“IF MY PEOPLE”
PASTOR ROD DAVISON
June 7, 2020
Let’s open with a word of prayer. “Our gracious Heavenly Father, Thank you for this day. We thank you for the fact. Lord, we are moving forward in the name of Jesus. We just ask, as we move forward, that everything be pleasing in your sight. Bless those who have joined us this morning. We just pray that your name will be honored and glorified in all that we do and say, in Jesus name. Amen.”
(Open your Bibles and read 2 Chronicles 7:12-16. Let’s have a word of prayer. “Father we ask your blessing now as we open your Word. Help us to relieve from you that which you have given us today. You know, Lord, that we live in a dangerous world and there are many things going on in our world today. But we know that your plan for the world is perfect. We just ask, as we read your Word, that we might understand it fully and we might be drawn to you, closer and closer each day. In Jesus’ name. Amen.”
SERMON: The title of the sermon today is “If My People, and I have been thinking in terms of what we have been witnessing lately, both with the pandemic COVID-19 and all the things that went with it and it’s still prevalent with us today, and the sad death of an innocent man. But I thought in all these things, God is preeminent, God is here, God hasn’t left us. And it took me back to the birth of the United States and a man by the name of John Adams, a name I’m sure that you’ve heard before. He was there at the very beginning, and it was anything but an easy birth of this nation. Several years ago I read a book by David McCollum, a biography of John Adams, and it’s fascinating. In school I enjoyed History, and I never got into any depth in the study of each individual Patriot. This book takes John Adams from the cradle, his birth in Braintree, Massachusetts to the grave. I won’t give you a blow-by-blow of his life, except to say he was a farm boy, but with great hard study and determination, graduated from Harvard College, became a lawyer, then a Legislator, a Rebel who signed the Declaration of Independence, an Ambassador to France, Holland, England, Vice President under George Washington and the second President of the United States. He died at the age of 90 at a time that most people didn’t live to see 60 at his home in Braintree. Oh, and by the way, he died on July 4, 1826, the exact same day as the third President of the United States, Thomas Jefferson who was 83.
John Adams was also a born-again believer. He lived a his life with a deep commitment to his Savior, Jesus Christ, in constant prayer, seeking God’s will at every turn. Even then, there were those who proclaimed a different religious belief, Humanism, or as it was called “The Age of Reason”. The idea was that by thinking deeply, man could set his own course and bring about peace on earth without God’s help. Thomas Jefferson, and many others in Government were among those who called themselves Diest’s, believing that God set everything in motion, then stepped aside and let mankind figure things out without getting further involved. As they say, “There’s nothing new under the sun.”.
So let’s fast forward 2 1/2 Centuries in where we find ourselves in “The Post Christian World”. In the 20 years that followed the Revolutionary War, if it had not been or men like John Adams, our Republic would not have survived. There is every possibility that our Republic may not survive the current onslaught against it. Only time will tell if we stand or fall. We as Christians, must do our utmost to preserve the truths that this nation was built on, like Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness. But the greatest and most important truth is what we find on our coins, “In God We Trust.” Our mission, at this point, is clear. I do firmly agree that we must be ready at all times to give a clear, loving account of our faith in Jesus Christ, and the absolute fact that He is the only one who can deliver us as individuals and as a nation.
I would like to go back and read our text one more time, especially verse 14. Listen carefully. “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, forgive their sin and heal their land.” I see so many people today that will not take any other course, except that of destructive action. They are trying to do things to mold the world into the image that they have perceived of. And they are not willing to listen to any reasonable alternatives. We are watching people take to the streets because they want their way and no other way. There is no room for discussion, there is no room intelligent thought. It’s just “Whatever comes into my mind, that’s what I’m going to do.” We see people pouring into the streets and hurting other people so that they can get their own way, or get something that they want that they didn’t earn.
