Warning: This is an article intended for saved Bible students... If you are opinionated, religious, and stubborn without a desire to study, the whole sum of this read for you will end in disgust; your take-away will be a charge to my account of "knit-picking." Study for yourself. Please don't take my word for it. End of Warning. (This isn't sarcastic; I am being sincere)
I see it posted everywhere. It is on church signs, t-shirts, bags, bulletins, social media, and even in a group text I received last week... What's the "it?" It is 2 Chronicles 7:14-15:
" 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. Now mine eyes shall be open, and mine ears attent unto the prayer that is made in this place."
I love these verses because they are Scripture, or God's Word. What I do not love is how they have been used out of context and for the "wooing" of the crowds. I have heard countless sermons over the years using this text as the pivot of the message. There was one inteded destination for the end of the message: many people "flooding the altar" & "getting 'right' with God." There is a huge problem here that needs to be diagnosed and addressed by using right doctrine!
There is a list of things from all of chapter 7 that does not make it on the church signs. Let's name a few.
1. VERSE 1- Why not put "burnt offerings and sacrifices" on the sign? Well, we know that Jesus Christ is the sacrifice. So this would not make the cut for the sign.
2. VERSE 2- Where are the priests today? Is it the preacher, pastor, or the pope? Is it every Christian or just the ones who hold paid positions? To answer this, you will have to define the operation of a priest. Who, today, in the dispensation of grace, offers sacrifices for others, remit sins, and holds a special class that is distinct from everyone else? No one, unless you are Catholic.
3. VERSE 3, 4, 5- Once again, notice the priests and sacrifices.
4. VERSE 6- Read the second to last word in the verse (KJV applicable). You will notice the audience that day. It was not the Body of Christ, which did not exist until Acts 9. The hearers and participants were all members of the nation Israel. You and I are not Israel.
5. VERSE 7- SACRIFICES AND AN ALTAR
6. VERSE 8, 9, 10- In these verses, we read something that has been obsolete for about 2,000 years now... do you know what it is? After reading Galatians 4:10, we know that the observation of specific days is a HUGE no no, unless you are somehow trying to be a law practicing Israelite or perhaps a Seventh Day Adventist. But don't almost all protestants observe Sundays, Christmas and Easter as days "more special" than every other calendar day? What's going on?!
7. VERSE 11, 12- Do we find any building today, such as temple or buildimg, that God considers to be "His house?" (Ignore the fact that in almost ever church building across the land, that there are young adolescents being told to not run or misbehave in God's house.) We should realize that we, as the Church, as well as individuals, are the temple of the temple of the Holy Spirit.
8. VERSE 13- Do we see God offering warnings of plagues and judgement today as means of chastisement and correction? We do in verse 13. Read Romans 5:1. We are people at peace with God. Read 2 Corinthians 5:19 to see that God is not viewing the world as a bunch of sinners, but rather potential children who He is offering adoption to by means of faith in the blood of Christ.
9. VERSE 16- Once again, does God have a special building today? No.
10. VERSE 17- Do you and I follow the Mosaic Law to the "T?" No we do not.
11. VERSE 18- Are we, as the Church, awaiting the coming earthly kingdom that was promised to David? We shouldn't be. Some chalk it up to a spiritual kingdom that Christians presently inhabit, where's others hold to a future earthly kingdom that we will somehow participate in. Regardless, our promise is heaven and our salvation is present, not future. Compare that truth to Israel's promise in Acts 3:19-21.
12. VERSE 19-22- We are not Israel. We do not get plucked out of God's hand. We do not participate as a nation. This just isn't us.
Now that we looked at all of the other verses in chapter 7, what about verses 14 and 15?
Breakdown Analysis :
If my people:
This speaks of the nation of Israel. Many want to say that this can be us too. Make that fit with the plagues of verse 13. Are you still excited to be "my people" by way of the Old Covenant? Note also, this people can be cut off. We cannot. Ephesians 1:13.
Which are called by my name:
These called people have to do with being the firstborn son of God, named Israel. See Exodus 4:22. Don't spiritualize it out of context.
Humble themselves, seek my face, and pray:
Humility, seeking God, and praying are all 3 things that we should do daily... but not in the context of James, where we draw close to Him and He will draw close to us. Read James 1:1 to realize Israel is the audience of that book. How much closer to God can you get than being in his body? Read Ephesians 5.
And turn from their wicked ways:
Sanctification is one thing, but this is a plea to return to the Mosaic Law.
Then will I hear from heaven:
Is this to say that God turns his ear away from sinners? The same individuals in this context that are His "people" are the ones that he closes His ears off to when they do not add up to His righteous standard. We who are saved in this dispensation of grace are not viewed as sinners by God because we are dead in Christ by baptism of the Spirit and have been raised anew to walk in newness of life.
Forgive their sin:
How can these people be "His people," but still have unforgiven sin? This is the workings of a covenant. If you're saved today you are forgiven. There are a lot of people praying for forgiveness today.
Heal their land:
This is often spiritualized, but think about it. This is about crops and produce... Nothing spiritual to be drawn out of the well here.
Verse 15, once again, talks about the answering of God, to Israel, due to the covenant he has made with them.
What is the purpose of this? The reason for the verse by verse commentary is to show that many people are using doctrine and making application that does not work today. We are not in a covenant. (That's bold to say, but we simply are not.) If you are in a covenant, you are in a contract. The only contract we have today is God saying,
"Paid in full by the blood of my Son."
Here is the deal friends... If we want to be credited for seeking God's will, we must do so by matching his mode of operation. God is the same, but he had change His operation with men many, many, times throughout the history of mankind. This is so you will be informed. Don't just trust the preacher's passion as he boisterously proclaims prayer promisises from the pulpit. We do not pray according to any covenants today. We couldn't even if we tried. See Ephesians 2:12.
Not going with the flow often seems hectic, but there is one thing we must strive for in out convictions. This one thing is clear from Romans:
"Let God be true and every man a liar."
Truth is the key, whereas Satan's doctrinal schemes is the darkness. Do not, knowingly, sit in darkness friends. If you find biblical truth not matching up with your denominational statement of faith, just remember your denomination is fallible. God's Word does not fade and does not fail!
Keep studying!
-Alan
