(Dear Lord Jesus, guide me and give me insight as I read and study Your word, and let it be the meditation of my heart...)
(Micah 5:1-15)1 “Now muster yourselves in troops, daughter of troops;
They have laid siege against us;
With a rod they will strike the judge of Israel on the cheek.
2 But as for you, Bethlehem Ephrathah,
Too little to be among the clans of Judah,
From you One will come forth for Me to be ruler in Israel.
His times of coming forth are from long ago,
From the days of eternity.”
3 Therefore He will give them up until the time
When she who is in labor has given birth.
Then the remainder of His kinsmen
Will return to the sons of Israel.
4 And He will arise and shepherd His flock
In the strength of the Lord,
In the majesty of the name of the Lord His God.
And they will remain,
Because at that time He will be great
To the ends of the earth.
5 This One will be our peace.
When the Assyrian invades our land,
When he tramples on our citadels,
Then we will raise against him
Seven shepherds and eight leaders of people.
6 They will shepherd the land of Assyria with the sword,
The land of Nimrod at its entrances;
And He will rescue us from the Assyrian
When he invades our land,
And when he tramples our territory.
7 Then the remnant of Jacob
Will be among many peoples
Like dew from the Lord,
Like showers on vegetation
That do not wait for man,
Or delay for mankind.
8 The remnant of Jacob
Will be among the nations,
Among many peoples
Like a lion among the animals of the forest,
Like a young lion among flocks of sheep,
Which, if he passes through,
Tramples and tears,
And there is no one who can rescue.
9 Your hand will be lifted up against your adversaries,
And all your enemies will be eliminated.
10 “And it will be on that day,” declares the Lord,
“That I will eliminate your horses from among you,
And destroy your chariots.
11 I will also eliminate the cities of your land,
And tear down all your fortifications.
12 I will eliminate sorceries from your hand,
And you will have no fortune-tellers.
13 I will eliminate your carved images
And your memorial stones from among you,
So that you will no longer bow down
To the work of your hands.
14 I will uproot your Asherim from among you,
And destroy your cities.
15 And I will execute vengeance in anger and wrath
On the nations which have not obeyed.”
TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:
Here is a prophecy of God coming in the flesh, through the line of David. The Israelites rejected Jesus as their Lord, Savior and King the first time He came, but in the Tribulation, they will see the signs of His second coming and as a nation, believe in Him. All those becoming believers during the Tribulation, will enter the Millennial kingdom, when Jesus will sit as King and bring in perfect justice and peace.
It makes total sense that Jesus would get rid of all idols and images of gods, and all evil. But one might wonder, why destroy the cities and buildings that people have labored to construct? Well... if any of those things remained, people would look at that with pride and once again rely on themselves, instead of looking to the strength and guidance of the Lord. Jesus will rebuild and refurbish the earth as it should be.
We can look at our personal relationship with Jesus in the same way. When we repent and become believers, Jesus forgives all our sins: past, present and future! It is a fresh new start! And so, even though we have eternal security, why go back to sinful behaviors? Why go back to relying on ourselves? God has given all of us purpose and wants us to have the best life possible. So, let us rely on Jesus to build us up and equip us with His spiritual peace, joy, wisdom, strength and confidence, for a life of true fulfillment, as He is the great architect of life.
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