Repentance and forgiveness lead to all human happiness

“O LORD, God of Israel, there is no God like you in all of heaven above or on the earth below. You keep your covenant and show unfailing love to all who walk before you in wholehearted devotion.” – 1 King 8:23

In this excellent prayer, which we can discover more in detail in the following verses, Solomon does what we should do in any prayer: he gives glory to God. He lifts up the name of the Lord by telling Him that there is no God like Him in heaven or on earth. And he reminds us of the very nature of God that we must never forget: He keeps his covenant with us and shows his unfailing love for those who walk before God with a devoted heart. 

Ten things to do with all your heart: 

1) Return to the Lord (1Ki. 8:48; Deut. 30:2) 

2) Walk before him (1Ki. 2:4; 8:23) 

3) Serve him (Deut. 11:13; Josh. 22:5) 

4) Love Him (Dt. 30:6; Mt. 22:37) 

5) Keep his word (Dt. 26:16) 

6) Follow Him (1Ki. 14:8) 

7) Seek Him (2Chr. 15:12-15; 22:9) 

8) Praise Him (Ps. 86:12) 

9) Trust in Him (Prov. 3:5) 

10) Believe in Him (Acts 8:37; Rom. 10:9-10)

This is how we will benefit from new experiences of the truth of God’s promises that will cause us to grow and lift up even greater praise. When we seek God’s grace and favor, the experiences we have of the fulfillment of God’s promises should encourage us to depend on them and plead with him. 

“O LORD, God of Israel, there is no God like you in all of heaven above or on the earth below. You keep your covenant and show unfailing love to all who walk before you in wholehearted devotion.”
1 King 8:23

Let us expect new mercies while continuing to be grateful for the previous ones. God’s promises should be the guide to our desires, and the foundation of our hopes and expectations in prayer. The sacrifices, the incense, and the whole temple service, were the image of our intercession with the Redeemer. In one word, “forgive”, Solomon expressed all that he could ask for his people just as we are called to do for our own lives and our families. For as all misery comes from sin, forgiveness of sins prepares the way for the removal of all evil and the acceptance of all good. 

Without forgiveness, no deliverance can be a blessing. As human beings, every one of us knows a certain plague in our own heart, which makes us suffer. This is how we can reach out our hands to this extraordinary God through prayer. Let us come before God without hesitation, whether the evil is of body or spirit. 

“Sin is the cause of all our illnesses. Repentance and forgiveness lead to all human happiness.” 

Jean-Luc Trachsel

Let us lay down our inner burdens. Let us abandon that sin which is the wound of our own hearts. Let us leave our inner corruptions which are our spiritual diseases. And let us strive to know them, so that we can mortify them and see to it that they do not manifest themselves or no longer. These diseases make us kneel down and by deploring them, we extend our hands in prayer to this God with unfailing love. 

Today since the work of the cross, the substance is Christ! Whatever we ask in his name will be given to us. This is how we are established and sanctified, how the infidel we were is recovered and healed. This is how the stranger is brought near, the mourner is comforted, and the name of God is glorified. Sin is the cause of all our illnesses. Repentance and forgiveness lead to all human happiness.