Restoration, Not Rejection (Micah 4:6-13)

God is in the business of restoration.  The enemy of humanity's soul would have us believe He's all about judgement and condemnation. But as you read through His prophets' and His Son's words, you find a balance presentation of both justice and mercy, judgment and restoration, discipline and obedience.  

His justice is motivated by His love.  If people are killing, exploiting, lying and destroying one another, who wouldn't intervene in something like that?  Love is not indifference; it is hands-on, making sure that evil doesn't continue to control people--those who are perpetrators and those who are victims.  

His mercy is motivated by His love.  He wants restoration, shalom and joy to be His children's place--all of us sitting under our "own vine and under his own fig tree, and no one will make them afraid" (4:4).

His judgment is motivated by love.  If He shows His people what is right, merciful and loving, and then people disdain His words and His ways, why wouldn't He then judge such rebellion?  If those standards did not have love behind them, people would descend deeper and deeper into sin, knowing that God will not act, that law has no meaning and that sin wins.

His restoration is motivated by His love. The Fall is not our permanent habitation--living in the debris of our first parents' fateful and endlessly damaging decision to not listen to God and follow His ways. He had hovered over the waters of chaos, and brought forth light. He seeks above all else to bring light to the darkness.  His Son called Himself "the Light of the World." Why? Darkness was never what His Father wanted.  

His discipline is motivated by His love. What kind of parents would allow their child to run in front of a car?  What kind of parents would never tell their child that moving cars are dangerous? What kind of parents would, after grabbing that child out of harm's way, act like it was no big deal?  The parents' disciplining that child would reinforce the serious nature of the child's disobedience, to prevent another incident. The parents might not be around the next time.  God is always there, but He wants us to obey Him and not be shattered by disobedient thoughts and actions. 

His demand for obedience is motivated by His love.  How often do we live with regret about something we knew we shouldn't do, but we did it anyway?  How often do our decisions mar and scar us, and even though we are forgiven, we still bear the consequences of what we did?  God wants a richness and peace in our lives and knows that what we do, outside of His ways, can steal our joy, rob us of peace and make us even despair of this life. 

So, let's look at the Lord's plan for His people--not judgement, destruction and chaos, but reconciliation, restoration and shalom: 

“In that day,” declares the Lord,

I will gather the lame;
I will assemble the exiles
and those I have brought to grief.
I will make the lame my remnant,
those driven away a strong nation.
The Lord will rule over them in Mount Zion
from that day and forever.
As for you, watchtower of the flock,
stronghold of Daughter Zion,
the former dominion will be restored to you;
kingship will come to Daughter Jerusalem. (6-8)

Do you see Jesus in this?  God's restoration is given to those who need it most: life has lamed them, in body, soul and spirit and God reaches deeply into their lives to heal them. Jesus came to those who needed God the most:  the hurting, the marginalized, the angry, the weary and those who knew God but somehow didn't know God. 

Why do you now cry aloud—
have you no king?
Has your ruler perished,
that pain seizes you like that of a woman in labor?
Writhe in agony, Daughter Zion,
like a woman in labor,
for now you must leave the city
to camp in the open field.
You will go to Babylon;
there you will be rescued.
There the Lord will redeem you
out of the hand of your enemies. (4:9-10)

Babylon/chaos/suffering/exile are never our permanent homes.  The enemy tells us that our brokenness is who we are and to take our identity from that. By joining with other similarly broken people, we feel we are not alone, because there are others who see themselves as we do. We couldn't all be wrong.  

But Babylon with cheers, beach tents, fancy hotels and lots of parties doesn't make it any less Babylon; it's still, underneath all that glamour, a place of lies, alienation and separation from the One who dearly loves us.

But the Lord redeems us. Rescues us. Hears our cries. Steps into our Egypt and leads us out. Goes into our Babylon and brings us back. Reaches into our brokenness and reminds us our true and unassailable identity is that we are His children, made in His image. He speaks over our chaos and says, "Let there be Light!  And it's My Son!" 

But now many nations
are gathered against you.
They say, “Let her be defiled,
let our eyes gloat over Zion!”
But they do not know
the thoughts of the Lord;
they do not understand his plan,
that he has gathered them like sheaves to the threshing floor.
Rise and thresh, Daughter Zion,
for I will give you horns of iron;
I will give you hooves of bronze,
and you will break to pieces many nations.”
You will devote their ill-gotten gains to the Lord,
their wealth to the Lord of all the earth. (4:11-13)

Wow. In the darkest night of these children's soul God promises a glorious return to peace, prosperity and assurance that His time of judgment will end.  It will end, not leaving them alone and without knowing where they are going, but it will end with them gloriously returned to their beloved Jerusalem.  The very City of David will be restored, for God will not allow His children to live among the ruins. 

