September 1
Repentance and Renewal
2 Chronicles 29, 30; 2 Kings 18-20
KEY
VERSE: The Lord your God is gracious and merciful, and
will not turn away his face from you, if ye return unto him.
n
2 Chronicles 30:9
After Solomon’s death in 931
B.C. the people of
The problem was mainly a lack
of godly leadership. Kings like Jeroboam I and Ahaz
ignored the worship of the Lord God and restored the worship of idols. Both the
northern and the southern kingdoms were soon in the grip of idolatry. Golden
calves were once again worshiped instead of the living God who had led them out
of
Funerals do solve some
problems. King Ahaz died and his son Hezekiah took
over. Quickly the new king condemned the worship of idols, had the temple
cleaned and restored the worship of the Lord.
King Hezekiah invited the
people of all twelve tribes to come to
This bit of history reveals to
us God’s great willingness to show mercy to those who repent and seek his
forgiveness. Most of us experience a relapse in our faith journey. The good
news is that when we become weary of our idolatrous ways, and turn to God for
mercy, he will not turn his face from us in disgust but will receive us with
open arms. He delights in restoring his children to faithful living!