Main Street Baptist Church

(Sunday, Dec. 28, 2008)   Scientists once did an experiment where they took a number of pigs and put them in deep water. The pigs struggled for 24 hours and then drowned. Next they took another group and put them in deep water, just like the first group. However after 12 hours they allowed them to get out for 30 minutes. Then they put them back in. This group lasted 40 hours before drowning. Why did the second group last almost twice as long as the first? It was because they had the hope of being rescued again. Hope made all the difference.

HOPELESSNESS We live in a world today that is full of hopelessness. Music, art, movies and other areas of our culture clearly show this. The large numbers of people who suffer from addictions or psychological problems also point to this as a time of hopelessness. AIDS, nuclear warfare, financial pressures, breakdown of interpersonal relationships and pressures in the work bring fear and emptiness. With no stable anchor to hold onto and nothing sure in the future, all people have is today. And when that goes sour there seems to be nothing left. Satan, the Prince of this World, promotes hopelessness for it causes people to think that death is their best alternative. As the kingdom of darkness grows, so does the suicide rate. All of this is because man has no hope.

GODS ‘HOPE’ The definition of the word ‘hope’ today refers to a wish, a possibility, something we’d like to happen. Often when all else fails and disaster seems certain people say, “All we can do is hope for the best.” This isn’t what the Bible is talking about when it uses the word ‘hope.’ When the Bible uses the word ‘hope’ it is referring to ‘confident assurance.’ It means something is 100% certain, its as sure as if it already happened. It is a guarantee of God’s promises being fulfilled. Our confident assurance is that all things work together for good, God is in charge of everything that happens and it is all for our maturity and His glory, that Jesus may return for us at any moment, that when we die we will spend eternity with Jesus, and that we can never lose our salvation. Our hope is not in something we wish for but something we are assured of. Because of this great hope of ours we have nothing to fear.

MICAH’S HOPE While each of the prophets offers hope after giving God’s message of impending judgment, Micah especially focuses on that. Each prophet concluded his message by talking about the future time of deliverance which God would provide for His faithful people, Micah goes into extra detail about this. Micah himself lived and ministered during the time of Isaiah. While Isaiah was a well-known prophet who ministered to rich, city people, Micah was an unknown who preached to poor country people. Both ministered during the time the Northern Kingdom was falling to Assyria.

PROPHECY OF RETRIBUTION (1-3) Although it will several more generations until the Southern Kingdom actually falls, the final countdown has begun. It is too late to turn for they are too committed to their sinful path. Judgment is approaching. Their wound is incurable. Sin is rampant. The family unit has broken down. Materialism, stealing and scheming are common. People take advantage of the poor. The leaders are selfish and self-centered. They hate good and love evil. False prophets abound and false truths are accepted as truth. Even the priests have turned from God, just teaching what will bring in the greatest offering. While there is no hope for the nation, there is still hope for the individual. Mercy is still available for each person who turns to God for salvation and forgiveness. They won’t escape the consequences of Judah’s sin in this life, but they will escape eternal consequences of hell.

PROMISE OF RESTORATION (4-5) Using almost the same words that Isaiah used, Micah writes about the hope the faithful Jews still have. He talks in detail about the millennium when the temple will be rebuilt and people will worship God once again. The Messiah will rule and reign, bringing peace to all. All will return to garden of Eden conditions. What a glorious hope that is for Israel! Micah says that the King who will rule over this kingdom will be born in Bethlehem (5:2).

PLEA FOR REPENTANCE (6-7) Because of this Micah pleas with the people to repent from their halfhearted worship, empty ritual, persistent rebellion, deception, hypocrisy, corruption, greed and idolatry. Judgment will come because of that, but there is a glorious future for Israel when their borders will be expanded and all nations will come to Jerusalem to worship and serve the Messiah King. What a glorious hope that is for them all!

OUR BLESSED HOPE We have a hope even greater than the Jews had. We have a far distant hope of spending eternity with God, too. We have a near future hope of the rapture or, if we die first, being immediately with God in heaven. We have a present hope as well. All things DO work together, there IS a plan and purpose for all that happens, God IS sovereign and does all because He loves us. Where would we be without that hope? When the roman Empire started falling apart many turned to Jesus because of the hope they saw displayed in the lives of God’s people. Our times are similar to those of the early church as well as Israel before judgment came. We, too, can shine out light of hope in a dark and hopeless world. Remember, the hope of the world is Jesus!

TITLE: After prophet who wrote it

AUTHOR: Micah

DATE of WRITING: 749 - 697 BC

PLACE of WRITING: Judah

TIME COVERED: 749 BC - eternity

RECIPIENTS: Judah & Israel

KEY VERSES: 4:1-4 In the last days the mountain of the LORD's temple will be established as chief among the mountains; it will be raised above the hills, and peoples will stream to it. Many nations will come and say, "Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob. He will teach us his ways, so that we may walk in his paths.". 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.

KEY WORDS: ‘Hear” 9 times; ‘desolation’ 4 times; ‘gather’ 9 times

PURPOSE: Judgment is coming, but eventually Israel will be restored.

THEME: Despite coming judgment, there is hope in the future.

Spend some time reading this book this week.