PORTERVILLE POST | The "RIGHT" Word © ~ with Brother Scott

| “ASLEEP IN THE LIGHT”

The Right Word^© - Oct 18, 2026
with Brother Scott : scott@portervillepost.com

Listen :
(† John 1:1-8) In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 The same was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. 4 In him was life; and the life was the light of men. 5 And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not. 6 There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. 7 The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe. 8 He [John] was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light.

I am going to share with you today what I believe is foremost on the mind of the Lord (I have mentioned it briefly more than once over the last couple years); it remains heavy on my heart and is manifest also by others speaking by the Spirit of God.
Today’s message is not one that Christians in our time want to hear and would have this or that reason as to why it does not apply to them—I hope it is not your mental response also!
What I share with you today is not to condemn any heretofore inaction on your part or to cause guilt that usually passes in a couple hours but to bring to the forefront an aspect of our Christian lives that is expected of all followers of Jesus at one level or another.
What you do with it is up to you but what you do or don’t do becomes a matter of record with the Lord and is one thing I am sure that will come up on the day that you and I each stand before His Majesty as we give account of our lives since He saved us. That meeting will examine the question that I have warned you will be game-changer, and that is this: “What did you do with the life I gave you since you were born again?”

Let Me Ask You This:

What good does it do to leave a light on in an unoccupied room? Generally, it does little or no good but does contribute to the electric bill; light is to serve a purpose, and it serves no purpose in a vacant room in your house. When it is dark outside, we will light up a room to see and do various things but when we leave a room, we usually turn off the light. Now when we go to bed, we are informed by sleep specialists that for the best sleep, the room needs to be dark or it interferes with our sleep cycle.
In fact, for most people, it is hard to sleep with daylight blasting into the room or at night with a light on in the bedroom. Light is necessary to see and understand the layout of the environment in a building or when you enter a room and reveals the way around things so you don’t fall and injure yourself; “Oh, there’s a chair, a table over there, a cord on the floor across that place, and a sleeping cat at the foot of my chair”. Where there is darkness we need light to show us the way—this is both a natural law for human eyes and a spiritual law for the saving of the lost soul.
Before we heard the Gospel message, understood and believed it, and professed faith in Jesus Christ as the Son of God and our Savior, we were lost in utter spiritual darkness. We were blind and groping around in a life that was without meaning, and until hearing the Gospel message we didn’t even know we were blind! We were in an environment that was fraught with dangers that we could not see due to the darkness and except for the grace of God and His love for us, we could have easily been killed and forever lost.
You see, the darkness hides the deadly dangers of how we were living (many of us) being immoral, some partying and using alcohol to excess or drugs that could easily kill us by too many or a bad batch, or living in ways that most others were also but that by a catastrophic health issue or car accident or some explosion or being murdered would have sent us into eternity without any advance notice or the ability before dying to seek out the Light that is Jesus.

My Appeal To You Is ...

My appeal to you today is on behalf of those people that you know or will yet contact that are living in utter darkness and will be forever lost if they die that way. My message is for those that have the light on in the house—but no one seems to be home.

( † † † )
† Matthew 5:11 Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. 12 Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you. 13 Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men. 14 Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. 15 Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. 16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.
† 1 Thessalonians 5:2 For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. 3 For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape. . . 7 For they that sleep sleep in the night; and they that be drunken are drunken in the night. 8 But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation. 9 For God hath not appointed us to wrath [as are all those that are yet in darkness], but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ...

When we were born-again from above our life became a source of light—not light that we generate but light that is the life now within us that is Jesus our Savior.
The Holy Spirit through John gave us the picture that Jesus is the Light and we are the candles. A candle supports the flame by its wick and wax but the candle must be lit in order for it to burn and therefore project light into darkness. The burning candle is a testimony of the fact that a fire from outside itself has ignited it and caused it to produce light.

( † † † )
† John 1:4 In him [Jesus] was life; and the life was the light of men. . . 6 There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. 7 The same came for a witness (an evidence, record of), to bear witness (give testimony) of the Light, that all men through him might believe. 8 He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light.

[I’ve pointed out to you before that John’s life was a panoramic view of the church and its members—by John’s stand, mission, persecution, and his martyr’s death by beheading we see a broad picture of both the mission of the Church and eventual outcome for many in the true church in these last days.]

† 1 John 2:7 Brethren, I write no new commandment unto you, but an old commandment which ye had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which ye have heard from the beginning. 8 Again, a new commandment I write unto you, which thing is true in him and in you: because the darkness is past, and the true light now shineth. 9 He that saith he is in the light, and hateth his brother, is in darkness even until now. 10 He that loveth his brother abideth in the light, and there is none occasion of stumbling in him. 11 But he that hateth his brother is in darkness, and walketh in darkness, and knoweth not whither he goeth, because that darkness hath blinded his eyes.

And this passage in 1st John brings us to the issue at hand and is something Paul also wrote in several places: Many professing to be followers of Jesus are Asleep in the Light—the Light of His Life.

Keith Green : The Sheep and the Goats / Asleep in the Light

As you heard me say earlier, trying to sleep with light in your face is a fitful sleep—it is unnatural and not fulfilling. As new creatures, we are to be spiritually fully awake in the Light of His life, and at various times clearly a witness for the Life within us that is Jesus Christ—or our candle is hidden under a bushel basket († Matthew 5:15-16).

