Coffee With The Lord

I never cease to marvel at the grace and goodness of God! Individuals that we tend to think of as incredibly evil and unworthy of God’s forgiveness, are granted it by God. In fact there is one story in Scripture that always leaves me with my mouth open in wonder and shaking my head with incredulity because of God’s grace… It is he story of a very wicked person – Manasseh, king of Judah. Here’s what the Bible has to say about Manasseh’s reign…

“Manasseh was twelve years old when he began to reign, and he reigned fifty-five years in Jerusalem. [Can you imagine that? The evil reign of a leader like Manasseh for 55 years!] And he did what was evil in the sight of the LORD, according to the abominations of the nations whom the LORD drove out before the people of Israel. 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… And he built altars for all the host of heaven in the two courts of the house of the LORD. 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. He did much evil in the sight of the LORD… 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. The LORD spoke to Manasseh and to his people, but they paid no attention. 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.

And then the Bible records this: “When Manasseh was in distress, he entreated the favor of the LORD his God and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers. He prayed to him, and God was moved by his entreaty and heard his plea and brought him again to Jerusalem into his kingdom. Then Manasseh knew that the LORD was God… 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 house of the LORD and in Jerusalem, and he threw them outside of the city. 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.” (from 2 Chronicles 33:1-16 ESV)

Listen, I don’t know who you may think is just too evil for the Lord to reach, forgive and transform! But if that’s the case, I’d like to correct your thinking! If God could get through to Manasseh, forgive him, and change his life, he can get through to anyone! … That’s right, I said, “ANYONE!” In fact, Apostle Paul put it this way: “Where sin abounded, grace abounded all the more!” (Romans 5:20) So keep praying for evil people! Keep believing for their salvation! There are more stories than just Mannasseh’s to tell… Many of them recent accounts of God’s marvelous grace… One of them just may be yours!

Today I urge you to take the time and read the story of Hezekiah, one of Judah’s great leaders in 2 Chronicles 29-32 (also 2 Kings 18-20)!

What a leader! What commitment to the Lord and righteous causes! Because of this devotion to the Lord, Hezekiah’s godly reforms, and obedience to God’s word, the Lord blessed him incredibly!

“Thus Hezekiah did throughout all Judah, and he did what was good and right and faithful before the Lord his God. And every work that he undertook in the service of the house of God and in accordance with the law and the commandments, seeking his God, he did what all his heart and prospered… Hezekiah had very great riches and honor… God gave him very great possessions… Hezekiah prospered in all his works.” (2 Chronicles 31:20-21 and 32:27, 29-30)

Even when under siege by a much superior army led by Sennacherib, king of Assyria, Hezekiah encouraged his troops and the people with these words: “Be strong and courageous! 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! With him is an arm of flesh, but with us is the Lord our God, to help us and to fight our battles!” (2 Chronicles 32:7-8) Hezekiah’s godly leadership and passionate intercession resulted in a supernatural, God-given victory!

Even when Hezekiah became sick and was at the point of death, he cried to the Lord, and the Lord graciously, performed an incredible miracle, healing him and granting him 15 more years of life. (2 Kings 20:1-11 and 2 Chronicles 32:24-26)

But sometimes our greatest risks come attached to our greatest victories! A miracle or two… an incredible victory… God’s favor expressed in recognition and honor… advancement and material blessings… And pride enters in along with self-reliant arrogance… We feel like we’re on a roll, so we strike out on our own, we make a few decisions without prayer, godly counsel, or reliance on God… and presto! We have a problem! That’s what happened to Hezekiah (and it ought to be a warning to us)!

Here’s what the Bible says, “But Hezekiah did not make return to the Lord according to the benefit done to him, for his heart was proud… And in the matter of the envoys of the princes of Babylon, who had been sent to him to inquire about the sign that had been done in the land, God left him to himself, in order to test him and to know all that was in his heart.” (2 Chronicles 32:25, 31; cp. 2 Kings 20:12-19)

Oh, I want to learn the lessons from this Old Testament leader! Devotion, trust, prayer and obedience lead to God’s incredible favor! But I also want to be wary of pride and self-reliant arrogance; they lead to humiliation and failure.

Some experiences that an individual has leave an indelible impression on your life! They produce a level of conviction that is unshakable. They are defining moments. The impact of these experiences is collateral and contagious! Others almost vicariously enter into them when the original participant shares their experience and the result is positive and profound.
Peter had such an experience “on the mountain” when Jesus was transfigured before the eyes of Peter, James and John! Here is the record of the experience from Matthew (also recorded in Mark and Luke)…

“Jesus took with him Peter and James, and John his brother, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became white as light!” And behold, there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him… and a bright cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, ‘This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to Him!’” (from Matthew 17:1-5)

Wow! What a powerful experience! Unforgettable! Life changing! It’s impact on Peter was profound! Here’s what I read this morning during “coffee with the Lord” in Peter’s own words…

“For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty! For when He received honor and glory from God the Father, and the voice was borne to him by the Majestic Glory, ‘This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased,’ we ourselves heard this very voice borne from heaven, for we were with him on the holy mountain! And [as a result] we have the prophetic word more fully confirmed, to which you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place… Knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone’s own interpretation. For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit!” (2 Peter 1:16–21 ESV)

And the result in Peter’s life of that experience? Conviction! Effective communication of the gospel! Absolute confidence in God’s word and the reliability of Scripture! And a message urging us to “take his word for it,” pay attention and believe!

And Peter, I intend to take your word for it!