And now, you know, one of the biggest parts of the news is talking about what? Vaccinations. And people are talking about getting vaccinated or not getting vaccinated - about a dose of something, right? People are thinking and talking about a dose or two doses of something that can protect them, you know? Maybe give ‘em a sense of hope, or maybe even if they still get COVID, it won't be as bad right? But it's a big topic for today.

We know that the vaccine for COVID isn't the first vaccine that has rolled out in America. We know that there have been vaccines in the past for polio, for chickenpox and all sorts of different things to give people, you know, maybe a sense of hope that they’re not going to get this disease. And I know that we hear and we see so much about COVID, but there's another sickness that I want to talk about today church. And it's a sickness that has plagued the church in America today. And it's not COVID. It's not chickenpox, but it is a spiritual leprosy. Leprosy!

Now if you are familiar with many of the stories in the Bible between the Old and the New Testament, we find that the Bible mentions the sickness, the disease of leprosy over forty times which is really a lot. And in the Bible there was never a cure found. They say today there really still isn't a cure. There are maybe better medicines to help alleviate some of the symptoms, and maybe help with some of the things that happen. But ultimately, there really is no cure.

Now what happens with leprosy? See when a person has leprosy, they experience some terrible things, but one major thing is that it really disfigures the person who has the disease. It disfigures, you know, the way that they’re supposed to look and the way that their skin should be. It really disfigures it as the flesh begins to kind adie and rot away from the sickness. Their body becomes distorted and all of it shows within itself really in the flesh - it's a flesh disease that you can see come out. And even worse than just the disease itself are the outcomes, you know? There's a big separation, and you even see that in the Scriptures - those with leprosy, they’re separated from family, they’re separated from the community, because not only is it contagious, but it just seems to be a terrible sight for many people, and it really doesn't allow people to live in the fullness of their life in any which way shape or form.

And see, even in the Scripture leprosy, it's interesting because through most of the cases of leprosy that you see in the Scriptures, it was considered the result of a sin, you know? A curse of some type of wickedness in a person's life. Some examples are Miriam Moses’ sister. She decided at one point she had some better ways than her brother Moses - better than God. She decided to go her own way, and in the wickedness, she was struck with leprosy. We see a man named Gehazi - also in the Scriptures, and we can go on and on - but Gehazi, a man who decided to go after the things of the flesh. He wanted money, and he went about dishonest gain, and God saw it and because of his sin, Gehazi was struck with leprosy.

And so today as I say about the American church today there has been a plague of a spiritual leprosy. We can ask ourselves why? Could it be because of our wickedness? Could it be because of our turning from God? Could it be because of some sin, some rebellion that has been caused against God throughout the church in this nation today? You see much of the American church has been infected. But how? What do I mean? What does that look like? Well think about it for a moment with me.

Most messages that are preached today are messages of the flesh. You know, ‘God is here to make your life a lot better.’ Messages that say it's not about seeking the Lord it's not about obedience it's not about testing our faith or truly seeing if our election is sure, but it’s just about you - and it is all to get us to indulge in our flesh. Messages out there that say, ‘Christianity is not about God. It is about you and it is about me,’ and there has been a plague of this disease this spiritual leprosy, that has left us chasing after our flesh and indulging in that which is against God.

It's caused a disfiguration right? I said that it causes physically a disfiguration, but a disfigured view of the love of God that has left many Christians today unconnected to God - but only connected to self. A separation from God in our minds and in our hearts. And eventually, the spiritual leprosy causes complete destruction of the soul. It causes a terrible end.

But today church, there is a cure. There is a cure and it is a dose of faith. It is a dose of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. There is something better than a vaccine. There is something better than a dose of any other medication, and His name is Jesus.

"Are you ready for a dose of faith today, church? Are you ready for a dose of something powerful that God wants to do?"

Are you ready for a dose of faith today, church? Are you ready for a dose of something powerful that God wants to do? You see church, we were meant to be whole. We were meant to be pure and clean as the bride of Christ - not struck with disease! You see God wants to break this spiritual sickness today. This is why He has come. He has come to break the powers of hell. He has come to break the sickness. He has come to break that which has held us against the Kingdom, to come into His glory. Will this be the day for you? Will you receive a dose of faith today?

