Mandate Repentance

Hear me when I say that my intent in writing this post is not to be controversial. As you read, please do not hear what I am not saying. This is not about whether you should or shouldn’t take the vaccine. This is ultimately about us as a church seeing the bigger picture and not getting sucked into debating the symptoms to a bigger epidemic, which is sin and our need to repent. Many are up in arms about the growing mandates to get the COVID vaccine. I have sat and listened to my brothers and sisters in Christ share both sides of the argument. Both have shared legitimate points of which I will not discuss here. Ultimately, pray and if you feel at peace to get it, then do, and if you hear God saying no, then don’t. It is also important for us not to shame our brother or sister in Christ, who may make a different decision than us. God didn’t make us robots, so we will not always agree on matters that do not affect our salvation. Don’t let your pride blind you to this truth. Instead, let us agree on that which is of eternal value. While we may not agree on whether we should mandate the vaccine, let us unify on our need to mandate repentance. We can learn something from the King of Nineveh in Jonah 3:6-10.

Now I know repentance is a heart matter and we cannot force anyone to do it. But oh, that our eyes would open to the many ways we have embraced the ways of the world, disregarding the holiness of God. I pray we will mourn over sin instead of celebrating it and mislabeling it as freedom. May we come to God in humility and ask Him for forgiveness for giving our affections to everything and everyone else but Him. I pray we see the need to repent for our pride in trying to be our own god and treating Yahweh as our sidekick. Oh, that the bride of Christ would arise and unashamedly declare God’s Holy standard, and call people to repentance because we have drifted so far from it. May we be courageous and call out sin and take responsibility for the fruit of turning our backs on God and conforming to this world. True repentance yields forgiveness. God is merciful. 1 Peter 3:9 reminds us that God is patient with us and that He does not want anyone to perish, but for everyone to come to repentance. Let us continue to meditate on the prescription given in 2 Chronicles 7:14,  ^“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.” Amen.

Blessings

Anika