TURNING FROM OUR WICKED WAYS
If 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 Chronicles 7:14
In our previous three articles we explained that the three steps required for healing our land were a continuous process in the life of every believer. We looked at ways in which to humble ourselves, and examined the concept of seeking God’s face.
In this article, we will look at the last requirement of our bible verse – to turn from our wicked ways. I will start by asking the question, can born-again believers still sin? I believe the answer is yes.
Sin does not only constitute fornication, adultery, alcohol addiction, drug abuse, theft, violence, and murder. Scripture says:
- For I am afraid that when I come, I won’t like what I find, and you won’t like my response. I am afraid that I will find quarrelling, jealousy, anger, selfishness, slander, gossip, arrogance, and disorderly behaviour – 2 Corinthians 12 vs 20.
- Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamour, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice – Ephesians 4 vs 31.
- Some indeed preach Christ even from envy and strife… – Philippians 1 vs 15
Paul was instructing the church – those who were in Christ. He would not have written this to born-again believers if they no longer did these things. I believe that these sins are still prevalent in many Christian lives today, hence the need for repentance.
How many of us can truthfully say that we never get angry; have never been selfish or said one bad thing about another person? 1 John 1 vs 8 and 9 – If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
So how do we turn from our wicked ways? Like humbling ourselves before God and seeking His face, turning from our wicked ways is once again a continual process in the life of the born-again believer. If it were not so, Jesus would not have taught His disciples to ask for forgiveness in the Lord’s prayer, “and forgive us our sins” – Matthew 6 vs 12. In biblical times, Jewish men prayed three times a day.
As we go through life, we can have evil or lustful thoughts, take offense, indulge in bad habits, say bad things, upset others, experience resentment, jealousy, pride, covetousness, anger, etc. These things can enter (and re-enter) our lives in moments of weakness. And that is why we need to continually examine our hearts and repent of them before they become bigger things. Pride, for example can lead to rebellion and rebellion to witchcraft. For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, And stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry – 1 Samuel 15 vs 23.
If we do not repent, we will be turned away from the Lord through our sins and lose both the physical and spiritual territories that have been healed or restored to us, like the Israelites did whenever they sinned. Judges 3 vs 7 and 8 – The Israelites did evil in God’s sight and were delivered into the hand of the king of Mesopotamia. Judges 3 vs 12 – The Israelites again did evil in God’s sight and were delivered into the hands of the Moabites. Judges 4 vs 1 and 2 – The Israelites again did evil in God’s sight and were delivered into the hands of the Canaanites.
We need to continue this process of introspection (not self-criticism), renunciation, and repentance so that we do not fall into the hands of our enemy, Satan.
The first requirement of 2 Chronicles 7:14 is to humble ourselves. The second requirement is to pray and seek God’s face. When we do so in sincerity, there can be revelation, correction, healing, deliverance, and transformation. Pride will prevent us from accepting God’s correction. And when we cannot accept God’s correction, the process of our healing, deliverance and transformation is hindered. I.e. God cannot heal our land (the spiritual territory of our lives) if we are not open to His correction because of pride.
Therefore let us be humble before the Lord when we pray and seek His face. Let us turn from our wicked ways when He reveals them to us, so that He will hear from heaven, and will forgive us our sin and heal our land.