Do you see Jesus in this? 

For us, what stands between our sin and our Jerusalem is the cross.

The Message takes John 1:5 and makes it our clarion call:

Everything was created through him; nothing—not one thing!— came into being without him. What came into existence was Life, and the Life was Light to live by. The Life-Light blazed out of the darkness; the darkness couldn’t put it out.

Amen!

Micah 4:1-5: The Mountain of the Lord

It's easy for us to focus on the negative in absolutely everything!  A funny quote I remember hearing as a kid was, "Other than that, Mrs. Lincoln, did you like the play?"  That's taking optimism to a whole new level!

Sometimes putting a positive spin on something seems inappropriate or insensitive.  But on the other hand, seeing the good in a world of chaos is what sustains us.

Think of the early church.  Jesus inaugurates the Kingdom of God, with its "constitution" found in Matthew 5-8, where blessings come from humility; where loving your enemies is not an option; where saying, "just looking" doesn't cut it; where being reviled elevates you to the status of the prophets of old and where anger is tantamount to murder...but if you walk out on a sunny day in Jesus' day, you do not see any of this going on. 

You hear the cries of the victims in the arenas with the roars of the blood-thirsty crowds; you hear the come-ons from the temple prostitutes or see them in action; you see Romans guards ready to confront you if they feel you are out of line and you see the tax booths where the tax collectors--Jews, no less--are bleeding the people dry, all to support reprobate emperors and brutal armies. 

Wow. 

The contrast could not be greater between the kingdom of this world and the one Jesus says has arrived. 

Jesus ends His Declaration of Interdependence with this wonderful analogy:

Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash” (Matt. 7:24-27 NIV). 

The Rock:  Solid. Sure. Formidable.  

Jesus' teachings qualify.  But so does the Savior Himself. 

Interesting to note:  After Jesus is done preaching, He goes down the mountainside and heals a leper.  Boom!  The Kingdom of God in action!  Jesus shows the incurable can be cured!  But even more important: He restores dignity to one of the lowest of the low in His society. A person plagued with disease is viewed as someone who is under punishment from God.  Jesus shows that no: disease, chaos, sin, alienation, shame and hopelessness are part of the old kingdom that His Kingdom will overcome.

When Jesus?

Where Jesus?

One person at a time. 

You. 

Me. 

Those who love and follow the Savior as workers in His fields that are bursting with a bounty of broken souls, ready for a compassionate harvesting.  

Micah has the much the same issue.  Micah is talking about the power and the beauty of a holy God, whose righteousness is never-ending nor never-failing. But everywhere you look in Micah's society, you find: idolatry, corruption, exploitation and compromise.  Micah constantly calls out what is going horribly wrong in the northern kingdom. Micah mourns that justice and righteousness are in short supply, and he doesn't let up on why.

But then we come to chapter 4.  

Listen: 

In the last days
the mountain of the Lord’s temple will be established
as the highest of the mountains;
it will be exalted above the hills,
and peoples will stream to it (4:1)

He is talking abou the restored temple. But he is also alluding to not just the physical one, where heaven and earth meet as you enter the Holy of Holies, but the One where Heaven and earth meet: Jesus Christ. John 1:51 says: “Very truly I tell you, you will see ‘heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending on’ [Gen. 28:12] the Son of Man.”

The Son Man and the Son of God.  

But until that glorious day, the people have hope that they will gather once again at the restored temple.  Exile will not last forever.   

Listen: 

Many nations will come and say,

“Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,
to the temple of the God of Jacob.
He will teach us his ways,
so that we may walk in his paths.”
The law will go out from Zion,
the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.

He will judge between many peoples
and will settle disputes for strong nations far and wide.
They will beat their swords into plowshares
and their spears into pruning hooks.
Nation will not take up sword against nation,
nor will they train for war anymore.

Everyone will sit under their own vine
and under their own fig tree,
and no one will make them afraid,
for the Lord Almighty has spoken.

All the nations may walk
in the name of their gods,
but we will walk in the name of the Lord
our God for ever and ever (4:2-5). 

There is is!  Justice!  Righteousness!  Shalom!  Wisdom!  Taught by God Himself!  "Many nations!"  The words to Abraham of His people being a blessings to the nations will be acted out every day, in and out of the restored temple!

But also we hear echoes of the One to come. 

But the hope for the people of Micah's time will be that one day, they will gather at the temple once more to learn of God and know who He is. 

Did you catch the last part? 

