Pastor’s Nexus

“Codex Sinaiticus: should this ancient copy of the Greek New Testament cause any doubt on the reliability of our Bibles or Christianity?”

“Codex Sinaiticus is being digitized, but does it undermine biblical reliability?”, Creation On The Web

Romania: Adventist national ad campaign declares Bible reading a must: “Beatrice Lospa never imagined a nationwide initiative to make reading the Bible attractive and accessible to every Romanian would be so popular.”

Scripture is clear that God is patient, slow to anger, and not willing that anyone should perish under His judgement (Ps. 103:8; Nah. 1:3; 2 Pet. 3:9). Yet even the patience of God has its limits. He will not allow sin to go unchecked forever. Sooner or later, He will deal with evil those who commit it, ans when He does, His wrath is likely to come rather swiftly (Gen. 19:24; 2 Pet. 3:10).
The wrath of God fell on Nineveh in about 612 BC when a coalition of Babylonians, Scythians, and Medes penetrated the city’s seemingly impregnable defences after sudden floods eroded the walls (compare Nah. 2:6–8). The invaders quickly turned Nineveh—which was second only to Babylon in size—into a mass of smoking rubble. This event came nearly a century and a half after Jonah was sent to warn the Assyrians of God’s impending judgement (Jon. 3).
Initially the Ninevites repented of their wickedness and idolatry with sackcloth and fasting. They cried out to God for mercy, and the Lord stayed His hand. But this spiritual awakening was apparently short-lived.
The Book of Nahum points out the limits of short-term repentance. God leaves rebellious sinners unpunished only for so long (Ex. 34:6–7). His grace is free, but it is not cheap. It does not allow people to continue to do whatever they wish, without guilt and without consequence. the Lord will not allow lying, killing, violence, and idolatry, such as the Assyrians practised (Nah. 3:1–4), to go unabated or unpunished. Eventually He will act to put an end to them.
Having once experienced God’s forgiveness as a result of Jonah’s preaching, the people of Nineveh were that much more responsible. To whom much is given—or forgiven—much will be required (Luke 12:48). In the time of Jonah, Nineveh had been forgiven of enormous sins. Yet the Assyrians did not follow up their short-term repentance with long-term changes, especially in the public sector. Perhaps if they had, Nahum’s woeful message might have been directed elsewhere.
God is a God of justice. He cannot just keep on overlooking the sins of people who have no interest in making a genuine break with evil. Nor can he turn His back on the cruel injustices of nations such as Assyria. To do so would be to ignore the prayers of the victims (compare Nah. !:12, 15)

From The Word in Life™ Study Bible, copyright © 1993, 1996 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission.

Having denounced Judah’s leaders (Mic. 3:1-12), Micah announced good news: an ideal, eternal king would someday rule over the land (5:2). This unique hope offered a glimmer of light in the midst of the gathering darkness (5:1; 7:8).

On the surface, Micah’s prophecy seems to imply that the rulerw as coming right away. Actually, seven centries separated the prophet from the Ruler whom he was heralding. Yet in terms of God’s timetable, the MEssiah’s appearing was just around the corner. Samaria would call (c. 722 B.C.), and Jerusalem would soon follow (c. 587 B.C.). Decades later, Jews would begin returning to Palestine. Then the next major event in the Lord’s plan would be the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem. He would bring everlasting salvation, not only to the people of Israel, but to the whole world (7:7, 18-20).

From The Word in Life™ Study Bible, copyright © 1993, 1996 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission.

Micah 4:1-7

War is often the result of people living in fear of being attacked or robbed. When people feel defenceless, their possessions–whether weapons for protection or food sources–often take an inflated value. Nearly all of their energies are taken up with holding on to what little they have left.

Micah offered words of hope to the frightened people of Judah. He envisioned a time without war or the weapons of war (Mic. 4:3), a time of peace and security when everyone would have plenty of food (4:4). Actually, this was God’s original design for the world (Gen. 1:27-31). It was humanity’s sinful rebellion that brought about the struggle for material well-being that so often leads to armed conflict (3:17-19; 4:3-14). But according to Micah’s prophecy, the Lord will ultimately resolve the issues of war and access to adequate resources. The humanity will live in peace and abundance, and the joy God (compare Rev. 21:1-5; 22:1-5).

Micah’s encouraging vision offers hope to us as God’s people as we journey through this life. Are you trusting God for safety, food, and the future? In turn, are you a source of hope to others by telling them of God’s promises, and by seeing to their basic needs?

From The Word in Life™ Study Bible, copyright © 1993, 1996 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission.

Well, this is the chapter we are studying for next week.

One of the themes of this chapter is justice. I think that social justice is one main themes in the book of Micah.

We have already seen in chapter 2 the way people acted “just because the could” robbing and abusing others. In this chapter the abuse and injustice is done by the princes (rulers) and the priests (religious leaders).

What else have you found in this chapter?

Well, I thought that since we are currently reading in preparation for next Wednesday’s study that we could start discussing about this chapter from now.

I think it will encourage preparation and allow us to come to the study and really get into it, if you know what I mean.

So, what are your questions, insights, etc. that you can share with the rest of us?

Dear God talk to us through your word! Amen!

I was listening to the discussion about the last Bible Study in both groups. It was quite exciting to hear about the diversity of opinions and insights that we get from the study of Bible.

I’ll be creating a post every week to discuss the passage of the week

So how did you like about Micah Chapter 1? Was there anything new that you learned that you could share with the rest of us?

Please click on the “X Comments” links to leave a comment to this post. It also works for other posts

As you know we are currently studying the book of Micah, and Old Testament prophet. I hope you enjoy studying this book to learn more about God’s character.