I’m sensing a need to take a pause here today, and share a message to clarify something I feel the Lord has put on my heart. It has to do with to whom... are these daily messages I post/share here... directed to? In other words, who is the intended audience? It is a great question to which I am happy to answer. I have no doubt that the people for whom my heart has been burdened to share these with... are anyone and everyone...who considers themselves to be a ‘believer’, a ‘follower’ of Jesus. That’s it...to those who call themselves ‘Christian’.

Truth be told, I have often said over the years that we would probably do better to let others call us ('Christian') that instead of us trying to convince them that is what we are...’Christ-like’. (John 13:34-35)

No, I do not see myself as some self-appointed ‘prophet’ or anything else other than a fellow believer who met Jesus 45 years ago, had a life changing experience when I did, and then overtime...somehow lost my way and did a lot of ‘activity in His name’...but for sure was not truly ‘abiding in Him’ (Matt. 7:22; 1 Cor. 13:1-3; John 15:1-8; 1 John 2:6; 3:6). I’m pretty certain for the longest time, I didn’t even understand what that meant, to ‘abide’ in Him. Then, Jesus brought me back from the ‘dead’, almost five years ago and my life has not been the same sense. All I have sought to do here is share that message with anyone who ‘has ears to hear’ and knows ...there has to be something more than what they have known and experienced thus far, when it comes to this ‘faith walk’ with Jesus.

If we are not careful...it is easy for us ‘Christians’ to hear messages out of the Bible and then think to ourselves that those ‘sinner folks out there’ need to hear this and ‘get right with God’. Friends...it is many... in the so called ‘church world’ that God is calling to ‘get right with Him’ these days. Who did we say 2 Chron. 7:14 was directed to if we wanted to see the ‘land healed’?  Have you read Rev. 2:4-7 and 3:1-6 lately?

When Jesus first began His public ministry, to whom...did He say He came for? “He answered them saying, I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel”. (Matt. 15:24). We read in John 1 that He, the Word who became flesh and dwelt among us, came to ‘His own people...but they did not receive Him.” (John 1:1,14,11)

We come to learn that Jesus looked on the multitudes with compassion, healing all their sicknesses and afflictions as they were weary and scattered sheep who had no shepherd.” (Matt. 9:35-36) It was the same people whom Jeremiah was burdened for and was called to proclaim God’s word, speaking on His behalf, declaring “My people have been lost sheep. Their shepherds have led them astray (Jer. 50:6; 23:1,16-22). He lamented...”My eyes will weep bitterly and run down with tears because the Lord’s flock has been taken captive.” (13:17). And who do we know takes God’s people...’captive’? (2 Tim. 2:25-26, Acts 26:18)

In fact, there is the one story in the gospels where a woman who was not even Jewish came to Jesus begging Him to deliver her daughter from a demon ...and do you remember what Jesus told her? He said that ‘bread’ was for God’s children and not the dogs’ (unbelievers) (Mark 7:24-30). Imagine that...healing and demonic deliverance was intended for God’s children...of all people. And here we thought all this time it was all those ‘folks over in Africa and Haiti’ that needed demons cast out of them!

Friends...the established ‘church folks’ back in Jesus day made the same mistake that many of us have done today- we think much of this Bible talk of ‘repentance’ is for them ‘sinner folks’ out there in the world whom we work with and live next door to, but don’t go to our church.

It is easy for us to do a quick spiritual ‘inventory’, as Paul suggest in 2. Cor. 13:5, and say to ourselves...”Yep...I’m good, I’m ‘saved’ since I ‘accepted Christ, got baptized, joined the church and read my Bible regularly.” Then we direct all these messages and verses from the Bible to all those on the ‘outside’...who clearly are ‘worse sinners than us’. (Luke 18:9-14). And how did Jesus respond to those whining religious folks in Luke 5:30-32?

If there are any admitted ‘non-believers’ out there who come across these messages and find themselves wanting to know more and actually draw nearer to God, then praise the Lord for that. But it’s not them...these messages are crafted for and directed to. Now I’m sure many of you who do profess to be a ‘believer’, yet struggle in your walk of faith, as most of us have done over time, would be the first ones to point out how ‘dark’...the world is becoming. Oddly enough, many have been convinced if we could just ‘elect the right people’ to serve in public office that we could turn things around.

May I remind you that for all the spiritual darkness that truly does exist today, that darkness is simply nothing else...but the ‘absence of light’. Walk into a dark room, flip the light switch, and what happens to the darkness? And what did Jesus call us, His church...to be? I believe He said...”You are the light of the world...walk in the light while you have it”...(as He is in the light’ – Matt.5:14; John 12:35-36; 1 John 1:7). So the more we lament and wring our hands, bemoaning how ‘dark and sinful this old world has become’ while we wait for the ‘rapture bus’ to sweep us out of here, is it possible we are indicting ourselves by admitting somewhere along the way...we let ‘Satan blow out our light’, as the old children’s song says?

So what about all those ‘non-believers’ out there, you ask? Where do they all ‘fit in’ when I talk about this ‘coming wrath’ (yesterday’s message) and that honestly, is already here? (Rom. 1:18; John 5:14; Eph. 5:6). That’s a fair question. You might read 1 Cor. 5:9-13, 2 Thess. 1:7-10; Phil. 2:10, and Romans 14:12, that clearly says we will all stand before Him and given an account for ourselves; but let’s not forget...who is God going to deal with first? (1 Pet. 4:17-18)

And what might Peter possibly be talking about when he left these parting words: “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.” (2 Pet. 2:21)