HEALING AND FORGIVENESS FOR GOD'S PEOPLE
2 Chronicles 7:14
Sept. 29, 2024 (Antioch Revival(
Introduction:
Solomon built the most amazing building ever to be built to house the ark of God and to be a place of sacrifice and worship to Jehovah God When it was complete he prayed, "Now arise Lord God and come to your resting place, you and the ark of your might. And when he finished this prayer fire from heaven came down and consumed the burnt offerings and sacrifices, and the glory of the Lord filled the temple. The priests could not enter the temple because God's glory filled it. The people worshiped God and cried out..."God is good; His Love endures forever. And for 23 days they offered thousands of offerings and sacrifices. And King Solomon consecrated the temple, the people of God then went home filled with joy and gladness for what God had done for David, Solomon and the people of Israel
That evening when King Solomon went to bed God appeared to him saying, "I have heard your prayer. I have witnessed all the ceremonies and I have chosen this place as my house, but I want you to remember that if my people forsake me, I will send hard times upon them and you will know the reason for these trials. I will not continue to bless these people if they forsake me, even though they have built for Me this wonderful house!" "When these calamities fall upon them,
"If My people which are called by My name, shall 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 will heal their land"
It doesn't take a spiritual eagle eye to see that our Nation is in trouble, and divided. On Facebook battles rage between liberals and conservatives. On every News channel we hear about how horrible one side is....or the other. Corruption, violence and crime rage in our cities. Lawlessness is celebrated and law keepers are vilified. Is there a remedy for all this hatred and disunity in our Nation? Is there any way out? Any way we can be rescued? Is there any hope for the people of God who live in America?
And the answer is a resounding YES!!!! Our hope lies in the same place as the people of Israel's. Our hope lies in the remedy given in our text in 2 Chronicles 7:14...With humility, in prayer, seek God's face and repenting from evil. The key is revival always begins with God's people....His remnant....you remember the song "God Bless America?" It's fallen out of fashion...but it says,
God bless America, land that I love
Stand beside her and guide her
Through the night with the light from above
From the mountains to the prairies
To the oceans white with foam
God bless America, my home sweet home
There is a lot of beauty in that song, but the most important truth is this....."God is the giver of blessings." And I believe with all my heart that He still wants to bless us....it's His nature...God is love....but He will not bless a people that forsake Him and reject Him.
He will not continue to bless a "Lukewarm" or "apathetic" people.....even if they gather in a building that bears the name of His Son. Jesus speaks to one of those churches in Revelation 3:14-22
“To the angel of the church in Laodicea write:
These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation. 15 I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! 16 So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. 17 You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. 18 I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see.
19 Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest and repent. 20 Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.
21 To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I was victorious and sat down with my Father on his throne. 22 Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”
America is not given an exemption for Lukewarmness.....neither was Israel. If we want revival in America then, the people of God who live here must take the message of 2 Chronicles seriously...take it into our hearts and apply it to our lives. And then surely, God will hear our prayers and bless America once again....It's time that we remember that:
I. WE ARE GOD'S PEOPLE
Listen to this New Testament truth
1 Peter 2:9-10
9 But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.
10 Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
Peter clearly shares an amazing truth to the Church...."God chose you. You are the people of God And your purpose is to proclaim His praises!!!!"
Our text is 2 Chronicles begins, "If My people." It a conditional statement....God's people have a choice. Let me share with you there are around 8 billion people in the world. And every single one of those people were created by God. But they are not all His children, they are not all His people, called by His name. Many in those billions hate God, have rejected Him, or simply ignore Him. Or have never heard the gospel truth It might be politically correct to say that "We are all brothers and sisters and that God is our Father." But scripturally speaking, this just isn't true!
In John 8:44 Jesus is speaking to a group of people that claim God as their Father, but they hate Jesus and have rejected Him, and they are seeking to kill Him. And Jesus tells them, "You belong to your father, the Devil and you want to carry out your father's desires."