Why an I talking about this this morning? Because I think it’s vital that we understand that God has a purpose, even on the things that we don’t understand, the things that we are watching on TV, the senseless beatings and killings that are taking place, all these things serve a purpose that only God can understand. What God it trying to tell us if we will repent of our sins, if we will turn from the things that have turned this Nation upside down right now, God will forgive us, He will heal our land. He will make us whole again as a people. We’re the ones that need to repent. We’re the ones who need to be down on our knees and pour out our hearts in confession of our sins. We’re the ones who have to stop doing things our own way, rather than His. We’re the ones that have to come back, seek His face and receive forgiveness, then, and only then can the healing process begin. It begins with Christian people. Those who know that Lord as their Savior, those of us who hopefully live our lives in His will and purpose, have strayed too. We sought our own way, we want to do things our way, things that please us. God expects us to do things that please Him. God can heal our land, absolutely He can heal our land, but we have we be willing to submit to Him. Will He heal our land this time? I don’t know. The Bible tells us that when we see these things taking place, things that we are seeing now, things that are happening on the streets of our cities, that Jesus is on the doorstep. I don’t know if it’s already too late for our nation. I don’t know what’s going to happen next. But I do know that if we do what the Bible tells us to do God will listen and God will make a difference.
The COVID-19 pandemic and its effect on our world has been unequaled by any other event in history, including two World Wars. The things we have been going through and the things we have been watching happen in people’s lives is unparalleled. The total shut-down of the world, our Government, our economic system, everything just came to screeching halt. Now we are trying to build back into our economy, our people getting back to work and it all seems to be very much “fits and starts”, it looks good for a couple of days, then things don’t look so good. Some news comes out and we all go into a panic again. I believe God is looking down and saying,”You’re not listening, You’re not listening. Come unto me and I will give your rest, I will give you peace, I will give you joy, all those things that your striving so hard to accomplish, I will give you in an instant.”
I am very confident that we are looking down corridors of time right now and approaching the end of all things as we know them, and because of that, we as Christians need to stand up, we as Christians need to do things that are pleasing in God’s sight. We need to be praying, we need to be listening, we need to be reaching out to others who need Jesus. We need to tell people the truth that will set them free. What Jesus told us in Matthew 24, that these things must take place. But He also told us that when we see these things taking place, that we are nearing the end. We are nearing the Rapture of the Church. We talk about the Rapture of the Church, that time when Christians will be taken out of the world, a time when chaos will reign on the earth unlike anything we’ve seen so far. But there is still time right now for us to make a difference in the hearts and lives of people. Lots of people are scared today, lots of people are looking for answers. We have the answers. We have the truth that will set people free. What would it take for one person to go and tell another person the truth that will set them free? And the answer is, nothing. All we have to do is go and do it. Let’s God lead you. You probably have some people on your list right now you need to talk to about Jesus, and you know it, and you have been waiting, you have been waiting because you might me a little afraid that they might not like you. But I can assure you that they are going to like you a whole lot less when they come before God and he says, “depart from me, I never knew you”, because we didn’t tell them the truth.
It’s on my heart a lot lately because I see people all the time struggling, people that who have lost their jobs, people who have bills to pay and they can’t pay them, people who are at their wits end and they don’t know what’s going to happen next. Can God solve all those problems? Absolutely He can. And He will. And He will lead them by the hand until the problems are solved. He will never leave us, He will never forsake us. What we have to do as Christians is to get out there and tell them the Good News. The hope that is in us is Christ. The hope is that is in us is eternity with Him. We have it, we need to share it. We need to do it quickly because Jesus is coming again. John Adams had that hope in the 1700’s and 1800’s and he shared it with a lot of people. He wasn’t bashful about his faith. Not everybody agreed with him, and he was a stubborn New Englander , but he had a way of telling people the truth that would set them free. And that wonderful way is still available today. All we have to do is love people, tell them the truth and give them the hope that they need, that not only through eternity, but right now, Jesus will be with them and give them everything that they need to survive now and forever more.
I praise you Lord Jesus for the opportunity today to just share this truth with others. May we, as your people, humble ourselves before you and allow you to lead us. Let’s pray. “Our gracious Heavenly Father, there is so much in the world today that we see as difficult, so much today that we see as horrible, and yet you have overcome the world. Help us to help others to see the truth, to know the truth and believe and trust you forever more. We praise you and thank you for what you are doing among us and we thank you for the opportunity to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ today. In Jesus’ name. Amen.”
