Why Will You Die?

Introduction

I’d like to encourage you to be opening your Bibles to the Old Testament prophecy of Ezekiel. And particularly Ezekiel chapter 33. If you keep it there, it’ll be the basis for our lesson this morning. You see in Ezekiel chapter 33, the prophet of God asks this question, or God through the prophet, asks this question, why will you die? Now that seems maybe on the surface a bit morbid, or maybe even a question without purpose. The fact is that we know the answer. It is obvious. All of us are going to die, aren’t we? Even from the time in fact of Adam and Eve after they sinned in the Garden of Eden, and God drove them from the tree of life, lest they should eat and live forever.

If man has found his mortal body, dies. God made it that way. Even in the normal circumstances, we may put forth every effort to live. The doctor we go to and he makes a diagnosis that we have some serious illness. We do everything within our power to take the medication or follow the treatment so that we’ll live, to live longer. But ultimately we know that we shall die. Even Methuselah, the oldest on record of 969 years, die. And so why the question? Actually, when we look at the text of Ezekiel chapter 33, we come to verse 11. We learn that the Lord says and tells Ezekiel, say to them, As I live, says the Lord, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked. But that the wicked turn from his way and live.

Turn, turn from your evil ways. Or why should you die, O house of Israel? What the Lord puts forth men through Ezekiel is a is a choice. There’s no reason for you to die. In this death that he’s speaking about is one in which man has choice if he would but repent. You see, Ezekiel is prophesying to a people of Israel, Judah particularly. And already at the time of Ezekiel’s life, he’s with that group of some 10,000 who were taken captive at the time of Jehoakin or Koniah. And some 300 miles away, even yet, his prophecy is to God’s people, that you do not have to suffer as you would. You do not have to die at the hand of the Lord. It is a choice.

Continue in your sin, and there will be death, and there will be destruction. But repent, turn from your evil ways, and you shall live. Actually, you may raise the question then, why would anybody, if he has a choice to live, why would he choose to die? You know, that’s only a couple of reasons that I would think of. Maybe if let’s just say a cup of poison is set before you, would you drink it? Well, maybe if you forgot that it was poison and you just got thirsty and you picked it up, and so you weren’t thinking. Or maybe on the other hand you may believe it really won’t affect you. That you could drink it and you would not die. No, those are only two reasons.

You probably wouldn’t pick it up and drink it, knowing that it will bring about your death. The point? When God, through Ezekiel, is saying to his people, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked. Here’s a way of life. Why would you choose death? You say to them, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked. I want you to live. God wants all men to be saved. That means for every single person in this audience or throughout the world, Jesus Christ as one who tasted death for all men, the Bible says. There’s a choice for every one of us before God. We would not have to die. You see, really, the application here is not just the physical death, but even of spiritual death, that separation from God.

Indeed, that we come separated from God by our sins. Isaiah 59, verses 1 and 2. Separated by our sins so that God will not hear us. Paul, in writing to the church at Ephesus in chapter 2, spoke of how that before they became Christians. He said, You were dead in your trespasses and sins. In that sense, there’s a spiritual death, a separation from God, that even while we may be alive physically, we may even now be dead in a spiritual sense. Romans 6 and verse 33 or 23, the scripture says the wages of sin is death. But not only in this life, while we may be walking physically, there will come a time of physical death.

You ever thought about that? Also in Revelation 21 and verse 8, it speaks about those who who are liars and those who are evil shall be cast in the lake of fire and brimstone, which is described as the second death. Facing it, reality is we all know we’re going to die physically. We do not know maybe when that time will come. But we have a choice of whether we shall die spiritually or not. We have a choice of whether we remain even in this life, walking in trespasses and sins separated from God, and upon which will be the ultimate death. Hell, the description that is called the lake that burns with fire and brimstone. I put before you, therefore, this morning, why would anybody choose that death?

1. Some Choose Death Because They Were Not Properly Warned

Even as God’s people of the past, who indeed brought upon themselves God’s displeasure, and God would raise the question, why would you choose it? So it should be for us even in this generation of time. Why would anybody choose death? That is spiritual death, separation from God. I’m going to suggest to you that even in Ezekiel 33, there are at least three different reasons that the people of God, even back then, really could choose death. And I think the application is for our own time. Indeed, it might be that there will be some who will choose death because they were not properly warned. And that’s a lesson probably to the majority in this audience. Not that we would necessarily choose death, but that we have that responsibility of being a watchman.