Calling yourself God's child because of your heritage, whether it's from Abraham or your Grand Mother, doesn't make it so. Spiritually speaking God becomes our Father when we are "born again"....Jesus tells Nicodemus, a Pharisee of Israel "No one can see the Kingdom of God....or enter the Kingdom of God unless they are born again." (John 3:3, 5)..."Born through "The water and the Spirit"
God becomes our Father according to scripture when we respond to His call to come to Him through faith, and then through Christ we are given "the Spirit of adoption." Listen:
Ephesians 1:5
5 he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will—
Romans 8:23
23 Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies.
This is what makes us a child of God...John 1:12,13 says:
"12 Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— 13 children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God."
As we die to self, we are buried into Christ in Baptism, and we rise to walk in newness of life through the gift and indwelling of the Holy Spirit (also know as the Spirit of adoption) The word "Christian literally means "little Christs" It's what we are called to be in this lost world. We bear His name and we must live up to it
(The story is told of a soldier brought before Alexander the Great and the charge was desertion because of cowardice...Alexander asked the young man, "What's your name?" He mumbled a quiet reply...."Alexander." Alexander the Great stood up and asked again...."What did you say your name was?" The soldier mumbled once again...."Alexander." Alexander the Great....went down and looked him in the face and said, "Son, either change your name or change your actions.")
Do people see that you are clearly followers of Jesus. That you are one of God's people who are called by His name? Do you resemble your Father? If we've strayed from God....Here's what we as His people are told what to do:
II. THE REMEDY FOR REVIVAL
First, God's people are to HUMBLE THEMSELVES!!!
That's not very easy if we are proud, arrogant and judgmental, is it?...Peter Marshall who was chaplain of the U.S. Senate from 1902 to 1949 and my Dad's favorite minister prayed, "Lord, when we are wrong make us willing to change. And when we are right make us easy to live with."
I was in my mid twenties when I began my first preaching ministry at Antioch CC...I was at best Raw...sermons like "Salt makes you thirsty" and other deeply profound messages like that....these folks loved me and Kari and our family through the early years...there was an amazing woman there named Mrs. Rose...90 + years old...she lived in a little two room house with no indoor plumbing and no inside modern facilities and she was tough!!!! She was always kind, but never threw around compliments...and after four or five years one Sunday I preached a "hum dinger" I felt like it was powerful and good...after the sermon I stood in the back greeting folks and she shuffled out and said to me...."Preacher, can I tell you something?" And I said, "Sure Miss Rose." In my mind I envisioned her telling me..."That was the greatest sermon I've ever heard!!! It was like a Cane Ridge Revival message...I can't believe everyone didn't run to the altar!!!!" And then she said, "Your fly's down....it's been down the entire time." Humility in an instant lol
Remember folks, there is no such thing as a forgiveness which struts. Forgiveness requires a broken and contrite heart and a bended knee. Matthew 23:12 tells us "Whoever humbles themself will be exalted."
When I remember my past and my scars (and I'm not talking about physical ones) and I remember God's amazing grace....humility isn't such a hard thing. Secondly, God tells His repenting people...
Second, PRAY
(Emergency's require fervent prayer....I remember Thermus Reynolds, the Vice Principle at Lafayette HS. had this little plaque in his office....(Please don't ask me how I know) "Students, in the event of nuclear attack, fire or earthquake, the ban on school prayer is temporarily lifted")
God still responds to His people when they pray. He still answers our prayers. The beginning turn around towards God begins with a prayer from the heart...."God be merciful to me sinner!" And many of God's people have backslidden and have lost touch with their Father and need to come humbly back in prayer. He's waiting and He hasn't moved....you have
(I remember the story of the old farm couple driving down a country lane in their pickup truck when the wife looked over at her husband and said, "You remember when we were dating and i use to sit right over there by you and you had your arm around me?" And the husband smiled and looked back at her and said, "I haven't moved.")
If you feel separated from God He hasn't moved and He tells us the first step back is humility and the second is prayer...the third is we are to....
Third, SEEK HIS FACE
What does that mean Rick....How in this world do I seek God's face. Here's what I believe this means and I'll try not to get too mushy. When I think about the people I love the most...like my Bride Kari....like my children and grand children....something beautiful, emotional, and powerful happens when I look them in the eyes and tell them "I love you." When I talk to them looking squarely in their faces. It's so powerful sometimes that I have to glance away for a moment.
