If My People

First the Lord says “if my people, which are called by my name.”  Who are the Lord’s people?  They are not those liberal politicians, university professors, those in Hollywood, or the drug dealer on the street.  Those individuals do need to repent, but that is not who the Lord is referring to in this passage.  In Solomon’s day it was the Children of Israel, in our day it is the Church (both Jew and Gentile).  The apostle Paul stated in Romans 11 that the Gentiles, as the wild branches, have been grafted into the olive tree.  They are those who profess faith in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior for the forgiveness of sins.  It is not enough just to believe in God, for even the demons believe in God and tremble (James 2:19).  We must believe on Him.  This means to put our complete reliance and trust in Him and what He did by shedding His blood on the cross for our sins. If you are reading this today, and you have not chosen to place your faith in the Lord Jesus, you have no basis for which to call yourself a Christian, nor can you expect to benefit from the promises and blessings found in His Word.  The Scriptures say, “Now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” (2 Corinthians 6:2) Choose this day to place your faith in the Lord Jesus and receive eternal life.  So we can see then that the Lord’s people who are called by His name are those who are born again by faith in Jesus Christ.  The Lord addresses His people first, because judgment must first start at the house of God (1 Peter 4:17). As believers, we are not under the Old Covenant, but I believe these principles carry forward into the New Testament and thereby can be applied to us.