"If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land." - 2 Chronicles 7:14
This is a wonderful promise that God gives to His people. Forgiveness and healing is at the core of His words. They reflect His loving nature and His desire to be in relationship with us, His creatures. This promise extends to nations and individuals alike. We must also note that the promise here is conditional. When we meet the conditions set forth by God, then He will honor His promise to us and to the nations.
We have for a long time sought solutions to our problems, both individual and corporate, within the created world around us. Nationally we have relied upon politicians, pollsters and pundits to guard our decisions and practices as a nation. Parents have looked to educators, principals, psychologists and unions for guidance in how best to educate our children. When our economy has been less than productive and growing, we have turned to lawmakers, businessmen, stockbrokers, insurance agents and others to guide us in finding financial security. Most all of those people mentioned above are not even Christian in their beliefs or, worse yet, believe there is no God at all.
God's people are those who worship Him according to the Bible and in spirit and in truth. They are people who walk by faith and think by faith. The promise God made to the Israelites of old remains in force for Christians today. Since the promise has not expired we may trust that if we apply this passage to our lives both individually and as a nation, we can be sure that God will hear and that He will respond. This is the only way the waywardness we see in our lives and in our nation can be stopped. It is the only way we might return to a nation of Christian values if God Himself will relent and restore us.
For years we have believed the lie of Satan that we would be like God. Look at us now. Morality is relevant to everyone's choices. Addiction to everything under the sun has left our people enslaved to their passions. Wealth is the motivating factor in our decisions on how to raise our children, where to go to college and what job we will agree to take. The world revolves around us and we are leading the way forward into deeper and deeper sin. We are not subject to God nor to anyone else. These words do not describe humility but the human condition of selfishness and pride. To humble ourselves before God is to look to him and acknowledge that we are mere creatures sustained every moment of our lives by Him. Humility is acknowledging our sin nature and our addiction to self and the offense this creates for relationship to God. God opposes the proud, the ones filled with their own agendas and the pride of this world. Unless we confess this sin, admit that Christ Jesus is the answer to our life situation and ask God to forgive us, we are doomed to more and greater of the same conditions we see today in the world.
Prayer is the answer as we confess our need for Him and the free gift in Christ that the Father has offered to us. Prayer is the means God has ordained for us to speak to and hear from our Creator. Prayer prepares us for God's answer and positions us to receive His response. Prayer has been our first option when trouble comes. Today, it is our last resort.
