Latest / Dwelling Place: The Bible for Moms / #154. Never Too Far Gone: Manasseh's Redemption & Hope for Prodigal Children | 2 Kings 20–21 + 2 Chronicles 32-33

Transcript

#154. Never Too Far Gone: Manasseh's Redemption & Hope for Prodigal Children | 2 Kings 20–21 + 2 Chronicles 32-33 · Dwelling Place: The Bible for Moms

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  Steph: This is The Dwelling Place from Entrusted Ministries.
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  Steph: I'm Stephanie Hickox.
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  Steph: As we turn the pages of our Bibles back to Second Kings 20 and 21 and Second Chronicles 32 through 33, we'll be reminded that you are never too far gone for the Lord to forgive you.
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  Steph: Whether you've walked with Christ faithfully, fallen into sin, and then repented, our God is gracious.
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  Steph: And if you've gone through incredible seasons of rebellion
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  Speaker 32: and
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  Steph: then fallen on your knees, the Lord's arm of forgiveness is extended toward you as well.
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  Steph: And if you're a mom deeply grieved by the actions of your prodigal child, I pray that today fills you with faith that there is hope in Jesus Christ.
• 0:35
  Steph: As we begin 2 Kings 20, we're encountering the story of Hezekiah finding out that he's sick, and that his illness will end in death.
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  Steph: But there are a couple phrases I want to meditate upon that the author of Kings presented The chapter begins, "In those days Hezekiah became sick and was at the point of death.
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  Steph: And Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, came to him and said to him, Thus says the Lord: "Set your house in order, for you shall die, you shall not recover."'"
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  Steph: Then Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the Lord, saying, Now, O Lord, please remember how I've walked before you in faithfulness and with a whole heart, and have done what is good in your sight."
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  Steph: And Hezekiah wept bitterly.
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  Steph: And before Isaiah had gone out of the middle court, the word of the Lord came to him, turn back and say to Hezekiah, the leader of my people, Thus says the Lord, the God of David your father: I
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  Steph: have heard your prayer.
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  Steph: I have seen your tears.
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  Steph: Behold, I will heal you.
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  Steph: On the third day you shall go up to the house of the Lord, and I will add 15 years to your life.
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  Steph: I will deliver you and this city out of the hand of the king of Assyria, and I will defend this city for my own sake and for my servant David's sake.'
• 1:38
  Steph: The phrases that really gripped me are that Hezekiah wept bitterly when he found out that his life was going to end.
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  Steph: When we read through Paul's courageous proclamation in the New Testament that for me to live is Christ and to die is gain, it can make you feel that you shouldn't have any attachment to your life and you should
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  Steph: be willing to die for Christ at any moment And that's certainly true.
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  Steph: But I think this passage of scripture reveals that it's understandable that one would weep for their life.
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  Steph: If you've received a scary health diagnosis and you've wept bitterly about it, I don't want you to feel condemned by that.
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  Steph: Even Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane, asked God to spare him from a painful death.
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  Steph: There's not shame in wanting to continue to serve the Lord where you are.
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  Steph: Ultimately, we do want to be surrendered to God's plans As we read in Isaiah that God bottles our tears and one day will wipe every tear away, this is a God that hears Hezekiah's prayer, he doesn't say, "Stop
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  Steph: crying."
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  Steph: He says, "I hear the depth of your pain and your prayer, and I'm going to answer it."
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  Steph: And how long did the Lord wait to give him this reassurance?
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  Steph: Before Isaiah had even left his house But there's something truly pivotal about God's response.
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  Steph: He says he will answer Hezekiah's prayer for his namesake, but also for his servant David's sake.
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  Steph: What's fascinating is that we believe Hezekiah did not have an heir at this point to continue the Davidic line.
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  Steph: If he would've died, we don't know exactly who the next king would've been.
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  Steph: But because God extends his life 15 more years, three years into this extension, Hezekiah fathers Manasseh, and then Manasseh becomes the next king in the Davidic line.
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  Steph: it truly is for David's sake that God extended his life.
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  Steph: It makes you question, was this part of God's plan all along to heal him?
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  Steph: We don't know.
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  Steph: But perhaps the Lord used this moment to do something in Hezekiah's heart But as we've already talked about, when he recovers and receives the gifts, he makes a grievous error and shows off all that he has to the
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  Steph: king of Babylon.
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  Steph: At the end of the chapter, Isaiah issues a strong rebuke against him, prophesying that everything that he showed the king of Babylon is going to be carried away to Babylon, and that some of his own sons would become
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  Steph: eunuchs Hezekiah sinfully responds saying, It's okay because there will be peace and security in my days."
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  Steph: If his sons become eunuchs, that is a literal threat to them carrying out the Davidic line.
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  Steph: He should not be so nearsighted to focus on his own comfort A godly parent should care more about the security of their children than of their own peace Let's briefly talk a little bit more about when Sennacherib was
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  Steph: coming against Hezekiah.
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  Steph: He'd conquered many cities in Judah and intended to conquer Jerusalem as well.