And so what kind of faith am I talking about? What is in this dose, right? When you're about to get a dose of something - you know when Pastor Janeth, when my mom, when we’re talking about medications or different things - the first thing she says is, ‘What's in it?’ Right? And her being a nurse and having that medical background, she's like, ‘Wait a minute - they’re mixing those two things?’ Or, ‘Wait a minute - that’s really good right there.’ You know, when you’re gonna get a dose of something, you don’t just say, ‘Give it to me,’ you go, ‘Why? Where does it come from?’ Right? I want to talk about this dose of faith today.

And so,if you have your Bibles, it’s also gonna be on the screen. We’re going to go to the book of 2 Kings, chapter 5. And we’re gonna be reading about a man named Naaman. What's interesting about Naaman was that he was a man who had leprosy, right? And we’re talking about a spiritual leprosy that has plagued the church of America that God wants to break - and what better example can I find then Naaman? A man who was plagued with this disease yet God had come in and healed him. This was a man who received a few doses of faith, amen!

And so, the first part about this dose of faith that I'd like to talk about today, is that this dose of faith is a faith that is humble. It's a faith that is humble. Let's read verse 1. It says, “Now Naaman was commander of the army of the king of Aram. He was a great man in the sight of his master and highly regarded, because through him the Lord had given victory to Aram. He was a valiant soldier, but he had leprosy.”

Now, look at me and think about this for a minute, church. You know, Naaman, he was a great man. He was highly esteemed before the king - I can imagine people thought he was a wonderful warrior. It says that he was valiant. It says clearly also that the Lord had used him to give victory to the king. So we know that he was used by God just as the Lord has used some of us here today, right? And we carefully read though here, that although he was highly regarded, although he was valiant, there's a word there. It says, “...But he had leprosy...” He was great. He did a lot, but every day, he came back to the same old snare. Every day he kept coming back to the same old sickness. Every day he kept coming back to the same old disease. Leprosy. “...But he had leprosy…”

Maybe somebody here today has been somebody that God has used many times. Maybe God has used you in different situations and circumstances. There's been some genuine power. Maybe an awesome and awesome experiences that have been great - but there has been something that keeps taking you back. Where every time you feel like you’ve taken a step forward, all of a sudden it's like you're taking two steps back. It's where you know that you’ve received the touch of God but somehow you keep coming back to that old selfishness. It’s where God has blessed something in your life but somehow you’ve distorted it along the way - in a way that God never intended.

And you know, for some of us it may even be we have a good family, we have a home, we have our cars, and we have our house but there's some underlying anger. There's some issues of rage and just darkness that seems to continually keep you and your children from connecting to God - from connecting to each other. If that is you today church, I want to say, you are not alone. You are in the house of the Lord, where there is a dose of faith. You are in a place where God is able to break the sickness, He is able to break the sin, to break the disease, and to make us whole.

The status quo is not enough to just kinda get by. To say, ‘Yeah, we’re Christians and we’re kind of just making it, but there's kind of a little bit of a backtrack for us but there’s this, but there’s that.’ God is saying, ‘Get rid of the B.U.T. and come into G.O.D. Come into Me.’

Today, God wants to shatter that ‘but.’ He wants to take it out as He's about to do with Naaman but it takes a dose of faith. A faith that is humble. Let's look at verse 2:“Now bands of raiders from Aram had gone out and had taken captive a young girl from Israel, and she served Naaman's wife. She said to her mistress, ‘If only my master would see the prophet who is in Samaria! He would cure him of his leprosy.’”

"Yet, how many times do we miss a blessing in our life - something that God is about to do because we'd rather hold on to our bitterness?"

Now for me personally I don't know if I was in that situation or circumstance - and some of you gotta be honest with me right - I don’t know if I'd be too happy to give Naaman the way out. Maybe some of us would be thinking, ‘Man, this guy has brought me here. It's his fault. He’s got leprosy, so let it be.’ But no, in the goodness of God - in the humility of her faith - she said, ‘I've gotta tell him about the Good News.’

Yet, how many times do we miss a blessing in our life - something that God is about to do because we'd rather hold on to our bitterness? We’d rather complain about our disappointment that, ‘God, it’s not going my way! ‘ - and we miss the chance to come out of ourselves. We miss the chance to come out of this sickness of self, in the sickness of sin, and we forfeit what God had intended - how God was about to use that circumstance for something bigger, for something better, to bring glory to His name.

