Pastor Emeritus: Keith Olmanson

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Hymns: 14; 324(1-4,8); 325; 342; 53

WELCOME in the name of Jesus, through whom we are reconciled to our heavenly Father!

Pre-Service meditation: Psalm 32

Pre-Service prayer:

Dearest Jesus, our blessed Savior, we come before You this day to worship in Your presence. We pray that You would lead us to sincere repentance, that we might grow in grace an in our understanding of Your Word; and that we might be moved to live our lives in simple godliness and devotion to Your name. Amen.

Epistle Reading: James 4:1-10

By nature, everyone is lost in sin. Those sinners who are led to repentance are a cause for joy among the angels in heaven.

SERMON:

Several years ago, while my wife and I were driving through northern Florida, we saw a number of roadside signs which read, "REPENT FINAL WARNING." We were puzzled by what was meant by "Final Warning". Did those responsible for the signs believe that the Judgment Day was only a few days off? Was this their last effort to help people spiritually? Was there some other meaning? Most likely, we will never know.

But the call to repentance is always a timely message. "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand," was the message of John the Baptist. Matt. 3:2. And how very often similar words have been used by other prophets and preachers of God. Times without number, those words have been directed toward sinners headed for eternal destruction. Sometimes by the grace of God, repentance was the result. More often those words were ignored.

Scripture contains many examples of repentance. For many Christians, the best Old Testament example of repentance is that of King David. He, with Bathsheba, fell into the sin of adultery. Later, in an effrot to cover up his sin, David arranged for the death of an innocent man, Uriah, Bathsheba's husband. The prophet Nathan came to David and confronted him with his sin so that he might see how terrible it was and repent of it. David did repent and in Psalm 51 we learn of his forgiveness.

In the New Testament also we find examples of repentance. The story of the Pharisee and the Publican praying in the temple is well known. We are not told of any particular sin which brought about the sorrow over sin on the part of the publican. Perhaps there were many.

He may have heard John the Baptist preach repentance. Perhaps he heard Jesus, Himself. But we do have positive proof that he did repent. We have those simple words, which are loaded with meaning, "God, be merciful to me, a sinner."

We have another example of repentance in our text this morning. It is not a familiar example. Perhaps you do not remember having heard of it before, or have only a vague recollection of it.

Why did the prophets of old, and why do the pastors of today, spend so much time calling for repentance? Why does the Bible give the many examples of people repenting? Because without repentance there is no hope of salvation for the sinner.

Let us then, on the basis of this text and with the guidance of God's Holy Spirit consider REPENTANCE - A NECESSITY FOR SINNERS.

People often find sin very appealing. Why? Sin appeals because it seems to offer pleasure, or comfort, or power, or acceptance by others, or the easy way out. Once a person has fallen into a certain sin, it sometimes takes drastic measures on the Lord's part to make him see his error and turn from it. Such was the case with Manasseh, King of Judah.

Manasseh's father was Hezekiah of whom we read, "He did what was right in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his father David had done." 2 Chron. 29:2. Hezekiah had a strong faith in God. He had restored the worship of true God which had been corrupted by the previous king.

During Hezekiah's reign, the army of Sennacherib, the Assyrian king, was destroyed outside Jerusalem by an angel sent by God. One would expect that a boy, with such a good example set by his father, would follow at least to some extent that fine example. But that was not the case here.

Possibly it was a case of bad company and evil influence. Hezekiah had ruled only 29 years. No doubt there were many yet alive who remembered and preferred the heathen worship he had suppressed.

Manasseh was only a boy of 12 when he began to reign. It is entirely possible that those evil people, who preferred the worship of idols, made themselves advisors and apparent friends to this young king. Then they used their influence to get what they wanted.

At any rate Scripture describes Manasseh in this manner, "He did evil in the sight of the Lord, according to the abominations of the nations, whom the Lord had cast out before the children of Israel." 2 Chron. 33:2.

Manasseh had a very long reign. In fact, his 55 year reign was the longest of any king of Judah. During that long period of time he had the opportunity to be a great influence on his people and the future of his country. Unfortunately, he influenced them in the wrong way. Let us read the long list of sins which are recorded in this 33rd chapter of 2 Chronicles.

"He rebuilt the high places which Hezekiah his father had broken down; he raised up altars for the Baals, and made wooden images; and he worshiped all the host of heaven and served them.

"He also built altars in the house of the Lord, of which the Lord had said, 'In Jerusalem shall My name be forever.'

"And he built altars for all the host of heaven in the two courts of the house of the Lord. Also he caused his sons to pass through the fire in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom; he practiced soothsaying, used witchcraft and sorcery, and consulted mediums and spiritists. He did much evil in the sight of the Lord, to provoke Him to anger. "He even set a carved image, the idol which he had made, in the house of God, of which God had said to David and to Solomon his son, 'In this house and in Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, I will put My name forever ...

"So Manasseh seduced Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem to do more evil than the nations whom the Lord had destroyed before the children of Israel." In 2 Kings 21:16, we have this additional charge, "Moreover, Manasseh shed very much innocent blood, till he had filled Jerusalem from one end to another." Apparently, anyone who opposed his wickedness was summarily executed.

