April 10, 2023 - 2 Chronicles 6-7

At the temple’s dedication, Solomon acknowledged, “Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, who with his hand has fulfilled what he has promised with his mouth to David” (6:4). God does exactly what he says he will do! So much of Solomon's prayer of dedication in chapter 6 is given to acknowledging that we all sin, but also that whenever a nation or an individual turns from sin and toward God and asks for forgiveness, God is quick to grant that forgiveness. And, of course, this truth is underscored in that famous verse: “If my people who are called by my name humble themselves . . .” (7:14).

Two Sundays ago, in my sermon “Responses at the Cross” from Luke 23:35-43, as we considered the two thieves on the crosses, particularly the one who asked for forgiveness, the obvious application was, “Jesus is willing to forgive all who come to him at any time and at any place.” Thinking about this call to God’s people to humble themselves, to pray, and to seek God’s face and, also, the thief on the cross, I recall Fanny Crosby’s words:

Pass me not, O gentle Savior,

Hear my humble cry,

While on others Thou art calling,

Do not pass me by.

Savior, Savior,

Hear my humble cry;

While on others Thou art calling,

Do not pass me by. --Fanny Crosby (1868)