… if my people
who are called by my name 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. - 2 Chronicles 7:14
I think I am on safe ground suggesting that this may be the most
familiar verse from 2 Chronicles for
most Christians. (Am I overlooking
one?) This promise is typically lifted, devoid of any concern for the context,
to call America to repentance. I suppose that is understandable, given the
moral road our nation insists on taking. But, it is not a very thorough
treatment of the text, rendering the popular application awkward. This promise
was worded to Solomon at some point after he had completed his magnificent
temple to the LORD as well as his
own palace.
Chapters 5, 6 and the first
half of chapter 7 in 2 Chronicles record the dedication
service of Solomon’s temple. This project was massive, so it was appropriate
that its dedication be grandiose. More sheep and cattle were sacrificed that
day than could be counted (5:6).
Early in the service, the Ark of the Covenant was situated in the Most Holy
Place. Solomon intended for the temple to serve as a permanent equivalent to
the tabernacle, that great portable tent of worship that was carried from site
to site in the days of Moses.
Solomon prayed that God would receive the temple as His house and
that from there, He would dispense justice, forgiveness and deliverance to the
nation. He even uttered a prayer that God would be generous to the foreigner
who prayed toward this temple. YAHWEH responded
powerfully. The Shekinah cloud of the
glory of God’s presence flooded the temple much as it descended at Mount Sinai
when the Law of Moses was given. The king also prayed that God would be
attentive to the sacrifices offered there, and fire descended from heaven, consuming
the offerings on the altar. This was exactly how God had responded to the
dedication rituals of the wilderness tabernacle (Leviticus 9:24). YAHWEH was powerfully responding to His people:
“Yes, I accept
this temple as My house and as the seat of your worship. Regard yourselves as
officially settled in this land of promise.”
As many as thirteen
years passed. Solomon had now completed his own royal palace. God reminded the
king that His promised blessings to the nation came with covenant responsibilities.
He knew that His people were fallen and likely to sin against Him. Regarding
the temple, the LORD had said, “I have heard your prayers and have chosen
this place for myself as a temple for sacrifices.” (chapter 7:12). This could
be a place of reconciliation, where true repentance could usher in new
beginnings. Now, if the land were to suffer because of the people’s sins - by
drought, locusts or plague - then, God reminded Solomon:
… if my people
who are called by my name 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. - 2 Chronicles 7:14
The flipside of the covenant
appears a few verses later:
19“But if you turn
aside and forsake my statutes and my commandments that I have set before you,
and go and serve other gods and worship them, 20then I will pluck
you up from my land that I have given you, and this house that I have
consecrated for my name, I will cast out of my sight, and I will make it a
proverb and a byword among all peoples. 21And at this house, which
was exalted, everyone passing by will be astonished and say, ‘Why has the LORD done thus to this land
and to this house?’ 22Then they will say, ‘Because they abandoned
the LORD
… - 2 Chronicles 7:19-22a
Solomon's temple lasted only
four centuries, and for the most part, they were centuries of dishonor and
disgrace. Shortly after Solomon's death, Shishak of Egypt plundered the temple.
At least six times during its existence, it was despoiled and robbed. Its
sanctity was polluted: Ahaz provided the temple with a Syrian altar. Manasseh
placed an idol in it. It was destroyed by the Babylonians, but not until it had
been degraded by the Israelites themselves.
The nearest equivalent to God’s nation and temple today is His
church. This nation has citizens throughout the world, but no one earthly nation
can claim to be God’s own in the sense that Israel was. In America, believers
are constitutionally assured a voice. As we attempt to affect policy by
selecting leaders, we should cast our votes for persons, be they saints or
sinners, who are determined to affect security and positive values. But beyond
that, there is little we can do within the system to render the United States a
Christian nation per se. Of course, God
never called us to that task. His purpose for His people in this nation is the
same as it is in every nation; to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ until there
is no breath left with which to proclaim it.
Our supreme responsibility as Christians in this or any other
nation is to live as light in the world, so that the entire world may know the
one true God. If this responsibility is to be fulfilled, it will not be fulfilled
by any attempts to legislatively “Christianize” America. It will be
accomplished by vigilance on the part of the people of God for maintaining the
holiness of the church itself, for the church cannot function as light when she
is defiled.
NO AMOUNT OF RECITING 2 CHRONICLES
WILL EVER MINISTER TO AMERICA AS EFFECTIVELY AS A GLORIOUS, PURE AND
OBEDIENT KINGDOM PRESENCE!
CALLING OTHERS TO REPENTANCE WHILE TOLERATING A TARNISHED WITNESS
IS A COPOUT, A SHIFTING OF RESPONSIBILITY!
“But there are evil forces directed
against Christ’s body. This is why it is also essential for us to be constantly
engaged in building up the besieged walls of Zion (the church). While we have
Christ’s assurance that ‘the gates of hell’ cannot prevail against his church,
we must not become complacent about our need to repair the breeches as they
occur. In our day, there are many crumbing portions of Zion’s walls that need
our devoted attention. Church splits are rampant. Gossip, wrangling and all
sorts of infighting are taking place in churches and denominations all over our
nation. What possible biblical justification can we have for spending so much
precious time and energy trying in vain to reverse the downward spiral of our
American culture, when the walls of Zion are in such pressing need of repair?
Christ never commissioned us to force external reform on a wicked culture, but he has certainly given us a clear warrant
for maintaining Zion’s walls.” - Jon
Zens and Cliff Bjork at searchingtogether.org "God & Country" or Christ's Kingdom?
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