And see, it's our pride many times that chooses to just sit and complain instead. And our pride says, ‘You know, I don't want to be in this situation. God I don't deserve to be here.’ You know? And we just shout and we pout and we wind up staying stuck there forever. All the while, God is just looking for one, one who would have faith - ne who would just believe and say, ‘Father, I see my situation but I know that You are the God who sees. Father I see what's happening around me, but I also see that You are my King, and that whatever You do God, what the devil meant for bad - what the devil has allowed to happen in my life that was meant for wickedness Father - You turn it for the good. You are doing something even this day in my situation. You are doing something now, for You are God!’

Do you have a faith that is humble like this slave girl? Do you see your situation as an opportunity for God to change us - for God to do something, to use us for His name? You see Christianity is not about just staying on the highs and hoping that nothing goes wrong. Christianity is about staying steady with God, whether we’re experiencing heaven or hell, because both will come. It's about going after God and having a faith that is humble to say, ‘Father whatever the lot You have for me, Father I receive it. It is well with my soul. Whatever You choose for me this day, You are yet God.’

There came a point in my life when I realized that more than just singing worship songs and fellowship - you know they're all wonderful things - but they don't prove what's on the inside. They don't prove whether this freedom from the disease of continual sin of pride and arrogance and just the darkness that holds us from God is done but I remember the time that God had begun to touch my life, and there came a faith. A faith that said, ‘Father! You are God You are King, and more than the songs that we sing, more than the worship that we do, Father, You are calling me not to be in bondage. You are calling me not to be captivated by sin but to conquer and to come into You more and more every day. Not that we don't sin God, but that sin will not have a hold on me. That sin will not conquer. That sin will not overtake me and hold me back from Your Kingdom.’

And so the result of this slave girl’s humble faith birthed a seed of faith in Naaman, I love it. And Naaman, I want you to know, he wasn't a believer. He wasn't a Jew he was a pagan man. He actually served Syria, the king of Aram. Syria where they worshiped the Baals and all sorts of gods that were all about what? The flesh. There was that sickness there as it is today, in our nation today. A sickness of the flesh, - being after the flesh, conquered by the flesh. But yet, he all of a sudden had a faith that was humble.

You know, some people would say, ‘Can anything good come out of this slave girl who just believes and trusts God?’ That woman who just says, ‘God can do it.’ That person that says, ‘I trust in the Lord and He is able.’ That young man that says, ‘You know what? The rest of the world is going that way, but I trust in the Lord my God.’ Can anything good come from that slave girl? Hallelujah, yes! Because he saw that her life was real. He saw that rather than cursing him, she could have been looking at him and disobeying and raising her fists - but no, she chose to bless him because she knew that God was bigger. She knew that she could trust in the Lord. She knew that God was God.

And we see that Naaman had a faith that was humble because what did he do? He started to make the arrangements. How much has our faith caused us to rearrange in our life? How much has our faith caused us to do something to move? To begin to speak differently? To do things differently, according to what God is calling us to do?

Can someone look at our lives today? Can somebody stop and look at the situation that we’re in - can they look at the problem that we’re facing, and will they see a humble faith? Or do they see somebody who's blinded only to themselves? Only to their issues like a blinded leper. Numb to God numb to everyone and everything else. You see church, today, God wants to shatter the sickness of sin - the darkness the wickedness in our hearts, anything that has been in between us and He wants us to receive a dose of faith. A faith that is humble, saying, ‘Father, here I am. Father, You are my King. Whatever my lot be whatever my circumstance or situation, Father I am humbly here to serve You. God I will wait on You. I will move with You. I will seek You. I will go after You all of my days.’ Hallelujah!

So we need a dose of faith that is humble. Secondly, this dose is a dose of faith that surrenders. Let’s look at verses 4 and 5. It says, “Naaman went to his master and told him what the girl from Israel had said. ‘By all means, go,’ the king of Aram replied. ‘I will send a letter to the king of Israel.’ So Naaman left, taking with him ten talents of silver, six-thousand shekels of gold and ten sets of clothing.” In other words he brought a whole lot of money and a whole lot of things, right?

