Verse 12 tells us what happened to this wicked king in captivity: “ And when he was in affliction, he besought the Lord his God, and humbled him self greatly before the God of his fathers.” Manasseh knew better than to hold on to his sin. “And he took away the strange gods, and the idol out of 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 cast them out of the city” (2 Chi'. 33:15). June 12, 1955 A T r ie d G u id e OBJECTS: A Bible, a compass and a toy ship. LESSON: Suppose you were lost in the fog out on the ocean, in a ship, some thing like this one. How would you find your way home? “ I would use a compass.” Yes, those who sail the seas use the compass to guide them when they cannot see land, sun or stars. Many a wise sea captain has piloted his ship safely into harbor because he followed the compass, even though it seemed to him that he was going in the wrong direction. CONTINUED ►
Christian Education
Elmer L. Wilder, Th.D.
Illustrated by Gladys Bowman
of the Lord, like unto the abomina tions of the heathen, whom the Lord had cast out before the children of Israel” ( 2 Chr. 33:2). In verse 6 we read, “ . . . he wrought much evil in the sight of the Lord, to provoke him to anger.” But God did not al low this condition to continue. In verses 10 and 11 we are told, “ And the Lord spake to Manasseh, and to his people: but they would not heark en. Wherefore the Lord brought upon them the captains of the host of the king of Assyria, which took Manas seh among the thorns, and bound him with fetters, and carried him to Baby lon.”
June 5, 1955 S i n C a n n o t W i n
OBJECTS: Two pieces of white paper 3 inches wide and 8 feet long and a pair of scissors. (Adding machine pa per is suitable. Paint with black post er paint half of each piece of paper, the full length on both sides. Paste the ends of one piece together, mak ing a circle. Before pasting the ends of the other piece together, give one end a complete turn.) LESSON: These two circles which I hold in my hand are very much alike, in that they both are the same size and both are partly black, reminding us of sin. The Lord wants people to forsake their sins and turn to Him for forgiveness. With these scissors, I will cut the black away from one of the circles. I shall keep cutting until I get around the circle. Look at this—the black and the white circles are linked to gether. Some people are this way-—
What P erhaps you have heard or read the quotation: “What you say is not so impor tant as what you do, but what you do is not so im portant as what you are.” We have talked much. But we have been informed that “ talk is cheap.” And in a sense, it is. There was a man who said: “ I will go into Thy harvest field, Lord. I will work for Thee.” But he went not; he “ talked much” but did nothing. Another man first refused to go, repented and went. He did the will of the Father (Matt. 21:28-32). Truly, what we say is not so important as what we do. Let us pray the prayer of David: “ Set a watch, O Lord, before my mouth; keep the door of my lips” (Ps. 141:3). “ Actions speak louder than words.” Nevertheless, what we do
We Are is not so important as what we are. There is “ outward show” and “ a form of godli ness” (2 Tim. 3:5). What is on the inside is far more im portant than what is done outwardly. A godly, sancti fied Christian life is more to be d esired than activity. True, we have work to do for God. Christian activity is ne cessary, but what we really are counts with God. Jesus said of the Pharisees: “Ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beauti ful outward, but are within full of dead men’s bones, and of all uncleanness” (Matt. 23:27). We should remember, as we journey through life, that “what we say is not so im portant as what we do, but what we do is not so im portant as what we are.” Look to Christ! —-Arthur H. Townsend.
they apparently forsake their sin and ask God to forgive, but secretly they are holding on to their sin. We will cut around the other cir cle and see what happens. When we get around this circle, the black falls to the floor and is not linked to the white. This is the way God wants us to deal with sin— confess, forsake and come to Him for cleansing. In looking at this last circle, we are reminded of one of Israel’s kings, named Manasseh. His sins were many and very black, for we read, “ But did that which was evil in.the sight M A Y , 1 9 5 5
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