By Timothy Johnson
Preacher’s Point
The state of America can be a short speech. One sentence will do – “The country is a mess.”
Our problems include inflation, abortion, crime, mass shootings, health care, Chinese spy balloons, a general lack of trust, wildfires, hurricanes, the supply chain, an ever-increasing national debt, and the list goes on.
Now that several problems are identified, we can start pointing fingers at the guilty culprits behind it all. The political parties point at each other, proclaiming the trespasses of the other side. Special interest groups point out anyone that has shown any resistance to their cause as the main antagonist of the nation.
No one, not one single person, pounds their finger on their chest and announces, “It’s my fault.” No group of people proclaims, “The mess the country is in, is our fault.”
As a Christian, I am pleading with all Christians; we need to seriously look in the mirror and do something about what we see so that God can fix the nation.
Christians are to be a doer of the word and not a hearer only (James 1:22-26). A verse out there that is heard frequently but not acted on much is 2 Chronicles 7:14, “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.”
God has given us an if/then clause to the nation’s healing. Since God never lies, there is no doubt that He will do the “then” when we accomplish the “if.” Yes, the healing process will take time, but there is no indication things are getting better spiritually.
We cannot gripe about elected or appointed officials; we cannot blame the media. We Christians must take responsibility – if my people which are called by my name…
We must humble ourselves, pray, seek God’s face, and turn from our sins. That is the prerequisite God put in place for the healing of the land. It is up to us.
Daniel 9:3-19 is a fascinating piece of Scripture. Daniel turns his face toward God and begins to pray. The prayer is extraordinary because Daniel confesses many sins he did not do personally, but Israel did them as a nation. Daniel uses the word “we” throughout the prayer. Daniel fasts, wears sackcloth and ashes in humility, confesses the nation’s sins, tells God how wonderful He is, thanks Him for the blessing he received, and pleads for His mercy.
Christian, have you ever prayed to God in this manner? – “Dear Lord, we have sinned. We have killed millions of babies at the altars of convenience, pleasure, and money. We have taken your sacred relationship of marriage between a man and woman and made a mockery of it through divorce, living in sin, and the glorification of the sins of Sodom and Gomorrah.”
If you are thinking, “I have nothing to do with any of that stuff!” I remind you, Daniel had nothing to do with the sins he confessed.
Many of our churches (and therefore the people within them) are Laodicean (see Revelation 3:14-22). They are not hot or cold. In other words, there is no passion. Convenience determines if a person attends or not. Apathy is the theme of the hearts. Materially nothing is lacking, but spiritually the situation is miserable.
When looking for a church, many people walk into a church for the first time and start evaluating what the church can do for them. Few enter with the thought, “How can I serve God here.” The former is an attitude of selfishness. The latter is the heart of a humble servant of God. Interestingly, humility was the first thing on God’s list for the healing of the land.
In Revelation 3:20, Jesus is standing outside the Laodicean church, pounding on the door, waiting for someone to let Him in.
On the one hand, Revelation 3:20 may be one of the saddest verses in the Bible. The Bible tells us in Matthew 18:20, “For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” If there were two or three Christians inside the church, then Jesus would not be on the outside trying to get in.
On the other hand, Revelation 3:20 offers hope. If anyone opens the door, He will come in. How is that door opened? Daniel and 2 Chronicles have already told us that humility turns the doorknob. The door opens wider and wider as prayer, seeking God’s face, and turning from our sins occur. Once the door is open, God can come in and heal the land.
The state of the union depends on us. If my people which are called by my name…
Preacher Johnson is Pastor of Countryside Baptist Church in Parke County Indiana. Website: www.preachers-point.com; Email: [email protected]; Mail: 25 W 1200 N; Kingman IN 47952. Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Timothy-Preacher-Johnson-101171088326638. All Scripture KJV.