You see, in Ezekiel chapter 33, if you have your Bible open, in verses 6 through 8, God through his prophets speaks about how that he had set up, first of all, Ezekiel as the watchman over God’s people. When he says, if the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet, and the people are not warned, and the sword comes and takes any person from among them, he’s taken away in his iniquity. But his blood I will require at the watchman’s hand. So you, son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel. Therefore you shall hear a word from my mouth and warn them for me. That when I say to the wicked, oh wicked man, you shall surely die, and you do not speak to warn the wicked from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity.

But his blood I will require at your hand. You ever thought about yourself as being a watchman? You know the Lord. Many of you in this audience, the majority of you in this audience certainly have obeyed the gospel of Christ. You call yourself faithful Christians. Do you set yourself up as perhaps a person who has responsibility to others? Are there those in your acquaintance, maybe even in your own family, that you have not really talked about the gospel of Christ? Are their neighbors of yours? Are they friends of yours? We all have a responsibility who know the word. Paul wrote to Timothy in 2 Timothy chapter 2, that even of the things that he had heard from Paul, that he was to commit to faithful men who shall be able to teach others also.

I would hope that every one of us, as a child of God, would say, Look, it’s not just for me. The gospel is for my friends and for my loved ones. And I have a responsibility. If I know that they’re at the precipice, they are about to fall to their death, and I don’t mean just physically. How sad it would be to come to their funeral. Know that I failed to mention to them. There’s a song we sometimes sing, you never mention him to me. The song that kind of pictures a judgment scene. What would it be like come judgment day that someone could turn and say, Look, I didn’t know. And you just never mentioned the Lord to me. How sad that would be. Not only upon every Christian is that responsibility.

But as a watchman, certainly those who preach the word, evangelists. In 2 Timothy chapter 4, the apostle addresses Timothy himself. It says, Preach the word. Be in season, out of season. You think about that. It’s not always easy to preach what needs to be preached. I mean, it’s easy to preach about heaven. It’s easy to say, Boy, I love you, you’re a good people, God loves you, and it’s everything is going to be good, and it’s going to work out for you. That’s when you’re preaching in season. But when you’re preaching out of season, it’s when they don’t really want to hear it. It may be that it’s hard a message. I tell you, it’s hard to tell people you need to repent. You need to obey the gospel.

Sometimes they react, they may say, Oh, are you the judge? And you’d have to say, No, I’m not. The judge, the Lord is the judge. But I do have responsibility because I truly love you. There is a responsibility to say, here’s what God’s will is. Tell it to them. Set it before them. Not only as evangelists, as members of God’s family, but in a special way, God set up elders as shepherds of his flock. And as shepherds, we have that responsibility. In Hebrews chapter 13, the writer says, obey them that have the rule over you. Submit unto them as they that watch for your souls, as they that must give an account. As elders, there is a responsibility over a local congregation and a flock that there is right teaching done.

That it’s the truth that is being preached. He says in Acts 20 and verse 28, when Paul spoke to the elders at Ephesus, he said, take heed to yourselves and to all the flock. Do what? Over which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers to feed the church or the family of God which is purchased with his own blood. When elders may call or speak to you about some matter, maybe elders in a congregation may have to even stand up and say, This is what the truth is. And maybe we’ve had some error being taught among us. It’s not an easy task to be done, but it’s for the spiritual benefit of your souls. Responsibility to warn as a watchman. Fact is, in Ezekiel chapter 34, the prophet of God speaks in the very next chapter from our lesson today about the shepherds of Israel.

Even in his day, Ezekiel was speaking to people who were in captivity, and was speaking about a destruction of the city of Jerusalem back at his homeland, you might say, how it would one day be destroyed. And he said, the reason is because the shepherds did not warn. The shepherds did not teach. They did not go after those who were astray. And there’s an application to our own point and period of time. Oh, indeed, there will be some who die, because those who knew did not warn. Those who had opportunity to say, Here is God’s will, here is his message. And they fell to speak it and to warn. What a sad thing to have one say, you know, come judgment day. You never mention him to me.

2. Once Righteous, But Turned Away

But there are other reasons why some will choose death. Now it becomes more the responsibility of the of the individual himself. You know, those of us who may say, Well, I know the truth. I’ve obeyed the gospel. I understand where even on the day of Pentecost, when Peter preached the message, repent and be baptized, every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of your sins. You shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. I’ve obeyed that. There’s some perhaps who thought of baptism as, shall I say, the finish line? We never really grew. We haven’t really advanced. We’ve just sort of been satisfied as a Christian. And maybe even the time has come where, yeah, well, you know, we live in this world, and there are a lot of tests and a lot of temptations to us, and therefore we find ourselves maybe falling to the tempter.

The devil seeks you.

