We have been looking at how Jesus fulfills the temple imagery that we have been reading about in these early chapters of 2 Chronicles. We have seen the glory of God in the temple and a forgiving God in the temple. We noticed in our last lesson that we are in the middle of a dedication ceremony. The temple that God promised David’s son would build has been completed by Solomon. In 2 Chronicles 6 the emphasis of this dedication speech has been on the purpose for this temple. Solomon has proclaimed that the temple would be the place where God would hear the prayers of his people and forgive. We noted that a good summary teaching regarding the temple was found in 2 Chronicles 6:18-21. God would have his eyes toward the temple and when the people turned toward the temple, God who is in heaven would listen to those prayers. We also noted that Jesus proclaims himself to be the new temple when he walked on the earth. He would be the place where people would encounter God and find forgiveness. Jesus would be the place where people would pray and God would hear in heaven and answer their prayers. As we come to 2 Chronicles 7 we are going to read God’s response to this request. Chapter 6 has been set up as a prayer that Solomon is leading on behalf of the nation of Israel. You can see this in 2 Chronicles 6:19 where Solomon is asking the Lord to have regard for this prayer for God to hear his people at this temple and forgive. Further, 2 Chronicles 7:1 begins by noting that Solomon had now finished his prayer. Now it is God’s turn to respond and proclaim his expectations for his people as they come to his presence at the temple.
God’s Visible Response (2 Chronicles 7:1-3)
As soon as Solomon finished his prayer, fire comes down from heaven and consumes the offerings and sacrifices. God is visibly showing his agreement to the covenant by “eating” the sacrifices by fire. Imagine the amazing moment when the fire of God comes down from heaven, consuming the sacrifices. This was not a common occurrence at all. You might remember the fire of God coming down and consuming the sacrifice in the days of Elijah when he confronted the prophets of Baal (cf. 1 Kings 18). The last time the fire of the Lord fell from heaven was recorded for us back in 1 Chronicles 21:26 when David built an altar to the Lord to stop the plague on the people due to David’s sin in numbering the people. But the most similar circumstances takes us back to the beginning when Aaron began his ministry as the high priest. After preparing the offering for the Lord we read these words in Leviticus 9:23-24.
And Moses and Aaron went into the tent of meeting, and when they came out they blessed the people, and the glory of the LORD appeared to all the people. And fire came out from before the LORD and consumed the burnt offering and the pieces of fat on the altar, and when all the people saw it, they shouted and fell on their faces. (Leviticus 9:23-24 ESV)
So now after Solomon finishes his prayer, the fire comes down from heaven and consumes the sacrifices. Not only this, but the the glory of the Lord filled the temple so that the priests could not enter. This was a powerful and majestic response from God who is entering into this covenant with his people. The temple will be the place for forgiveness. The temple will be the place for the people to encounter God.
Notice the response of the people in verse 3. When the people of Israel saw the first come down and the glory of the Lord fill the temple, they bowed down to the ground with worship and thanksgiving to the Lord. Listen to what they are saying in their worship and thanksgiving. “For he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever.”
Responding To God’s Faithful Love (2 Chronicles 7:4-10)
I want us to notice how the people respond to God’s visible response of fire and glory. Look at verse 4. Solomon and all the people offered sacrifices to the Lord. An extravagant display of worship is kicked off. These are costly sacrifices. They are worshiping God. Worship is to be the overflow of the heart toward God because we recognize what he has done for us. Worship is not a duty that must be performed weekly. Worship is the desire of the heart to proclaim praise and thanksgiving to God for what he has done this last week, for our whole lives, and for the whole world. The people desire to worship. Notice that verse 8 tell us that this time of worship lasted for seven days. This seven day worship time led into another seven days of worship for the feast of tabernacles. The people gathered for 14 days of worship. Look at the end of verse 10. Did the people go home grumpy because they had worshiped for 14 straight days? No, they went home full of joy and glad of heart because of the goodness of God toward his people. Can you imagine having 14 straight days of worship? Does that sound great or does that sound painful? If the reason we worship is because it is a requirement we fulfill, then two weeks of worship will sound painful to us. But if the reason we worship is because we are in awe of God’s goodness and faithful love, then two weeks of worship will sound amazing. We will never desire to worship if worship is not an overflow of our hearts responding to what God has done for us.
