Introduction

2. 2 Chronicles 7:14If My people who are called by My name will 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.

3. Introduction There is a story that talks about “how to boil a frog alive”. Frogs are agile jumpers and if you drop them in boiling water, they will immediately jump out. If you want to boil a frog, you place it in cool water and slowly raise the heat. If you raise it slowly enough the frog is unaware of the gradual change and will meet an untimely end.

4. Introduction I was listening to a commentary on NPR about the world’s apathy towards what is going on in Syria. Syria learned from the lessons of Libya. When the “rebels” attacked the government in Libya, the Libyan government immediately attacked the rebel forces with their entire military. The world was appalled and came in on the side of the rebels. When the rebels attacked in Syria, the Syrian government started with a limited response. To those watching, the Syrian government slowly turned up the pressure on the rebels, but each step was small. Some nations protested, but the small inclement of increased force did not warrant military intervention. Recently the Syrian government used nerve gas on their own people, and the world sleeps.

5. Introduction The church has fallen into the same trap. Satan is very patient. With each generation, he pushes our nation deeper into sin. Could you imagine someone from the 1800’s walking into the average theater and watching a movie. They would be shocked at the language, immorality and nudity. Yet we have been desensitized, little my little, pushing our cultural boundaries deeper into sin while God’s people sleep.

6. Introduction Abortion is undermining our society. These are the 2012 statistics for abortion in the USA. An abortion takes place every …. 26 seconds137 every hour 3,304 every day 23,196 every week 100,516 every month 1.206,192 every year Over 54 million children have been aborted since 1973.

7. Introduction Violent crimes and robbery fill the news and force us to sleep behind locked doors. Our nation is filled by people living according to the works of the flesh. Galatians 5:19-21Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, 20 idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, 21 envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.

8. Introduction The American church has lost sight of the Holiness of God. Like Isaiah’s day, each does what is right in their own eyes. We have become our own standard of right and wrong and have turned our backs on God and His Word. We have become so desensitized to sin, that it is easy to eat our suppers while watching the news, laugh at the misfortune of others on “America’s Funniest Home Video”, and we barely blush at Late Night’s coarse humor and sexual innuendos.

9. Introduction It takes airplanes flying into the World Trade Center, and bombings at the Boston Marathon to get our attention. Yet even here we grieve over the suffering of the “innocent” rather than the sin and cultural decay that gives rise to these acts of violence. What is it going to take for God to bring us our knees to truly grieve over the sin of our nation. Not just any sin, our sin, your sin and my sin. This gets personal!

10. Deliverance from Discipline 2 Chronicles 7:14If My people who are called by My name will 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. This verse is in the context of Solomon dedicating the Temple to God. Lets look at the verses before 2 Chronicles 7:12-13Then the Lord appeared to Solomon by night, and said to him: “I have heard your prayer, and have chosen this place for Myself as a house of sacrifice. 13 When I shut up heaven and there is no rain, or command the locusts to devour the land, or send pestilence among My people, … This verse is in the context of His Judgment upon His people.

11. Deliverance from Discipline 2 Chronicles 7:14If My people who are called by My name will 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. Scripture proclaims that the hand of God’s judgment falls upon those who commit wickedness. But here the Lord is declaring to both Solomon and the people that His hand of judgment could be stopped. If the people’s sin aroused God’s judgment to cause drought or loss of crops or some plague among them, they could stop the judgment. They could be saved and delivered by taking four actions.

12. Action 1 2 Chronicles 7:14If My people who are called by My name will 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. We must be God’s people. He is the only living and true God, the only Savior and Lord of the universe. Therefore, we must become His followers. We must be part of the people who are called by His name and bear witness to His Name. Many in the church today want the blessings and perks of being God’s people, but do not want to commit to living holy lives. We want God, but we want Him to keep His distance. God is calling people to make a commitment to truly be His people and live according to “His Name”.

13. Action 2 2 Chronicles 7:14If My people who are called by My name will 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. 2. We must humble themselves before the Lord. Instead of rebelling against Him, being obstinate and stubborn and insisting on living life as we want, we must humble themselves to obey His commandments and to live as we should.

14. Action 3 2 Chronicles 7:14If My people who are called by My name will 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. 3. We must pray and seek His face for forgiveness. We must also seek deliverance from His discipline. For “God’s people” judgment was settled at the cross, but God disciplines His children to create change in their character, values, and purpose.

15. Action 4 2 Chronicles 7:14If My people who are called by My name will 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. 4. We must repent, turn away from our sinful behavior and turn back to the Lord. Confessing and humbling ourselves and even praying and asking for forgiveness would not prove our sincerity and truthfulness. Our sincerity and truthfulness would be proven only when we turn away from our sin. Repentance is always necessary to receive the forgiveness and salvation of God.

16. Nineveh Nineveh is a good example of national repentance. Jonah was sent to warn Nineveh that God’s judgment was coming. Jonah did not want to see Nineveh repent, but they did. Jonah 3:5-9So the people of Nineveh believed God, proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest to the least of them. 6 Then word came to the king of Nineveh; and he arose from his throne and laid aside his robe, covered himself with sackcloth and sat in ashes. 7 And he caused it to be proclaimed and published throughout Nineveh by the decree of the king and his nobles, saying, Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste anything; do not let them eat, or drink water. 8 But let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and cry mightily to God; yes, let every one turn from his evil way and from the violence that is in his hands. 9 Who can tell if God will turn and relent, and turn away from His fierce anger, so that we may not perish?

17. Nineveh God’s Response… Jonah 3:10Then God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God relented from the disaster that He had said He would bring upon them, and He did not do it.

18. What About You? We each need to take a hard look at our own lives. We have a tendency to excuse and justify our own sin. God is not mocked and loves us too much to allow us to damage our lives in our folly. We need to pray that God’s Spirit would convict us of our sin and that revival would pour across our nation.