Like most of you, i watched in horror yesterday as a group of people attempted to lay siege to the U. S. Capitol. I’m not sure which image horrified me more – the images of the unruly mob attempting to breach the house and senate chambers – OR – the image of a flag bearing the name of Jesus being waved in their midst. As an American, i was witnessing the very foundation of our nation being threatened. And as a follower of Jesus, i was witnessing His name being defamed.
In the midst of my horror, i found myself asking how do i respond to this? What do i do in light of what i am seeing? The Spirit of God spoke to my heart and reminded me that He is very capable of protecting His own name. He will not be mocked and one day every knee will bow, and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.(1) He reminded me that my job is not to rail against those who carried a flag bearing His name in the midst of that chaos. Then He went on to remind me that His words to His chosen people three thousand years ago have application to us – just as they always have.
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)
Let’s remember context before we attempt to claim a promise that is not ours to claim. God gave this promise to His covenant people, the nation of Israel. He wasn’t saying this to a portion of the people within the nation who were His followers; He was saying it to that specific nation en masse. We, as the nation of the USA, are not His covenant people. God never promised that if the remnant of His people (those who are followers of Jesus) who live in this nation repent and pray for our nation, that our nation will be healed. But having acknowledged the context, we would do well to heed His words. Perhaps, that He might heal our nation, like He chose to do so when He turned His wrath away from the people of Nineveh.(3)
And one other point of context: He said these words when Solomon was the king of Israel. The Bible tells us that Solomon was the wisest of all the wise men of his age.(4) But God did not say, “If my people will follow Solomon ….” He did not say healing would come from their political leaders or systems. It should be a reminder to us that our hopes for healing can never rest in our political leaders – either those who lead today, or those who will lead in the days to come. We are to pray that our leaders are directed in their decision-making by godly wisdom and strive to lead righteously, but the healing of our nation will not come based upon who those leaders are.
So what should those of us who are called by His name do? First, we must humble ourselves. In recent weeks we have all witnessed a lot of bravado, a lot of shouting and a lot of bullying. And i’m not talking about the world around us; i’m talking about among those who would profess to be followers of Jesus. Jesus never beat on His chest and demanded our attention; rather, He humbled Himself to the point of being born in a stable … and being crucified on a cross.
His Word tells us that humility is counting others more significant than ourselves and looking to the interests of others.(5) We are to be characterized by our compassion, our kindness, our concern and our patience.(6)Oswald Chambers describes it well. He must have known we would need to hear this word on this very day:
The Christian who is truly intimate with Jesus will never draw attention to himself but will only show the evidence of a life where Jesus is completely in control.(7)
Second, we must pray and seek the face of God. Yesterday, as i watched the live coverage being shown from the balcony of the house chamber, i saw a woman who was conspicuously praying. There were people demonstrating outside. There were people threatening harm on the inside. There were many who were trying to make wise decisions and provide leadership in the midst of chaos. And there were many brave men and women who were doing all they could to protect others and bring order to the chaos. In the midst of all of that was the image of this woman praying (and i’m certain there were probably others like her). At that moment, i was reminded that i needed to be doing the very same thing – and it was the most important thing i could be doing. And the window of prayer didn’t begin with the chaos of yesterday, not did it close when the immediate crisis passed. Our prayer and seeking of God’s face must continue until we experience the healing we seek.
Lastly, we must repent (turn from our wicked ways), and seek God’s forgiveness. Repentance acknowledges that i have been wrong – that i have sinned against God and against others. It acknowledges my sinfulness in every area of my life – including my pride, my ego and my selfishness. It acknowledges my false attempts to be independent of God and embraces the reality of my complete dependence upon Him. It’s the relinquishing of all of the broken pieces of my life and surrendering them to Him. It’s acknowledging that before i can ask God to heal our land, i must first be honest and ask Him to heal my life – and the mess i have made of it.
The good news is He has promised that if we confess our sin, He is faithful to forgive us.(8) That is a promise we can hold onto! We can be forgiven. We can become a people who are truly called by His name – and very possibly, by His mercy and grace, He will heal our land.
It appears we’ve tried everything else. We seem to have done whatever else we thought was right in our own eyes. Was yesterday a wake-up call? Will we respond? i pray we do!
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(1) Romans 14:11
(2) 2 Chronicles 7:14 (ESV)
(3) Jonah 3:10
(4) 1 Kings 4:30
(5) Philippians 2:3-4
(6) Colossians 3:12
(7) My Utmost for His Highest, devotional thought for January 7th
(8) 1 John 1:9
Photo by Jordan Wozniak on Unsplash