September 28, 2008
Morning Worship
Text: 2 Chronicles 7:14
Subject: Judgment
Title: God is speaking to the Church
This is one of those Sundays where I had a sermon already prepared and another well on the way and the Lord spoke to me on Friday morning during prayer, “Here is where I want you to go on Sunday. I love it when that happens. I mean, I am always confident that I am preaching the message that God wants me to preach but occasionally He will speak directly to me to move in a new direction. So, I started thinking about how I should go about this new sermon subject I had been given, and here is what happened. I sat down on the front pew with my notebook and began to write what the Lord was giving and found that what He was speaking to me was a word of prophecy to the church. I’m going to share that with you right now.
The time of judgment is coming to America and to the world. This financial crisis you re in the middle of is just the beginning. Do not put your trust in the government to protect you and save you from the pending disaster. I will only withhold My judgment for a short time. It will appear that the government has succeeded in preserving the prosperity that you cherish, but it is only a cosmetic fix. The very things the world desires will bring their destruction and the one thing that can save them they cast aside. I Am the Living God and I desire that all men turn to Me and be saved from the judgment I have prepared. But I warn you, the church, to turn to Me with all your hearts, for I am the God who can deliver you from the judgment to come. There is no other God to deliver, but the gods you have set up before Me will lead to your destruction and into further bondage. Therefore I am giving you the opportunity to change your hearts and be saved.
Now, the Bible says that you are supposed to judge prophecies to see if they are from the Lord or not, and you can do what you want with what I just shared with you, but do something with it.
Turn to 2 Chronicles 7:11-16. I want to read to you what the Lord spoke to Solomon after the Temple in Jerusalem had been built.
11When Solomon had finished the temple of the LORD and the royal palace, and had succeeded in carrying out all he had in mind to do in the temple of the LORD and in his own palace, 12the LORD appeared to him at night and said:
“I have heard your prayer and have chosen this place for myself as a temple for sacrifices.
13“When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command locusts to devour the land or send a plague among my people, 14if 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. 15Now my eyes will be open and my ears attentive to the prayers offered in this place. 16I have chosen and consecrated this temple so that my Name may be there forever. My eyes and my heart will always be there.
I want to concentrate on verse 14 as we look to see what God’s desire for the church is and how He will bring it about.
Lord open my eyes to see, and my ears to hear what the Spirit is saying to the church.
I. IF MY PEOPLE… Notice to whom this is addressed. God’s people! Who are you? God’s people! So this is addressed to you as much as it was to Israel. In verse 13 the Lord talks about those things that are going to happen because of the sin of His people. 13“When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command locusts to devour the land or send a plague among my people… Now that sounds like this is referring to natural disasters – drought, pestilence, diseases – But in the economy of the time of Solomon these disasters translated to an economic slowdown. Now again, this is God speaking to Solomon about His people – Israel. If My people…
II. WHO ARE CALLED BY MY NAME… Now we get into an even more detailed analysis of whom this is talking about.
God’s people – who are called… Romans 1:6 says, And you also are among those who are called to belong to Jesus Christ. Now, we are not just called, but we are called by His name. That means we are called to be His people and if we are called by His name that means that He gives us His authority. It is interesting that in the OT God only gave authority to certain people by pouring out the Spirit on them to accomplish a specific work. But you are God’s people, called by His name and with His authority – that is for all Christians. What are Christians called to do?
III. WILL HUMBLE THEMSELVES… we have to humble ourselves to the point where we realize that the answer to our financial problems are not found in a government bailout of irresponsible business people. We have to humble ourselves to realize that the problem isn’t just in the world – it’s in the church too. We have to humble ourselves so we don’t think that we are the solution and not the problem, because we are the problem.
IV. AND PRAY… True humility will lead you to the only person who can really help you – Jesus Christ. Do you remember back in Mark chapter 4 as the disciples were taking Jesus across the Sea of Galilee how a storm rose and buffeted the boat they were in? The disciples rowed and rowed to no avail trying to save themselves. Finally they did what they should have done in the beginning. They cried out to Jesus, “Lord, don’t you care that we are going to drown?” And as soon as they did that Jesus stood up and commanded the wind and waves to cease. He is the One who saves you from destruction.
V. AND SEEK MY FACE… The word “seek” means “to search out by any method; especially by worship and prayer.” The word “face” refers to “the countenance; to turn toward His direction.” You see, the direction that we are going isn’t doing us any good. It is only when we worship and pray and do everything that we can do to move closer to God that change comes.
VI. AND TURN FROM THEIR WICKED WAYS… The Lord now tells us what the real problem is. Sin! Listen to me – the problem isn’t sin in the world – the world is darkness – it’s going to be steeped in sin. The problem is sin in the church. Now wait a minute Pastor Mike. You were doing pretty good there for while but don’t you even try to tell me that I’m part of the problem and not part of the solution. I’m not saying you are part of the problem – God is saying it! 14if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways… What wicked ways do we have? How about when we put what we want before what God wants for us. How about if we rob God by not giving Him what is already His in our effort to make do for ourselves. How about when we deny that God is still the God who heals, blesses, prospers, cares for, saves and fills us with His Holy Ghost? How about when God moves upon us to do something for Him and we question as to whether it was Him or just our own thoughts? How about when we allow our friends and family to go on living a life that is leading them away from God without telling them about where they are headed because we just don’t want to offend any body? How about when we just come to church when it is convenient for us without any concern about how you might lift up another by your presence? Do I need to go on? The church is called to turn from its wicked ways. That doesn’t just mean going to God and saying, “I’m sorry”. True repentance is turning away from what you are doing now and turning to what God wants in your life. Not my will Lord, by your will be done in me. Revelation 2:4-5, 4Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love. 5Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place. The lampstand that Jesus is talking about is the pastor of the church. If the church continues doing what it wants to do instead of what God wants for it, then why does it need a pastor?
I just spent a lot of twenty minutes telling you what God expects from the church. The fate of the world lies in the hands of the church. But if we will humble ourselves, pray, seek His face, and turn from our wicked ways… And I want you to notice that very big word that verse 14 begins with, “if”, If we will do these things the Lord says, "then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land."
There is healing for the land in humility…
There is healing for the land in praying…
There is healing for the land in seeking God’s face…
There is healing for the land when we turn from our wicked ways…
As the Lord spoke to me on Friday morning that prophetic word He also is saying to the church right now, “This promise I have given you in My word is not just for the prosperity of your nation – if you do the things that I have commanded you in this one verse I will bring healing to the land and revival to the church. This is the last push by the world system to have its own way. That will bring My judgment on the earth. But if you, the church, are willing to confess your sin and turn from your complacency and hunger to seek My face, I will bring the greatest revival to your land that you have ever seen. Behold, My judgment looms before you, but you can hold back my hand for a season so that many more can come into the kingdom.”
Everything that God wants to do for us is preceded by a big word. “IF”. So church, the burden is on you. How will you respond?
What are you going to do with the prophecy God has spoken through me?
What are you going to do With His word that was given to Solomon in verse 14?
What are you going to do with the promise of healing for the land that is directly connected to “IF”?
You can see how what is going on in the world is leading directly to the coming of the antichrist. This world financial crisis has the potential to be the one worldwide disaster that will bring the rise of the antichrist. But God is willing to hold back for a time until more can be saved.
So you have a choice to make – is it business as usual or change for the church?
It is time for a revival of repentance and prayer in the churches once again.
14if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.
