2 Chronicles 7 14, What Does It Mean？ — Al Whittinghill

The spirit in the heart of that contrite one. And he that's the high heaven where he lives and and he reigns. But he also has a throne room that he said in you. And we welcome him to take the throne. And you know what happens when Jesus is given the throne.

He makes it so the atmosphere of that throne room begins to match the atmosphere in our throne room. So if you want to know what kind of attitudes to have in your heart then look at that throne room and let that come.

Thou found of every blessing tune my heart to the throne room of God to the harps of heaven. You know when you get a harp and you strum it and put it beside another harp those same notes will vibrate.

And that's the sense that this harps in heaven. And you always say that really struck a chord in my heart. Oh you're pulling on the strings in my heart. Well you've got a ability from the Spirit of God to it.

Let him tune you to that throne room so that when they're singing there and worship there your heart can get in harmony with God's throne room. Let's just pray and turn our hearts toward that throne room right now again Heavenly Father we thank you for the privilege of putting aside these moments here tonight.

And we know that every moment of time can have eternity pulsing through it. When we say yes to you when we're in harmony with your throne room there's just a little tiny minute but eternity is in it. Lord we want tonight to lay hold of that for which you've lay hold of us.

And so we humble ourselves. We choose to be low before you. We choose to have what we do not have naturally a fear of God a trembling at your word. So tonight lead us into all the truth by your spirit and convict us of your love convince us of your love.

And and that way that your love surrounded us and gave yourself for us to be free Jesus out of our sins. So may we live in that holy presence of God made holy by the blood of the Lamb. We thank you in advance for tonight do a deep work beyond our own mind and heart that we will thank you for all of eternity in Jesus name we pray this unfailing name of Jesus.

Helen Rosevear's Account of Revival in the Belgian Congo

Well there's a missionary in Belgian Congo named Helen Rosevere. Have you ever heard of her. She's with the Lord now. But I had the privilege of meeting her and before she went home. But I want to read you an account that she wrote of the great move of God in the Belgian Congo in 1953.

Now it's a good thing your pastor has been telling you accounts of past revivals and it's interesting how it's not limited to any culture. It's always the same but it's always different. Do you know what I'm saying how God moves in.

Listen to this I'm gonna read you this and just let you hear what happened in Africa it says. In July of 1953 Helen writes. We had the privilege of being part of an extraordinary work of the Holy Spirit in the hearts of church members in Ibambi in what was then called Belgian Congo.

With the tremendous growth in numbers of those who came to know and love Savior there was an urgent need for a parallel growth in the depth of those who were to lead and teach new converts. She'd been a missionary there for a long time and they'd seen a lot of people come to the Lord in salvation.

Listen to what she says. Personal holiness through the work of the indwelling Holy Spirit became the one dominant message of all our conferences. A special session was held for evangelists and leading Christians.

Missionaries pleaded with them from burdened hearts urging them to bring out of their homes anything sinful or of a questionable nature and everything that was keeping them from putting Christ absolute preeminently in their lives and what was spoiling their testimony to his power and victory.

The response was astonishing. From the beginning of the work of purging in the hearts of the evangelist it came to pass and an immediate change in their message and their teachings took place. They began to stress the necessity of the work of the Spirit of God to make take place in the heart of every believer who had entered into Christ's work of justification.

The word began to cut the hearts of the hearers and many faced the claim of the Holy Spirit but they were unwilling to really face the cost. Hundreds ceased to attend the meetings and began to openly backslide returning to the attractions of the world around them.

Even a number of evangelists fell away. The hearts of the missionaries and spiritual Africans felt crushed by this blow. But from that very crushing came the wine of God's refreshing. After much heart-searching a group of missionaries and a handful of spiritually minded church leaders accepted responsibility to plead with God for real revival.

At first they met for a night of prayer once each month but you see as the burden grew they added a monthly day of prayer. Conscious they were not even giving God everything. They started to hold a day of prayer and fasting once each week still conscious of the urgent need of the church for cleansing and filling for someone put it power to walk with Jesus in white to bear a consistent testimony.

They began to meet a half an hour of prayer every lunch hour. Then every evening at the end of the day's work they set us out an hour for prayer and at that point to think that we've been privileged to live through these days of revival blessing.

