Faithful Christian Commitment and service
in the Middle East for almost 150 years The Nazareth Trust Healing in the Name of Jesus Since 1861
in the Middle East for almost 150 years The Nazareth Trust Healing in the Name of Jesus Since 1861
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Welcome
Welcome to another week where we can worship together and remember what our Lord has done for each of us.
Devotion
2 Chronicles 7:14
“if my people, who are called by my name, will 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 context of this verse comes just as Solomon completes building the temple. The ark of the covenant has been made and put into the Holy of Holies, the sacrifices have been made and as Solomon prays, fire comes down from heaven and consumes the sacrifices. The glory of the Lord fills the Lord’s house and the people bow with their faces down to the ground in worship.
After all of this, the Lord appears to Solomon and speaks to him with these verses. The verse covers four themes:
Humility
“If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves”
Humility is an important quality spoken about in the Bible in many places. In Proverbs 11: 2 we are told “When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom.” Also in James 4:6 “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” Salvation is from the Lord alone, but when we humble ourselves before Him, we experience His grace in our lives.
This reminds us that as the body of Christ we need to be approachable, not superior or intimidating, but showing love to those around us. This applies not only to people but to ministries, so that those who approach them feel that they belong, even before they commit to believing.
Prayer
“and pray”
Prayer as we know is communication with God and is not a one way process. We are told to pray continually and in Matthew 6: 5 – 8 we are also instructed in prayer:
“And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.”
As Christians we need to be careful how we pray, remembering that public prayer should always edify the body of Christ. In some cases, personal prayer lives may need to remain private as in the passage, so that they do not distract from the edification of the body.
Passion
“and seek my face”
Seeking God demands a desire and can be understood as a passion for Him. This can be likened to romantic relationships as in the imagery of bride and bridegroom, or to a predator with its prey. In both cases, there is a relentless pursuit of the object of desire and this is what we need to have for God. Without passion, we become lukewarm and risk being spewed out of the Father’s mouth.
So how do we feel this joy and passion? Much of the fire and passion will come from reflection. In our lives we have experiences we can liken to mountain tops and valleys. We need to reflect daily on where we have come from and make this into a continual process in our lives.
Repentance
“and turn from their wicked ways”
Romans 6:23 says “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Repentance is a turning around, turning from our old ways and deciding not to do this again. We often feel some regret and yet go back to old models of behaviour. This is not the same as repentance which requires a turnaround in determination not to return in that way.
We can apply this verse and these 4 things to our everyday lives. Reflecting on the importance of humility, prayer, passion, and repentance displays the transformation power of Jesus in us. As a body of Christ we must stay so humble to a world that often views Christians as arrogant and others as weak. To get to a position where people feel they can approach us, we must exude a humble, tangible love that people actually see and receive.
This world must feel belonged before they can believe, and we must take the example of Christ eating with tax collectors as they were, far before the point of believing. May the joy the of the Lord Jesus Christ be your strength as you seek Him with passion, pray consistently, and repent of an unclean life as conviction comes through His Holy Spirit.
Speaker: Derek Schwartz