Micah 1
Time period of the Prophet Micah verse 1
The word of the LORD that came to Micah the Morasthite
in the days of Jotham- Ahaz – Hezekiah – kings of Judah
which he saw concerning Samaria and Jerusalem
Everyone to hear message of the LORD verse 2
Hear – all you people
Hearken – O earth – and all that therein is
and let the Lord GOD be witness against you
the Lord from HIS holy temple
Description of LORD’S coming verse 3- 4
FOR behold – the LORD comes forth out of HIS place
and will come down
and tread upon the high places of the earth
and the mountains shall be molten under HIM
and the valleys shall be cleft – as wax before the fire
and as the waters that poured down a steep place
Reason for the LORD’S coming in judgment verse 5
FOR the transgression of Jacob is all this
and FOR the sins of the house of Israel
What is the transgression of Jacob? – Is it not Samaria?
What are the high places of Judah?
Are they not Jerusalem?
Consequences of the LORD’S coming verse 6- 7
THEREFORE I will make Samaria as an heap of the field
and as plantings of a vineyard
and I will pour down the stones thereof into the valley
and I will discover the foundations thereof
AND all the graven images thereof shall be beaten to pieces
and all the hires thereof shall be burned with the fire
and all the idols thereof will I lay desolate
FOR she gathered it of the hire of an harlot
and they shall return to the hire of an harlot
Prophet is going to mourn verse 8- 9
THEREFORE I will wail and howl – I will go stripped and naked
I will make a wailing like the dragons
and mourning as the owls
FOR her wound is INCURABLE
FOR it is come unto Judah
he is come unto the gate of MY people
even to Jerusalem
Reaction of the cities going into captivity verse 10- 12
Declare you it not at Gath – weep ye not at all
in the house of Aphrah roll yourself in the dust
Pass you away – you inhabitant of Saphir
having your shame naked
the inhabitant of Zaanan came not forth
in the mourning of Beth-ezel
he shall receive of you his standing
FOR the inhabitant of Maroth waited carefully for good
BUT evil came down from the LORD
to the gate of Jerusalem
Jerusalem led astray by sins of Israel verse 13- 15
O you inhabitant of Lachish – bind the chariot to the swift beast
she is the beginning of the sin to the daughter of Zion
FOR the transgression of Israel were found in you
THEREFORE shall you give presents to Moresheth-gath
the houses of Achzib shall be a lie to the kings of Israel
YET I will bring an heir unto you – O inhabitant of Mareshah
he shall come unto Adullam the glory of Israel
Prophet recommends shaving head in sorrow verse 16
Make you bald – and poll you for your delicate children
enlarge your baldness as the eagle
FOR they are gone into captivity from you
COMMENTARY:
DAILY SPIRITUAL BREAKFAST: Young Believers
: 2 Hear, all you people; hearken, O earth, and all that therein is: and let the Lord GOD be witness against you, the Lord from HIS holy temple. (5707 “witness” [ed] means testimony, evidence, or recorder.)
DEVOTION: Is it hard to get your attention? When your parents call you to do something, how long does it take you to reply? If you are older, if your boss asks you to do something, how long does it take you to do it? If you are married, how long does it take for you to answer your spouse?
Too often we pretend to be hard of hearing. The prophet wants the people of Samaria and Judah to give him their attention. Was he shouting? It sounds like it. It is sad that we don’t listen until a person starts shouting. The people were not hard of hearing but didn’t care to listen.
After he had their attention he gave them the message from the LORD. The LORD was not pleased with their present actions and wanted them to change. An accusation is something someone is doing wrong that needs correction.
CHALLENGE: Is the LORD using your parents, boss or pastor to get your attention, so that, you will change into a better servant of HIS?
DAILY SPIRITUAL LUNCH: Transitional Believers
: 5 For the transgression of Jacob is all this, and for the sins of the house of Israel, What is the transgression of Jacob? Is it not Samaria? And what are the high places of Judah? Are they not Jerusalem? (6588 “transgression” [pasha] means trespass, rebellion, wantonness, crime, wrongdoing, or refusal to accept authority.)
DEVOTION: What are “high places?” These are areas where the people of the Old Testament went to worship their false gods. They thought if their altars were high on a mountain they would be closer to their gods. They wanted the gods to think that they were important to the people.
Elijah had a contest with the false gods on top of Mount Carmel. They set up altars to both the true God of the Bible and the false gods of the people. The false god, Baal, didn’t answer after a full day of calling on him to bring fire down from heaven. Elijah poured water over the altar and then called on God and HE answered right away with fire from heaven.
