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| Is this the prayer that we should pray to heal our nation? |
Many preachers, teachers, and elected officials have referenced the above verse in times of crisis.
The United States, the whole world is caught up in fears and worries about the Coronavirus.
I am not worried.
I have been reading, meditating, and receiving revelation from Psalm 91, especially this verse:
"Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence." (Psalm 91:3)
It's an assured promise. God informs us clearly: "Surely ...", not maybe, might be, could be, but "Surely" He delivers us from the traps and snares of the enemy, and he is delivering us from the catastrophic diseases which are wreaking emotional havoc on populations around the world.
Now, let's get back to the verse above from Second Chronicles.
God spoke to Solomon shortly after his public prayer and dedication of the Temple on Mount Zion. God gave this direction to the king under the Old Covenant.
Under the Old Covenant, man had to offer the blood of bulls and goats to atone for sin--but it never cleansed sin away for good. God could not hear from His people at the time unless they had offered the sacrifices, unless they had atoned for their sins.
Today, because of Jesus's Finished Work on the Cross, we do not have to ask God to forgive our sins in order for Him to hear from us.
In fact, today, we have forgiveness of sins NOW!
"In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace" (Ephesians 1:7)
How can we ask for something which He has already given us?
In fact, because of all that Jesus has done for us on the Cross, we have entered into a New Covenant with God the Father:
"10For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people:
"11And they shall not teach every man his neighbour, and
every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the
least to the greatest.
"12For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their
sins and their iniquities will I remember no more." (Hebrews 8:10-12)
Indeed, God has offered healing to our land, to every land, if we will just believe in Jesus.
He offered His body for us, for our healing!
"Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows:
yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.
"But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed." (Isaiah 53: 4-5)
The most important point to draw out, however, is that God has forgiven our sins. He imputed all our sins, and sin, to His Son!
"2For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made
me free from the law of sin and death. 3For what the law could not do, in that
it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of
sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh:" (Romans 8:2-3)
and
"For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that
we might be made the righteousness of God in him." (2 Corinthians 5:21)
Most clearly of all, so that there is no equivocation or confusion on the matter:
"And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of
your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all
trespasses;" (Colossians 2:13)
We are not praying to God for Him to forgive our sins. We need to rejoice in that Jesus has accomplished a perfect work, and all our sins have been forgiven!
"But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins
for ever, sat down on the right hand of God;" (Hebrews 10:12)
Let's pray to God for healing, let's receive His Promises by faith!
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