It is a sad fact to take an old membership directory and look at it and sometimes say, you know, what happened to this person? This person once was a member of the Lord’s church and hasn’t attended in months and even maybe years. Fallen away. There are those in the religious world who might say, Well, one saved, always saved. If you really knew the gospel, then you’re going to be eternally saved. And sometimes they even make the statement, well, those who may have turned away, turned away because they never were really taught or really converted.

You know, even the Lord spoke about in Ezekiel’s day of those who were righteous, who had the choice, who turned away. Again, in your Bible, look at Ezekiel chapter 33. In beginning in verse 12, the scripture says, Therefore, you, O Son of Man, say to the children of your people, the righteousness of the righteous man shall not deliver him in the day of his transgression. As for the wickedness of the wicked, he shall not fall because of it in the day that he turns from his wickedness, nor shall the righteous be able to live because of his righteousness in the day that he sins. When I say to the righteous that he shall surely live, but he trusts in his own righteousness and commits iniquity, none of his righteous works shall be remembered, but because of the iniquity that he has committed, he shall die.

It’s not hard to understand. What he’s saying is that you cannot store up righteousness. You’re not going to say, Now, Lord, you know, I obeyed the gospel. Practice, my mother and father before me were Christian. And I come from a long line of members of the Lord’s church. I’ve been baptized. I’ve been faithful. I’ve done a lot of good things in my life. But maybe the devil began to win in my heart. And I became lukewarm first and then fell away next. Well, what about those righteous deeds? Does that count? Come time of judgment day. Can we store up righteousness and say, well, it’ll be all right, surely, because you know I’ve been once baptized. I used to live in North Alabama, Florence, Alabama, in fact.

And it was an old, old congregation. I mean, when I say old, it had been in existence for many years. And actually, many of the people living at the time I was there didn’t even remember where it went and got started. But I was amazed one time when there was a person in the city who died in the newspaper listed as a member of that particular congregation. When I spoke to the elders, even they were not aware of this person. They ever counted himself as a member of the Lord’s church. Yeah, it came time of death. It was like, yeah, I once obeyed the gospel of the Lord, don’t you remember me? Ezekiel, God through Ezekiel says, No, you can’t store up righteousness. You can’t say, well, you know, I once was faithful.

What about now? Fact is, the Bible warns not only in the Old Testament, but also the New Testament. Once saved, always saved is a false doctrine. It’s just not true. The fact is that we can turn. If you can talk to the sinner and turn him to the Lord, cannot a believer quit believing. In 2 Peter chapter 2, the scripture very pointedly speaks about how sad it would be, how really uh repulsive it is. To have a person who once knew the way and turn away from it. Peter wrote in 2 Peter 2 verse 24, if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and they are again entangled in them and overcome, the latter end is worse for them than the beginning.

Listen to that. This one who has escaped the pollution of the world. He’s obeyed the gospel. Sins are forgiven. But now he’s turned back into the world and overcome. That latter end is worse. What does he mean by that? In verse 21, it would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness than having known it to turn from the holy commandment delivered to them. But it has happened to them according to the true proverb. A dog returneth to his own vomit, a sow having washed to her wallering in the mire. What a repulsive way to describe. But here’s a man who once was faithful, or a woman who once was faithful and then became unfaithful. Does it sound like that person has stored up righteousness and it won’t matter?

Will be saved. Once saved, always saved, certainly is a false doctrine. In Hebrews chapter 10, in fact, in verses 26 through 29, there the writer speaks about one who may sin willfully after having received the knowledge of the truth. The scripture there speaks about him that there he will die with mercy. There is no forgiveness of his sins. Only through Jesus Christ and faithfulness, there is no longer remaining a sacrifice for sin, but a certain fearful expectation of judgment and fiery indignation which devours the adversaries. It’s a horrible thought. To come to the judgment day. And the Lord began to judge us individually, and all you can say is, Well, Lord, I once was faithful. I once did this. I may not have been very faithful lately, but uh but I once obeyed the gospel.

Is that really how you want the Lord to find you as a person who in time past was faithful? Well, those who teach the doctrine really sometimes will say, Don’t you know that the Bible speaks about the security of the believer? And this is the fact is that’s a true doctrine. Where it the Bible says that a righteous man can turn from his righteousness. It does give assurance of those who are faithful to the Lord. Jesus in John chapter 10 spoke about those whom the Lord had given to him, those who heard his word. Now, here’s a sense of faithfulness. And he says, even the devil cannot snatch them out of the Father’s hand. That verse is sometimes read, and somebody says, Well, see there, the devil can’t snatch you out of God’s hand if you’ve once been in his hand.