What a monster! He deliberately and maliciously broke God's 1st commandment, "You shall have no other gods before Me." He not only built shrines and altars for heathen gods and even sacrificed his own children to them, but he brazenly placed idols in God's own temple. With such a complete despising of God and the 1st commandment, it was easy for him to disregard the other commandments and to go on to such sins as murdering scores of innocent people.

We can be sure that during the years in which these things were taking place, God was not sitting idly by. No doubt He sent prophets to warn the king and the people about their sins and to call them to repentance. Very likely most of them became victims of the king's shedding of innocent blood.

God is patient, but finally He took drastic action. He caused the Assyrians to swoop down upon the country. They captured Manasseh and carried him off to Babylon. There he sat, bound with chains, mistreated and with plenty of time to consider his terrible sins.

He remembered the Lord. He prayed to Him for help. He confessed his sins and repented of them. Our faithful God has bidden us, "Call upon Me in the day of trouble," and has promised, "and I will deliver you." Ps. 50:15. This gracious God heard Manasseh's plea and answered. We are not told exactly how it happened, but somehow God caused Manasseh to regain his freedom and to return to Jerusalem.

There is no doubt that Manasseh was a great sinner. And as unbelieving and wicked as Manasseh had been, we may doubt that he could ever change. But with God all things are possible. Still it leaves us with the question, "How do we know that he repented of his many great sins?"

John the Baptist was pointing to the proof when he urged, "Bear fruits worthy of repentance." Matt. 3:8. True sorrow over sins always makes itself evident in the repentant sinner's life. And in this we have proof that Manasseh was truly repentant.

Our text tells us that, "He took away the foreign gods and the idol from the house of the Lord, and all the altars that he had built in the mount of the house of the Lord and in Jerusalem; and he cast them out of the city.

"He also repaired the altar of the Lord, sacrificed peace offerings and thank offerings on it, and commanded Judah to serve the Lord God of Israel."

In the words of our text, "Manasseh knew that the Lord was God." By God's grace he turned away from the worthless idols and accepted the God who had promised salvation to sinners through the

Savior He would send. God made this promise even to sinners as vile as Manasseh. That repentance worked by God during his captivity in Babylon led to faith in God which made salvation through Christ his also. Repentance was very necessary for Manasseh.

Perhaps as we have been reviewing the life, and sins, and repentance of Manasseh, you have been making comparison between yourself and that ancient king. That is exactly what the Lord wants us to do. But it is the desired result only as long as we make a fair comparison.

First let us compare our sins with his. Here many would be tempted to look upon themselves quite favorably, thinking, "Well, Manasseh surely was a lot more sinful than I am. I haven't been worshiping heathen idols. I haven't been leading other people to worship them either. And certainly I haven't gone about slaughtering decent, law-abiding citizens even though we may have had serious differences of opinion." Indeed, we may look very good in comparison with Manasseh.

But how do we appear before God? That is what really counts. Have we followed His will for us? Do we always fear, love, and trust in God above all things? Or do we in our daily life find ourselves backing down from scriptural principles because publicly defending them might lead to trouble for us? Do we place our own interests, comfort and pleasure before God's will, for instance by coming to hear His Word only when it does not conflict with our plans or by giving only the handy change for the work of His church?

Would we find more security in an assured income even though it meant compromising, giving-in, on scriptural principles, be it in morals or doctrine, than in clinging firmly to God's will and expecting Him to provide according to His promises?

It is so easy to break this first commandment which requires putting God and His will before everything else. We all have done it, - done it every day. Perhaps some feel that their attitude toward God is pretty good. But included in our relations with God are our relations with our fellow men. Do we love them as we ought? Have we been unjustly angry with this person or that? Have we perhaps said something about some person in such a way that it wasn't to his credit? Have we always been totally honest in our dealings with our neighbor? GUILTY! That is the only plea that we can bring. We have not loved our neighbor as we ought. That means that the opposite is true, we have at times hated our brother. And as we read in 1 John, 4:20, "If someone says, 'I love God,' and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen?"

We may be inclined to argue that we love most others at least most of the time. That is not good enough. God demands perfection. "Be perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect." Matt. 5:48. Those are the words of Jesus. And James warns us in his epistle, 2:10, "Whoever shall keep the whole law and yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all." There is no escaping this fact, - we all stand condemned, - we are all guilty of breaking God's law. And since the wages of sin is death, we deserve the same fate that Manasseh earned by his great sins.

But, thank God, there is the same way to escape this fate as there was for Manasseh, - repentance. We are to repent of our sins, - confess them to God, - pray to Him for forgiveness, - and know that those sins are forgiven.

We who live now have it much easier than Manasseh. He had to look ahead to a promised Savior. We can look to a Savior who has come, who has completed our salvation. He is Jesus Christ who suffered and died on the cross of Calvary to pay for every one of the many sins each of us has committed. "The blood of Jesus Christ, God's Son, cleanses us from all sin." 1 John 1:7. "And He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only, but also for the whole world." 1 John 2:2. Believing that Jesus has done this for us, salvation is ours. "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved." Acts 16:31.

And when we believe this, it will show in our lives. We, like Manasseh, will "bring forth fruits meet for repentance." We will strive against all sins, especially the sins into which we have fallen before. And though we do not become perfect, the results will be evident and we and all around us will be blessed by them.

May the Lord grant us the grace to repent over our failures to do His will in the past. May He grant us the strength in the future to lead lives which reflect our joy in the forgiveness we have through our Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.