And so the first person that Naaman approaches and goes to is the king of Israel. Now, follow me for a second here. This is the king of Israel: He's the king of a nation who’s supposed to be God's people. So you would assume a people of faith. You would assume that if anybody the king would be a person of faith - the king would be the guy that's in church. He knows all the Scriptures. He knows his Bible. He prays in the front, he sings songs. He does all these wonderful things for God. You would think that about the king of Israel. Oh, but let’s see what happens.

You see as the king begins to read what the King of Aram wrote, this is what Aram had written to him. It said, “I send my servant Naaman to you so that you can cure him of his leprosy.”

I send my servant Naaman to you so you can cure him of something that has no cure. So that you can take care of something that no man or doctor can seem to do. And what was the king of Israel's response? It wasn't, ‘We’ll pray for you.’ It wasn't, ‘Yea, we’ll work this out.’ He starts freaking out, to the point where he's tearing his robes! And he doesn't know what to do, he thinks that this king of Aram is setting him up and at this message, he just loses it. Why? Because he was terrified at the request. You see, he knew that it was something that couldn't be done, at least not in the flesh.

"...when God calls you to do something that you cannot do, you have just become a Christian."

You see, there was a point in my life where God would call me to do plenty of things. Things that I couldn't do normally. Things out of my comfort zone, out of my ability and immediately, what did I used to do - and Pastor Janeth and maybe my family won't agree - but all of a sudden I’d be like, ‘Why do I have to do this?’ Right? ‘Woe is me. Why? God, didn’t we just do something like this yesterday? I mean, last week...I mean...we really... God I can’t do this without You,’ and just kinda go on and on but then, hallelujah, I realized what a dose of faith would do. I realized that when God calls you to do something that you cannot do, you have just become a Christian. You have just become one that God has called to do greater things. God has called to demonstrate a surrendered faith so that the world would know that He is King.

I thank God today. I thank God for my family. I thank God for our Pastors who have not allowed me to just kind of ride along with just a little bit of religion. Just a little bit of something that I can do in my flesh but to say, ‘Jeff, God has challenged you to go above the flesh - above your abilities and your talent - but to trust in the power of God, because you see, with God that's all that matters.’

And so we look at verse 8. And I love this part because we see Elisha's response. Elisha found out that the king had torn his robes and he’s saying, ‘What's going on over here?’ And here goes Elisha response: “Have the man come to me and he will know that there is a prophet in Israel.”

See Elisha had a faith that trusted God. He was able to stop and discern that this was an opportunity for the Lord to move in power. And I love that. God is calling us to have a faith just like Elisha. A surrendered faith - not looking at me and what I can do but knowing and trusting in what God can do, amen!

And so, we see Naaman, and Naaman now leaves the king and he heads over to Elisha. And now Naaman he comes with all of his chariots, all of his horses, and all of his money. Great grandeur, right? He was expecting that, ‘I'm about to be honored. I mean, I’m the king's man. I mean I got it all together. You know my time has come. I got all my ducks in order. God's about to do something for me.’ And how often do we like everything to be all nice and neat before God moves? How often do we like things to kind of just be in our own scope and in our little, you know, range here? We don't want to step out of that.

You know, ‘I said my prayers this morning. I read my Bible. And actually, this week has been pretty good. I mean, my religion is top game.’ And I want to say today, church, God does not want it. God is not looking for it. But He is looking for a faith that surrenders. A faith that doesn't approach God with a, ‘Checklist of all the good deeds that I've done this week.’ Doesn't approach God hoping that, ‘Because I was pretty good, now I'll actually be blessed.’ But no, a faith that surrenders saying, ‘Father, here I am. I’m putting my thoughts aside. I’m putting what I think is right - I'm putting my abilities, my talents, my money God, and everything that I own to lay before the King and say, Father, have Your way. Here I am I don’t know how it’s gonna be but I know that You are God. I know You're gonna sustain me. I know You’re gonna carry me through.” Church, do you hear me today? Are you ready for a dose of faith? A faith that surrenders to God?