Fire from heaven is also used in judgment for the people who are worshiping false gods throughout the Old Testament.
Transgressions and sins are what filled the lives of all twelve tribes of Israel at the time of Micah. He was warning both groups of coming judgment because of their worship of false gods. The Sovereign God of the Bible doesn’t want to share us with any other god. HE wants exclusive rights to all of our attention. HE wants us to eat, sleep and walk with HIM.
CHALLENGE: When we walk with HIM we walk in truth. When we walk in truth we sin less. That should be our daily goal.
DAILY SPIRITUAL SUPPER: Mature Believers
: 9 For her wound is incurable; for it is come unto Judah; he is come unto the gate of my people, even to Jerusalem (605 “incurable” [‘anash] means to be sick, weak, frail, desperately wicked, or woeful.)
DEVOTION: In the other references to this word we find that it talks about wounds and diseases. Judah had the disease of disobedience to the LORD. Samaria had the disease of disobedience to the LORD. Judgment was on the way. It was coming and nothing will stop it.
They had made idols and graven images to worship. They were far from the LORD. Some were waiting for good to come but only evil came their way.
God was a witness against them. The LORD was in HIS holy temple watching what was happening. Instead of them being in the temple worshiping the LORD they were in the high places worshiping false gods. These same false gods were going to be beaten into pieces.
When all this happens, Micah is going to wail and howl, like the animals in the wild. He realizes that they are so sick that there is no healing coming. It is hard on a prophet to see his people in such a state. It is hard for us to see it in our day and age.
We sometimes think that we would never fall into the temptations that the Israelites fell into in the Old Testament. The Old Testament was written for us to learn about God and human nature or sin nature.
We see all the lessons but never seem to understand that we have the same human nature as God’s people in the Old Testament. We sometimes have the opinion that we would not be as sinful as they were in the Old Testament. We sometimes think that we would not have eaten of the fruit in the garden and want to blame Adam and Eve for all our problems.
One lesson we need to learn is that we commit the same things that the Old Testament saints did.
We have a place to turn, just like they had a place to turn. They chose not to turn back to the LORD until after their captivity. What are we choosing each day?
CHALLENGE: Remember to keep short accounts with God for the purpose of fellowship and blessing. Are cure is the blood of Jesus Christ on the cross for our sins. HE is our advocate with the Father today. Praise HIS name!!!
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: 12 For the inhabitant of Maroth waited carefully for good: but evil came down from the LORD unto the gate of Jerusalem. (2343 “waited carefully” [chuwl] means to dance, whirl, twist, tremble, writhe, anxiously wait for relief, to be in labor, or pain.)
DEVOTION: My wife had five children. The first one I remember the best because her labor was very long. It lasted through three shifts. We should have eaten before we came in. I still have a scar from her digging her fingernails into my hand in pain.
Here we find the prophet informs the people that while the city of Maroth was waiting for relief from the Assyrian army they received none. God was judging them for their following the example of Samaria. They were committing sin just like the ten tribes did before their captivity.
Micah is warning the children of Judah that they were going to have the same judgment because they were just as sinful as their sister nation. God was going to cause Jerusalem to fall in the future to the Babylonians. It was not happening yet because Hezekiah turned to the LORD and the LORD gave deliverance.
Crying out for help after living a lifestyle of sin usually doesn’t work with the LORD. HE wants to see genuine repentance not just an easy escape for consequences to sin.
Are we presently anxiously waiting for good as a nation? Are we presently waiting for relief from our present situation as an individual? The best question would be – Are we willing to change?
God wants us to be faithful obedient servants of HIS. Not just individuals who mess up and want HIM to come to the rescue. HE does that at times but HE wants to be number one all of the time in our life.
Micah tells them to mourn because judgment is coming. If we are HIS people we can fast and pray and HE can send revival even in our generation.
CHALLENGE: Do we want to end the pain? Pray for revival first in your life and then in the lives of all those who are followers of the LORD around you.
