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“… 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 NASB).
*
What is PRAYER really? Prayer is to
converse, or commune, or to communicate intimately with God. “… There I will meet
with thee, and I will commune with
thee
… of all things which
I will give thee in commandment unto the children of Israel …” (Exodus 25:22 KJV).
It is to talk familiarly with him and
share mutual sentiments together in a private dialogue. “… He will call upon Me,
and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will
rescue him and honor him…” (Psalms 91:26 NASB). “… it
shall come to pass, that before they call, I will
answer; and
while they are yet speaking, I will hear…” (Isaiah 65:24 NASB).
“…
'Call to Me and I will answer you, and I will tell you great and mighty
things, which you do not know…'” (Jeremiah 33:3 NASB).
It is to have heart to heart intercourse
with God through shared contemplation and meditation. “… Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my
strength, and my redeemer…” (Psalms 19:14 KJV). “… My
meditation of him shall be sweet:
I will be glad in the LORD…” (Psalms 104:34 KJV). “… Finally,
brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things [are] honest,
whatsoever things [are] just, whatsoever things [are] pure, whatsoever things
[are] lovely, whatsoever things [are] of good report; if [there be] any virtue,
and if [there be] any praise, think on these things…” (Philippians 4:8 KJV). “... Thou wilt keep [him] in perfect
peace, [whose]
mind [is] stayed [on thee]…”(Isaiah
26:3 NASB).
Prayer involves sharing many deep and
intimate sentiments with God, entreaties, devotion, praise, thanksgiving,
seeking his will, forgiveness for self and others; discussing daily needs, asking
for protection, and help for deliverance from evil. “…Moses
entreated the Lord his God, and said ...”
(Exodus 32:11 NASB). “…But Hannah
replied,
“…I have
poured out my soul before
the Lord…”
(1 Samuel 1:15 NASB). “… King Hezekiah and Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, prayed about
this and cried out to heaven…” (2
Chronicles 32:20 NASB). “… If you would seek God And implore the compassion of the Almighty…”
(Job 8:5 NASB). “… As for me, the nearness of God is my good;
I have made the Lord God my refuge, That
I may tell of all Your works…” (Psalms
73:28 NASB). “… For this reason I bow my knees before
the Father…” (Ephesians 3:14 NASB).“… The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much…” (James 5:16
KJV). “… The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much…”
(James NASB). “… The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces
wonderful results…” (James 5:16 NLT).
“… If
my people, which are called by my name, shall humble
themselves, and pray, and seek my face, …” (2 CHRONICLES 7:14 NASB).
This verse SAYS “humble yourself” and THEN “PRAY and SEEK.”
Pride is the antithesis
of humility and a blockage to a prayer reaching God. “Two men went to the Temple to pray. One was
a Pharisee, and the other was a despised tax collector. The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed this prayer: ‘I thank you, God,
that I am not like other people—cheaters, sinners, adulterers. I’m certainly
not like that tax collector! I fast twice a week, and I
give you a tenth of my income.’ “But the tax collector stood at a distance and dared not even lift his
eyes to heaven as he prayed. Instead, he beat his chest in sorrow, saying,
‘O God, be
merciful to me, for I am a sinner.’ I tell you, this sinner,
not the Pharisee, returned home justified before God.
For those who
exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be
exalted…” (Luke 18:10-14 NLT).
“…The wicked, THROUGH THE PRIDE of his countenance, WILL NOT SEEK AFTER
GOD: God is not in all his thoughts…” (Psalms 10:4 KJV).
Prayer is to
purposefully PURSUE God in order to KNOW him, FIND him, and sincerely SERVE
him. “…Solomon my son, know thou the God of thy father, and serve him with a perfect heart and with
a willing mind: for the Lord searcheth all hearts, and
understandeth all the imaginations of the thoughts: if thou SEEK HIM, he will be found
of thee…” (1
Chronicles 28:9 KJV). “…Those that SEEK ME early shall
find
me…” (Proverbs 8:17 KJV). “…ye shall SEEK ME, and find me, when ye shall search for me
with all your heart…” (Jeremiahs 29:13
KJV).
“… If
my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves,
and pray, and seek my face
… turn from their wicked ways. [THEN] I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins
and restore their land…”
(2 CHRONICLES 7:14 NASB).
