If you don't
have a One Year Bible or prefer something online, this link will take you to
the day's reading, http://oneyearbibleonline.com/daily-oyb/. This
site allows you to select from several languages and several English
translations.
DECEMBER 16
Micah 5-7
When
you read this "minor" prophet, you get a sense that he might have had
a major influence. Since we didn't live at that time, we don't know what kind
of interaction Micah and Isaiah had. God makes the prophet by giving him his
message and God certainly said more through Isaiah than through Micah, but this
portion we'll read today is very strong and inspiring. Some of the things Micah
said about the Messiah and the future glory of Israel would have inspired both
Isaiah and Hezekiah. What Micah says about God's desire and His forgiveness of
sins is tender and profound.
Micah
5
This
chapter belongs to and concludes the message to Judah that started in chapter
3. The end of chapter 4 was very end-times in its force, with the Messiah
arriving and bringing glory to Israel among the nations.
V.
1 In the Hebrew Bible, this verse belongs to chapter 4. It seems to be a
reference to a nation humiliating one of the kings of Judah. Some think this is
Babylon punishing King Zedekiah.
Vs.
2-5 But a ruler will come who will lead Israel forever. You should recognize v.
2 as being from the birth of Jesus and quoted in Matthew 2:6. God is promising
Judah that there will be eternal blessing for Judah in spite of the kingdoms
rising against Israel. This would have given Jerusalem hope. It is interesting
that HE shall be their peace. HE is everyone's peace.
Vs.
5-9 This pronouncement of victory over the enemies of Israel is definitely
future, and although Assyria is mentioned, it is also mentioned as the land of
Nimrod. This is northern Iraq-Iran, eastern Turkey and Armenia. The upshot is
that whoever attacks Israel from this area will get more than they bargained
for.
Vs.
10-15 In order for God to use Israel as a tool of judgment for the nations, God
will cleanse them. That will involve humbling them in terms of their reliance
on military power or the pride and safety of their cities. It will also involve
God returning their hearts in devotion to Him.
In
chapters 3-5 there are a lot of hard things said to Jerusalem and to Hezekiah,
but with those judgments, there was the hope of a Messiah and a glorious
future. I'm sure this message was something that helped Hezekiah lead the
people to stand in hope against the hopelessness of resisting the Assyrians.
Chapters
6-7 make up the final climatic sermon in Micah.
Micah
6
Vs.
1-2 God is calling all creation to witness His contention against His people.
That's pretty dramatic. It just blows me away to think that we should be so
rebellious before the God of the universe whose wisdom imagined the foundations
of the earth, and yet He's willing to even take the time to try and speak sense
to us.
Vs.
3-5 These are instances of God saving His people. These are grace, love and
mercy for anyone with a spiritual perspective.
Vs.
6-8 So here Micah speaks. What does God really want of us? That last line in v.
7 is great. Verse 8 assumes you also know His Word.
Vs.
9-16 God again cries out against Jerusalem. Notice the parallel between vs.
14-15 and Isaiah 55:1-2.
Micah
7
I'm
not sure, but I think Jesus knew this chapter very well.
Vs.
1-6 This is Micah's lament. He has heard what the Lord has said and as he looks
at the people he knows that God will have to punish them. Verse 1 reminds me of
Jesus' curse of the fig tree in Mark 11:20 and one of His parables in Luke
13:6-9.
V.
4 Look at Isaiah 55:13. I'll bet that Micah and Isaiah used to meet at
Starbucks© and shoot the ox. Jesus also used references to briers and thorns in
Luke 6:44.
V.
6 Now this surprised me. Jesus used this to teach His disciples to endure
rejection as they followed Him in the harvest. He used this portion of
Scripture with the disciples in Matthew 10:35, when He called the Twelve and
then about a year and a half later, just months before the cross in Luke
12:49-53. Obviously Jesus was God, but as a man, He Himself knew the Word.
V.
7 This is pivotal, and it is the hope and refuge of all of His disciples.
Vs.
8-10 This is Micah sensing how the nations will gloat over Judah and Jerusalem
as the Lord humbles them for their sins. Verse 8 could have applied to Jesus in
His trials. Verse 9 applies to us.
Vs.
11-14 But Micah also sees the vindication of Jerusalem before the nations.
V.
