Many Christian leaders in America believe that we, the Church, should repent for allowing our culture to rot and lose its way because we were not the proper salt and light God commanded us to be over the past 100 years. We believe that America is now under God’s “remedial judgment” and that, if we do not repent and change our ways, God has every right to judge and devastate His Church and the people in America as He did in Jerusalem in 587 B.C. and A.D. 70. Many believe that we have more reason to fear God’s righteous judgment coming upon America (the God Who loves His people), than to fear horrible, terrorist attacks upon our cities by those who hate us and want us destroyed. America is now in a very fragile condition. Many of our evangelical churches are misguided and carnal making our situation before the face of our God urgent and perhaps desperate.

Biblical history gives us many examples of God’s people, under Spirit-led leaders, engaging in what we now call “Solemn Assemblies” to seek God’s face and His help, repent of their sins and re-commit themselves to God’s covenant with them.

Under Samuel — I Samuel7:5-6

Under David — II Samuel 6:14 & I Chronicles 13-18

Under Asa — II Chronicles 15:9-15

Under Jehoshaphat — II Chronicles 20:3-13

Under Hezekiah — II Chronicles 29:5ff

Under Josiah — II Chronicles 34:31-33

Under Ezra — Ezra 6:16-22 & 8:21-23 & 9:5-15

Under Nehemiah — Nehemiah 8:1ff

Under Joel — Joel 1:13 & 2:12-17

Also, Solemn Assemblies and special times of prayer and repentance were held to call upon God during times of great stress and crisis by Christian leaders throughout the 2000 years of the Church’s history.

Dr. Richard Owen Roberts concludes his booklet on Solemn Assemblies with these words: “Historically, unheeded remedial judgments have turned into final judgments. America, as a nation, is ripe for destruction. The evangelical movement in this country is characterized by ... arrogance ... neglect of prayer ... Philistine methodology ... moral evils and ... doctrinal corruptions.... If the youth of the nation are to live out their lives in a land of freedom and opportunity, they will do so because their parents had grace sufficient to humble themselves, pray, repent of their sins, and seek God’s face in Solemn Assemblies. Obedience is still better than sacrifice. Joel’s call requires prompt response. ‘Consecrate a fast, proclaim a Solemn Assembly; gather the elders and all the inhabitants of the land to the house of the Lord your God, and cry out to the Lord.”