What the miss is that those who are hearing God’s word and are faithful, there is a sense of security. I’ll tell you, the Bible gives some really wonderful, uh, encouraging words of those of us who may say, Look, I’m continuing as a believer. I’m continuing to do all that I know to do to be as faithful as I can to the Lord. There’s a sense of security. If the devil gets you, it’s because you have turned to him. It’s because you’ve allowed yourself to be snared by the temptations of the evil one. In Romans chapter 8, in fact, the last five verses really of that chapter, it gives some really encouragement to those who’ve striving to serve the Lord. Beginning in verse 35, the apostle raises the question, who shall separate us from the love of Christ?

And then he lists several things. Shall tribulation or distress or persecution or famine or nakedness, peril, or sword. As it is written, For your sake we are killed all day long. We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. There again is the idea the devil cannot snatch you, and there’s nothing in this life can separate you from the Lord so long as you continue to hear his word.

So long as you continue to serve him. There is the promise that God is in control. And there’s the promise of life everlasting. You can’t store it up and quit, but as long as you’re being faithful, security of the believer. In fact, one other passage that I think is important in this point, from Hebrews chapter 3, there the Hebrew writer gives a warning to Christians when he says, take heed, brethren. Now notice, first of all, he’s talking to Christians. Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God. But exhort one another daily while it is called a day, lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. For we have become partakers of Christ if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast to the end.

There’s a little word in that last verse 14. If, if we hold the beginning of our confidence, if we continue faithfully walking in Him, then we have assurance of God’s eternal blessing. But did you notice? He spoke about some who can depart. Take heed, brethren, lest any of you with an evil heart of unbelief in departing. You cannot be, you cannot depart from this building if you haven’t been in this building, can you? When those who say, well, you know, there may be some, those who teach the doctrine of once saved, always saved, like to answer, well, you know, if somebody leaves the Lord, it’s because he really never was saved. It won’t add up. The truth is, in Hebrews 3, he’s talking about people who have been saved.

They are in the fellowship with the Christ. They have obeyed the gospel of the Lord. And then he says to them, lest you depart. What’s the warning to every Christian in this audience? Take heed. You can depart from the Lord. You can allow yourself to grow cold and indifferent toward the Lord. And you can lose your soul. Indeed, why will you choose death? If you found yourself becoming a bit unfaithful, if maybe coming to a service like this is sort of hard and you just drag yourself in because you just have to.

Maybe you need to spend a little bit more time in prayer and thought guarding your heart lest the devil take over, because he will.

3. Warned, But He Does Not Turn From His Way

Don’t let it happen. The question that Ezekiel, or God through Ezekiel, put before the people of the past fits today as well. The Lord has no pleasure in the death of the wicked. Why do you choose it then? Don’t allow yourself to be ensnared by the devil. But there’s one more group that even in Ezekiel chapter 33. While some would choose death, first of all, because the watchman failed to warn and they did not know. Or because they once were righteous, but then they turned away. But the third group is found really in Ezekiel 33 and in verse 9. After speaking about the work of the watchman, he says in verse 9, nevertheless, if you warn the wicked to turn from his way, and he does not turn from his way, he shall die in his iniquity, but you have delivered your soul.

Now, what is he illustrated in this text? The fact is that all of us have responsibility to warn. And if we do not warn, that person’s blood, that is his eternal condemnation, we may be held accountable to the fact that we failed to at least warn him. But on the other hand, if we have warned, our duty is simply that, to warn. He may choose not to heed the warning. He may turn his back and say, okay, later, or not now. I’ve sometimes said, and I’ve known people who say, I understand the truth, and one day I’m going to obey it, but not now. That’s the devil’s plea. After you’ve been convinced of what the truth is, the last word the devil has is don’t do it today, wait till tomorrow.

That’s what the devil wants of you. And there are those who would say, you know, he’s probably got the truth, and that’s probably right, and someday I intend to obey it. You know, Ezekiel warned Jerusalem, warned God’s people that because of their sin, that that city would one day be besieged. In fact, in Ezekiel chapter 24, and verses 1 and 2, he even specified the time. Again, in the ninth year, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month, the word of the Lord came to me, saying, Son of man, write down the name of the day, this very day. The king of Babylon started his siege against Jerusalem this very day. Now, how could Ezekiel have known? When you turn to 2 Kings chapter 25, indeed, it was on in the ninth year, the tenth month, the tenth day.