When it comes to our relationship with God our Father He desires this kind of intimacy. He knows everything about us anyway....so why should we to pretend or hide....sin makes us do that...
You remember in the Garden of Eden when it says in Genesis 3:8
"8 Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden."
I share this with you because I want to give you some spiritual insight. I don't think that God walking in the garden in the cool of the day is a one time occurrence. Something that God only did after His creation was disobedient. To me it sound like a regular thing that happened. God came down and walked in the Garden, face to face, with Adam and Eve in the cool of the day. Can you imagine? Walking with God your Father in the most beautiful place that's beyond description with your wife and celebrating everything He's given to you to take care of with gratitude? Perfection, beauty and love
But then one day everything changes.....you sin.....you realize that you're naked....instead of longing to see your Father you hide from Him.
I think this biblical description describes many believers who live in America today
The remedy....Humble yourself, pray, seek His face
Fourth, TURN FROM WICKEDNESS
The word repentance literally means....Penance again RE-pentance....Webster defines repentance as "Sincere regret or remorse" The biblical definition goes a little deeper:
The repentance (metanoia) called for throughout the Bible is a summons to a personal, absolute and ultimate unconditional surrender to God as Sovereign. Though it includes sorrow and regret, it is more than that. ... In repenting, one makes a complete change of direction (180° turn) toward God.
Satan leads us down a path of broken promises....He tries to "Grab" our attention. And sin is exciting....it's fun for awhile, a season, but then comes vomiting at the toilet, the car smashes into the ditch, you wife heads out the front door with the kids, the bookie comes to collect, and wickedness is a nasty bill collector.
no wonder God's word shouts at us this truth in 2 Corinthians 7:10-11 when it describes the Corinthians true repentance:
10 Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death. 11 See what this godly sorrow has produced in you: what earnestness, what eagerness to clear yourselves, what indignation, what alarm, what longing, what concern, what readiness to see justice done. At every point you have proved yourselves to be innocent in this matter.
Repentance doesn't just say "I'm sorry." It proves it by turning from wickedness with earnestness, indignation, alarm, and seeks restoration with longing, concern, and a readiness to make things right."
What would happen in America if 200 million Christians did that?....because we're told what God will do
III. GOD'S RESPONSE
First, HE WILL HEAR FROM HEAVEN
"What'd you say?" "Huh?" You might hear this from your spouse, but you will never hear it from God when you draw near to him . He hears our cries. His heart is always open. He truly is the Father in Luke chapter 15 who sees His prodigal son returning so "He gird's up His robe and runs to meet him." Tears flowing, heart rejoicing, robe tucked in, feet running. The son says...."I'm not worthy to be called your son." The Dad replies, "Get me a robe, get me a ring, kill the fattened calf...it's party time....my son's come home!!!!"
(Story about my Dad...his poverty and his Mom giving him silver dollars)
Second,GOD FORGIVES OUR SIN
I love this scripture in 1st John 1:9
"9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness."
(Short testimony about my life and God's calling) He forgave me. He cleansed me. He amazingly gave me a purpose...tell people if I can forgive you I can forgive ANYONE!!!!
"Therefore if anyone is in
Christ, he is a new creation (kainai Katises....something new created out of nothing), old things have passed away, behold all things have become new" 2 Corinthians 5:17
This is a promise from God to believers. Sin always takes us farther than we want to go. Keeps us longer than we want to stay. And costs us more than we want to pay. As a nation, and as individuals. When we realize that God is truly grieved by our sin....When we realize grieving His Holy Spirit causes a calloused heart then He will hear us, and forgive us. And finally as a nation
Third, GOD WILL HEAL OUR LAND
(Being burned when I was 10....and Dad extinguishing the flames with his hands and arms)
America the beautiful is in a hospital bed with sin, and instead of hoping she dies God the Father wants to perform a miracle of healing....And we need to seek His healing. Healing will not come through a donkey or elephant....it is found only through the blood of the Lamb. This healing that is so desperately needed is dependent upon God's People...Who are called by His name...it's time we humble ourselves, pray, seek His face and turn from wickedness. He promises to Hear us, forgive us, and heal us....May God bless America Again
(My Dad's hands at his funeral)
Let's pray
