When We've Got It Wrong

696 Today's Prime Time Devo comes from 2Sa 23:5 "Although my house is not so with God, Yet He has made with me an everlasting covenant, Ordered in all things and secure. For this is all my salvation and all my desire; Will He not make it increase? (2 Sam 23:5) David has just talked about living in the fear of the Lord and the natural flow of justice, (fair and merciful treatment of others) that comes from a right relationship with God. This just treatment is like a breath of fresh air in a world that is caught up in the effects of sin. When we (the church) get it right, the world is blessed by our presence! But David admits freely here that he often did not get it right. We need to do the same. The history of the church is rife with examples of the times we got it wrong. The Inquisition, the Salem witch trials, slavery, apathy toward the unborn, the poor, and the often imbalanced treatment of sexual sin that we see in the church today. We the church, are human. We often fall short, but God still offers forgiveness and restoration as we come before Him with godly sorrow over our shortcomings. The Good News is His church will stand in spite of its shortcomings. There will always be a remnant because His covenant stands forever. Jesus stands forever and our only hope is in Him. In Him we have forgiveness and in Him we have a church that will stand forever and the gates of hell shall never prevail against it! And when we fall short, we need to do as Daniel did. He prayed and took responsibility for the sins of the church. Da 9:4,5 says, “ And I prayed to the LORD my God, and made confession, and said, "O Lord, great and awesome God, who keeps His covenant and mercy with those who love Him, and with those who keep His commandments, 5 "we have sinned and committed iniquity, we have done wickedly and rebelled, even by departing from Your precepts and Your judgments.” Why did he do that? He did it based upon the promise of 2Ch 7:14 You see, when we get it wrong, God gives us the opportunity to get it right by following the advice of this verse: "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.