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In fact, God says to Ezekiel, 
warn the nation. If they heed you, then that's 
great. I'm paraphrasing. If they don't 
heed you, I won't hold you responsible. I will hold them responsible. 
In fact, the section is in Ezekiel 33, 1 to 5. I'll just read verse 
4. own head. Now, what's the point 
here? Paul is doing something that 
is so contrary and so revolutionary when we consider our own era, 
both within the church and outside of the church. He is telling 
persons, individuals, image bearers, that they are responsible to 
God. Now, that doesn't always happen 
in the church vis-a-vis hyper-Calvinism. We so amplify sovereignty that 
we neglect responsibility. And sinners are never being told, 
never being exhorted, never being yelled at and shouted at that 
they are responsible for their continual rebellion against God, 
for their continual rejection against the Son of God. We try 
to hide behind divine sovereignty. Or rather, sinners, if you give 
them that opportunity, will hide there every time. Oh, well, God's 
predestined. God's elect. God's sovereignty. I just don't 
know if I'm... Don't let them do that, brethren. 
To reject Jesus Christ means that you are responsible for 
what you have done. Now, when we extrapolate this 
principle into the larger world, I think that this is fundamentally 
an issue today. Every problem everybody has is 
everybody else's fault. Not according to the Apostle 
Paul. You made your bed, now lay in it. If you are rejecting 
the Lord God Most High, whether it be gospel or whether it be 
some other area of your life, trying to portray everybody else 
as the reason why you're in dire straits, that ultimately is going 
to come back to bite you. So may I encourage all of us, 
with the nicest gym face I can, to accept your responsibility 
before a holy God. He is the moral governor of the 
universe, and we do not have the right to try to hide, to 
try to evade, or to try to blame everybody else. Well, Paul, you 
weren't clear enough. Well, Paul, you were a bit forceful. 
Paul, you said things that I didn't really care about. That's not 
supposed to happen. Own it. If you're a rebel sinner 
this morning, if you are not a believer in Jesus Christ, there 
is one person in this room you can blame. It ain't me. It's 
you. If you are the kind of person 
that always tries to evade responsibility by pointing the spotlight at 
others, may I again encourage you to knock it off? The Most 
High God is not to be trifled with. The Most High God saw Adam 
and Eve when they covered themselves and they hid among the trees. 
The Most High God knows the sorts of games that you are playing. 
The Most High God knows the sorts of ways that you are trying to 
evade your responsibility. Again, may I encourage you, lay 
down your arms. Lay down your weapons. Lay down 
all those things that you use to rebel against God Almighty. 
Wave the white flag and surrender to Him. Not any man, not any 
person, not bow the knee to other people, but bow it to King Jesus 
Christ, confessing Him as Lord and Savior. This was David's 
exhortation to the nations around Israel, to the pagan nations 
around Israel. Did David say, well, you know, 
they're on their own. They've got their Moloch, they've got 
their Baal, they've got all these other things. Do you understand, 
that's why Paul can tell you, when you're eating at somebody's 
house, you don't have to ask them, was this steak offered 
up to an idol? You don't have to do that. Why? 
Because there's really no veil. There's really no Moloch. These 
are figments of man's imagination. And so David doesn't reason. 
Well, the nations around us, they have their own gods. No. 
No. He says to the judges, he says 
to the kings of the earth, he says to the civil authority that 
were parallel to him, him and Israel, them elsewhere in the 
pagan world, and he tells them to kiss the sun, lest he be angry 
and you perish in his way when his wrath is kindled but a little. He ends that second Psalm on 
a beatitude, blessed are all those who put their trust in 
Him. This is absolutely imperative. If you are a sinner here this 
morning, I'm not picking on you, I'm a sinner too. I wasn't one 
who grew up and, oh boy, I'm just going to decide to follow 
Jesus. That ain't my story whatsoever. But I am appealing to you today, 
if you are not saved, please don't blame your parents. Please 
don't blame your pastors. Please don't blame some experience 
you had in the third grade. Blame yourself and listen to 
the reality. God the Lord addresses the nations 
in the prophet Isaiah. He says, look unto me, all ye 
ends of the earth, for I am God and there is no other. Christ 
says to weary, heavy laden sinners, come to me, all you who are weary 
and heavy laden, and I will give you rest. What is that invitation 
in Isaiah the prophet at chapter 55? Everyone who thirsts, let 
him come. You who have no money, you have 
no wages or whatever, come and buy and eat. Take the refreshing 
water of the gospel, the nourishing milk of the gospel, the exhilarating 
wine of the gospel. It's all yours without any payment. 
It's because of grace. It's because of kindness. It's 
because of mercy. It's because of who our God is. 
So don't blame anyone, rather, Plead to the Lord Jesus and find 
that mercy, find that grace, find that peace with God that 
surpasses all understanding. It is most blessed and most excellent.