One of the school leaders wrote it's beyond anything we had imagined. I read some of those cards that I'm back talking to you. Now here I read some of those cards that you filled out. But the days that were like heaven on earth for for you many of you that were here several years ago listen to this what she writes it's the same thing but different.

We have longed and prayed and cried and agonized for revival and God has done the exceeding abundantly above. We are only in its beginnings. For judgment begins where God says it does at the house of God.

He's been setting his house in order purifying cleansing empowering by the blood and the spirit. And now he will turn to the heathen and who can stand the day of his coming. Our people have had a revelation of the sinfulness of sin and the holiness of God.

And they know now not just in their heads but in their hearts that without holiness no man will see the Lord. Scores and scores have been absolutely broken before the cross and the Holy Ghost has dug deep and brought to light the filth and lives had been buried away for years.

There was no escape. They had to call a spade a spade a big and so-called little sins had to be classified together in the light of the cross and in the Holy God. Everything looked vile. Bad habits bad thoughts criticisms against neighbors pride in every form and as the testimonies are given what joy and what peace what radiance what ecstasy the Holy Come Ghost comes and gave as he took possession.

Now listen to this. Those of us who were there will never forget that day in July 1953 when the fire a revival fell at I Bombay I Bombay. It was the time of the Friday evening fellowship meeting and Jack Scholes had just stood up to read the scriptures.

When somebody said they were conscious of the rushing noise of approaching hurricane and Bible school students moved quickly around the hall taking down the shutters to avoid the danger of there being blown in on us glancing out into the dark night.

Helen writes. I was aware that the palm trees stood erect silhouetted against the moonlight sky and there was no sign of an approaching storm and no scuttling clouds and no trees bent to the ground by this this sound this wind force gale.

Then a tremendous shock as some great force struck the hall and all of us were shaken. There was a moment of intense silence and then some broke out in strong crying and others were thrown to the ground.

Some trembled uncontrollably. All were under the influence of a mighty unseen presence. Words fail to describe it but we knew something now of what it must have been like in that day. In the book of Acts wrote Jack Scholes after afterwards seeking to explain how the Holy Spirit had come down in power.

The very building had been shaken as by a hurricane though the still silent palm trees etched against the clear moon sky prove the absence of any physical storm over all the building. The spirit took control.

Men and women were shaken by a force outside themselves a mighty force that they could not refuse or gain say. Some cried out for mercy. Some were physically thrown to the ground some appeared rigid gripped as in a vice.

Some shuddered uncontrollably the very bench they sat on rocked by the force. People were under deep conviction of sin crying out to God for mercy and forgiveness. Tears flowed sweat poured agonies were endured as strong men sought to resist and women sought to flee.

Some fell to their knees confessing hidden sins with no one but God listening to them. Others were thrown down on the cement floor stretched out before God bringing to light the things buried in their hearts which they hoped they had never had to be reminded of events that had previously been considered as weaknesses such as bad temper grumbling irritability or complaining or seen as vile sin.

And the Holy Spirit shined into their hearts the pure light of God's holiness. No corners were left untouched. No black to be considered gray petty faults cheating an exam skipping washing duty going off duty ten minutes early before the bell rang became hideous in their sight.

And they were contrasted with God's standard of purity. And she goes on and gives so many wonderful things she said that she said. I was staggered shattered as I overheard this woman confessing to the Lord and pleading for forgiveness for willingness to go back to a traitor and confess things that were taken.

This went on for so long more than a month. And then it writes down at the end of this article. I'm gonna skip a lot of this. But it says during the days that followed much lost property was returned to its rightful owners.

Tools materials books clothing foodstuffs even live chickens. A tailor brought a book of bought a bag of scraps materials that he had taken from home from work as being too small to be of any use. Some man asked for time off work and they had to go 75 miles through the forest on foot to Wamba to return stolen goods to government workshops or to Greek traders.

The authorities were dumbfounded and they did not know how to react or what to do. Never before have we ever seen anything like this. That's just one example. I thought I would try to find one that John hadn't told you about.

He's told you about a lot of them but you see we don't hear about this in our lifetime. Hardly any living person in America has seen revival in living color. These kind of things happened regularly throughout Europe and in India and Cassia Hills and in China and in Korea and in the South Seas.

