January 26, 2014
Let’s turn to Luke 17. It is speaking of the Lord. Read vv. 11-17. The lepers are a picture of those in their sins. Read vv. 11-16. We just sang “O that we never might forget, what Christ has suffered for our sakes.” We are cleansed and made meet by the blood. We can now draw nigh and come into the joy of knowing Him. Oh, might we give thanks!
Hymn 352 – Oh won’t you come to Jesus while you’re young
Prayer
Last time we finished the story of Hezekiah. Hezekiah died and his son Manasseh took his place. Hezekiah was one of the best kings of Judah; unfortunately, Manasseh didn’t follow in his footsteps. He did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord. The story of Manasseh is a beautiful picture of the love and grace of the Lord.
2 Chronicles 33:1
At twelve years old, Manasseh began to reign and he did so for 55 years. In Jewish culture, twelve years old is when children became adults. Unfortunately, Manasseh did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord. He built altars and high places to false gods and did many evil things. In the law, it said not to create any god or bow down to any gods, other than the true God. We are told that Manasseh did worse than the heathen that lived in the land of Canaan before Israel. God tried to warn Manasseh and the whole kingdom of Judah, but they wouldn’t listen. When you don’t listen to warnings, bad things happen. The King of Assyria came, captured Manasseh and took him to Babylon.
While in Babylon, Manasseh realized his sin and repented; and God had mercy on him. The way to tell if someone has really repented is if they change their sinful ways. Were they sorry enough to quit? When Manasseh got back to Judah, he broke down the altars and threw out the images of the false gods. When you do a u-turn, you change the direction you are going. Manasseh changed the way he was going in his life.
Unfortunately, Manasseh’s sons did what was wrong. He only reigned for two years and then his own people killed him. Today, we saw a beautiful picture of God’s grace and mercy. He is always ready and willing to forgive as he was for Manasseh.
Acts 8:1-25
Acts seven was an important chapter: not only did the Jews reject the message Stephen brought, they killed the messenger. It was the last test that God put man through. He had tested man through the flood, under the law, with the prophets, by the Lord, and now with the offer of the Holy Spirit. Once man rejected that, there were no more tests.
Saul not only consented to Stephen’s death, he became the leader of the persecution against the Christians. This came so early in Church history—the Church had just been formed—and there is still persecution today. We are blessed to have peace and liberty in our country right now, but it is still our responsibility to pray for our leaders. There are so many Christians from the past who were martyrs or suffered greatly, and there will be a special reward for those who have lost their life or wealth for the cause of Christ.
Stephen was given an honourable burial. There was great lamentation over his death; they were sad to lose him. They also may have been lamenting over so much rejection of the word of God, like Jesus wept over the effects of sin at the grave of Lazarus.
These men had killed the Lord and Stephen and now they direct their efforts on the church. Satan doesn’t like to see Christians going on happily in the path of truth. Where ever there is a work of God, he is there to try and create havoc.
God used this persecution for a purpose, even though it seemed as if Saul was in charge. As the Christians spread out, they took the gospel with them. It has been said that, “the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church”, and that’s certainly true here. There may have been “great persecution” (v.1), but there was also “great joy” (v.8). God specially sustained these Christians to be able to endure this. There’s a story told of a ruler who wanted to stamp out Christianity in his land. He was counselled, “Leave the Christians alone. If they are persecuted, they spread. If they prosper, they don’t.” May we spread the word whether or not we are persecuted!
Saul imprisoned the saints of Jerusalem; you weren’t even safe from his clutches in your own house. Persecution, besides spreading the gospel, also serves to weed out those who aren’t true believers. Who will stand when trials come? They are the true Christians.
As mentioned, this is when the first evangelistic efforts spread beyond Jerusalem. The persecution spread people, and Philip went to Samaria. What’s interesting is that the Apostles are the only people who stay in Jerusalem at this time, even though they were specifically told to go into all the world.
Philip preached Christ to the Samaritans, and revival broke out. This wasn’t the first time Samaritans had heard of Christ and the gospel; they recognized Jesus as the Christ, the Saviour of the world, in John 4. These people watched the miracles that Philip did through the power of the Holy Spirit with amazement (vv.6-8). It’s marvellous to see the Spirit work through a man.
This preaching of the gospel to the Samaritans was the next widening of the sphere of the gospel. Samaritans were partially Jewish; full Gentiles hadn’t been brought in—yet.
Hymn 215—Happy they who trust in Jesus
Prayer