was a symbol of what God wanted to say. Once that took place, the message that he spoke to the people was clear and precise. So, he experienced it then heard God’s heart on it, and then spoke it. I do not believe with anything inside of me that God will ever ask a watchman prophet to speak forth a word that they have not first walked through. Why? Because we cannot be a voice into something that we aren’t willing to walk ourselves and this is why there are so few true watchmen in this world right now. This is where some may argue with me saying there are also watchman on the wall that call out danger which doesn’t require ‘setting on it’, ‘eating the scroll’, or ‘becoming the message’… but can I rebuttal with this… even the watchman that were placed on the wall with trumpets in their hands were trained how to recognize the danger, the way the enemy would look, who was and was not a part of their tribe, etc. They were trained as to how many blows on the trumpet represented the type of danger approaching and more. This my friend was them eating the scroll and being the message to the people. They weren’t just given a trumpet and tossed on a wall in hopes that they would know what to do. It’s not a call for the selfish, the weak, or the fearful! It’s a call to the selfless, the courageous and fearless.
I want to take a moment to speak the watchmen prophets out there… If God has called you to this and you are choosing to stay silent out of fear of man – be warned, those He’s asked you to speak to and you’re not, if they die in their iniquity – their blood is on your hands. There are absolutely no excuses in the kingdom of God. I rebuke the spirit of fear off of your life right now in the name of Jesus and I call you to rise up! To those of you who have chosen to rise up to the call – I pray the Spirit of God come upon you and set your face as a flint stone in the face of adversity and persecution. I pray that you have the discernment to know when to set on His words and when to speak them out. I pray that you understand the fullness of this call on your life – it’s truly a life or death call! It’s a call to a life fully surrendered, a life that walks in crazy obedience, and a life that is determined to see His kingdom come and His will done on this earth!
There are so many in the ‘church’ that want to be prophets because they think it’s the “COOL” title. Can I tell you, it’s not the cool title – for those who are truly called, it’s the position that will cause you to lose friends, to be the outcast, to be misunderstood and to be alone at times – so wake up! To those who are running around amuck believing they are ‘watchmen prophets’ or those who have become stuck in the bitterness and anger, speaking death and destruction into the church and this world – declaring doom and gloom and hopelessness under the guise of the name of Jesus – this is your warning! And those running around claiming that the ‘Church’ needs to change in order to appease the world – accepting what God calls abominations – all under the guise of “just love” – remember this – love corrects, love disciplines, love does not tolerate! Be warned! The call of a watchman prophet is one not to be played with and you will be held accountable for the words that come from your mouth and the ways that you direct those under your voice. I pray your eyes are opened to the truth and your heart is turned towards repentance. I pray that you find freedom into your true purpose and walk in it in strength and courage!
“You will be held accountable for the words that come from your mouth and the ways that you direct those under your voice!”
True Watchman Prophets – I call you out and call you into action! Rise up! Rise up! The Spirit of the Lord is looking for you to come out of your hiding place and into His fullness! Rise up! Rise up! Open your mouth, eat the scroll He unrolls before you, and become His message to those He sends you! Rise UP and ROAR His voice!
He who hears, let him hear and he who refuses, let him refuse.