Realigning with God’s Purposes
God often used places in the Old Testament to give us pictures of spiritual truths. A picture, as they say, is worth 1000 words. Shechem is one of those places; it actually pictures several spiritual truths.
First, Shechem speaks of promised inheritance. This was where God initially spoke to Abraham in Canaan, promising the land as an inheritance for him and his descendants (Genesis 12:7). Figuratively, God is calling America back to Shechem, asking us to reclaim our inheritance: “I gave you this land to steward, and partnered with you in the establishing of it. Now, reclaim it.” All of the earth belongs to God (Psalm 24:1), and He has the right to assign stewardship of it to whomever He sees fit. As those to whom He assigned this land, we must not allow its destiny to be stolen. Just as Israel had to fight for their inheritance, so must we.
This inheritance applies to ALL Americans, regardless of our backgrounds or ethnicities. Evil people want to divide Americans based on class and ethnicity, in order to further their own evil agendas. God hates this, calling it an abomination (Proverbs 6:16-19). The word used for “abomination” in this passage means disgusting, abhorrent, and repulsive.(1) Those who work to divide us for political and/or monetary gain disgust the Lord. Their actions are abhorrent to Him and should be to us. They know they are intentionally dividing us for gain, just as they know women and children are being trafficked for the same reasons. These abhorrent people don’t care.
Second, and as is clearly shown in Genesis 12:2-3, Shechem reveals God’s desire to partner with His family.
“And I will make you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great; and so you shall be a blessing; and I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse. And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”
God is asking America to partner with Him again, to agree with and realign with His purposes for establishing this nation. Since creation, His plan and desire have been to work on the earth through humans, not independently of them. Dr. Peter Wagner spoke of this partnership in regard to writing Earth’s history.
“Our sovereign God has for His own reasons so designed this world that much of what is truly His will He makes contingent on the attitudes and actions of human beings. He allows humans to make decisions that can influence history.”(2)
Profound. Weighty. Extremely consequential.
The third principle associated with Shechem can be easily deduced from the first two. Shechem pictures responsibility. This is also hidden in a Hebrew word used in the following verse: "And the LORD appeared to Abram and said, ‘To your descendants, I will give this land.'” (Genesis 12:7) The word "give" comes from the Hebrew word nathan,(3) which I’ve mentioned in previous posts, but is well worth repeating. This word is not only used in the sense of conferring ownership, but also to give a charge or an assignment. God was not only giving the land to Abraham and his family, He was also assigning it to them.
God’s gifts are often His assignments. My children were gifts, but they were also assignments. My abilities are gifts with which I can prosper, but they also come with responsibilities: serving, giving, providing, etc.
The incredible wealth and prosperity of America is so much more than just a gift. It is a very important responsibility from God, an assignment we must steward. This stewardship is fulfilled through prayer, sowing into the preaching of the gospel, voting for individuals with biblical values, speaking out against evil and standing for truth, and more. We must understand that all who enjoy America’s benefits will also give an account of how they stewarded them.
Fourthly, at Shechem, idolatry was cleansed. In Genesis 32, Jacob was transformed, receiving a life-changing, face-to-face encounter with Yahweh, through which he was delivered of his rebellious nature and received a new identity. At the conclusion of this encounter, God renamed him Israel, and he (Israel) renamed the place, Penuel, “the face of God.” (There was as yet no nation of Israel, only this man.)
In the following chapter, Genesis 33, after Israel’s (Jacob’s) encounter with the Lord at Penuel and his peaceful reunion with Esau, he took all of his family and servants to Shechem, this place where God had met with his grandfather, Abraham. There he built an altar of remembrance and called it El-Elohe-Israel, meaning “God, the God of Israel” (Genesis 33:20). Jacob/Israel was referring to himself, not a nation, declaring that El was now his God. Not just Abraham’s God, not just Isaac’s God, but he was declaring that Yahweh was his God.
As a demonstration of this, two chapters later, Israel commanded his family and servants to bury all of their idols at Shechem:
“So they gave Jacob all the [idols and images of the] foreign gods they had and the rings which were in their ears [worn as charms against evil], and Jacob buried them under the oak tree near Shechem.” (Genesis 35:4 AMP)
Again, figuratively God is calling America to Shechem, asking us to rid the land of idolatry: materialism, pleasure, greed, lust, pride, false religions, etc. Obviously, this will occur through revival and salvation - not by force - as those threatened by the church like to falsely accuse us of desiring. Just as Jacob went back to his roots - the place where the Lord met with Abraham and promised him the land - God is asking America to go back to her biblical, Christian roots. “Choose you this day whom ye will serve…as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord” (Joshua 24:15). Yes, Joshua gave this famous speech at Shechem! Here is more of Joshua’s message that day:
“Now, therefore, fear the Lord and serve Him in sincerity and truth; and put away the gods which your fathers served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. If it is disagreeable in your sight to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves today whom you will serve: whether the gods which your fathers served which were beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living; but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” (Joshua 24-14-15 NASB)
Finally, in Joshua 20:7, Shechem became one of the cities of refuge. These weren’t for those who entered the land illegally, as they are in America, but places in Israel where those who accidentally took someone’s life could flee for protection from vengeance. It was forbidden for any retaliation to be taken against them while they lived in these towns, and precautions were put in place accordingly. According to Hebrews 6:18, the cities of refuge picture Christ, who became our refuge: "We who have fled for refuge in laying hold of the hope set before us."
God is offering Christ as America’s refuge. So many places in our nation are now filled with violence, murder, poverty, and fear. Serving other gods leads to destruction (Matthew 7:13); the way of the transgressor is hard (Proverbs 13:15). God wants to transform these devastated places into safe havens, cities of peace and refuge. He desires to send revival to inner cities, impoverished neighborhoods, gang-controlled and drug-infested streets. God is a refuge in times of trouble (Psalm 46:1).
Pray with me:
Father, You have given us an amazing inheritance in this nation. We have been blessed beyond words. These blessings are not only for our enjoyment, but are gifts to be stewarded in blessing others. We repent for our lack of discipline, for spending ourselves into poverty and debt, squandering Your blessings on our lusts.
Send a revival that not only saves and restores our spirits, but an awakening that transforms our souls from ungoverned desires and lusts. Cleanse us from idolatry, free us from ourselves - just as You did Jacob. Give us a face-to-face encounter; take America to Penuel! Transform us into noble people who can partner with You to save the world.
Give us righteous leaders who do not want to divide us. Deliver us from these abhorrent people. Yes, we pray for their salvation; but until their hearts change, we do not want them to rule over us. Silence voices in the media that work to divide us. Bring Your deliverance to us from this evil activity.
In Christ’s name, through His authority, we pray these things. Amen.
Our decree:
We decree that America will be led to our Penuel, experience her transformation, and bury her idols at Shechem.
Click on the link below to watch the full video.
James Strong, The New Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1990), ref. no. 8441.
C. Peter Wagner, Confronting the Powers (Ventura, CA: Regal Books, 1996), p. 242.
Strong’s Concordance, ref. no. 5414.