Page 17 - Florida Sentinel 3-23-18

Be Humble, Pray, Seek His Face And Turn From Your Evil Ways
2 CHRONICLES 7:12–22
“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 will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land” (2 Chronicles 7:14).
The Scripture reads:
2 Chronicles 7: (12) Then one night the LORD ap- peared to Solomon and said, “I have heard your prayer and have chosen this Temple as the place for making sac- rifices. (13) At times I might shut up the heavens so that no rain falls, or command grasshoppers to devour your crops, or send plagues among you. (14) Then if my people who are called by my name will humble them- selves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and restore their land. (15) My eyes will be open and my ears attentive to every prayer made in this place. (16) For I have chosen this Temple and set it apart to be holy — a place where my name will be honored forever. I will always watch over it, for it is dear to my heart. (17) As for you, if you faithfully follow me as David your father did, obeying all my commands, decrees, and regulations, (18) Then I will establish the throne of your dynasty. For I made this covenant with your father, David, when I said, ‘One of your descendants will al- ways rule over Israel.’ (19) But if you or your descen- dants abandon me and dis- obey the decrees and commands I have given you, and if you serve and worship other gods, (20) Then I will uproot the people from this land that I have given them. I will reject this Temple that I have made holy to honor my name. I will make it an object of mockery and ridicule among the nations. (21) And though this Temple is impressive now, all who pass by will be appalled. They will ask, ‘Why did the LORD do such terrible things to this land and to this Tem- ple?’ (22) And the answer will be, ‘Because his people abandoned the LORD, the God of their ancestors, who brought them out of Egypt, and they worshiped other gods instead and bowed down to them. That is why he has brought all these dis- asters on them.’”
The previous two lessons cov- ered the dedication ceremony of the newly completed temple in Jerusalem. Months or maybe
years had passed since Solomon’s prayer of dedication.
This week’s lesson is God let- ting Solomon know he had heard his prayer. However, God gave a solemn warning to Solomon that disobedience would result in what we might call reverse makeover to that structure.
God desired far more from Solomon and from the Israelites than building the temple. God wanted what he has always wanted from his people —— obe- dience.
God Appears to Solomon (2 Chronicles 7:12)
The Lord appeared to Solomon as He had done in the past at Gibeon (2 Chronicles 1:3–10). God assured Solomon that He had heard his prayer and would honor it. The house that Solomon had built had been ap- proved by God, and He would place His name there.
Placing a name tag or stamp on something implies ownership. Through Christ, God has placed His name on each of us. We be- long to Christ; we are called by His name (Christians). As we will see, wearing the stamp on the outside is not enough; God requires our complete dedication to Him, in- side and out. When God answers our prayers, how does it produce greater faith?
The Judgment (2 Chronicles 7:13)
In verse 13, God refers to spe- cific conditions that Solomon had mentioned in his prayer (2 Chronicles 6). These particular conditions, when they occurred, were thought to be punishments for disobedience to God. God lets Solomon know that He was atten- tive to the specific details of his prayer by mentioning drought, lo- custs, and pestilence, just as Solomon had.
As believers, we have every right to expect God to answer our prayers specifically and to address our needs in detail (1 Peter 3:12; Philippians 4:6–7, 19). As with Solomon, God expects our continued obedience to Him. How has disobedience to God produced negative consequences in your life as well as others?
The Cure
(2 Chronicles 7:14–22)
While God’s plan was to an- swer Solomon’s prayer and those of the people, a specific formula needed to be followed in order for God to remove His judgment and forgive their sins. This formula, “H-P-S-R,” is spelled out in verse 14 (humble, pray, seek, re- pent).
In God’s answer to Solomon, He tells him that if the people commit sin, leading to judgment, they would need to take specific steps to return to God’s favor.
First, they would need to hum- ble themselves, which not only
means to physically bow before God, but also admit their wrong- doing.
They would then need to pray for His mercy, seek and worship Him and Him alone, and turn from their wrongdoing. Only then would God answer their prayers and heal their land.
Thinking of God’s blessings as “conditional” is not an easy pill to swallow. However, 2 Chronicles 7:14 is clearly an “if-then” state- ment made by God. This applies to His people today as well.
Solomon must have been
highly pleased to learn that God approved of the Temple he built for Him and that He heard his prayer. Even while He was pleased with Solomon, God spelled out His plan for repen- tance.
As believers, we are righteous in God’s eyes by our faith in Jesus. However, we too must be re- minded that God still expects us to obey Him.
God is willing to heal our land if we invite Him back into our cir- cumstances, pray for His mercy, get rid of any idols that we have
placed above Him, and collec- tively turn from our disobedience. There is no substitute for obe- dience, and we must remain steadfast when God’s statutes are being aggressively challenged on
every level.
EXAMINE the harsh conse-
quences of disobedience to God; REPENT of present-day idolatry and other behaviors that separate us from God; and COMMIT to lives of obedient worship.
God’s law of harvest has not been revoked: we still reap what we sow.
FRIDAY, MARCH 23, 2018 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY PAGE 5-B