The ultimate restoration of the people then and now will be: 

All the nations may walk
in the name of their gods,
but we will walk in the name of the Lord
our God for ever and ever (4:5) 

No "golden age" brought about by human-ordained wisdom, however well-intentioned it may be.  The Kingdom of God is only made possible by the Son of God and the new hearts of those who choose to love and follow Him.

So, when we walk outside, and see the nations walking after their own "gods," (i.e., made up by us) and hear the cries of the oppressors and the oppressed, we will continue to walk "in His name." 

Our hope?  The mountain of the Lord has a name:  Golgotha. 

In whose name do we walk in?  

Choose and know that either the kingdom of this world or the Kingdom of God will prevail because of our choices.

One person at a time. 

"For What's It's Worth": Looking At Micah's Time and Our Own

I want you to stop a moment, and reflect how Micah's day is really no different from our own. 

The world is in a mess: We are experiencing political chaos; wars and rumors of wars; deep societal divisions on how to fix the problems that beset us; thinking everyone else is wrong, and me/my friends/family/denomination/social group has it all together and everyone else is wrong/stupid/a victim of a conspiracy that they deny exists/ misled/misguided or just plain ignorant of the real issues. 

In summary: We are not moving towards resolution because our common ground is laden with land mines. 

We don't seek it because it blows up in our face every time.  

The '60's rock group, Buffalo Springfield, nailed it in (yes, it was in the Viet Nam era, but a good song escapes its time and keeps ringing true) their song, "For What It's Worth":

There's something happening here
What it is ain't exactly clear
There's a man with a gun over there
A-telling me I got to beware.

I think it's time we stop
Children, what's that sound?
Everybody look what's going down.

There's battle lines being drawn
Nobody's right if everybody's wrong
Young people speaking their minds
Are getting so much resistance from behind. 

Time we stop
Hey, what's that sound?
Everybody look what's going down.

What a field-day for the heat
A thousand people in the street
Singing songs and a-carrying signs
Mostly say hooray for our side. 

It's time we stop
Hey, what's that sound?
Everybody look what's going down. 

Paranoia strikes deep
Into your life it will creep
It starts when you're always afraid
Step out of line, the man come and take you away...

Yes. That song says it all.  

So, back to Micah and his day.  Let's ask some important questions. 

Is every priest corrupt?  Are there some that are horrified at what their fellow priest are doing and saying, but are too afraid to say anything, lest they lose their livelihood?  Do they see "results" (the people look more and more to them for guidance, and the land remains productive and fertile) so they can't completely dismiss the claims made about the pagan gods? Do they wonder if Yahweh can co-exist with the other gods, just that everyone needs to give Him more praise?  Do they wonder if Yahweh is as angry as Micah claims He is, why hasn't His judgement rained down? 

Are the corrupt priests that the only ones that matter, for they wield the most power and have the most influence? 

What about the leaders?

Are they all out for personal gain?  Are there some that are trying to honor Yahweh with what they say and do, but are overridden time and time again by the corrupt leaders?  Are all of them unjust, or are there some who do try to alleviate the plight of the poor, but secretly, so they won't be disdained by their colleagues?  Are there some who try to slip in more compassionate suggestions but find they are out voted time and time again?

Are all the leaders endlessly planning evil, or is just a few but because they are powerful, their few drops of poison are morally debilitating the people?

Are all of the people on board with the ways things are?  Are there people who privately question how their leaders and priests can so brazenly ignore the ways of Yahweh, and are waiting for Him to respond, as Micah is saying He will?  Are some of the people praying for a return to the faith of their fathers and are disgusted/saddened/angry/fearful that those who call themselves the "chosen people" are acting no differently than the pagans?

Are the young people disgusted with the hypocrisy of the leaders/priests/parents/teachers/prophets who say anything goes, despite their scriptures saying otherwise?  Do the young even know their scriptures, or has it been a long time since they sat under a Torah-centered teacher?  Or have they ever? Or do they take a pragmatic approach and decide if it ain't broke, don't fix it?  Are there some who hear the words of Micah and wonder if there is any validity to them? 

Sound familiar? 

What will be people say about our time 50 years from now?  Will they ask: 

Why didn't the people believe His word?  Follow His ways?  Honor Him by honoring each other?  Praise Him with all of their heart, mind and soul? Trusted His Son to transform their hearts and so uphold a society based on principle, not pragmatism?

Or will they ask:

What Word?

What Scriptures?

What are you talking about? 

Jesus?  Who's that?

Or will there be a remnant who will teach/preach/live/adore His word, His ways and His Son?

Pray for that remnant.

Pray to be that remnant.