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Micah, Scatter and Gather

When many people try to read the prophetic books they frequently get discouraged. They read the numerous pronouncements of judgment and wrath and don't really know how to handle it. It seemingly goes against everything they know about God.

This can be a real problem. Typically in our churches we only ever look at the New Testament. There we see what most would consider a more positive view of God. It is in the New Testament where "God is love" comes about. In the New Testament we see God sacrificing his own son to save the universe. It is in the New Testament that we see Jesus showing compassion to the weak and healing the sick.

When these "New Testament Christians" (so called because this is the only part of the Bible they read) open the Old Testament, they are often horrified at what they see. The reaction is typically to stick to the New Testament and only read those stories or passages from the Old that seem to agree with it. 

This mindset gives us an incomplete picture of who God is. It also ignores a very important truth; God doesn't change. God is the same now as he has always been and how he shall always be. The book of Micah shows us that God has always been love, even in the midst of judgment.

Background

The book of Micah was written by the prophet Micah. He lived during the reigns of Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah. This puts the book around 740 BC. The northern kingdom of Israel had not yet fallen, but it wouldn't be long before the Assyrians marched through.

Themes

The book of Micah has two major themes. The first is God's intention to judge the kingdom of Judah for the sins the people have committed. God says, in no uncertain terms, that he will bring punishment to those who have violated the covenant and bring violence to the poor. He will shatter the nation of Judah and scatter her to the winds.

This is nothing new. God has sent prophet after prophet to his people in an effort to bring about repentance. He did this for hundreds of years, but the people had simply refused to listen. So God had no choice but to keep the promise he had made to Israel; that if they broke the covenant he would abandon them. 

Still God also remembered his promises to Abraham and David. So God tells the people through Micah that after the judgment will come a restoration. After they have been scattered to the wind, God will gather them together again like a loving shepherd. God promises that a king will be born in Bethlehem, an anointed one from God. This king will rule over a restored Israel and he will be their peace.

Theological Point

God is always faithful to his promises. When he promised Abraham that he would be the father of a great nation, he kept his word. When he promised David that his descendant would rule on high forever, he meant it. When he promised Israel that their would be dire consequences for their sins, he meant it. This is who God is.

Too often we do not treat sin with the seriousness that it deserves. We love to focus on heaven, often without realizing that there will be a judgment first. We love to look at God's promises of a restoration and a messiah, often with realizing that the sin had to be dealt with first. 

Today God has promised us that he will transform us into instruments of his will, and he meant it. What we conveniently forget is that in order to take part in this new life we must also take part in Christ's death. We must take up the Cross and follow him. The only way to the Resurrection is through Golgotha. 

Conclusion

I pray that you will read the entirety of Scripture with the same intention and openness that we usually reserve for the New Testament. God is God, no matter what era. And we are still people, in desperate need of God's help.

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