Micah 4.2b “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the
Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob, that he may teach us his ways and that
we may walk in his paths.” (ESV)
It’s hard to read the prophets and not get caught up in
it all: the fall of Samaria, the fall of Jerusalem, the coming disaster that
was to overtake the peoples of Israel and Judah where their cities would be
laid waste and their lands become desolate. The temptation is to read
and simply conclude: they had it coming; they
got what they deserved.
I think many people see God only as a God of retribution
and judgment. I think many are so unhappy with their current sitch that they want someone to come in
and change it (as long as the change is for their good and the detriment of
those they perceive are causing them angst.) We humans are big on justice as
long as we get our way. The rain falls on the just and the unjust and so long as
we get rain, so long as we win, what more is there?
Yes, Israel and Judah got what was coming to them and got
what they deserved. They had a covenant with God and they broke it and they
concluded that all of God’s promises were too good to be true. And they
compared their circumstances with the nations around them and concluded their
gods were better at delivering than God was. They forsook the Lord and got what
they deserved in return.
God gets a bad rap in judgment as if He is simply paying
back those who ignore Him because they don’t know any better. Nothing could be
more untrue. God promised to bless them if they followed Him and curse them if
they didn’t – and, it was all written down. They had no excuse except their own
fickle and faulty reasoning. But God told the truth all along and His promises
stand regardless of what men may do with them.
The proof is what was prophesied about the latter days: It shall come to pass in the latter days
that ... many nations shall come, and say: “Come, let us go up to the mountain
of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob, that he may teach us his ways
and that we may walk in his paths.” (Micah 4.1-4) God is only ever looking for respect…
And one day, respect there will be.
There is hope that man will tire of his own schemes and
will one day realize his plans and dreams and desires are totally worthless
without God’s presence and partnership. There is hope man will one day let go
and let God. There is a truth that one day many will come and say, “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the
Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob, that he may teach us his ways and that
we may walk in his paths.”
Father, in these turbulent days, may the hearts of people
see past the schemes of men and big governments, and hand-outs, and what they
claim are their rights. May the whole thing come crashing down so that we can see
just how destitute we are without You, and encourage one another to say, “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the
Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob, that he may teach us his ways and that
we may walk in his paths.” Father, we need You! Father, may it be. Amen.
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