I've been privileged to see something like that myself in Fiji. It's just amazing. But you see we don't see it much here in our country but the I want to talk to you tonight about what we have to see happening from the churches taking responsibility in our nation to see what must happen before it's too late forever.

Revival and the History of America

You see most people don't realize about America. The real history of America is not just about the American Revolutions and wars and those type of things. The history of America must be written as the history of revivals.

But you don't really hear about that. You see it's more than revolution. It's revival wonderful moves of God that have taken place even before the first Great Awakening. There were amazing moves of God among the people that came initially here and they set up what they call plantations to to serve the Living God.

I've seen the monuments plantations to the Lord Jesus down in Jamestown and other areas and up in Massachusetts they loved the Lord Jesus. And so as time went on from the earliest days of settlement to 1776 when the nation kind of was born and became official in the 1780s the Great Awakenings did more since then to forge the foundations on the fabric and the character of our nation than anything that we can fathom today.

It's not just about the Constitution it's what put the Constitution together from hearts that had experienced presence of God. Now there'll be a lot of people redacting history trying to deny that. You should search yourself and you should let the Lord show you what we have left off and lost God pouring out his love and his word and in power.

And the impact of these great moves have has brought millions over these years into the kingdom of God and set our nation in the place of blessing. Repentance flowed not just at the beginning but all the way through these great moves each of these results these these moves of God was the result of people that knew God crying out to him and calling upon him to and kneeling before him in desperate prayer and and seeking him for the outpouring of his Holy Spirit like they knew of and had heard about before just like you just heard just now.

What would that be like in Rogersville. What would that be like in Knoxville or Johnson City if the presence of God came in such power as he has come before. And and why is he not in these four great awakenings of God that we've had in our country.

And there's been more movings of God but but you see God has called the nation again and again back to himself. In each of these situations our nation was at the brink of being dissolved with the Revolution and then later French Indian War and all that.

And it's just so much World War one all these different times. And but God brought us back from the brink of oblivion. Imagine God moving in cities and in towns and in the prairies and thousands of people flocking to gather to pray in the daytime when everybody can see them and know it.

But you see now in America we have come to a critical time. We've had over a hundred and thirty years without any national repentance at all. You see there was a time when there was a waves of revival that came on a periodic basis.

But we've had over a hundred and thirty years or right at that when there's been no real move of God because there's been no real repentance. And since the early 1900s there were some things that happened in the early 1900s but not like we're talking about in this particular situation.

So it seems that the powers that be not just now but progressing to now they've chosen the way of rejecting the things of God. And I'm not making political statements by this. I'm just saying our works show this open hostility to God has become more ingrained in our society and is gaining momentum and a hostility that is purely from the enemy's side.

I could cite you many many disturbing statistics and new things that are even happening now. I've got a lot of friends in Washington and things that are going on and God has been knocking on our door through increasing problems in the weather and you name it but he's been knocking by famine and by pestilence and the sword I will reason with you he says in several of the prophets in the Old Testament and we've had those things going on around us.

You see there's a crisis of growing darkness and there it's a since 1962 when we first outlawed the Ten Commandments and prayer in the schools there's been a dissent that is faster than any nation in history on the way down.

It's incredible. Now you see the only nation on the earth where Christianity is in serious decline is America. You look at these other countries that are in great need and there's a great moving coming down quietly within it.

But you see but there's an ominous sense of danger in our nation and we can try to fiddle around with our fiddles like Nero fiddled while Rome burned. You know I'm just saying this. We try like in Jeremiah's day it says there's a rumor from the Lord.

We we know that something is going on and it's big and we try to put it out of our mind. We get tired of watching the news and the evils progress that it's making. But the marks of divine displeasure saturate our nation on every side.

It's the fastest descent as I said of any nation blind descent into oblivion. And it's taking place and the speed is getting bigger and bigger. And there are many of us who are burdened and we're praying we're believing God for revival.

But the fact remains that in most of our society among the Millennials and the generation then the new generations and then people coming in there is what they call nunners. They don't believe anything.

You can read about it in the secular press and you see but see you figure this even though all that good stuff is happening we see his name is being mocked his commandments are being scorned his promises are being rejected his character is being assailed his ways are being ridiculed and laughed at his word and prayer are now being forbidden and even confiscating Bibles in some of the young people's schools around the country his mercy is taken for granted that we're still here and his threatenings are being dismissed and ignored.

