GOD’S HEART IN THIS COVID SEASON
“If I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or if I command the locust to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among My people, and 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, will forgive their sin and will heal their land.” (2 Chronicles 7:13,14 NASB)
The above verse is very familiar to many believers and is frequently quoted during trying times. It is a promise with a condition. We are quick to hold God to His promises, but are we as quick to meet His conditions? We want to overlook the condition, dismissing it as something that was eradicated at the cross. It is true that the cross work of Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the Law of Moses (Galatians 3:13). Although Solomon was under the law, this was spoken to him apart from the Law. The promises of the Law were conditioned upon keeping the rules and regulations that God had set forth. This promise recorded in 2 Chronicles was conditioned upon simple repentance of sin. This concept of a promise, following repentance, is also expressed in 1 John 1:9 NASB. It reads, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” Here again, we see repentance associated with a promise. Both verses are addressed to the people of God. It is the Covenant People of God that are being called to repentance. We can claim the promise of 2 Chronicles 7:14 if we, as God’s people – believers in Christ, are willing to humble ourselves and meet the condition of that verse -repentance.
The Application
We are in the middle of a world-wide pandemic, among other things. Many things have been tried that have brought temporary relief, but not total deliverance. How about turning to The One who truly does know the answer? The One who has given the promise with the condition. Let us consider that in our haste to get through this pandemic, we may have failed to receive what God wanted us to get out of it. Which begs the question, “What were we supposed to get out of it?” If we believe God is sovereign and He is good, then we should expect that there are some things we should learn from this season. They are the things that lead to repentance, and true repentance brings about change. Change is the key component in growth/development/spiritual maturity.
In Christianity, this change is part of the journey to transformation (being made in the likeness of Christ) and being positioned for greater influence for the Kingdom of God. God’s heart (goal) for believers is to make us like Christ (transformation), so that we may share the gospel (evangelization) with those who will equip others to do the same in a spirit of community bound by one Spirit and God’s love. Therefore, transformation is not the end but the process that leads to the propagation of the Kingdom of God in the Earth. It is what brings Heaven down and spreads God’s glory over the earth for we become bearers of His glory (2 Cor. 3:18)
The Challenge
Nothing is wasted in God’s economy. So, have we gotten what we should have out of this season? If we have, are we living it out? May this time not be wasted. Are we different now than we were eight months ago? How are we different, or why aren’t we different? What have we learned? How are we implementing what we have learned? What changes have occurred in us? What changes have we made that were led by God? Conversely, what changes have we made that were motivated by our own selfish desires or ambition? If any of these questions cannot be answered, we must revisit the past 8 months in our minds, with the help of the Holy Spirit. Ask Him to reveal what God wanted us to learn, and what response was needed in order to be positively changed by it.
Be assured that God has been revealing things in this season, particularly regarding the condition of our hearts. That is where transformation begins. Learning doesn’t stop with understanding. True learning involves the application to our lives. How has what we have learned in this season been applied to our daily lives?
The answers to these questions are very important to us individually and collectively in the body of Christ. Yes, the signs are pointing to Christ’s return, but He is coming for a church that is without spot or wrinkle. (Ephesians 5:27) Let us humble ourselves to God’s mighty loving hand, so that we may become that Church. Let us be as the five wise virgins in Jesus’ parable, who were prepared for the coming of the bridegroom (see Matthew 25). Let us each search our own hearts, confess our own sin, repent and humble ourselves to God’s pruning hand (John 15:2). Then we will be in the position to be heard by God, and He will “heal our land.” Let’s pray.
Prayer:
Lord God, by Your Spirit, I give You full permission to search my heart and reveal those areas that are not like You. I repent of (fill in the blank). Thank You for forgiving me. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit, and make me like You. I submit to the Potter’s wheel to be restored to Your image which is love. Use me to manifest Your glory in the earth and please, God, heal our land. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
