Tuesday, 30 June 2009

  • Heal Our Land?

    Like most pieces of literature, both ancient and modern, the passages throughout the Bible have a context. And taking things out of context is dangerous. One particular Bible passage near and dear to Christians in America is 2 Chronicles 7:14 which says, “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.” Why was this verse written, and does it really have application for America today?

    The passage is a quote from God, and He was speaking to King Solomon sometime around 965 BC right after Solomon had completed the construction of the Temple in Jerusalem. God appeared to him and told him how He had selected Jerusalem as the place where animal sacrifices were to be made in order to temporarily atone for sin until the Messiah came to fulfill what those animal sacrifices pointed toward, namely the death of THE Lamb of God – the Messiah. And because God had chosen Jerusalem in the land of Judea in the land of Israel (Palestine/Canaan) as the Promised Land where God’s people would dwell and be blessed, God also promised to curse those who rejected Him and thus polluted the land with their sins. Solomon was to know that the Israelites – God’s chosen people – would be blessed if they obeyed God and cursed if they rebelled. But even though God would curse them for their disobedience, He told Israel that if they would call out to Him and repent, He would heal their land of the ravages He would send upon it. God’s restoration was contingent on their repentance, for the land of Israel was special to God, and Jerusalem was the permanent home of God’s blessings. To understand this, context is vital – beginning in v. 11, continuing to v. 22. And if verse 14 is taken out of context, then the passage is woefully misinterpreted and misapplied.

    First, the passage was written to Israel – God’s chosen people through whom the Messiah came to offer salvation to all peoples, not just Israel. Second, the provision for repentance meant that if the Israelites turned from ignoring God and/or worshipping pagan gods, then God would hear their prayer from His seat in Heaven and forgive their sins. Third, God would also send rain on their famine-ravaged land that had become parched due to their rebellion (because the Israelites were farmers, a dry land caused them to go without food). Thus, the Promised Land, flowing with milk and honey, would only remain fertile if Israel remained faithful.

    The question for us is can we replace the original location of 2 Chronicles 7:14 – Jerusalem in the land of Israel – with America? Has God blessed the soil of America, and has He made any eternal promises regarding our land? The answer is NO. America is blessed insofar as it is fertile and full of prosperity for we materialistic Americans. But so are other lands around the globe, and most of these are not Christian. Then again, neither is America Christian!

    The point being is that 2 Chronicles 7:14 does not apply to the United States. If we as Christians actually did come together and pray for our nation in fervency, God has given no promise to heal us (whatever that may mean). And forgive our sins? If we’re Christians then God has already forgiven our sins through our faith in Jesus Christ. God’s promises lie with Israel, and all who bless Israel and the seed of Abraham (the father of Israel) will be blessed.

    Our land will likely be destroyed, but Israel will never be destroyed since God has made eternal promises to that land and His people. The church should be praying for Israel’s peace, but before peace is had there, there will be a war so bloody that countless people will perish. Jerusalem will have peace, and Israel will know Christ. We should pray for that! Maybe we as Christians should pray instead that our weak preachers open the Bible and preach God’s word while cutting out all the fluff of how to have a happy marriage, finding your purpose, and how to have your best life now. Thus, we should pray for the things that God has promised to answer. 

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