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Forgive and Transformed
King Manasseh
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2
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[2 Chronicles 33:12~13]
In his
distress he sought the favor of the LORD his God and humbled himself greatly
before the God of his fathers.
And when he prayed to him, the LORD was moved by his
entreaty and listened to his plea;
so he brought him back to Jerusalem and to his kingdom.
Then Manasseh knew that the LORD is God.
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3
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Among
the kings of Judah, there was a king named Manasseh.
Manasseh became king of Judah when he was 12 years old. Manasseh succeeded
his father Hezekiah as king of Judah.
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4
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Manasseh's father, Hezekiah, was a
king who tried to do what was pleasing to God.
He removed the high places of false gods and cut down stone pillars and
Asherah idols.
When he saw people worshiping the bronze serpent that Moses had made in the
wilderness as an idol, he broke the bronze serpent as well.
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5
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But Manasseh acted quite differently
from his father. He rebuilt the high places that God hated the most. And he
built an altar to the idols of Baal and Asherah.
Manasseh also worshiped the stars of heaven.
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6
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The temple is a place where God
can be worshiped forever.
Manasseh worked to build an altar to false gods in the holy temple of God.
And he even built an altar to the stars in the two courtyards of the temple.
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7
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Manasseh's evil deeds did not end
there. He went down to a place called the Valley of Hinnom. There was a place
where children were burned and sacrificed to Molech, the god of the
Ammonites.
Manasseh did the evil thing of burning his son there and offering it as a
sacrifice.
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8
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Manasseh did not trust God, but
trusted shamans and fortune tellers.
He practiced divination with them and fell into false sorcery and magic.
He did everything in consultation with the shaman and fortune teller.
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Manasseh even made idols and put
them in the temple.
And he led the people to turn away from God and worship idols.
Manasseh did all that God considered evil.
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10
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God warned Manasseh and the people
of Judah through prophets.
God said that if they did not turn from their mistakes, He would punish them
severely.
But they refused to heed God's warning.
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11
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Assyria
has invaded the land of Judah, ignoring God's warning.
Manasseh was captured by the Assyrian army. Manasseh, who was captured by
Assyria, was chained to his hands and taken to Babylon, which was under
Assyrian rule.
God punished Manasseh through Assyria for doing evil before God.
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12
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Manasseh, who suffered as a prisoner of
Assyria, began to realize his mistake.
He realized how badly his evil deeds were before God.
Then he realized that the only true novelty to help him was God, and he began
to pray to God.
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13
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Manasseh
prayed with a sincere heart and humility before God.
He repented of the evil things he had done and asked God for forgiveness.
God had mercy on Manasseh, who repented of his own wrongdoings and humbly repented.
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14
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The God who forgave Manasseh
allowed him to return to Jerusalem.
He realized precisely that the only true God was the God who had put him back
on the throne. Manasseh, who had done all kinds of evil before God, was
transformed into a person who truly served God.
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15
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Manasseh rebuilt the outer wall of the
castle of David to fortify the kingdom God had given him, strengthened the
kingdom, and strengthened the kingdom by placing commanders in each fortress.
He destroyed all the idol altars in the temple of God that he had built.
And he broke down all the altars in Jerusalem and threw them out of the city
of Jerusalem.
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Manasseh, who repented, rebuilt the
altar of God's temple and restored it.
And he offered peace offerings and thanksgiving offerings to Jehovah God on
the altar and worshiped.
And he commanded all the people of Judah. ¡°From now on, let all the people
serve only the living Jehovah God.¡±
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Through
Manasseh, we saw how great God's love is.
God forgave and restored Manasseh, who made a great mistake that could never
be forgiven, when he realized his mistake and repented.
Through this, God showed people that there is no unforgivable sin.
Even
Manasseh, who had acted wickedly, was transformed into a new person when he
realized that God is the only true God and had faith. He corrected his
previous bad behavior and did what was
pleasing to God. All our sins are forgiven through our faith in Jesus. And we
are people of faith who confess that only God is the true God.
We are to be people doing what pleases God in whatever we do, as did the transformed
Manasseh.
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(This
is the sample conclusion provided by CTM. Please feel free to change the
conclusion to best suit the listeners of your sermon.)
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