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DISCIPLINES OF THE FAITH:
BODY
Chastity (Purity in living)
Fasting (Time alone with LORD without eating or drinking)
Sacrifice (Giving up something we want to serve the LORD)
Submission (Willing to listen to others and LORD)
Solitude (Going to a quiet place without anyone)
SOUL
Fellowship (Gathering together around the Word of God)
Frugality (wise use of resources)
Journalizing (Writing down what you have learned from the LORD)
Study and Meditation (Thinking through your study in the Word)
Secrecy (Doing your good deeds without others knowing but God)
SPIRIT
Celebration (Gathering around a special occasion to worship LORD)
Confession (Tell the LORD we are sorry for our sins on a daily basis)
Prayer (Conversation with God on a personal level)
Silence (Letting the LORD deal with some problems and needs)
Worship (Time to praise the LORD alone or in a group)
Holy Temple verse 2
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DOCTRINES OF THE FAITH:
Scripture (66 inerrant books of the Bible)
Word of the LORD verse 1
God the Father (First person of the Godhead)
LORD – Jehovah (Covenant keeping, Personal) verse 1, 3, 12
Lord – Adonai (Owner, Master) verse 2
GOD – Jehovah verse 2
Lord GOD verse 2
Witness verse 2
Come down verse 3
God’s people verse 9
Judgment verse 12
God the Son (Second person of the Godhead –God/man, Messiah)
God the Holy Spirit (Third person of the Godhead – our comforter)
Trinity (Three persons of the Godhead who are co-equal = ONE God)
Angels (Created before the foundation of the world – Good and Evil)
Man (Created on the sixth twenty-four hour period of creation)
Gath verse 10
House of Aphrah verse 10
Saphir verse 11
Zaanan verse 11
Bethezel verse 11
Maroth verse 12
Lachish verse 13
Moreshethgath verse 14
House of Achzib verse 14
Inhabitant of Mareshah verse 15
Adullam verse 15
Sin (Missing the mark set by God on man and angels)
Transgressions verse 5, 13
Sins verse 5, 13
High places verse 5
Graven images verse 7
Idols verse 7
Harlot verse 7
Incurable wound verse 9
Evil verse 12
Lie verse 14
Salvation (Provided by Christ’s death on the cross for our sins)
Hear verse 2
Hearken verse 2
Good verse 12
Israel (Old Testament people of God)
Micah the Morasthite verse 1
Jotham verse 1
Ahaz verse 1
Hezekiah – king of Judah verse 1
Samaria verse 1, 5, 6
Jerusalem verse 1, 5, 9, 12
Jacob verse 5
House of Israel verse 5, 13- 15
Judah verse 5, 9
Daughter of Zion verse 13
Church (New Testament people of God)
Last Things (Future Events)
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QUOTES regarding passage
˓ed (עֵד, 5707), “witness.” The 69 ouurrences of this word are scattered throughout the various biblical literary genres and periods although it does not appear in historical literature outside the Pentateuch.
This word has to do with the legal or judicial sphere. First, in the area of civil affairs the word can mean someone who is present at a legal transaction and can confirm it if necessary. Such people worked as notaries, e.g., for an oral transfer of property: “Now this was the manner in former time in Israel concerning redeeming and concerning changing, for to confirrn all things.… And Boaz said unto the elders, and unto all the people, Ye are witnesses this day, that I have bought all that was Elimelech’s, and all that was Chilion’s and Mahlon’s, of the hand of Naomi” (Ruth 4:7, 9). At a later time the “witnesses” not only acted to attest the transaction and to confirm it orally, but they signed a document or deed of purchase. Thus “witness” takes on the new nuance of those able and willing to affirm the truth of a transaction by affixing their signatures: “And I gave the evidence of the purchase unto Baruch the son of Neriah … in the sight of Hanameel mine uncle’s son, and in the presence of the witnesses that subscribed the book of the purchase …” (Jer. 32:12). An object or animal(s) can signify the truthfulness of an act or agreement. Its very existence or the acceptance of it by both parties (in the case of the animals given to Abimelech in Gen. 21:30) bears witness: “Now therefore come thou, let us make a covenant, I and thou; and let it be for a witness between me and thee [let it attest to our mutual relationship]” (Gen. 31:44—the first biblical occurrence of the word). Jacob then set up a stone pillar or heap as a further “witness” (Gen. 31:48) calling upon God to effect judgment if the covenant were broken.