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  Steph: In 2 Kings 20:20, we learn a little bit more about Hezekiah's architectural achievements.
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  Steph: The rest of the deeds of Hezekiah and all his might in how he made the pool and the conduit and brought water into the city, are they not written in the Book of Chronicles of the Kings of Judah?
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  Steph: At the end of Hezekiah's life, not only does he receive commendation for his righteousness and his pursuit of the Lord, he's also affirmed for his engineering feats.
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  Steph: This conduit that Hezekiah built was discovered in 1880.
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  Steph: It's a seventeen hundred foot tunnel that flows from the Gihon Spring to the Pool of Siloam inside the city.
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  Steph: An archeologist uncovered an inscription that explained the exact process by which the builders constructed this.
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  Steph: They met at the midpoint.
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  Steph: Now, I've never constructed a tunnel or a bridge, but I do remember hearing an account of how the builders of the Golden Gate Bridge met in the middle in the early 1900s.
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  Steph: this was celebrated and considered groundbreaking, no pun intended, in the construction world.
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  Steph: If they had been a degree or an inch off, it could have thrown off the entire bridge.
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  Steph: but thousands of years earlier, Hezekiah's men met in the middle in their construction endeavor as well.
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  Steph: And you can go and visit this point in Jerusalem today So I especially appreciate that when we turn to 2 Chronicles 32, Hezekiah was willing to close up his own building projects so that the enemy did not benefit
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  Steph: from them.
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  Steph: He set to work resolutely, stopping the water supply from getting to the city and beginning to rebuild the walls and reinforcing them and these details are so inspirational.
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  Steph: Because Hezekiah is not just devoting himself to prayer, but he also sets about practically defending the city.
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  Steph: As Christian moms, this is important for us too.
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  Steph: You could get on your knees all day long praying about your kids, but the Word of God says that faith without deeds is dead.
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  Steph: We must be moved to action.
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  Steph: This reminds me of when I had the opportunity to sit down with Chris McKenna of Protect Young Eyes.
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  Steph: He was talking about how to protect our kids digitally, and he said the same idea, that prayer is the foundation of what we do in protecting our kids, but it must move us to action because I think that
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  Steph: this digital protection is such an important wall that we build as parents, I'm going to link that interview in our show notes Next we see Hezekiah's heart to encourage others He gathers the military leaders and speaks encouragingly to
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  Steph: them, saying, "Be strong and courageous.
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  Steph: Do not be afraid or dismayed before the king of Assyria and all the horde that is with him, for there are more with us than with him.
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  Steph: With him is an arm of flesh, but with us is the Lord our God to help us and to fight our battles."
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  Steph: And the people took confidence from the words of Hezekiah, king of Judah.
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  Steph: We've already read that the Lord protects Hezekiah and Jerusalem and that Sennacherib goes home and is killed by his own sons speaking of sons, let's look at Hezekiah's son, Manasseh, and learn more about his reign.
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  Steph: I have to admit, when I hear the name Manasseh, I think, "Oh, he was terrible."
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  Steph: But I was really thankful for an opportunity to study him again because my perspective really shifted.
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  Steph: As I mentioned, Manasseh was born three years into Hezekiah's life extension and we're gonna read a larger portion of his life so that you can hear the transformation.
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  Steph: This is from 2 Chronicles 33 Manasseh was 12 years old when he began to reign, and he reigned 55 years in Jerusalem, and he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, according to the abominations of
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  Steph: the nations whom the Lord drove out before the people of Israel.
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  Steph: For he rebuilt the high places that his father Hezekiah had broken down, and he erected altars to the Baals, and made Asheroth, and worshiped all the host of heaven and served them.
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  Steph: And he built altars in the house of the Lord, of which the Lord had said, In Jerusalem shall my name be forever."
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  Steph: And he built altars for all the host of heaven in the two courts of the house of the Lord.
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  Steph: And he burned his sons as an offering in the valley of the son of Hinnom, and used fortune-telling and omens and sorcery, And dealt with mediums and with necromancers.
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  Steph: He did much evil in the sight of the Lord, provoking him to anger.
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  Steph: And the carved image of the idol that he had made, he set in the house of God, of which God said to David and to Solomon his son, In this house and in Jerusalem, which I have chosen out
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  Steph: of all the tribes of Israel, I will put my name forever.
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  Steph: And I will no more remove the foot of Israel from the land that I appointed for your fathers, if only they will be careful to do all that I have commanded them, all the law, the statutes, and the
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  Steph: rules given through Moses."
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  Steph: Manasseh led Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem astray to do more evil than the nations whom the Lord destroyed before the people of Israel.
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  Steph: The Lord spoke to Manasseh and to his people, but they paid no attention.
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  Steph: Therefore, the Lord brought upon them the commanders of the army of the king of Assyria, who captured Manasseh with hooks and bound him with chains of bronze and brought him to Babylon.
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  Steph: It seems that the prodigal son has nothing on Manasseh.
