Part 5: Repentance p1
To date, we have gone over three of the four requirements of God’s mandate of compliance, before He will forgive their sins, and heal their land. Do not mistake the forgiveness of sins in this passage, for the everyday sins, by individual sinners [1] today. This was only God’s answer to Solomon to heal Israel’s land. Please allow me latitude to make a few points on this. Do not forget that today, the Lord no longer dwells in a physical temple, but in the hearts of His believers. Anyway, back to Israel. Context is everything.

For simple immediate context of the verse before and the verse after, in verse 12, the Lord tells Solomon that He has heard his prayer and that He has chosen this place (the new Temple) for His House of Sacrifice. Sacrifices were for the atonement of sins. Verse 13 tells us that the Lord might send judgement to His people and would be manifest to bring Israel to repentance.

v14 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 KJV]

Verse 15 states that the eyes of the Lord would be open, and His ears would be attentive to the prayers of the people, providing they did the above four things. As a sidebar, we should take note that the message of today’s church should be Jesus Christ, and Him crucified [2], with our primary focus on the Cross [3].

I contend that there is a small but especially important word that many believers overlook, which puts God’s mandate in its proper context. (There is that word “context” again.) Anyway, the word I speak of is the word “and.” Humble, pray, seek, and repent are not multiple-choice words, but are all commands. True repentance is not for the consequences of sin, rather to get us back into fellowship with the Lord, because sin separates us from His fellowship for the wages of sin is death, the Bible says [4].

I am only one person of many crying in the wilderness, “Prepare ye the way for the Lord; Make His paths straight.” There were many before me and there will be many after me, unless we are all raptured within what’s left of our lifetimes. I think it would be à propos to pray God’s Word back to Him, for His Word will not return void [5].

Dear gracious heavenly Father, your Words that go forth out of your mouth, they shall not return unto you void, but they shall accomplish that which you please, and they shall prosper in the thing whereto you sent it. And even as the people of the world did not like to keep you in their knowledge, you gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient. I pray that people seek you LORD while you may be found, and to call upon you while you are near: Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto you LORD, and you will have mercy upon him. You, God, will abundantly pardon them. In the ancient of days Lord, came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea, and saying, “Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” So, Father, I echo John, and I cry out to America… No Father, I cry out to the world, “Repent! For the Kingdom of God is at hand. Make ye straight the way of Lord” In Jesus’ precious name, AMEN. [6]

The King is coming, Hallelujah!! [7]
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[1] 1 John 1:9
[2] 1 Corinthians 3:23
[3] Romans 6:3-14; 1 Corinthians 2:2
[4] Romans 6:23
[5] Isaiah 55:11
[6] Isaiah 55:11; Romans 1:28; Isaiah 55:6,7; Matthew 3:1, 2; Mark 1:3
[7] Zechariah 9:9-11; 14:1-21