In Mosaic criminal law the accused has the right to be faced by his/her accuser and to give evidence of his/her innocence. In the case of a newly married woman charged by her own husband, his testimony is sufficient to prove her guilty of adultery unless her parents have clear evidence proving her virginity before her marriage (Deut. 22:14ff.). Usually the accused is faced with someone who either saw or heard of his guilt: “And if a soul sin, and hear the voice of swearing, and is a witness, whether he hath seen or known of it …” (Lev. 5:1). Heavy penalties fell on anyone who lied to a court. The ninth commandment may well have immediate reference to such a concrete court situation (Exod. 20:16). If so, it serves to sanction proper judicial procedure, to safeguard individuals from secret accusation and condemnation and giving them the right and privilege of selfdefense. In the exchange between Jacob and Laban mentioned above, Jacob also cites God as a “witness” (Gen. 31:50) between them, the one who will see violations; God, however, is also the Judge. Although human courts are (as a rule) to keep judge and “witness” separate, the “witnesses” do participate in executing the penalty upon the guilty party (Deut. 17:7), even as God does. (Vine, W. E., Unger, M. F., & White, W., Jr. (1996). Vine’s Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words (Vol. 1, p. 292). Nashville, TN: T. Nelson.)
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1:3–4 King Yahweh now appears in a theophany as Divine Warrior in preparation for punishing his covenant-breaking people. “The Lord is coming” and “he comes down” describe his intervention in history (Pss 18:9; 96:13; 144:5; Isa 26:21; 31:4; 40:10; 64:1–3; Zech 2:10; 14:3; Mal 3:1). The participle yōṣēʾ (“is coming”) probably is best taken as indicating imminent action (futurum instans), which can be translated “is about to come.” The Lord’s “dwelling place” is his holy temple in heaven (v. 2). Treading the high places of the earth speaks of conquest. “High places” could refer to pagan shrines (v. 5), but in view of “mountains” (v. 4) the term probably here means “heights,” as in Amos 4:13. Since God comes down to earth, he is not just transcendent (v. 2) but immanent (v. 3). He is the sovereign Lord of history, nations, earth, and its peoples. He intervenes. He acts. He conquers and judges.
Verse 4 describes the effects of the theophany. When the Lord appears, there are disturbances in nature. Similar theophanic phenomena are found in Exod 19:16–19; 20:18, 21; Judg 5:4–5, 20–21; Ps 18:7–15; Nah 1:2–6; Hab 3:3–15. J. E. Smith fittingly asks, “How could mere man stand in the presence of such a God when the most substantial of earth’s topography cannot endure his coming?” These verses provide the divine perspective on the events that were to occur in the latter eighth century b.c. when Shalmaneser and Sennacherib invaded Israel and Judah. “The Lord was coming not to save Israel from her enemies, but to deal with her as an enemy.”
The first simile (“like wax …”) probably is intended to go with mountains melting; the second (“like water …”), with the valleys splitting apart. The NIrV nicely captures that thought: “The mountains will melt under him/ like wax near a fire./ The valleys will be broken apart/ by water rushing down a slope.” (Barker, K. L. (1999). Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah (Vol. 20, pp. 50–51). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.)
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2 The opening statement of the prophecy consists of a summons to the nations to attend to the cosmic judgment scene so vividly described by the prophet in the subsequent verses. That the summons is directed to the nations and not to Israel and Judah is clear from the parallel expression “earth and all who are in it.”
In this anthropomorphic representation, Micah pictured God as coming from his dwelling place to witness against the nations. This witness was effected in the cataclysmic destruction of the cities of Samaria (1:6) and Jerusalem (1:5; 3:12). Thus there was in the destruction of these cities a didactic element that related directly to the future of the nations of the world.
Micah, like Isaiah, saw the destiny of the nations as integrally related to the destiny of God’s people. He deftly developed this theme throughout the prophecy. In 4:11–13 he stated that the nations, while looking with pleasure on the misfortune of God’s people, were blind to the fact that this suffering was the precursor to their own disaster. In 7:9–10 he affirmed that though God’s people would be punished for their sin, they had a God who forgives sin. The nations that do not know God will not know deliverance from his judgment.
The phrase “witness against” seems to be used here in the same sense as in Deuteronomy 31:19–21, 26, where the Song of Moses and the Book of the Law were to function as witnesses against the people. This ongoing witness served as a reminder of future punishment should the terms of the covenant to which they witnessed be violated. It is in this sense that God’s judgment of his own people was to be a witness against the nations. It is a guarantee that they will ultimately be judged for their sin; for if God does not fail to judge his own, he will certainly judge those who do not belong to him.
The burning timbers and ruined houses of Samaria and Jerusalem would be an eloquent sermon to the people of the world. From this destruction they were to learn that God does not allow sin to go unpunished—even in the case of his own people. As the Song of Moses and the Book of the Law had testified of the sin of the Israelites and had pledged future punishment for it, so God’s destruction of Samaria and Jerusalem was to be a witness against the nations in that it would demonstrate God’s hatred of sin and be the harbinger of their own eventual destruction (McComiskey, T. E. (1986). Micah. In F. E. Gaebelein (Ed.), The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Daniel and the Minor Prophets (Vol. 7, p. 403). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House.)