In 2 Chronicles chapter 6 King Solomon
prayed a prayer of dedication for the new temple. “… Then Solomon
stood
before the altar of the Lord … He stood on the platform,
and then he knelt in front of the entire community of Israel and lifted his
hands toward heaven. He prayed, “O Lord, God of Israel, there is no
God like you in all of heaven and earth. You keep your covenant and show
unfailing love to all who walk before you in wholehearted devotion. You have kept your
promise to your servant David, my father. You made that promise with your own
mouth, and with your own hands you have fulfilled it today. “And
now, O Lord, God of Israel, carry out the additional promise you made to your
servant David, my father. For you said to him, ‘If your descendants guard their
behavior and faithfully follow my Law as you have done, one of them will always
sit on the throne of Israel.’ Now, O Lord, God of Israel, fulfill this promise to your servant David. “But
will God really live on earth among people? Why, even the highest heavens
cannot contain you. How much less this Temple I have built! Nevertheless, listen to my prayer and my plea, O Lord my God. Hear the cry and the prayer that your servant is making to
you. May you watch over this Temple day and night, this
place where you have said you would put your name. May you always hear the
prayers I make toward this place. May you hear the humble and earnest requests
from me and your people Israel when we pray toward this place. Yes, hear us
from heaven where you live, and when you hear, forgive. “If someone wrongs
another person and is required to take an oath of innocence in front of your
altar at this Temple, then hear from heaven and judge
between your servants—the accuser and the accused. Pay back the guilty as they
deserve. Acquit the innocent because of their innocence. “If your people Israel
are defeated by their enemies because they have sinned against you, and if they
turn back and acknowledge your name and pray to you here in this Temple,
then hear from heaven and forgive the sin of your people
Israel and return them to this land you gave to them and to their ancestors. “If
the skies are shut up and there is no rain because your people have sinned
against you, and if they pray toward this Temple and acknowledge your name and
turn from their sins because you have punished them, then
hear from heaven and forgive the sins of your servants, your people Israel.
Teach them to follow the right path, and send rain on your land that you have
given to your people as their special possession. “If there is a famine in the
land or a plague or crop disease or attacks of locusts or caterpillars, or if
your people’s enemies are in the land besieging their towns—whatever disaster
or disease there is— and if your people Israel pray
about their troubles or sorrow, raising their hands toward this Temple, then hear from heaven where you live, and forgive. Give your people
what their actions deserve, for you alone know each human heart. Then they will fear you and walk in your ways as long as they live
in the land you gave to our ancestors. “In the future,
foreigners who do not belong to your people Israel will hear of you. They will
come from distant lands when they hear of your great name and your strong hand
and your powerful arm. And when they pray toward this Temple, then hear from heaven where you live, and grant what they ask of
you. In this way, all the people of the earth will come to know and fear you,
just as your own people Israel do. They, too, will know that this Temple I have
built honors your name. “If your people go out where you send
them to fight their enemies, and if they pray to you by turning toward this
city you have chosen and toward this Temple I have built to honor your name,
35 then hear their prayers from heaven and
uphold their cause. “If they sin against you—and who has never
sinned?—you might become angry with them and let their enemies conquer them and
take them captive to a foreign land far away or near. But
in that land of exile, they might turn to you in repentance and pray, ‘We have
sinned, done evil, and acted wickedly.’ If they turn to
you with their whole heart and soul in the land of their captivity and pray
toward the land you gave to their ancestors—toward this city you have chosen,
and toward this Temple I have built to honor your name— then hear their prayers and their petitions from
heaven where you live, and uphold their cause. Forgive your people who have
sinned against you. “O my God, may your eyes be open and your
ears attentive to all the prayers made to you in this place. “And now arise, O Lord God, and enter your resting place, along
with the Ark, the symbol of your power. May your
priests, O Lord God, be clothed with salvation; may your loyal
servants rejoice in your goodness. O Lord God, do not reject the king you have anointed. Remember your unfailing love for your servant David.”…”
(2 Chronicles NLT).
“… When
Solomon finished praying … the glorious presence of the
Lord filled the Temple. The priests could not
enter the Temple of the Lord because the glorious presence
of the Lord filled it. When all the people of Israel
saw the fire coming down and the
glorious presence of the Lord filling the Temple, they fell face down
on the ground and worshiped and praised the Lord, saying,
“He is good! His faithful
love endures forever!”…” (2
Chronicles 7:1-5 NLT).
“… Then one night the
Lord
appeared to Solomon and said, “I have heard your prayer and have chosen this Temple as the place
for making sacrifices. At times I might shut up the heavens so that no rain falls, or
command grasshoppers to devour your crops, or send plagues among you. Then if
my people who are called by my name will
humble themselves and pray
and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and
will forgive their sins and restore their land. My eyes
will be open and my ears attentive to every prayer made
in this place. For I
have chosen this Temple and set it
apart to be holy—a place where my name will be honored
forever. I
will always watch over it, for it is dear to my heart.