( † † † )
† 1 Thessalonians 5:4 …ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day [of the Lord] should overtake you as a thief. 5 Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness. 6 Therefore let us not sleep [in the Light], as do others; but let us watch and be sober. 7 For they that sleep sleep in the night [in darkness]; and they that be drunken are drunken in the night.
† Romans 13:11 And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed. 12 The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness [the evidence of our being asleep in spite of the Light], and let us put on the armour (as a tool [in some cases] or a weapon [in others] from “to be busy about” the projecting) of light.
† Ephesians 5:8 For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light: 9 (For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth;) 10 Proving what is acceptable unto the Lord. 11 And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness [by being asleep in the Light], but rather reprove them. 12 For it is a shame even to speak of those things which are done of them in secret. 13 But all things that are reproved are made manifest by the light: for whatsoever doth make manifest is light. 14 Wherefore he saith, [“] Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light{”} [to be a testimony—a “witness” by our lifestyle and by our words]. 15 See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, 16 Redeeming the time, because the days are evil. 17 Wherefore be ye not unwise, but [do] understand(ing) what the will of the Lord is.

My purpose for today’s mild diatribe, a critical statement of the spiritual condition in the lives of 21st century Christians, is for those with ears to hear to be roused from sleep or at least spiritual drowsiness.
It is a wake-up call for all believing themselves to be followers of Jesus; a call to step out and be salt and be light, or at least a much brighter light among those we live among.
For those that are content with a sleepy life manifest the evidence of not knowing the Word of God or a true fellowship with Jesus.
The heart of the Savior today grieves over the hundreds of millions of souls that very soon now will—in an instant—pass into eternity without having come to faith in God’s very Son.

What Are We To Do—Really? We are to stand up in the Light of the new life you were given.
How do we do that? What can I do, I want to be light?

1. First—pray for the lost and the saved in your family regularly, then pray for those others you know or see often: Your friends, coworkers, neighbors, and the clerk at the store, your doctor, and gas station attendant where you fill up. This is the very least you and I can do but it is effective when done by faith—it’s like a flashlight in the dark—a beam pointed in one direction and then another! From my personal experience, what works best for me was to decide who I would pray for each day from Monday to Friday (i.e. M-family, T-coworkers, W-neighbors, Th-other less-frequent contacts, F-fellow believers, their families, and true Israel).
2. Decide that you want to be sent forth into the harvest fields and ask the Lord for the boldness to be salt and a shining light everywhere there is darkness. Ask Him to help you see the doors into the lives that He has opened of those that are ready to hear and consider the Gospel message, even in its seed form—a hinting of the fact that there is a better “way”, one of “truth” that leads to “life” († John 14:6).
3. “A hinting of these facts”? The casual mention of faith and briefly things spiritual to anyone anywhere when some slight opportunity has been made for you to lightly touch on your testimony, what the Bible says about these days, or how “blessed” you are because of your being a follower of Jesus. This is both the sprinkling of some salt and the momentary flash of the Light of His Life into their life.
4. If you can, for the physically hungry—share some food with a good word; for the stranger, greet them with a smile and a good word (“Jesus loves you”); for the poorly dressed, pass on some clothes, shoes and socks when you see a specific need; for those that are sick, offer to pray for them and a friendly follow-up in a few days; and be a friend for those that are shut-in or are otherwise friendless and alone. Love opens many a door!
5. When someone comments about their concerns that indicate some fear in their heart, invite them to come with you to a meeting of your church family since these very things are discussed.
6. Carry some form of Good News tracts with you that you can hand out or leave for someone that the Holy Spirit nudges you to. In this present environment of growing concern and fear, use Gospel tracts that catch people’s attention with titles such as: “When You Face Tough and Scary Times”.

One day, everybody you know and everyone you’ve ever crossed paths with will either be in Heaven or not—if all you do is to plant a seed about Jesus, it may make the difference for them.
I mentioned the fitfulness of trying to sleep in bright light, for the Christian trying to sleep in the Light of Christ there is a nagging feeling that something is not right in your Christian life, [that fitfulness] so many try to ignore is the Holy Spirit urging you to arise from any slumbering and be salt and light. That we be witnesses and not silent bystanders any longer is foremost on the heart of the Lord in these last days.

The Lord asks that we do what we can do from now on.

( † † † )
† Matthew 9:36 But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd. 37 Then saith he unto his disciples, The harvest truly is plenteous [there are many ready to hear], but the labourers are few [but so few to speak]; 38 Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth labourers into his harvest.
† Matthew 20:1 For the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is an householder, which went out early in the morning to hire labourers into his vineyard. . . 6 And about the eleventh hour [these last days] he went out, and found others standing idle, and saith unto them, Why stand ye here all the day idle? 7 They say unto him, Because no man hath hired us. He saith unto them, Go ye also into the vineyard. . .
† Matthew 25:31 When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory. . . 34 Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: 35 For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in: 36 Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me. 37 Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee. . . [in these ways]. . . and came unto thee? 40 And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.

Lifestyle Evangelism:

As someone said 40 years ago, “ Lifestyle evangelism is mostly about sharing the Gospel by the way you live—and sometimes
maybe even using words!” Let your light shine!

~ Brother Scott ... With ... The Right Word^© ... For Today~