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1:2. Verses 2–7 form the backdrop for the rest of the book. After calling on the earth to hear God’s lawsuit against His covenant people (v. 2), the prophet spoke of the results of God’s punishment (vv. 3–4), the reason for the judgment (v. 5), and the certainty of judgment (vv. 6–7). In a kind of cosmic law court Micah asked all the peoples of the earth, like a jury, to “hear” what God as a witness would say about the nation’s sins. Micah implied that everyone, given the opportunity, would agree that God’s judgment against His people was just.
Micah called God the Sovereign (’ăḏōnāy) Lord (Yahweh), and in the last line of verse 2 he used ’ăḏōnāy (Lord) again. In 4:13 Micah used the shortened form ’āḏôn. On the title “Sovereign Lord” see comments on Ezekiel 2:4. Micah noted that the Lord would come from His holy temple. Of course the temple did not contain God; even all creation could not contain Him (1 Kings 8:27). His dwelling place (Micah 1:3) is in heaven (2 Chron. 6:21, 30, 33, 39). However, God had chosen to localize His presence in the tabernacle and later the temple above the atonement cover, the lid of the ark of the Testimony. Inside the ark were the two tablets on which were written the Ten Commandments, a portion of God’s Word. As stated earlier, the Israelites were responsible to live according to the Mosaic Covenant. The sacrificial system and the temple were at the core of the covenantal system. Therefore to speak of the Lord going “from His holy temple” to witness against the nation meant He would judge them on the basis of the Mosaic Covenant which gave Him every right to do so. (Martin, J. A. (1985). Micah. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 1, p. 1477). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.)
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The court is convened (Micah 1:2). The image in verses 2–5 is that of a court of law, with God as the Judge and Judah and Samaria as the defendants. Micah addresses all the people of the earth because God is the Lord of the whole earth (4:2–3) and all the nations are accountable to Him. God is both judge and witness from His holy temple where His Law was kept in the ark of the covenant. A holy God must act in righteousness and judge sin. (Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). Be concerned (p. 88). Colorado Springs, CO: Chariot Victor.)
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“Hear, all ye people; hearken, O earth (or land), and all that therein is: and let the Lord God be witness against you, the Lord from His holy temple” (ver. 2). In spirit the people are called back to the days of Lev. 1:1, when the voice of Jehovah was heard from the sanctuary, setting forth the holiness that was comely in those among whom He dwelt. Now, He speaks again from the sanctuary; but, this time, to convict them of having violated His Word in every particular, and thus forfeited all title to blessing under the covenant of works entered into at Sinai and confirmed in the plains of Moab. They are summoned to let Adonai Jehovah* be witness against them. To do so will be to justify God and to condemn themselves; and for a failed people this is the path of blessing.
It is a great thing to bow to the whole Word of God, even when it judges me and condemns my ways. To do so is the precursor to something better; but to excuse myself at the expense of God’s truth is a process most hardening to the conscience. (Ironside, H. A. (1909). Notes on the Minor Prophets. (p. 221). Neptune, NJ: Loizeaux Brothers.)
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Ver. 2. Hear, all ye people, &c.] Or, the people, all of them; not all the nations of the world, but the nations of Israel, so called from their several tribes; though somen think the rest of the inhabitants of the earth are meant: these are the same words which are used by Micaiah the prophet in the times of Ahab, long before this time, from whom they might be borrowed, 1 Kings 22:28. The phrase in the Hebrew language, as Aben Ezra observes, is very wonderful, and serves to strike the minds and excite the attention of men; it is like the words of a crier, in a court of judicature, calling for silence: hearken, O earth, and all that therein is; or, its fulness; the land of Israel and Judah, the whole land of promise, and all the inhabitants of it; for to them are the following words directed: and let the Lord God be witness against you or, in you; the Word of the Lord, as the Targum; let him who is the omniscient God, and knows all hearts, thoughts, words, and actions, let him bear witness in your consciences, that what I am about to say is truth, and comes from him; is not my own word, but his; and if you disregard it, and repent not, let him be a witness against you, and for me, that I have prophesied in his name; that I have faithfully delivered his message, and warned you of your danger, and reproved you for your sins, and have kept back nothing I have been charged and intrusted with: and now you are summoned into open court, and at the tribunal of the great God of heaven and earth; let him be a witness against you of the many sins you have been guilty of, and attend whilst the indictment is read, the charge exhibited, and the proof given by the Lord from his holy temple, from heaven, the habitation of his holiness; whose voice speaking from thence should be hearkened to; who from thence beholds all the actions of men, and from whence his wrath is revealed against their sins, and he gives visible tokens of his displeasure; and especially when he seems to come forth from thence in some remarkable instances of his power and providence, as follows: (Gill, J. (1810). An Exposition of the Old Testament (Vol. 6, p. 551). London: Mathews and Leigh.)