15 God Himself confirms this vindication.
Vs.
16-17 Micah says God will chasten the nations and they will come to Him in
fear.
Vs.
18-20 You could call this the song of Micah. It is a beautiful testimony to
God's steadfast love and faithfulness, not just to Israel, but
to all of mankind. He has patiently endured our sin and insanity and then He
sent His Son into this darkness to save us. That sounds like the Christmas
story.
Revelation 7
V.
1 The sixth seal has been broken and now there is an interlude in the
judgments. Apparently there has now been enough judgment on earth for the
hearts of men and the hearts of the Jews to be open and to be aware that what
is happening has a very spiritual source.
Vs.
2-8 Now God seals His servants for this time of harvest. Apparently God kept
track of the lineage of all of these people. As mentioned before, I think the
tribe of Dan is missing because of what they did at the end of the book of
Judges. They were the first tribe that went totally apostate. Keep in mind that
none of these 144,000 are mentioned as martyrs. I think they stay under the
radar for a long time. Remember the earth is getting pretty wrecked, so they
can scatter all over the place almost unnoticed. And now people are finally
ready to ask whether God has a wonderful plan for their lives. J
Although
it never says that these 144,000 are missionaries, they are sealed for
something. Along with this we have Jesus' words about this time of Tribulation
in Matthew 24:14, And this gospel of the
kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all
nations, and then the end will come. There will be worldwide preaching
during the entire Tribulation. If you add up all the missionaries from every
mission agency in the world today, you do not come up with 144,000. God will be
organizing the greatest outreach, during the storm, that the world has ever
seen. How is that for grace and mercy?
Vs.
9-10 And this is the fruit of their ministry. This is a vision, a prophetic
summary, of all who will come to Christ from the work of these servants. During
the Tribulation there will be lots of people who will come to Christ from all
nations and many of them will die for their love of Christ. As we'll see, there
will be a worldwide search for those who believe in Christ. Believers will
stand out not only by their testimony to the lost, but also, for example, by
the refusal to receive the mark of the beast in Revelation 13:17.
Vs.
11-12 The praise of this multitude moved the elders and the creatures to fall
before God and worship Him. Again, out of disaster, chaos and judgment, God
brings salvation and shows great mercy and love.
Vs.
13-17 I always wonder if this elder wasn't the future John talking to himself
here. That comes from watching too many sci-fi movies.
But
notice that God is drawing our attention to who these people are. It doesn't
say that all of these people were martyred, although they may have been, but
that they all suffered. What they all have in common is that they were in the
Tribulation and were made clean by the blood of the Lamb.
V.
15 Their privilege and reward for coming to faith in the Tribulation will be to
live in the presence of God day and night.
Again, not many of us would consider that a reward. That just shows how sin
pickles our souls.
V.
16 They suffered. Not every believer will be killed during the Tribulation, but
all will suffer. Some believers will be alive and go into the Millennial
Kingdom as unresurrected, reproducing humanity.
V. 17 Jesus Himself
will be their reward and their comfort. Note that the wiping of every tear was mentioned in Isaiah
25:8, He will swallow up death forever;
and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from all faces, and the reproach of his
people he will take away from all the earth, for the LORD has spoken.
Yet
as we read this comforting of these people, that is still future in the book of
Revelation, waiting for the return of Christ to the earth. We are still in
chapter 7 and there is still a lot of the Tribulation ahead. It is at this
crucial time after the sixth seal that the earth is ready for these servants of
God to fan out on the earth and carry the message of Christ into this very
dangerous harvest field. Isn't it interesting how God still shows us that He
will always be extending love, mercy and forgiveness? It is interesting to have
read in Micah 5:5, And He shall be their
peace. And that is in the harvest during the Tribulation. He should be our
peace too, as we follow Him now in this time of harvest.
Psalm 135
This is a song either of, or for, the
servants of the Lord. Notice that among the blessings at the end are those of
the house of Aaron and Levi, putting the emphasis on those servants. Actually,
Israel was the servant of God to bring the message of redemption to all the
nations. And, as we're seeing in Revelation, Israel will fulfill that service.
Vs. 1-4 The privilege of knowing and
serving the Lord.
V. 5 A pivotal statement of God's
greatness.
Vs. 6-7 His greatness over all of
nature.
