In 1953, when Dwight Eisenhower took the oath of office to become President of the United States, he put his hand on a Bible that was open to his chosen section: Second Chronicles 7:14.
It reads: 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.
Soon another man will take the oath of office as he accepts the position as President of the United States.
What does God expect from this man?
What will it take to heal our land?
President Eisenhower left a legacy that answers those questions when he chose Second Chronicles 7:14…
If My people…humble themselves
God is asking us to come before Him in the realization that He is holy and perfect, and we are flawed and unable to be perfect. He is the holy, righteous King. We need to bow in His presence……God is looking for humility.
If My people…pray
Psalms 51:17 says our God wants us to come to Him with a sense of sorrow and remorse for our sin; and by association, for the sins of our country (A broken and contrite heart—these, O God, You will not despise). And, in Matthew 18:20, Jesus says: For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them. God is asking us to gather together in prayer for our country, our leaders, and ourselves.
If My people seek my face…
There is no better place to see God’s face than to search for Him in the Bible. To search for who He is, and how we can please Him. Blessed are those who seek and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be satisfied (Matthew 5:6). God is asking us to discover His character; to explore His likes and dislikes. He is asking for no more than we would ask of someone we want to marry. He promises our search won’t be useless when He says: For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart. I will be found by you, says the Lord .(Jeremiah 29:11-14a).
If my people turn from their wicked ways…
We know when we are going against the laws of God.
We recognize wrong from right.
We see cheating or stealing for what it is.
We know it is just plain evil to take a life.
We know what sin looks like.
We know we need to ask forgiveness when we sin.
We know He will forgive sin if we humble ourselves before Him.
But, in Second Chronicles, God has introduced another requirement.
After we ask for forgiveness, He wants us to turn from our wicked ways.
He wants us to turn around – go in a different direction –
and don’t go back…Proverbs 26:11 describes it this way:
Like the dog returns to his own vomit, So the fool repeats his folly.
In Jeremiah 5:25, He tells us why He is asking us to turn.
In Jeremiah, God says: Your sins have kept good from you.
If My People: Humble - Pray - Seek - Turn
THEN… I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.