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FROM MY READING:
Ecclesiastes 12
The pursuit of temporal things is futile.
INSIGHT
Our society tends to breed materialism. Young couples expect to own a house, two cars, and maybe a boat. We dream of the day when we can afford to take exotic vacations and own a bigger house. Game shows offer spectacular prizes, and lottery tickets are sold by the thousands. But Solomon experienced tremendous wealth and found himself unhappy. He learned that eternal things matter most. God wants His children to invest their brief lives in others—not just in material things. (Quiet Walk)
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VERBAL INSPIRATION
I will raise them up a Prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee, and will put my words in his mouth; and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him.
Deuteronomy 18:18
The particular words used in the Bible are divinely inspired. I shall try to demonstrate to you that the Bible claims for itself what is called verbal inspiration It is not merely that the thoughts are inspired, not merely the ideas, but the actual record, down to the particular words. It is not merely that the statements are correct, but that every word is divinely inspired.
Verbal inspiration means that the Holy Spirit has overruled and controlled and guided the writers of the Bible, even in the choice of particular words, in such a way as to prevent any error, and above all to produce the result that was originally intended by God.
The Bible makes specific claims in this matter of inspiration. Take, for instance, certain terms that the Bible uses of itself, such as Scripture. That designates “holy writings”; not ordinary writings but special ones–holy writings.
Let us take a more specific claim. Take that great prophecy, which is very crucial in this matter, spoken by Moses and recorded in Deuteronomy 18:18: “I will raise them up a Prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee, and will put my words in his mouth; and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him.” All the prophets of the Old Testament make this claim. They do not say that they suddenly decided to write; they say, “The word of the Lord came….” (see, for example, Ezekiel 1:3; Hosea 1:1; Jonah 1:1), and they tell you exactly when it came. They were called, they were commissioned, and the word was given to them. So they are constantly saying something like, “Thus saith the Lord.” That is their claim.
A Thought to Ponder: It is not merely that the statements are correct, but that every word is divinely inspired.
(From God the Father, God the Son, pp. 24-26, by Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones)
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The Second Coming
“And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Thessalonians 5:23)
It has been observed that this first-written of Paul’s epistles contains more direct references to the second coming of Christ than any of his other writings. Each of its chapters comes to a close with a reference to Christ’s return in relation to some aspect of His great salvation, as applied to our personal lives.
In the first chapter, he speaks of the second coming in relation to service, “how ye turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God; And to wait for his Son from heaven” (1:9-10).
Then, in the second chapter, Paul speaks of soul-winning. “For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Are not even ye in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at his coming?” (2:19).
Next, there is an emphasis on stability. “To the end he may stablish your hearts unblameable in holiness before God, even our Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all his saints” (3:13).
The fourth chapter concludes with perhaps the greatest passage on the second coming in any of the epistles, verses 13-17. All of this is said by Paul to be the basis of our Christian strength. “Wherefore comfort [literally ‘strengthen’] one another with these words” (4:18).
Finally, the last chapter concludes with the words of our text, speaking of our eternal sanctification as a result of this blessed hope of the second coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
The second coming is thus all-important. It is a practical incentive and enablement for the Christian life, encouraging service, soul-winning, stability, strength, and sanctification, culminating in full and everlasting salvation.
(HMM, The Institute for Creation Research)
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They will gradually develop a spiritual intuition that helps them make wise decisions, a God-given “radar” that warns them of trouble ahead. When our only desire is to glorify the Lord, we’re more than willing to step aside and let others use their gifts. We don’t care who gets the credit as long as God gets the glory. (p. 72)
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Somebody has defined “glorifying God” as “making God look good before a godless world. (p 73)
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When the Father puts his children into the furnace of affliction, he keeps his eyes on the clock and his hand on the thermostat. He knows how much and how long. Our task is to trust Him and pray that we will come forth like gold (Job 23:10). (p. 76)
(10 Power Principles for Christian Service by Warren W. & David W. Wiersbe)
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