A prayer for the church

Daniel's Prayer from Daniel 9

1 In the first year of Darius son of Ahasuerus (a Mede by descent), who was made ruler over the Babylonian kingdom- 2 in the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, understood from the Scriptures, according to the word of the LORD given to Jeremiah the prophet, that the desolation of Jerusalem would last seventy years. 3 So I turned to the Lord God and pleaded with him in prayer and petition, in fasting, and in sackcloth and ashes.

4 I prayed to the LORD my God and confessed:
"O Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with all who love him and obey his commands, 5 we have sinned and done wrong. We have been wicked and have rebelled; we have turned away from your commands and laws. 6 We have not listened to your servants the prophets, who spoke in your name to our kings, our princes and our fathers, and to all the people of the land.

7 "Lord, you are righteous, but this day we are covered with shame—the men of Judah and people of Jerusalem and all Israel, both near and far, in all the countries where you have scattered us because of our unfaithfulness to you. 8 O LORD, we and our kings, our princes and our fathers are covered with shame because we have sinned against you. 9 The Lord our God is merciful and forgiving, even though we have rebelled against him; 10 we have not obeyed the LORD our God or kept the laws he gave us through his servants the prophets. 11 All Israel has transgressed your law and turned away, refusing to obey you.
"Therefore the curses and sworn judgments written in the Law of Moses, the servant of God, have been poured out on us, because we have sinned against you. 12 You have fulfilled the words spoken against us and against our rulers by bringing upon us great disaster. Under the whole heaven nothing has ever been done like what has been done to Jerusalem. 13 Just as it is written in the Law of Moses, all this disaster has come upon us, yet we have not sought the favor of the LORD our God by turning from our sins and giving attention to your truth. 14 The LORD did not hesitate to bring the disaster upon us, for the LORD our God is righteous in everything he does; yet we have not obeyed him.

15 "Now, O Lord our God, who brought your people out of Egypt with a mighty hand and who made for yourself a name that endures to this day, we have sinned, we have done wrong. 16 O Lord, in keeping with all your righteous acts, turn away your anger and your wrath from Jerusalem, your city, your holy hill. Our sins and the iniquities of our fathers have made Jerusalem and your people an object of scorn to all those around us.

17 "Now, our God, hear the prayers and petitions of your servant. For your sake, O Lord, look with favor on your desolate sanctuary. 18 Give ear, O God, and hear; open your eyes and see the desolation of the city that bears your Name. We do not make requests of you because we are righteous, but because of your great mercy. 19 O Lord, listen! O Lord, forgive! O Lord, hear and act! For your sake, O my God, do not delay, because your city and your people bear your Name."

Song excerpt from ‘Nobody Loves Me’ by Derek Webb

“I can always tell a liar
and I always know a thief
I know them like my family
because brother I’m the chief
I’m a dangerous crusader
because I need to tell the truth
so I’m turning over tables
in my own living room

then I might nail indictments up
on every door in town
because its not right or safe to let your conscience down

so I don’t care if nobody loves me but you”

All the talk of judgment and deception has made me think of this song and Daniel’s prayer. I couldn’t agree more that there are terrible atrocities going on in the modern American church. I agree that there is an almost incomprehensible movement which has reduced God’s character to a benevolent ice cream man. But I think it is imperative to follow Daniel’s example and begin with ourselves.

Daniel addressed God in humility and took part in the sin of his people. Jesus said that John the Baptist was the greatest prophet. Surely Daniel was in the top five. I doubt any of us could find anything wrong with him, yet he went to God and shared in the guilt of Israel. Daniel pleaded for God’s mercy because of God’s righteousness and faithfulness. He wouldn’t dare go in his own name, righteousness, or discernment. I believe this is the approach that can change the modern church. Let us lead in repenting for our part in the modern problem.

I am sure that at some point (possibly even currently) Rebecca and I have shopped in a store that sells items made in intolerable working conditions. I know there are stores where we shop that have been accused of making products in sweatshops. I have to admit that I am part of the problem of injustice. I have to admit that some of the guilt is on me. I cannot scream about injustice without taking part of the blame. The same goes for the church. Is it consumer driven? Yes. I have to admit that I have played a role. Maybe my role was withdrawal when I should have confronted. Maybe my role was shopping around more than praying to be led. Maybe there are aspects of my role that I couldn’t possibly even comprehend without the Holy Spirit showing me. I know I am part of the problem.

