6/21/2011 7:13:13 AM
SPIRITUAL DIARY
My Worship Time Focus:
Manasseh—humiliated
by affliction PT-2
(Manasseh’s
Repentance)
Bible Reading
& Meditation Reference: 2Chronicles 33:11-13, 19
Message of the verses: “11 ¶ Therefore
the LORD brought the commanders of the army of the king of Assyria against
them, and they captured Manasseh with hooks, bound him with bronze chains and
took him to Babylon. 12 When he was in
distress, he entreated the LORD his God and humbled himself greatly before the
God of his fathers. 13 When he prayed to
Him, He was moved by his entreaty and heard his supplication, and brought him
again to Jerusalem to his kingdom. Then Manasseh knew that the LORD was God. 19 His
prayer also and how God was entreated by him, and all his sin, his
unfaithfulness, and the sites on which he built high places and erected the
Asherim and the carved images, before he humbled himself, behold, they are
written in the records of the Hozai.”
I
would like to finish the story of Manasseh this morning, but that will require
doing the last two sub-points under the above named main point. I am amazed at a two things that I find in
the section of Manasseh that is recorded in the Scriptures, for it is only
parts of two chapters in two different books of the Bible while the life of
David takes up four entire books and if you count the Psalms, which he wrote
most of them then at least four and a half books of the Old Testament. The second thing that I am amazed at is the grace
of God, for it was the grace of God that saved this wicked king causing him to
be humbled and then Manasseh crying out to the Lord as he was humbled by the
Lord and then humbled himself before the Lord.
“True repentance is a work of God in the heart and a willing response of
the heart to the Lord.”
Manasseh’s reformation (2Chronicles 33:14-18, 20):
“14 Now after this he built the
outer wall of the city of David on the west side of Gihon, in the valley, even
to the entrance of the Fish Gate; and he encircled the Ophel with it and made
it very high. Then he put army commanders in all the fortified cities of Judah.
15 He also removed the foreign gods and
the idol from the house of the LORD, as well as all the altars which he had
built on the mountain of the house of the LORD and in Jerusalem, and he threw
them outside the city. 16 He set up the altar of the LORD and sacrificed peace
offerings and thank offerings on it; and he ordered Judah to serve the LORD God
of Israel. 17 Nevertheless the people still
sacrificed in the high places, although only to the LORD their God. 18 Now the rest of the acts of Manasseh even his
prayer to his God, and the words of the seers who spoke to him in the name of
the LORD God of Israel, behold, they are among the records of the kings of
Israel. 20 So Manasseh slept with his
fathers, and they buried him in his own house. And Amon his son became king in
his place.”
In
the book of Matthew chapter three and verse eight John the Baptist said the
following statement that is seen in the later life of Manasseh, “"Therefore
bear fruit in keeping with repentance.”
He was making this statement to some of the Pharisees and Sadducees
after they had come out in the wilderness to hear him preach.
Manasseh
did bear fruit in keeping with his repentance for he tore down all of the idols
that he had placed in the temple of the Lord and he also tore down the idols
that he had put in other places around Jerusalem. He fortified the city of Jerusalem and also
other cities in Judah in order to protect the people. He told all the people not to worship idols,
but to worship the Lord and because they saw him doing this it made it more
believable that Manasseh repented and turned to the Lord. He still allowed the worship on the high
places, but only to the Lord.
There
is nothing of this mentioned in 2Kings, and perhaps that is because the books
of first and second Chronicles were written during the Babylon captivity and
the people needed to hear of the amazing grace of God in saving a wicked man
like Manasseh in order to have the hope and faith they needed to have while
living in Babylon.
Spiritual meaning for my life today: Manasseh and the apostle Paul are two great
trophies of the grace of God and their wickedness is written on the pages of
holy Scripture for all to read about, but I too am a trophy of the wonderful
grace of God and because of that my name is written in the Lamb’s book of
life. Paul writes in the letter to the
Romans “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” There is no doubt that I too am part of that
“all.”
My Steps of Faith for Today:
1.
Give myself to the Lord for worship and for service
this day so that I can live for the glory of God.
2.
Continue to learn contentment.
3.
Remember the need for the spiritual armor for the
battle is fierce.
4.
Proverbs 3:5-6.
5.
Psalm 139:23-24.
6/21/2011 7:56:56 AM
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