And it seems that truth as it says in the scriptures has fallen in the streets. And the one who leaves evil makes himself a bullseye and becomes one who's afraid of everything. And there's no more home-court advantage like when a team plays on their own home field there's an advantage in the sport but when you're out away game there's not that advantage.

Well America has lost its home-court advantage for the church and the church now is in a hostile territory. We are headed into uncharted territory. Except for the fact that if you look back and you see the the ruins and the relics of all the great past societies and you look at the great historians who list the reasons that they disappeared and dissipated from all the way through from Toynbee to Johnson to all these world-famous historians you'll see that whether it was Rome or Babylon or Greece or France or Greece all the different Europe China wherever it is they all had the same common characteristics and we've got them blowing like trumpets on every side in our nation.

The Church's Responsibility for Revival

And the church here's the serious part the church of the Lord Jesus seems helpless to address the situation. But the truth is we are not helpless. We are not helpless the real in a real sense the church will determine the future and our response to what you hear the Spirit of God saying to you in the chamber of your throne room down there learning to respond.

North America is the only country with in the last 50 years we've spent more money and more time on evangelism and programs and mechanics. We owe more money on the interest on our church buildings than we spend on missions in the entire year.

And we've got this momentum going down and we've we've we've we still though as a church have the hope of heaven-sent revival. Now I want to look at some scripture tonight and I want to look because God loves to give us pictures and warnings and examples in the scriptures to show us his ways.

So if you have your Bible I want to take you something that's very instructive because we have an answer tonight we're gonna see what the answer is for how not only you can lay hold of as a church for Lord to pour times of refreshing from the presence of the Lord but also to be part of his answer for this hour.

Rise up O church of rise up O men of God the church for you doth wait her strength on equal to her past to her to her task rise up and make her great. And I would say not just rise up but fall down fall down before God.

Deuteronomy's Call to Love God Wholeheartedly

You see from the book of Deuteronomy this is the book lest you think it's not appropriate for this hour. It's the book that Jesus quoted from more than any other Deuteronomy. That's where he quoted from.

And uh and every king that came to reign in Israel had to write out longhand the whole book of Deuteronomy. Did you know that was the book. They had to write it out and so it was quite important. Well in Deuteronomy chapter 6 you see something very important.

You see love is not mentioned by love per se as God loving people in all the first four books of the Torah. But love is first mentioned in Deuteronomy as the Lord loves you you're his people and he says that you're to love him.

So in Deuteronomy chapter 6 you see what is called the Shema but it's verse 4 God is saying to them here they are on the edge of they're ready to go into the promised land. A whole book of Deuteronomy takes place in about a month and God is speaking to them in Deuteronomy 4 beginning in verse 4 it's called the Hadad Haram.

It means I'm your life. And it's the it's the Word of God to them. He says hear this Oh Israel the Lord our God is one Lord and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.

And when Jesus quotes that he adds one more in it you know what it is with all your mind. And these words which I command you this day shall be in your notebook. No they shall be in your heart. And you shall teach them.

Not just teach them but diligently to your children and talk of them when you're sitting in the coffee shop or in the house I'm just adding that in. And when you walk along the way and when you lie down and when you rise up and bind them for a sign upon your hand and put them between your eyes.

That's when they bind those things on your arms and your eye your forehead to say this is the place the Word of God and the promise of God is to have write them upon the posts of your house and on your gates.

He's saying listen I want you to understand something. You see the children of Israel were about to enter the promised land. They were so aware that God had been with them delivering them blessing them calling them to believe him.

Standing at a new beginning. That's where you are standing at a place of new beginning a new generation facing major major change. They none of them would know what's going to happen as it's going to happen in a new day they their whole generation would pass away and they're moving in and everything's about to change.

And so he speaks to them in love and reminds them get this of the necessity of a deepening complete continuing heart abandonment to him. You see in the kingdom of God intimacy is everything intimacy. It's everything around us teaches this.

Jesus says apart from me you can do nothing. I mean you look at the plant world like the figure he uses of the vine the branches. And unless the branch abides in the vine and is joined in intimacy there's no fruit.

