Our Walk Of Faith II

"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." 2 Chronicles 7:14 (KJV)

What is the defining aspect of the problem?

In today’s culture wars we see religion vs. religion. Yes, I know that the enemies of Christianity claim it is a war against religion, but that is a calculated misrepresentation of the facts. Everyone has a religion, as the definition states; “A cause, principle, or activity pursued with zeal or conscientious devotion.” Or as many of the old dictionaries simply put it, “religion is a way of life.” Everyone has a way that they live their lives.

So what we are seeing is a battle between divergent religions, which both sides adhere to with varying degrees of faithfulness. One is a life without the Christian God, and the other is a life with God. We could always debate the talking points of each side, but we are here to address what a Christian can do to secure being able to live their faith, without constraint or censure. 

Again, that is the reason America came into existence in the first place, is it not?

We are not helpless against this animosity towards our Christian faith. We know that this is what the Bible calls trials and tribulations, and should be expected in our Walk Of Faith. This is,“the trying of our faith.” So how do we address the issue today? The short answer is as definitive, as it is obvious, you put God into the middle of it. Afterall, the light IS greater than the darkness. 

Or have we so soon forgotten that the battle is already won in Christ Jesus? This, like everything else, is just another skirmish! Again what is the solution?

The above verse actually says it all. It was given in the Old Testament of the Bible, and has stood as a promise from the beginning. It is the method whereby things are changed, and conformed to the will of God. However it is conditional, and requires that we must do our part, in order to get the blessing it contains.

First we must be God’s people and called by His name, in other words we must be Christian. Obvious right? Not always so. There are many who claim to be Christian, who are not. We must first secure our standing with God, as this is the foundation for all the rest to actually work. 

Being God’s people means discipleship, and a living sacrifice of our desiring of the things of the world. We must “pick up our cross” to really follow Jesus.

Second we must humble ourselves. If we think we have the solution, or that we can change things by our own actions and methods, then we haven’t humbled ourselves before God to allow Him to take over. We are too busy standing in the way, by trying to apply the solutions that we deem right. 

This is called self-righteousness, and it does not give room to humility, as it places our own mortal righteousness before God. So we must get out of the way, to make way for God.

Third we must pray. Prayer is the greatest power on earth, and it has been given to mankind to use to stand before the throne of God, offering praise, reverence, and supplication. As one dictionary puts it; prayer is, “a spiritual communion with God”. This is much like an old dictionary in which I found this definition, “prayer is a communion with the mind of God.” 

So we see that prayer is not just a mindless petition without power or hope, but rather a connection with the very essense of our God. This places God directly into the situation. And like the noonday sun, the darkness must flee!

Fourth we must seek God AND turn from our wicked ways. These are not two different things here. Seeking God you MUST turn from wickedness. It states in Romans 8:6-8 (KJV), “For to be carnally minded (sin, wickedness) is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God.” 

Here we see why we must seek God, because being carnal (of the world and it’s ways) takes us from the law (power) of God, which in turn renders us powerless to please (have kinship with) God. This would make it impossible to place God in the center of the problem.

This is also how we become the people of God, and to be called by His name. Here we see a perfect circle of power in God. The petition of our souls to God, and the answer from His throne back to us, His people. That in knowing, seeking, and communing with God, we establish a relationship that only grows stronger and even more powerful as we grow in faith. 

This is how we walk in the power of our faith, our Walk Of Faith. This is how we find our solutions, in this world, because God is the answer to everything! His very presence makes any given situation to have to conform to His will, His power, His strength, and His authority. 

This is the solution we are looking for, because He is perfect, and that every situation must conform to His perfection.

How does God provide the solution?

God (who can not lie) just said that if we do these things (of the passage), He will do three things in return. First, He will hear us, until this point our prayers have very limited power, if any at all. Then He will forgive us our sins. In other words, the first thing that gets conformed to the will of God, is our lives. We are transformed from a son of perdition, into a son of the living God. God first takes care of us! Then finally, He will heal our land. 

What does that really mean, how does that apply? Well, let’s take a look at our problem situation.

Our land, taking a literal meaning here, is by definition where we live, either physically, mentally, emotionally, or spiritually. It is where your life is focused. In the physical sense, in the post-modern world, we are being attacked as Christians, where we live physically. 

Yes, this can have mental, emotional and spiritual impact, but we are talking about the concerted efforts in the public square, against living openly as Christians—and God is saying that He will heal this. As already explained, He will do this by making “the land” conform to His will and authority. Anything unlike God will either conform, or be destroyed (nullified), as God is perfect, and anything not perfect must become perfect or perish.

This is why God has always said, “the battle is the Lord’s”, as it always has been His.

So let’s see what we have. First, we must understand that to address any and all problems in life, we must put God into the middle of it. We do this by first, being His people, that are called by His name. Then we must humble ourselves, pray, seek Him, and repent of our sins (turn away from them). What this does, is put ourselves in a position to receive His forgiveness and healing. In other words, this is HOW we place ourselves to receive the blessing of the promise. 

Then God will hear us, clean our lives of sin, and heal our land. We get everything in this one promise, as this places God in the middle of our lives, and all the circumstances we live in. They MUST conform to His will, power, strength, and authority. This is again, IS the power of our Walk Of Faith in our lives.

And when God is for us, who can be against us?

Be blessed, be loved and be at peace. May the light of God's glory and presence fire the brilliance of your souls. You are greatly loved.