Vs. 8-12 And His greatness is over all
nations.
Vs. 13-14 As His name and renown are
unending and never changing, so is His plan for His people Israel.
Vs. 15-18 The nations are totally lost.
Just think, during the millennial reign of Christ, there won't be a
"religious tolerance" day. Everyone will know that Jesus is God.
Vs. 19-21 So the servants of the Lord
are told to praise God for the privilege of knowing Him and having good news to
tell.
Proverbs 30:5-6
Amen. The focus on the Word is
our life and health. I was thinking this morning that when Jesus had fasted for
forty days and Satan suggested He turn a stone into bread, Jesus quoted the
Word about the importance of the Word. Here is the entire verse from
Deuteronomy 8:3, And he humbled you and
let you hunger and fed you with manna, which you did not know, nor did your
fathers know, that he might make you know that man does not live by bread
alone, but man lives by every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD.
We are His messengers and what
He says should be said by us in humility, with as little of us mixed into it as
possible.
Please Read
the Following Disclaimer
I'm writing the Reading Notes to and
for those who are following a One Year Bible and are interested in growing
deeper as a disciple, following Jesus in the harvest. My hope is to see the
growth of a discipleship culture in the church, that is, groups of 3-4
disciples, meeting weekly, encouraging each other to follow Christ and work to
reach out and make disciples, who make disciples. The Bible itself is the most
universal and important discipleship manual we have and it is the key to our
growth and service in Christ. Nothing keeps us more focused on why we are here,
or what we are to be doing, or whom we are to be following. My comments are
only meant to provide some explanation of the events or to show the flow of
God's plan of redemption. My comments are in no way exhaustive, but are
designed to keep us, as disciples, focused on Christ and our role in His
harvest. My hope is that the people in these groups will grow in Christ and be
willing, after a year, to find 3 others to meet with and encourage in their
growth as disciples, making disciples in the harvest.
If you would like a more descriptive
commentary that is still readable and concise, I'd recommend the Bible Knowledge Commentary (BKC).
I read the BKC in doing background for the Reading Notes and refer to it quite
often. I also make reference to maps or charts in the BKC, though I will only
note where those resources can be found. Often you can do a search for these
and find them in Google books. Buying both volumes of the Bible Knowledge
Commentary would be a good idea.
I am not endorsing any particular
One Year Bible translation; in fact, I read something you probably don't, Die Revidierte
Lutherbibel, 1984. Unless noted, all Scripture quotes are from the ESV Bible.
Anyone reading along with us is
welcome to do so and is encouraged to take their own notes and make their own
observations. If the comments made do not agree with your particular tradition
or understanding, that's OK. Nothing I've written is meant to criticize any
point of view, but only to express the truth of what God has written to us, as
I understand it. Often there is a breadth of opinion on certain events, both historical
and prophetic. Many of my views come from my church background, theological
training and my personal study.
I'm
doing this with discipleship in mind, meaning, I'm writing out thoughts that
will keep discipleship and our growth as disciples applied to what we are
reading. Remember, the real focus of the Reading Notes is to be a
supplement, a disciple’s commentary, giving motivation and insight so that we
will keep following our Lord in the harvest, reaching the lost and making
disciples, who make disciples. Being in
the Word every day, sitting at Jesus’ feet, learning directly from Him, is the
essential essence of being and making disciples.
May the Lord bless you as you follow Him in the
harvest, reaching the lost and making disciples, who make disciples. Dan
If you would like documents
containing an entire month of the Reading Notes, go to https://sites.google.com/site/dlkachikis/reading-notes.
If you would like a full
presentation of discipleship read Simply
Disciples*Making Disciples.
Or if you are struggling with
insomnia and would like a long boring dissertation on disciple making, these
can both be found on https://sites.google.com/site/dlkachikis/reading-notes.
Reading Notes ©, Dan Kachikis
2011, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018
The One Year Bible © by
Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton Illinois 60189
The Holy Bible, English
Standard Version® (ESV®) Copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of
Good News Publishers.
All charts/graphics/outlines
from the Bible Knowledge Commentary are used with the permission of David C.
Cook.
© 1983, 2001 John F Walvoord and Roy B Zuck.
The Bible Knowledge Commentary is published by David C Cook.
All rights reserved. Publisher permission
required to reproduce.
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