I’m Not that Bad

Manasseh was one seriously evil guy. It was like Hezekiah’s reign had never happened. There could be any number of reasons. Was it because his reign started when he was only twelve? Did the power go to his head? Was Hezekiah a bad dad, despite doing incredible things for Judah? Whatever the reason, Manasseh stands to us as an example of the depths to which humanity can sink.

It’s easy to detach ourselves from Manasseh and say we would never do such things, but the truth is we have no way to justify that claim. We all need to come to terms with the fact that each one of us is capable of incredible good, but we’re also capable of incredible evil.

Many people want to claim that every human is fundamentally good, but that fails to explain how there is so much wrong in society. Not all of it can be put down to hard circumstances or trauma or lack of education. These may contribute to our brokenness but we all need to wrestle with our own sinfulness every day, even when we have the best life and the best education. We all need Jesus.

Thought Point

Do you look down on people who have done “worse” things than you?

Prayer Point

If you haven’t already, spend time confessing and repenting of specific sins you have done, recently or historically. Thank God for his forgiveness for these sins.