Is Someone Knocking on the Door?

God’s message to King Solomon after the consecration of the temple in 2 Chronicles 7:11-22 is intriguing. Imagine this majestic edifice, the weeks of sacrifices, the songs, the celebrations, the awe of Yahweh’s shekinah glory descending upon and filling the temple. This is the high-water mark of Old Testament faith.

Then the Lord says to Solomon, “When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command locusts to devour the land or send a plague among my people, 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 I will forgive their sin and will heal their land” (vs. 13-14). Now that’s anticlimactic.

Writing after the exile, the author of 2 Chronicles knew that the people would turn away from God and that God would draw them back. That much was clear from the beginning—during the Exodus when Israel continually defied and disobeyed God on the way to the promised land. Despite our best hopes, believers will fall away from their “first love” just like the congregation of Ephesus (Revelation 2). We need God to renew our hearts and our churches.

The good news is that Jesus Christ “stands at the door and knocks,” desiring to do that very thing (Rev. 2:20).

Over 13 months in 2024 and 2025, I was blessed to meet with members and leaders of congregations from all 49 of our CRCNA classes (regional bodies) as part of the Gather Initiative (crcna.org/Gather). During these gatherings, God painted a picture of how the Holy Spirit is renewing our churches. At Gather, we recognized our unmet hopes and we acknowledged that we have been slow to believe all of God’s promises. We also celebrated evidence of God’s faithfulness and listened to stories of revitalization. In fact, we are celebrating a wonderful story of God’s faithfulness in this issue: the 150th anniversary of Calvin University and Calvin Theological Seminary.

More than anything else, I came away from the Gather events convinced that Jesus Christ is standing at the door and knocking. He longs to forgive and renew us. He desires to revitalize and energize us for ministry and mission. How do we open the door so that Jesus Christ can come in and renew us?

There is a temptation among believers to think they can “orchestrate” their spiritual renewal. If we just read the right book, have a good discussion, hire a gifted consultant, or follow the correct process, our congregations could be vital, growing, Christ-centered communities.

But that was not God’s message to Solomon. Instead, God’s message was more akin to, “Hey buddy, you all think things are going pretty well right now, but don’t forget you are sinful people. You are going to need me to get back on track.”

The first step in our renewal, therefore, is to collectively humble ourselves and seek God’s face. Whether we and our churches are standing tall on the mountain or facedown in a filthy trench, renewal starts with intercessory prayer. Why? In God's inscrutable wisdom, he has made local congregations the channel of the healing and life-giving power to send his gospel and Holy Spirit to a broken world. When those waters are blocked, only one person can unplug them. Jesus is standing at the door and knocking. Will we, through prayer, open that door and receive his renewal?

Over the next several issues, in this column I will share a few important lessons learned about congregational renewal in the CRC during the Gather initiative. I challenge you to discuss these with your families and congregations. Let’s start with prayer. Synod 2025 requested that our classes and congregations make the 2025-2026 a year of prayerful intercession for the renewal of our churches. Do you hear someone knocking on the door?