Can God’s People Be Trusted?

Scripture: 2 Chronicles 7:14 - 14 If my people, who 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.

The Lord is clear about what it will take to “heal the land”. The Bible says, if God’s people who are called by His name will humble themselves, pray, seek His face, and turn from their wicked ways then God will heal the land. Those are very detailed instructions with a very clear answer. The problem with this directive is:  I’m not sure if God’s people can be trusted!

As the entire world was struck with a pandemic of epic proportions, I heard believers quoting 2 Chronicles 7:14. Ironically, the world has been here before – here meaning telling the world what needs to happen for healing; for restoration. When the AIDS epidemic hit, people quoted the same verse. AIDS claimed close to 2 million lives in a 10-year span and approximately 1 million lives a year globally since 2006 (ourworldindata.org). As Baltimore is on track to have another year with 300 plus murders, I remember back in the late 80’s hearing this verse quoted. In later years, I researched the history of violence in Baltimore and learned that this city has been violent for over 80 years. At that time, I said to myself, “I bet believers were quoting 2 Chronicles 7:14 back in the 40’s and 50’s as an answer to the city’s problem. If we know the answer, why are we still having the problem?

For decades I never really paid attention to the meaning of this verse although I heard it often. In the 80’s, I was not directly affected by the AIDS epidemic and not affected by the violence in the city at all. Truthfully, between10 – 18 years old, being able to recite scriptures was more important to me than actually understanding what the scriptures meant. Nonetheless, the answer was the same: If my people, who are called by My name, humble themselves, pray, seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways; God will heal the land. Fast-forward forty years later and the entire world has been hit with pestilence and wide-spread violence and yes, this verse is still being quoted. What happened? Has God’s people, who are called by His name failed to humble themselves, failed to pray, failed to seek God’s face, and failed to turn from their wicked ways? Emphatically, yes!!! It seems more than ever that believers are turning away from God. For this reason, I do not trust God’s people. Some days, I don’t even trust myself. I realize that pray without ceasing means having to pray in the moment so that I can resist the devil, that humbling myself means coming to You broken and asking for forgiveness of sin, that seeking Your face means truly taking the time to know You, love You, and follow You and that turning from my wicked ways means literally changing behavior. As a result, I don’t trust God’s people to do what is necessary for the land to be restored but I’m glad that we have the Holy Spirit to assist us in reaching this goal.

Prayer: Dear Lord, I come to You asking for forgiveness; forgiveness for losing hope at times and for not trusting You because I struggle with trusting Your people will do right. This struggle causes me to be cynical, lax in my prayer life, and sometimes causes me to grow weary of continuing to do right myself. I know that without repentance (humbling ourselves), prayer, true desperation for You, and actively living godly the world will not be restored and that we will see more droughts, more disasters, more famine, and more pestilence. Lord, thank you for our relationship where you speak directly to me and remind me that I am to endure to the end. I realize that the godlier we live the more the world will hate us. Jesus told us that in Matthew 10 and John 15. Thank you so much for Your Word, Lord! I ask You, Lord, to help Your people, that You have called, that You have set apart to stand, endure, and to live godly in spite of what we see around us, in spite of what we go through. Lord, please protect us in these dangerous times, give us the strength to stand, take away all fear when the world, our friends, and family turn against us. Protect us Lord as we pray for restoration of the land and as we set out to speak the truth to a world that hates the truth and seemingly hates You. Thank you, for Your protection and Your provision during these times. Thank you, Lord, for Your Son, Jesus Christ who died and rose so we might live. In the matchless name of Jesus, I pray. Amen.

(by Patricia Towns)