A Listening God (2 Chronicles 7:11-22)
But the people returning to their homes after this dedication ceremony is not the end of the story. God has an important message he wants to proclaim to the people through the son of David, King Solomon. After Solomon finished the temple and finished his palace, God comes with a message to Solomon. In verse 12 the Lord tells Solomon that he has heard Solomon’s prayer and has chosen this temple to be a house of sacrifice. God confirms the prayer request of Solomon that we read in chapter 6. But I want us to focus on the conditions that the Lord sets for his people. I want us to think about that God does not say that he will unilaterally forgive Israel. God does not say that the people do not need to worry about their sins because he is such a gracious God that he will forgive. In verse 13 the Lord offers a scenario where there is no rain or there is famine or plague because of the sins of the people. Look at what God says in verse 14.
If my people who are called by my name 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 ESV)
There are four things that the people are expected to do for God to hear in heaven and forgive. There are four conditions that God gives to the people for the temple to be effective. Having the temple will not matter if the people to not understand what they must do for God to respond to them. As we go through these four conditions, I want us to think about how God is detailing what repentance truly looks like. If you are going to seek forgiveness, then this is what repentance will be. So what are the four things the people must do?
First, God’s people will humble themselves. Humility is necessary to find forgiveness. Praying toward the temple would be pointless if the people do not begin by humbling themselves. What does this mean? What does this look like? Humility recognizes that my ways are not right or good. God’s ways are right and good. There is no repentance and there cannot be forgiveness if we think that we were right in what we did. If we are right in our own eyes, then we are not ready to submit to God’s ways. In God’s great invitation to come and enjoy his offer, he calls for people to forsake their own ways and own thoughts for God’s ways and God’s thoughts (cf. Isaiah 55:7-8). Forgiveness requires admitting that we were not right.
Second, God’s people will pray. God says that his people will understand the need to talk to God, not everyone else. Only God can forgive sins (cf. Mark 2:7). True repentance realizes that we need God. I do not need anything else or anyone else. I need God. I need to have my relationship with God restored. I need God’s favor and blessings. This leads to the third condition God proclaims.
Third, God’s people will seek God’s face. Here is one way to think about what this is supposed to look like. We will seek God’s acceptance. We will want to do things that will be pleasing to God. Imagine if you had wronged someone and want to seek their face, what you are doing is trying to show that you care that person by doing things that are pleasing to them. This is what God is saying. There is going to be fruit in repentance. We will desire God’s favor and doing the things that are pleasing to him.
Fourth, God’s people will turn from their wicked ways. The final picture is to stop the sinning. Think about how important this is. We do not stop what is hurting someone, then clearly we are not repentant and do not love that person. God is asking us to stop our wicked ways. If we are going to come to the temple and find forgiveness, then there must be the desire and effort to turn from the life we were previously living. We will work to sin so that we are not separated from God.
So let’s put all of this together. The Lord says that if the people will humble themselves, pray, seek God’s face, and turn from their wicked ways, then God who is in heaven will hear, forgive their sin, and heal their land (cf. 2 Chronicles 7:14). This is God’s promise to his people. He will listen to his people and forgive their sins if they turn toward the temple humbly, in prayer, seeking God’s favor, and turning from their sinful ways.
Turning To Our Listening God
We have noted throughout this series of lessons in 2 Chronicles is that Jesus is the new temple (cf. John 2:13-22; John 1:14-18). What I want to focus on in this lesson is that God is listening to us and has promised to forgive us if we will turn to Jesus with humble hearts. Listen to how James communicates this idea:
But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you. (James 4:6-10 ESV)
God will respond to us. God will exalt us if we will humble ourselves. Draw near to God and he will draw near to you. It is not that he might draw near to you. He will draw near to you if you will draw near to him. Be sorrowful over sins, cleanse your hands, and humble yourself before the Lord. The reason to turn to God is because he is a listening God. The reason to truly repent is because God is listening and ready to forgive. What a promise God was making to his people! If they will truly turn to me by humbling their hearts, stopping their wickedness, seeking my will, and praying to me, then I will hear your prayer from heaven and I will forgive your sins. You just need to turn to the temple of the Lord because he said his name will be there forever (7:16). Turn to the temple of the Lord because his eyes and his heart will be there for all time (7:16). Jesus is our temple and we turn to him because this is the place where we can always meet him.
So here is my simple challenge to you. God is asking you every day to humble yourself in prayer, acknowledging your failures, seeking God’s will and asking for help in your struggles. One of the reasons God gives us trials and allows temptations is so that we would stop depending on ourselves but humble ourselves to depend on God (cf. 2 Corinthians 12:7).
Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. (Hebrews 4:14-16 ESV)