And see, I love this verse right here. I was really laughing with the Lord as I was reading through this. Let’s look at verse 10 and 11, ok? And here goes Elisha as you, know, Naaman approaches, “Elisha sent a messenger to them to say, ‘Go wash yourself seven times in the Jordan, and your flesh will be restored to you and you will be cleansed.’ But Naaman went away angry and said, ‘I thought he would surely come out to me and stand and call on the name of the Lord his God, wave his hand over the spot and cure me of my leprosy.’”

And I had to laugh because Naaman is like, shouting and pounding like a little kid now, right? Right, sound familiar? ‘God, wait a minute! I thought that it was gonna be this way!’ He approaches Elisha, you know, and Elisha doesn't even come to the door. He sends his servant to him. And Naaman’s thinking, ‘Man, I thought you were gonna make a big deal for me! I thought that you were gonna get the whole church together and kinda just honor me before ‘em! You know, I thought that I was gonna get all the time in the world that I wanted!’ And just such a false idea of faith. It's a self-centered faith that we find in the American church today. A faith that is not about who God is, it's not about seeking the Lord but it's about, ‘God, what can You do for me? I mean I thought You were gonna bring me the blessing I've been waiting for? I thought You were gonna bring about what my dreams were?’ And it’s such a self-centered faith that God is calling us out of.

"the thing about God - is He will not be phased by the flesh. He is not phased by our accomplishments. The only thing that moves the heart of God is faith."

And you see, the thing about God that I really learned in my life is He will not be phased by the flesh. He is not phased by our accomplishments. The only thing that moves the heart of God is faith. It's truly faith. And you see the servants and Naaman, I believe that they truly had a faith in God. They knew something about God that Naaman didn't know. They start to pull him aside and they go, ‘Whoa master, slow down here. Don't you understand that maybe he could’ve told you to do something even bigger? He's telling you something simple here.’ Right? And how many times has God even given us something so simple? And they convince him saying, ‘You just gotta surrender to what Elisha is saying. Just surrender to God and give up your fleshy expectations, and just take faith in what God is about to do.’

See for me, I learned that it's not trying to be a golden boy. It's not just about doing a bunch of good things or trying to show some accomplishments. It's not about how much money you give, or how much you’ve kept up with your Bible reading, it's about surrendering to God - to have His way or no other way. True faith is a surrendered faith. True faith comes out in the flesh, by a flesh that is surrendered to God as King. Saying, ‘Father, if You say, ‘Go seven times,’ if You say, ‘Three times,’ I will do as You please. If You say, ‘Jump,’ God I will say, ‘How high?’ If You say, ‘Run,’ God I’ll run. If You say, ‘Stop,’ God I will stop.’ And so church, we need a dose of faith that surrenders to God.

Lastly, in this dose of faith, there's a dose of faith that obeys. So let's look at what happens in verse 10. We’ve read 10 already I just want to kinda take up these words that Elisha had given him. It says, “Elisha sent a messenger to him to say, ‘Go wash yourself seven times in the Jordan, and your flesh be restored and you will be cleansed.’”

I recall that to see the specific instructions that God had given Naaman. And so, we see as the story goes on, that Naaman goes into the waters, he dips seven times and he’s healed! He's healed from a sickness, from a disease that had no cure! He's healed from something where people said, ‘Man, he's never gonna come out of himself.’ He's healed from something where the rest of the people around him go, ‘Man, he's done. He's so far. His mind is so lost.’ ‘She’s far and away. There's never gonna be something that God can do.’ But he is healed and brought back into wholeness. And in the same way, God is calling us church to be brought back to God in wholeness to worship Him. In wholeness no longer sickened in our sin - no longer sickened in our wickedness - but to be whole in the faith of God.

Naaman now demonstrated his faith by walking in obedience to the Lord. “Faith without works is dead,” and I love this because we see the work of heart that was happening in Naaman because it was revealed in the flesh.

Many say, you know, ‘The Lord is just working in my heart and maybe one day you'll see it.’ No I want to say today that the Lord has been working in my heart, and you will see it. It is moving and it is walking even now. See when God is doing something here it must come out here. When God is doing something deep in there, it's gotta come out everywhere.