Ezekiel’s 300 miles away. They didn’t have smartphones then. He didn’t have a paved highway, easy communication. How could he have known? The Lord said, Ezekiel, write it down. And so he did. He wrote it down. And then when Jerusalem fell, recorded in 2 Kings 25, verses 1 through 4, it was in the 11th year, the fourth month, and the tenth day. 18 months later. God had said it would. Ezekiel wrote it down when it started, and then told the people that it would happen. How could Ezekiel have known, except God was revealing it unto him? But the point I want to make really comes later when even the people of Judah knew that Ezekiel really had told the truth. That he indeed knew what was coming and wrote it down.

He had been warning them. Ezekiel 33, verses 30 through 32. As for you, son of man, the children of your people are talking about you beside the walls and in the doors of the houses. And they speak to one another. Everyone’s saying to his brother, please come and hear what the word is that comes from the Lord. You know, when Ezekiel started out back in chapter 2 of Ezekiel, God told Ezekiel, I want you to go and preach to these people. Now they are hard-headed. They’re impudent people. They are rebellious people. In Ezekiel, they won’t listen to you, they won’t obey. But I want them to know that the word of the Lord has been spoken. So much of his time preaching, they turned their back on Ezekiel.

They didn’t repent, they didn’t turn. But now that he wrote down when the siege would take place, and it did occur, now they’re convinced, hey, Ezekiel does happen to know what is right. He is a prophet of the Lord. And so, as in chapter 33, verses 30 through 32, they begin to say, hey, you know, Ezekiel’s pretty good preacher. He’s got the truth over there. In fact, yeah, maybe we ought to come hear him. Verse 31. So they come to you as people do. They sit before you as my people. They hear your words, but they do not do them. For with their mouth they show much love, but their hearts pursue their own gain. Indeed, you are to them as a very lovely song of one who has a pleasant voice and can play well on an instrument, for they hear your words, but they do not do them.

What a sad statement. Ezekiel, they like you now. They know you’re a prophet of God, and they say, Oh, let’s go hear Ezekiel. But that’s all they do. It’s like we sometimes say words go in one ear and out the other. You ever heard that? That’s kind of what they’ve been doing with Ezekiel. They love to hear you. You’re a pleasant song to them. Are there those today who may like the people of Ezekiel’s day? With their mouth they show love. Luke 6 46, Jesus said, Why call me Lord, Lord, and do not the things I say? If you really love the Lord, this is the love of God that you keep his commandments. 1 John 3 and verse 5. 5 and verse 3 it is.

Conclusion

If you really love the Lord, keep his word. In fact, if you really say you’re a believer or a believer is not one who just hears and does nothing, what does it profit a man if you say he has faith but have not worked or obedience? Can faith save him? James 2 illustrates the very fact that those who may claim to have faith, but who refuse to obey are a people only deceiving themselves. I say to you this morning, have you chosen death? Why? I’m talking about spiritual death. I know I’m talking to some in this audience who fit this last category. Who would say, yes, you know, I I know what the Bible says. Someday I’m going to obey the gospel. Someday I’m going to be baptized and I’m going to serve the Lord.

I believe it. But they do not obey it. If death comes to you physically, and you suffer the second death, why? Why would you choose that? Would you drink that cup of poison if it’s set in front of you? And you say, No. Why then are you choosing spiritual, the eternal death? I know there’s some in this audience too who fit the second category. Who’ve once been on fire for the Lord, you’ve obeyed the gospel, but you’ve sort of grown cold and indifferent, and you’re on the process and the way of falling away. Don’t allow that to happen in your life, maybe being indifferent. It is so easy to try to store up righteousness. It won’t work that way. Get yourself on fire for the Lord, serve him faithfully.

Repent. Turn back to him. And then to that first group that we talked about this morning, maybe all the rest of us fall there. Do you know of someone that you should encourage? That maybe you need to teach because they are your loved ones. And you at least you can’t answer for them. They’ll have to answer. But all we can do is set the message before them. Perhaps every one of us can see ourselves somewhere in this lesson, at least. I hope that we will. And it’ll cause us all to preach the word. We’re going to sing a song of invitation in just a moment. To make a stop and think about indeed what we where we stand before the Lord. I hope this morning we can all go forth from the building saying, Lord, to the best of my ability, I’m giving you the all that I have.

I look forward to the coming of the Christ. I would wish it would be today. Or I look forward to that time of judgment and the eternal reward that God has promised through his son. Are you looking with the joy and rejoicing as a Christian for that great day? It’s coming. Will you be ready? We’re going to stand and sing this song. Perhaps there may be some who need to obey the gospel. Our Baptist is ready, this fully prepared. All it takes is in your heart the willingness to choose life, eternal life. You’re subject to that invitation. We bid you come right now while together we stand while we sing