So what is the solution? Let us look at the true and greater Daniel. Jesus Christ not only identified himself with sinners, he became sin for us. He was baptized with sinners and crucified with thieves. Daniel obeyed at the risk of his life. Jesus obeyed at the cost. Jesus emptied himself to serve his fallen creatures. The only reform that will change hearts is gospel reform. Let us humbly repent for our part of the problem as we try to lead others to Christ. Let us wash the feet of those who would betray us. Let us lay down our lives and die for those we believe are wrong. God tells us in Micah 6 that it is good to love mercy. I know there are times when it is merciful to point out another’s flaw, but may God give us the grace to always be merciful and winsome in the pursuit.

Father, the church exists because our husband ransomed our hearts. We are literally the wife from hell. Forgive our pride. Forgive our wandering hearts. We come to you because of your mercy and your goodness. We rest only in your promises and faithfulness. Thank you for the gospel. Thank you for your son. Thank you for turning away your wrath and welcoming us as sons and daughters. Father, forgive us for hating our brothers and sisters. Forgive us for our pride and unbelief. Forgive us for making our ownership more important than your possession. Lord, you are perfect and righteous in all your judgments. We do not deserve mercy, but we ask for it boldly in the sacrifice of Christ. Teach us to act justly. Teach us to love mercy. Teach us to walk humbly before you. Lord, let us all see our part in the sin of the church. Revive us. Restore us. Reform us. Make us hungry for your word and your righteousness. Make us long for your justice to be shown to the world. Teach us to really love the poor. Give us your heart. Fill your church with your Spirit. We need you more than we know. In Jesus Name, Amen.

Holiness Quotes

It seems I keep stumbling upon quotes about holiness. I am being convicted daily about the lack of holiness in my life. God's holiness is not only moral goodness (although it is as C.S. Lewis wrote, "not less"). God's holiness is in a sense "otherness." He is not at the top of the scale. He is exponentially off the scale. With this in mind, take a look at some of the quotes that are convicting my heart today.

"Dear friends, I do beg you to attach the highest importance to your own personal holiness. Do live unto God. If you do not, your Lord will not be with you. He will say of you, as He said of the false prophets of old,"I sent them not, nor commanded them: therefore they shall not profit this people at all," saith the Lord."" You may preach very fine sermons, but if you yourselves are not holy, there will be no souls saved. The probability is that you will not come to the conclusion that your lack of holiness is the reason for your nonsuccess. You will blame the people, you will blame the age in which you live, you will blame anything except yourself. But there will be the root of the whole trouble." C.H. Spurgeon

"If you will stop here and ask yourselves why you are not as pious as the primitive Christians were, your own heart will tell you that it is neither through ignorance nor inability, but purely because you never thoroughly intended it." William Law

"I think we all sin by needlessly disobeying the apostolic injunction to 'rejoice' as much as by anything else." C.S. Lewis

"The weakness of so many modern Christians is that they feel too much at home in the world. In their effort to achieve restful "adjustment" to unregenerate society they have lost their pilgrim character and become an essential part to the very moral order against which they have been sent to protest. The world recognizes them and accepts them for what they are." A.W. Tozer

Follow after holiness; it is the Christian's crown and glory. An unholy church is useless to the world and has no esteem among men. It is an abomination; it is hell's laughter and heaven's abhorrence. The worst evils that have ever come upon the world have been brought by an unholy church." C.H. Spurgeon

"The road to the promised land runs past Sinai. The moral law may exist to be transcended: but there is no transcending it for those who have not first admitted its claims upon them, and then tried with all their strength to meet that claim, and fairly and squarely faced the fact of their failure." C.S. Lewis

There is no way to holiness but through the gospel. The only way to run after true holiness is to admit our need of a Savior. But, never let that need be something to hide behind in a pursuit of holiness. We have been given all things in Christ. We are holy in him. The Father will look at us and say, "Well done," because we are clothed in the righteousness of Christ. Let that be our motivation for our relentless pursuit of God's holiness. Let us aim at perfection knowing we are already complete in Christ.