2 Chronicles 7:11-22
Do you get depressed about the news – I know I do sometimes. Often it is nothing but a litany of murders, rapes, child abuse, violent robberies, financial scams, cynical exploitation of the poor and weak, marital unfaithfulness, sexual promiscuity, teenage pregnancies, homosexuality, drug abuse, binge drinking. All these things seem to be on the increase – not to mention the economic downturn and the problems of unemployment and debt. All these ills are but symptoms of the malaise of our society and it seems to get worse year by year. Of course, their has always been crime and humans have always been sinful. But there were in place in the past stern codes of morality and standards of behaviour based on the Ten Commandments which helped to hold back the worst effects of sin.
And then the state of the church is not promising. I ask myself, “Will there be a Presbyterian Church of Wales in ten or fifteen years time. I do remember asking this question 20 years ago! Well we are still here – but only just. There has been a steady decline in the membership of our denomination over the last 20 years or so. The fact the the decline is slow must not blind us to the truth that it is happening. Just as the decline of the Roman Empire took place over several centuries, so it is with our church and with our society.
Jesus said to his disciples:
“You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men.” ( Matthew 5:13)
If God’s people in the church lose their “saltiness”, what then will be the state of society?
Complacency
We might think that just because Wales has a Christian heritage we will never lose our chapels and churches. After all, we are known as the Land of Revivals. God would surely never allow his church to disappear from Wales. But on what basis do we say this? History shows us that the churches in Asia Minor ( which were the first Christian churches outside Palestine and had been established by the Apostle Paul) vanished when Islam took over that area. They had become corrupt and they were not able to stand up to the onslaught of militant Islam. Today in Turkey there are very few native Christians.
The same is true for the churches of North Africa which were centres of theological scholarship in the time of Saint Augustine. Now they are no more – also destroyed by Islam. this should be a warning to us in Wales. Christianity can die out in a country and it will be replaced by something else. In Wales it might be materialistic Atheism that takes over, or New Age spirituality perhaps.
The ancient Israelites had the same kind of misconception about he Temple and the city of Jerusalem. They thought that because it had been established by God it could never be destroyed. God would surely never allow his Temple to be removed – no matter how badly his people behaved. The prophets spoke out against this complacent attitude, this false hope, but the people took no notice. So it was a severe shock to the nation when Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon destroyed the Temple and took the people off into exile!
God’s promise
Our reading take us a lot further back than those times - right to the reign of Solomon, to the time when the Temple itself was built. When the Temple was dedicated Solomon offered a long prayer to God (you can read it in 1 Chronicles chapter six) in which he prayed that God would bless the nation and make his dwelling in that place.
When Solomon finished praying, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices, and the glory of the LORD filled the temple.
(2 Chronicles 7:1 )
And God answered. He spoke to Solomon in a vision at night. And God made a promise to Solomon concerning the nation of Israel. It’s a promise we can also take hold of, for under the New Covenant all who believe in the Messiah are part of the Israel of God.
This was the promise:
“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 )
I believe this promise from God shows us the way out of our current plight. It shows how God can revive and renew his people. It shows how he can heal our nation and bring us back to himself.
Why do we not see revival in Wales, the Land of Revivals? Well here, in these verses, we see three conditions for revival. Or rather, three hinderances we must get rid of. The three hinderances are:
- Pride
- Prayerlessness
- Perversity
Let’s look at them:
1) Pride
“if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves.”
(2 Chronicles 7:14 )
These people need to become humble. But who are we talking about? Who are God’s people. In the Old Testament they were the people of Israel. They were called by his name – they were Israel and he was the God of Israel. Their behaviour would reflect for good or bad upon the God of Israel
We also are called by his name. Jesus is the Christ and we are Christians – followers of Jesus Christ. And our lives will reflect on Christ himself. People will see the way we live and decide on that basis whether or not they want to have anything to do with Christ.
Yes, we are called by his name and this verse says we must humble ourselves.
Why is lack of humility – pride – singled out here as the main sin? Pride was the original sin of mankind – and of Satan himself. It was pride that led to the building of the Tower of Babel. It is pride that separates people from God and from one another. It is pride that lead to wars and strife.
(We are not talking here about the justifiable sense of pride that one might have in one’s country, one’s school or one’s work, but rather the pride of arrogance. The pride that thinks it is better than everyone else. The pride that sets itself against God himself.)
And perhaps spiritual pride is the worst – as with the Pharisees in the time of Jesus who thought they were alright. They prided themselves on their good works – when in fact they were spiritually poor. They were in a worse spiritual state than the very people they despised – the tax gatherers and sinners.
We must turn from that kind of pride and humble ourselves before God.
2) Prayerlessness
“and pray and seek my face.” ( 2 Chronicles 7:14 )
The most important thing of all is our relationship with God. It’s not just a matter of saying prayers, reciting set forms of words. It’s about being open to God and dependant on God, or rather, realising our dependence on him.
No revival ever came to the Church without a lot of prayer beforehand. People had been praying for decades prior to the 1904 revival that there would be a spiritual awakening in Wales. Evan Roberts, the leader of that revival, himself had spent about ten years in fervent, persistent prayer before the revival came. It wasn’t a matter of his personality and gifts - it was the working of the Spirit of God.
So God’s people must humble themselves, and pray, and develop their relationship with him, before there can be any revival of the church. And without revival there will be no Christian Church in Wales in 50 years time.
3) Perversity
(I’ve chosen this word purely to allow an alliterative scheme! What I am really thinking about is sin.)
“If my people … will seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven …” ( 2 Chronicles 7:14 )
God’s people must turn from their wicked ways. Not just the people of the world, but those who are called by his name. This means that we are to live lives which glorify God.
Once again we think of the words of Jesus:
“You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men.” ( Matthew 5:13 )
If we are not “salty” then we will not be able to restrain corruption in our society. Ask yourself this question: “Is my life any different from that of any respectable member of society who is not a Christian?” It ought to be different. There should be some elements in our life which are only there because we are followers of Jesus. We are called to be more loving, more kind, more generous, more moral, and more honest than the people of the world.
In a sense we are responsible for the state of our nation. Had we shone brighter as lights, had our salt not lost its savour, our society might not have got into the state it is in now. In the Old Testament we read of Daniel praying for the nation (Daniel Chapter 9 ). He identifies with the nation completely and confesses the sins committed by the nation - sins of idolatry and contempt of God’s laws. Daniel has not committed these sins himself but he confesses them to God on behalf of the nation. Perhaps we need to pray for our nation in this way.
There are also many sins which can be found among church-going people which are a hindrance to revival coming to the church. Among them are sexual immorality, dishonesty, and a bitter unforgiving spirit towards others.
Revivals are always preceded by people putting things right with God and with those around them. Confessing their faults, making reparation when they can, seeking to be reconciled with their neigbour.
Conclusion
This verse sets out the conditions for revival, but it also gives promises when these conditions are fulfilled. The promises are of reconciliation and restoration.
1) Reconciliation to God
“Then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin …”
(2 Chronicles 7:14 )
Once we have repented, confessed our sins to God and put our trust in Jesus who died for us, then we know peace with God. Our conscience is clear and our communion with him is restored.
2) Restoration of our land
“Then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.”
( 2 Chronicles 7:14 )
God promises to heal our land, that is, to help to put right our social ills. There is no doubt that past revivals have brought healing to our land. They have always been followed by a wave of social reforms and an increase in righteousness.
“Righteousness exalts a nation,
but sin is a disgrace to any people.”
( Proverbs 14:34 )
“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 )