…” (2 Chronicles 7:12-22 NLT).
Solomon prayed and God
answered his prayer. God’s answer demonstrated his love and continual mercy
upon his sinful people. His people were grateful for his amazing graces and
goodness toward them toward them and demonstrated it through their response of worship
and praise!!
God graciously accepted
their many temporary sacrifices. “…It is
of the Lord's
MERCIES
that we are not CONSUMED, because his compassions FAIL NOT. They are NEW EVERY MORNING: great is thy faithfulness…”
(Lamentations 3:22-23 KJV). “…HE
DELIGHTETH IN MERCY…”
(Micah 7:18 KJV). “… His mercy endureth
for ever…” (2 Chronicles 5:13-14 KJV). “…The Lord is MERCIFUL and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous
in MERCY…”
(Psalms 103:8 KJV). “…For as the heaven
is high above the earth, so GREAT is his MERCY toward them that fear him…”
(Psalms 103:11 KJV). “…THE MERCY of the Lord
is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear him, and his
righteousness unto children's children…” (Psalms 103:17 KJV).
“…
For I have
chosen this Temple and set it
apart to be holy—a place where my name will be honored
forever. I
will always watch over it, for it is dear to my heart.
…” (2 Chronicles 7:12-22 NLT).
At the time, Solomon’s
temple was the ONLY known temple of ALL the NATIONS in which the one true God
was worshiped!
If there were other
temples, God chose this particular one and “set
it apart to be holy” (2 Chronicles 7 NLT). Solomon prayed and dedicated
“this” temple to God.
The temple represented
the place where God and his people could commune together in covenant bliss.
Solomon’s prayer was
the acknowledgement of that covenant unity between God and his people.
In his prayer, Solomon
acknowledged there was no other God besides the covenant God of love; he
entreated him regarding his promised providence and amazing graces toward his
people; he requested his presence and a desire to converse always with him; he
pleaded for his forgiveness and mercy upon his people; and asked him to
remember his everlasting love!!
In addition, Solomon
expressed, for himself and the people, sentiments of gratefulness and a promise
of returned devotion through righteous living, praise, and worship.
The temple was miraculously meant to be
a place where God and his people could commune together in a covenant
relationship, hopefully, forever.
Solomon’s prayer would
have meant nothing at all if God did not hear it.“… Then one night the
Lord
appeared to Solomon and said, “I have heard your prayer …” (2
Chronicles 7:12-22 NLT).
The TEMPLE was God’s
plan and God’s idea as a place that would be consecrated for his glorious, holy
presence and his commune with his people; a place of sacrifices and prayer. “…, “I … have chosen
this Temple
as the place for making sacrifices... For
I have chosen
this Temple and set it
apart to be holy—a place where my name will be honored
forever. …” (2 Chronicles 7:12-22 NLT).
The temple was a place
of GRACE and MERCY where his people (Israel or those who acknowledged him as
God) could humble themselves and continually pray. “…if
my people who are called by my name will
humble themselves and pray
…” (2 Chronicles 7:12-22 NLT).
The temple was a place
of PRAYER and that prayer was guaranteed to be answered when presented with a repentant heart and a
repentant life. “…Then if
my people who are called by my name will
…turn from their wicked ways, I
will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and restore their land.
…” (2 Chronicles 7:12-22 NLT).
The temple was a place
where God promised to hear the prayers of his people who had a truly repentant
attitude. “…Then if
my people who are called by my name will
…turn from their
wicked ways, I will hear from
heaven and will forgive their sins
…” (2 Chronicles 7:12-22 NLT).
The temple was the
place for his people to humble themselves, seek his face, repent, and PRAY. “…Then if my people who
are called by my name will …turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and will
forgive their sins and restore
their land (destiny)…”
(2 Chronicles 7:12-22 NLT).
Answered prayer is connected to the conditions of forgiveness, humility, truly seeking God, and
repentance. “…. Then if my people who
are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn
from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and
restore their land. My eyes will be open and my ears attentive to every prayer made in this place. …” (2
Chronicles 7:12-22 NLT).
God promised his eyes
and heart would be perpetually in the temple. “…My eyes will be open and my
ears attentive to every prayer made
in this place. For I
have chosen this Temple and set it
apart to be holy—a place where my name will be honored
forever. I
will always watch over it, for it is dear to my heart.
…” (2 Chronicles 7:12-22 NLT).
The temple was a place
where prayer would receive God attention “IF” his people had a repentant heart.
“….
Then if
my people who are called by my name will
humble themselves and pray
and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear …. and my
ears [will be] attentive to every prayer made in
this place. …” (2
Chronicles 7:12-22 NLT).
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