What Can One Person Do?

Do you ever look around at the state of our world or even just our country and despair? Do you feel helpless to do anything? Me too. I went to Heavenly Father in prayer during a particular time of despair after watching the news and asked if it was too late. Had our salt lost its savour? Are we about to be trown out and trampled underfoot (Matthew 5:13)? The answer I received gave me a candle in the darkness. Most who read the Bible know the passage in 2 Chronicles that is often quoted, though seldom followed:

If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land. Now mine eyes shall be open, and mine ears attent unto the prayer that is made in this place. (2 Chronicles 7:14-15)

One of the things I love about this passage is that it didn't depend on worldwide repentance, just the people who call themselves followers of God. Now, there is a cynical part of me, too, because sometimes I look around at those who call themselves by His name and I'm ashamed. They're like an amalgam of the churches of Ephesus, Sardis, and Laodicia in the book of Revelation (Revelation 2-3). They want to call themselves part of the church, but live like the world. Can the Lord turn His face toward us when even His people are in this condition? Then, I remembered two things. First, there is always a remnant. Always. Two, there are great examples in scripture when the prayers of a SINGLE believer saved a nation. Here are two.

Daniel

I teach the adult Sunday School class at my church. Hardly a lesson goes by when I don't bring up Daniel. I admire him so much. I aspire to be like him. Remind me sometime to tell you the verse about his character that convicts me the most and shows me where I fall short. In Daniel, the nation of Israel was coming up on the completion of 70 years of captivity in Babylon. There were still Israelis in the land of Israel, but they were the powerless (the poor) and the useless (the dregs). Don't equate those two. They're separate groups. The point from Nebuchadnezzar's mind was they were no threat. Those who could be a threat were taken to Babylon. For years, God had warned people of Israel unless they repented they'd spend 70 in captivity. They didn't listen. And Babylon came.

Fast forward about 70 years and now Babylon had been overthrown. It was now the Medo-Persian Empire running things and those 70 years of promised captivity was coming to an end. Now you think Daniel, who was first taken captive at the age of around 14-15, would be thrilled and packing his bags. Instead, he gave a remarkable prayer of repentance on behalf of his people. You can read his prayer in Daniel 9. Seriously, go read it. Now why would Daniel feel the need to beg for the mercy of God when he knew the 70 years were coming to an end? Didn't he know the word of God? Did He not have faith that God would keep His word and restore the people of Israel?

He did. In fact, Daniel knew the word of God so well, that he understood the importance of this prayer of repentance. You see, there is another verse tucked away in the Book of Leviticus that says, "And if ye will not yet for all this hearken unto me, then I will punish you seven times more for your sins." (Leviticus 26:18). Hence Daniel's prayer on behalf of his people.

Thankfully, the scriptures teach us that the "effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much" (James 5:16).

And Daniel's prayer availeth...

Shortly after, around 537 B.C., Cyrus the Persian gave the command that the Israelites could return to their land. Not only did the Lord hear Daniel's prayer, but He sent Daniel a heavenly messenger to assure him of the fact as well as give Daniel a glimpse into the future.

Nehemiah

Fast forward with me one more time to 445 B.C. Nehemiah was serving as the cupbearer in the court of the Persain King Artaxerxes I. Some Israelite friends came to visit him. Nehemiah immediately inquired about how things were going in Jerusalem. The news was grim. The wall to the city of Jersualem was in tatters and they were facing enemies on all sides. Without a wall, they were defenseless. When Nehemiah heard this, he wept, mourned, fasted, and prayed to the God of Heaven (Nehemiah 1:4).

In this prayer, which you can read in the remainder of that chapter, Nehemiah repented on behalf of his people and then he reminded God of His promises in Deuteronomy 30, specifically that when the scattered people of Israel repented, He would restore them to their land no matter how far they were scattered. Then he asked the Lord to give him mercy in the sight of "this man." We learn in the sentence that immediately follows, that "this man" was the king.

Just four months later, the answer to Nehemiah's prayer came. His countenance was sad and the king noticed. Not only did he notice, he noticed the type of sadness. Sorrow of the heart AND he asked Nehemiah about it. This tells me that Nehemiah was the type of servant the king actually respected and even cared about. Nehemiah 2:2 says that Nehemiah was afraid to answer. You may wonder why. Well, he had good reason.

If you angered a king, you could be put to death. Not too long before this, some enemies of Israel wrote the king and told him that the Israelites were a rebellious people who couldn't be trusted to rebuild the wall or they might not serve the king any longer. This resulted in Artaxerxes issuing a decree that the rebuilding of Jerusalem and its wall was to be halted. (Ezra 4:7-24).

You can understand Nehemiah's reticence. Yet, he told the king his sorrow over his nation. Artaxerxes asked, "For what dost thou make request?" Nehemiah took a moment to pray (I definetely don't blame him) and then asked for leave to go to Jersualem and help complete the repairs. He also asked for letters of safe passage, as well as letters of the king's orders that construction was to reconvene, AND for the king to help provide the needed supplies to do the construction. Bold. But guess what? The king agreed to all of it.

One man, by serving faithfully in the position of a servant was able to change the course of the nation he loved.

My beloved brothers and sisters, SO CAN WE.

Standing in the Gap

Now it is our turn. We must pray. We must repent, both for our own sins as well as the sins of our nation. Then, like Nehemiah, we must get to work. Nehemiah went to Jersualem and helped rebuild the wall. What do we rebuild? We rebuild the character of our nation. Serve well where you are planted. Live as salt and light. Love those around you. Live righteously. Help where you can in wise ways. Pray some more. Pray not just for the repentance of the people, but for revelation in what work the Lord has for YOU to do (Ephesians 2:10). What can one person do? Save a nation.