Right. Same thing in the animal world if you have two animals and you have a young little dog you love that loves to make noise. I heard him the other night and but you see the day may come that dog may may have puppies and and you see so you get you'll never have puppies unless there's an intimate relationship in the animal kingdom.

And the same thing in the human world if I have two friends that are missionaries they're going to be missionaries and they're going to get married. So they come we have the service and I pronounce them in and wife in the name of the Lord Jesus and they make their vows.

Are they married. Yes. But then immediately after the service bill goes to Africa and she goes to China. And they don't see each other for years after all that time how many children do they have. None.

Because you see there's been no intimacy. So if every side of everything says intimacy is the law of all fruit-bearing why do we think it'd be any different. He's teaching us in the spiritual realm the law of all fruit bearing for you and for me in the spiritual realm is an intimate deepening growing intimacy with the Lord Jesus.

And he does it all he's saying to his people I love you. I long for you. I want you to know that you're going into a wonderful land. I have blessed you and I'm going to continue to bless you. But I want you to remember that I'm the Lord your God who brought you with the blood of the Passover lamb.

You're in covenant with me. But I want to warn you before you go into this new place what it says in verse 10 of chapter 6 it shall be when the Lord your God will have brought you into the land which he swore to your fathers Abraham and Isaac and to Jacob.

He'll give you this great and goodly cities. Get this which you didn't have to build. So much of the stuff we have is just the result of yesterday's blessing and faithfulness of previous generation. And I'll give you houses full of good things which you filled not wells dug which you didn't have to dig vineyards and olive trees which you didn't plant.

That when you have eaten. And when you are full then beware lest you forget the Lord who brought you out of the land of Egypt from the house of bondage. You shall fear the Lord your God. You shall serve him and swear by his name.

Don't go after the gods of the gods of the people around you. For the Lord your God is a jealous God among you lest the anger of the Lord be kindled against you. And he will remove you from the face of the earth.

Don't test the Lord your God. And a little later down he says he brought us verse 23 out from there that he might bring us in God saved you from sin. That he might bring you into the fullness of who he is.

So he's telling them in the next chapter chapter a chapter a guard your heart. You're in blood covenant with God. Stay in an intimate love relationship. And you know what he's saying. I want to warn you in advance.

Get this of the peril of blessing. I want to warn you in advance about prosperity. It can lure you away. It can divide your heart. It can take your attention. I'm going to do a new thing. This is a vivid lesson for us especially the church in America right now.

So you see him reminding them of all these things and turn to Deuteronomy after he reminds them of chapter 11 after all of the things he's done for them he's reminding them what it was like where they were in Egypt and what it's going to be like to have blessing when they get into the Canaan land.

And so he says verse 10 he says listen the land in which you Deuteronomy 11 verse 10 the land in which you're going in to possess is not like the land of Egypt from where you came out of where you sowed your seed meaning your your seed for your farm your lands and you watered it with your foot like a garden of herbs.

So here's what if you would go to Egypt. I saw this. I saw them doing this. They have a massive River the Nile River. It's an resource that's the biggest in all of Africa. And there's plenty of water there.

So along the Nile you'll see these machines set up. It's actually like a big bicycle with a it's a primitive looking thing but it's like you put a bike up on the bank up above it and the chain goes down and on that long chain that hooks at the bottom it are like these milk cartons and as you do your feet pumping your feet like this the milk carton goes down and goes under the Nile and he goes plush.

So they're making a big circle and water is being drawn up from the Nile to the next level with the pumping of the feet. That's what God is saying. He's saying yeah you brought this water up in the sweat of your face and in the toil of your flesh.

And that's how you did it though. That's where the land you came out of. You watered it with your foot. But in verse 11 God says but the land in where you're going to possess it's a land of hills and valleys and it drinks the water from the rain of heaven.

It's a land which the Lord your God cares for and the eyes of the Lord your God are always upon it from the beginning of the year to the end of the year. You don't have a mighty Nile River in the land I'm taking you.

There's a little thing called the Jordan that you'll learn doesn't have sufficient water to irrigate the whole land. It doesn't have it. And so it's not like the land where you watered it with your own energies but it's a land that has as God says in the word appointed seasons for appointed rains.