But how many of us would've gone to that river and thought, ‘Maybe I don’t have to dip seven times. Maybe one time is enough. I mean, the water’s cold. I mean, there’s better waters. Maybe I can dip once here and go dip over there.’ Or ‘You know, did he really mean seven? Maybe there's a better odd number. Maybe I could do five,’ and this is exactly what happens. God gives us a way but we start to think our own thought processes. We reason, and it's the very same sickened leprous mind that will lead us straight to hell. It's the very sick and fleshy mind that strips us of the very blessing that God has prepared. But we see the power of faith that obeys. Obedience, a word that many consider a cuss word, even in the churches of America today for Christians but hallelujah, you see, obedience is a proofing. It's a proofing in our flesh that shows that God is at work - that God is moving. And just as that leprosy would reveal itself in the flesh, hallelujah, the obedience of God is revealing something in the flesh!

If there was anybody who liked to reason, who liked to double-think things when God gave a command, it was me. A mind that was so far from what God wanted to do - a mind that in that sickness and in that darkness and that wickedness just kinda wanted to move my own way. Yet I realize today that the truth of faith is that faith is a faith to obey. Not to think, not to discuss, but simply to follow and I can attest today that God has done amazing works in my life. He has done amazing works in my family. That even today one day, I believe that the child that He has given me will also one day be a child of faith and go on and on in obedience walking with God. Hallelujah! A generation of those who would follow the call of God. A generation not in religion. A generation not of just a bunch of people that go to church. A generation of those who hear the beckon and the call of God and they follow and they say, ‘Father here I come! I’m gonna dip seven times! I’m gonna move where You call me. I'm gonna go and speak as You do, and walk in the power of God.’

See his flesh was restored. And verse 14 says, “So he went down and dipped himself in the Jordan seven times, as the man of God had told him, and his flesh was restored…” and I love this, “...and he became clean like that of a young boy.”

See, he became clean. Naaman was healed and became like a child. He was renewed! Youthful! Simplistic! No longer contaminated! Hallelujah - the blood of Christ, that although my sins were red as scarlet, He washes me white as snow. See, we must be like Naaman today. We’ve got to come back to a childlike faith. A faith that doesn't have to think twice. A faith that doesn't try to reason with God but simply say, ‘Father, You said it, and therefore, it is what it is for me. Father You’ve given me the command to bow before You. You’ve told me to address it. You’ve told me to call out to You. You’ve taught me to step out Father then I shall go as You have called me to go!’

Now do you see the work of obedience in the Christian? See, it renews us, the more that we walk with God the more that we follow Him. See it's not a burden but it renews us and it strengthens us because it's a dose of healing. It's a dose of healing to walk and to move with God.

"I want to say there is healing there is wholeness, but there is also a walk of faith that God is looking for."

See we can’t expect things to just happen. Much of the American church today speaks about wonders and miracles and only thinks that it would land in the lap but I want to say there is healing there is wholeness, but there is also a walk of faith that God is looking for. And I wonder how sometimes, I see so many youth - even Christian youth - that just seem to be so old.

You ever see a young person that just seems like, ‘Man, have you ever been young?’ You know, you're 14 you’re 15 but you do seem worn out already. I mean, dude, I’m 38, you know, and you're already past me. And we ask ourselves why. Why so stiff? Why so rigid? Why do we have young ones - why do some of our children seem to be so rigid in the presence of God, seem to be immovable even though God is doing something wonderful? Could it be that they have been struck with a spiritual leprosy? You see leprosy will age you. It’ll decay you. It’ll tear things apart, and maybe God is saying today, church, that we repent for the leprosy that we've allowed to invade our children. The leprosy that we've allowed to invade the church.

See, I look at Naaman and after he's healed, he comes back to Elisha. And he offers all this money and if you read there he begins to offer all the money all the goods,all the things that he has again but what does Elisha respond? He says, “‘As surely as the Lord lives, whom I serve, I will not accept a thing.’”

Now, you think there for a second. What was gonna be Naaman's response? I mean, he couldn’t be happy about the fact that this man didn't want to take his money. Didn't want to take all of his good things. But he stops and he goes, ‘That's fine.’

You see God had done something in Naaman. See, this healing that I'm talking about, this dose of faith, it does something in a man or a woman. It begins to do something right here, it does something in the heart. Naaman went from being this furious, hard rigid stubborn prideful man to now soft and gentle toward God. Not soft to where he’s fallen apart, but a heart that was no longer numb. A heart that was now after God. A heart that was ready to receive any request - not that he had for himself - but any request that God would have for him.

