Micah 1:1
“The word of the LORD that came to Micah of Moresheth in the
days of Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, which he saw concerning
Samaria and Jerusalem.”
(Micah 1:1 ESV)
We know little about the man Micah but that he lived in a
place called Moresheth in the days of three kings, and if you can believe the
time lines he prophesied for about 35 years.
But this we do know that his name means, “Who is like Yahweh” and he was
a contemporary of Isaiah.
Once more ask the Holy Spirit to allow your imagination to
place you in the story, and you have grown up down the street from Micah, you
have both played and studied together, and you are very proud of the meaning of
your name, Asher,
for
it means one who is fortunate, blessed, and happy. It seems that you are all that your name
states, and so is Micah, he is by far the best at sitting at his fathers feet
and learning about Yahweh, for he knows that his name gives pleasure to our
Lord, and that we are His chosen people.
As
I looked into this book of Micah, turning to Holman Christian Standard (Study
Bible) I found in its introduction what seems to go hand in glove with our
culture. This was the quote: “The people had grown content with going through
the religious motions while practicing very little genuine spiritual
devotion. Even the religious leaders
chose to speak popular messages in order to support their standard of
living. Micah preached that true
religion comes from a heart tuned to God, resulting in godly living. As such, religion and ethics are
inseparable. People who refuse to repent
will face His judgment, but the faithful will find His salvation and be led by
God’s King, who would usher in His peace and prosperity.”
When we read the word of the Lord came to Micah, what does
that mean and the answer is precisely what it says. We find in 1 Kings 18:1, “After many days the word of the Lord came to
Elijah, in the third year, saying, “Go, show yourself to Ahab, and I will send
rain upon the earth.” In fact,
the accounts of God doing this to many men are numerous but let me share one
more: In Jeremiah 1:9&10,“Then the Lord reached out his hand and touched my mouth and
said to me, “Now, I have put my words in your mouth. See, today I have appointed you over nations
and kingdoms to uproot and tear down, to destroy and overthrow, to build and to
plant.”
I pray that you pay close attention to verse two in that I
agree that Scripture is living and I believe we are living in the culture of
2013, which is very similar to the time of Micah. “Hear, you peoples, all of you; pay attention, O earth, and
all that is in it, and let the Lord GOD be a witness against you, the Lord from
his holy temple.” As a person
who goes by the title Christian, pay close attention to what the Holy Spirit
spoke through the lips of the apostle Peter; “For it is time for judgment to begin at the
household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those
who do not obey the gospel of God?” (1 Peter 4:17)
I took the following from Henrietta C. Mears (What the Bible
is all About) on (Micah 1:2). “God is not asleep. He knows the sad condition of
His people. He will sit in judgment upon
His people. Yes, the Lord was coming to
call Israel to judgment because of her wrongs.
Samaria and Jerusalem were pronounced guilty before the great Judge of
the universe. Captivity and exile were
their fate. God rebuked them for social
injustice, unfaithfulness, dishonesty, and idolatry.”
Did you allow your imagination to place you in the
story, do you know anyone like Micah, a person whose name ask the question;
“Who is like Yahweh”? What a great
question, are any of the little gods of this world taking the place of Yahweh
in your life?
To my Christian readers in the United States, it is much
later than you believe it to be!
From the Back Porch,
Bob Rice
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