And look what he says in verse 13 it will come to pass if you hearken diligently to my commands which I've told you this day to love the Lord your God and serve him with all of your heart and with all of your soul.

Here's what I'll do. I will give to you the rain of your land in his due season. It's appointed times. You can count on me and I'll pour it out the former rain and the latter rain. The scriptures call it the former rain and the latter rain gushing powerful rains that water all the land so that you can gather your corn and your wine and your oil.

And I was in grass in your fields for your cattle you may eat and be full but take heed to yourselves that your heart be not deceived and you don't turn aside and begin to serve other gods and to worship them.

And the Lord's wrath is kindled against you. And look at this he shuts up heaven that there be no rain and the land won't yield her fruit and you'll perish quickly off the good land which the Lord gives you.

Therefore lay these words up and again he says teach and meditate and walk in all the Word of God. So everything in the Mideast depends on life. I mean on water. Everything depends on water for life. Egypt has no rainfall at all and so when you're there in Egypt you have to pump up water by the foot.

You could say it's worked up and that's why they worship the Nile because everything depended on it and they thought they could worship the Nile and it would be great. Well but it's a clever man-made system to get blessings to your daily life in Egypt.

And it's well-planned it's managed. It's depending upon men man-made ditches. You bring the water up to this level and then you put it up to the next level and by the time it reaches where it's going it's a very dirty supply because people bathe in that water as well and they dispose of things from their house in that water.

It's a water supply depending on man and it's worked up and it's depending on energy and sweat. And what a dirty supply and how much effort it took to keep it up. Here's the lesson natural resources plus human energy equal a natural result and it flatters the flesh that you were able to do it or think you were Egypt is a picture of the way the world does things and it's futility.

It's watered by the foot and you see it's a picture of what it's like for the people of God trying to work things up when there's no heavenly blessing. But what a contrast with Canaan when the people love the Lord and walk with him.

It's a heavenly supply sent at regular times from heaven and it's pure and it's fresh and it's effortless. And it's heavenly in origin. In the book of Acts it's called times of refreshing from the presence of the Lord.

This is that prophesied by the Prophet Joel this is the former reign. That's what he called Pentecost. It was the pouring out of the Spirit of God you see. But God himself said he would open the windows of heaven when they were in a right relationship with him.

So you you can count on me. I will be your resource. The Church of the Lord Jesus will be blessed when you're walking with me I will pour out heaven's blessing and open upon you. What a contrast Egypt and Canaan.

You see God says cleave to intimacy. And as they were faithful to this God said at appointed times I'll send the rain and the Holy Spirit's picture in that by God blessing right relationship. And it always in the scripture rain will show heaven's blessings poured out.

So you see God designed it get this that his people and the church and always his people be dependent on heaven for the necessity of life that comes in the picture of water coming and they have no other alternative.

They don't have a Nile River. God designed it this way. And so apart from the Lord there is nothing you see. And here's what we're getting at. If the heavens were dry it's because God has shut them. It's not just because it hadn't rained because God said I'll send the rain.

You can count on me. When you're right with me it'll be like breathing. It'll be there air to breathe it'll be I'll send. But if it's dry it's you're to realize something. Something is wrong something is wrong.

It's like a built-in barometer when there's no heavenly outpouring. When there's no rain it's what you read when it says I'll shut up heaven and there is no rain. And so what they had to do when that was the case they had to get on their knees bend their knee to find the reason why.

Because they've been overlooking it. And so there was a spiritual reason God had said take heed beware consider hearken. And they were to go to their knees bow the knee to discover it. And only repentance could change the situation with the relationship of heaven to earth.

The Meaning of 2 Chronicles 7:14

So this is the whole thrust of 2nd Chronicles 714. If I shut up heaven and there be no rain or if there's locusts to devour of this pestilence. And he gives a list of things. If I do this then if I shut up heaven there be no rain.

If I command locusts to devour the land if I send pestilence among my people he goes further and he says listen if my people my people which are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face not just my hand.

What I'll do not just my blessing what I'll give not just the things that I can supply. But if they will turn from their wicked ways then I will hear from heaven and I will forgive their sin and I will heal their land.

It's an incredible thing. But it goes on. Do you know what's in the next verse verse 15. Now at this moment my eyes are looking I'm open and I'm my ears are attendant to the prayer that's made in this place.