"You see, when true faith is active - when true faith is moving - it's a faith that causes obedience."

I remember in my life, you know, where I would fight and just push and shove at every moment of obedience that God would call me to and I remember, just fighting and fighting and just pushing it away, and trying to avoid it but then I also remember a moment. And it wasn't some moment where the clouds opened up and a big, you know, ray of light had entered in but I remember this moment where I was at the end of it all. Where I began to look at God and God had touched my heart, and I remember the fight ending and saying, ‘Lord, I know I have fought against You. Father I have been stubborn. I have been evil, but Father, I know that You have touched my heart, and You have called me to Yourself.’ And I remember in those moments, the first thing that had come out was, ‘Father, whatever You want to do, however You want it.’ You see, when true faith is active - when true faith is moving - it's a faith that causes obedience. It's a faith that causes a heart to just say, ‘God, however, whenever, for whenever God I am here, and I am Your servant.’

Out of all of this, Naaman, whose heart was so touched, a transformed man who would now take this ground and take it back to Syria to now begin worship of God in a pagan place, a place full of selfishness and darkness - a land not different than the land that we live in today church but to now be the church. To be the church that would carry God wherever they go. To be the church that would not allow itself to be defiled. To not allow the sickness of selfishness in. To not allow the wickedness of going our own way in, but to be a church that would carry the Lord, and say, He is our God and He is our King.

And so Naaman, at the very end, simply says, “‘Now I know that there is a prophet in Israel...Now I know that there is a God in Israel.’”

But I ask church today,: Is there God in our heart? Is there God in our soul? Is there God in our mind? Can it be said, ‘Surely, there is a prophet in Mike? Surely there is a prophet in Joanne? Surely there is a prophet in Jeff? Surely God is moving in their lives because they have a faith that is humble. They have a faith that is given over to God because they truly believe Him, and they are not with a spiritual leprosy, but they are whole. They are whole in the power of God.’

God is calling us to wholeness today. He wants to break the spiritual leprosy - He wants to break the sin. He wants to break the “going our own way” - the sickness that has so plagued the church of our nation and He is looking to demonstrate His power in this season as never before. But will you receive a dose of faith?

I remember bein’ a kid - I didn't like taking shots. I barely liked taking medicine. I didn't even like the way the medicine tasted, and sometimes, I'd be like, ‘No, I don't want it.’ But today, God is calling for a dose of faith that, I want to say is sweeter than honey. It's a dose of faith that maybe there might be some things that, ‘Phew, man, that hurt, I realized that had to go out,’ but I want to say today, there is healing in that dose. I want to say today, that there is a reckoning there is a reconciling that God is doing even now.

But church, true faith takes us to stop for these moments, to recognize why is the sickness there? All throughout the Bible leprosy was the result of some sin some rebellion some wickedness. God wants us to stop in these moments to really look at what's been in our lives. How much have we complained of our circumstance and our situations? How many of us are going through our circumstance or maybe something right now, and rather than stopping to learn and rather than stopping to hear from God, saying, ‘God, I can't believe You put me here?’ And going on and on and just shouting and pushing God away, rather than allowing Him to do what He needs to do? Can we turn back to the Lord today?

"Today, God is saying, ‘Repent!"

When we look at our lives, have we held to things? Have we held to our own accomplishments? You know approaching God thinking, that you know, ‘I read today. I said a little bit of extra prayers today. At least I made it to church.’ Are we holding those things before God? Are we trying to hold God to a blessing, you know, because we feel like we've been good, because we've done our religious ways? Or are we able to see today that all of it is rubbish? He says that all of our righteousness is as filthy rags. Will you turn to the Lord today?

’Father I'm sorry for relying on anything else but Your Spirit. For taking the comfortable way. I know that it would be uncomfortable to do things a certain way in my house but God I didn’t want to make a change.’ Today, God is saying, ‘Repent!’ Turn back from our own ways! Turn back from always taking the comfortable way! That which we’re so familiar with, church. He is calling us to leave that which is familiar behind and get a dose of faith! To come into the newness of God! To come into the power of God!