Last week we looked at the phrase; “my people”, and we saw that revival begins in the church, with the people of God. 2 Chronicles 7:14 starts with: “If my people….”.
Previously we touched on the question; who are the people of God? And the next phrase in the verse clarifies that further: “who are called by my name”.
To be someone who is called by His name, we need to have first called on the name of Jesus for salvation. Acts 2:21 states: “And it shall be that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” The Bible is clear that only those who have called on the name of Jesus, in a personal way, making Jesus Lord of their lives, are the children of God. We can go to church, sing the songs, give an offering even take communion, but none of these things makes one a Christian. As Jesus said to the Pharisee named Nicodemus in John chapter 3: “Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.”
So when it comes to revival and a fresh move of God, God chooses to begin with His church, the people who are called by His name. As a result of this we carry a tremendous responsibility, we need to ensure that we are truly following Jesus, and then realize that we are here to reflect and honor the name of God in our daily lives.
The world does not judge Christians the way we do, when one Christian falls in sin, the world points to the whole church and declares them hypocrites. We are all sinners saved by grace, and are prone to sin, but the world holds those who claim the name of Jesus to a higher standard and rightly so. As Christians it is important to allow the Holy Spirit to use us to reflect who Jesus is to the lost and dying world around us. Not standing in judgment and condemning everyone, but rather pointing them to the glorious Gospel message of Jesus Christ.
So the responsibility of all true believers in Jesus Christ is this, we are to point and direct people to Jesus, not push them away by our lifestyle or critical nature.
That is what it means to be a people who are called by His name.