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  Steph: The extent of his evil is astounding, isn't it?
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  Steph: When his dad was the first king in hundreds of years to tear down those high places, it's horrifying that he rebuilt them.
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  Steph: It's an absolute affront to God and to his father's legacy.
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  Steph: and then he puts idols in the temple of the Lord to worship them I'm amazed that the Lord allowed him to reign for so long.
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  Steph: In 2 Kings 21:10, And the Lord said by His servants the prophets, 'Because Manasseh king of Judah has committed these abominations and has done things more evil than all the Amorites did who were before him, and has made
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  Steph: Judah also to sin with his idols Therefore thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: Behold, I am bringing upon Jerusalem and Judah such disaster that the ears of everyone who hears of it will tingle.
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  Steph: And I will forsake the remnant of my heritage and give them into the hand of their enemies, and they shall become a prey and a spoil to their enemies, because they have done what is evil in my sight,
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  Steph: and have provoked me to anger since the day their fathers came out of Egypt even to this day."
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  Steph: Moreover, Manasseh shed very much innocent blood, till he had filled Jerusalem from one end to another.
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  Steph: Manasseh had a father that did not walk perfectly, but the trajectory of his life was righteousness.
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  Steph: And though Manasseh had this example, he chose to do more evil than the nations that were around them Though Joshua and the Israelites worked hard to push the pagan nations out of the promised land, some remained and had
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  Steph: a negative impact upon the people But now Israel is the one being the awful example when people are in difficult situations or when they're facing the judgment of the Lord, will they continue in their stubborn rebellion or will
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  Steph: they humble their hearts?
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  Steph: Let's keep reading to find out what Manasseh's response was to the prophecy being fulfilled of him being carried away to Babylon.
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  Steph: 2 Chronicles 33:12 Continues his story, And when he was in distress, he entreated the favor of the Lord his God and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers.
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  Steph: He prayed to Him, and God was moved by his entreaty and heard his plea and brought him again to Jerusalem into his kingdom.
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  Steph: Then Manasseh knew that the Lord was God."
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  Steph: Isn't this incredible that God is so merciful toward him?
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  Steph: Does this transform your perspective of anything that you've done in your life?
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  Steph: It's never been about your righteousness.
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  Steph: It's been about your reliance on Jesus' perfection and His sacrifice.
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  Steph: And as I mentioned at the beginning, if you have a child that has turned their back on the Lord, there is hope.
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  Steph: Keep praying.
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  Steph: Do not give up faith not only does God have mercy upon Manasseh But he actually allows him to return to Jerusalem When Manasseh gets back,
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  Speaker 32: he again enacts
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  Steph: some practical fortifications of the city.
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  Steph: But let's keep reading about his spiritual transformation in verse 15 And he took away the foreign gods and the idol from the house of the Lord, and all the altars that he had built on the mountain of the
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  Steph: house of the Lord and in Jerusalem, and he threw them outside of the city.
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  Steph: He also restored the altar of the Lord and offered on it sacrifices of peace offerings and of thanksgiving, and he commanded Judah to serve the Lord, the God of Israel Nevertheless, the people still sacrificed at the high places,
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  Steph: but only to the Lord their God We can be encouraged that Manasseh zealously undid much of the evil that he had brought to the nation And that he destroyed many of the opportunities for idolatry.
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  Steph: but there are still consequences and after he dies, his son Ammon reigns in his place.
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  Steph: He's twenty-two years old at the time, which means he's been able to see some of the evil his father did, but also his repentance.
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  Steph: Sadly, he chooses to continue in the wickedness of his father rather than his repentance.
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  Steph: Amon's servants conspire against him and put him to death in his house.
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  Steph: After so many wicked kings, we had a glimmer of hope in Hezekiah and then during Manasseh's long reign, there was a wicked king on the throne again.
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  Steph: But God is not done, and there is hope.
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  Steph: Because after Ammon dies, the people make Josiah king in his place, and I can't wait to look at his life with you later.
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  Steph: Heavenly Father, we praise you for your plentiful mercy that was on full display in our reading today We are grateful that you are available, not expecting our perfection, but calling us to humility to recognize how far we've strayed
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  Steph: from you Help us to walk in a manner that brings you honor and glory.
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  Steph: And we pray we would do this in humility, not relying upon our own righteousness because we know that is a filthy rag before you And we pray that when we conquer and defeat sin in our own lives, that
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  Steph: our kids will not continue in the patterns we've worked so hard to end.
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  Steph: I pray particularly for the prodigals of any mom listening.
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  Steph: Fill them with an unshakable peace that with you, it is possible for their child to return, You are the God of all hope, and in you we confidently place our trust.
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  Steph: But we do ask in the mighty name of Jesus that you would draw them back, that any children walking in rebellion would not be able to rest until they restore their relationship with you.
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  Steph: Jesus, we thank you that you are winsome and wonderful, and we pray for many to understand the worthiness of following you.
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  Steph: It's in your name we pray.
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  Steph: Amen.