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By T. M. Moore|Published Date: February 08, 2012
Psalm 74:9-11
9We do not see our signs; there is no longer any prophet, and there is none among us who knows how long. 10How long, O God, is the foe to scoff? Is the enemy to revile your name forever? 11Why do you hold back your hand, your fight hand? Take it from the fold of your garment and destroy them!
The Story: God had given to Israel proper forms for worship and His holy Law to preach and teach. As we saw in Psalm 50, much of the former was still in place, but the preaching of the Word was roundly ignored by a congregation given to hypocrisy and religion without heart. Truly, the enemy of Israel’s soul was laughing and taunting the nation, and making a mockery of the things of God. Asaph wonders aloud how long God will allow this to continue. He calls upon the Lord to act, to remove those who are leading the nation astray so that true worship and sound instruction can once again flourish.
The Structure: “Thus saith the Lord” is a refrain scarcely heard in churches today. We prefer to bend our teaching and preaching, such as it is, to the felt needs of shallow people; and we have allowed the ancient forms and elements of worship to be set aside for entertainment and feel-good worship. The churches in the land are in desperate need of revival. Only God can bring this about, but He does so in His way and time. The people of God who share Asaph’s concern must, like this prophet, give themselves to seeking the Lord for revival. God can change the hearts of even the most hardened; He can change the hearts of church leaders who have thrown off the glorious heritage of worship and doctrine, passed down from our forebears, and exchanged their birthright for a mess of pop culture. But the people of God must recognize our sorry condition and begin to seek the Lord in prayer.
Does your church seem to be aware of a need for revival? What would revival look like if it broke out in your congregation this week?
For more insight on reading the Psalms, get the book, How to Read the Psalms, by Tremper Longman III.
The Worldview Bible examines the teaching of Scripture according to the Story and Structure of Truth – the Framework of Christian Worldview – using only other Scriptures for illumination. Information about The Framework of Truth is available on this site. Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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By T. M. Moore|Published Date: February 07, 2012
Psalm 74:4-8
4Your foes have roared in the midst of your meeting place; they have set up their own signs for signs. 5They were like those who swing axes in a forest of trees. 6And all its carved wood they broke down with hatchets and hammers. 7They set your sanctuary on fire; they profaned the dwelling place of your name, bringing it down to the ground. 8They said to themselves, “We will utterly subdue them”; they burned all the meeting places of God in the land.
The Story: Asaph can see where Israel’s present corruption will lead. Indeed, in his mind the situation is already tending toward ruin and desolation. False gods – brought by Solomon’s wives – have found a home in the temple courts, and they are beginning to infect the worship of the nation and the sanctity of God’s house. What must follow is the complete obliteration of true worship and the desecration of the temple, the city, and the entire nation. Asaph is under no illusions about the agenda of spiritual forces of wickedness. They will not share a space with the true God; rather, having infiltrated His precincts and captured the hearts of His rulers, they must continue to hack away at all that is sacred, until only devastation remains. Did the people of Israel share Asaph’s concern? Apparently not. Did this lead him to change his message, to accommodate their interests or need? Not in the least.
The Structure: Our fallen world is overgrown by a kudzu-like pop culture. It smothers everything, eradicating the forms on which it grows and replacing them with itself, so that only the barest outlines of worship and discipleship remain. The contemporary Church, having sold its heritage for a pop culture worship and worldly programs and management, may be appealing to many “seekers”, but not in a way that leads them to know true religion or a proper relationship with the living God. A younger generation of evangelical believers in all communions evidences a longing for ancient ways and paths, but few church leaders are heeding their cries. And every preacher, writer, or leader who raises his voice against the contemporary status quo is ignored, vilified, or shouted down by pastors who point to numbers and “growth” as evidence of their “success.” The kudzu of the world spirit is taking root in the hearts of believers all over this nation; now, more than ever, we need to heed the words of Asaph and examine our ways, before it is too late.
In what ways have pop culture and systems of management derived from the world taken root in your church? Is this a good thing? Why or why not?
For more insight on reading the Psalms, get the book, How to Read the Psalms, by Tremper Longman III.
The Worldview Bible examines the teaching of Scripture according to the Story and Structure of Truth – the Framework of Christian Worldview – using only other Scriptures for illumination. Information about The Framework of Truth is available on this site. Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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By T. M. Moore|Published Date: February 06, 2012
Psalm 74:1-3
1O God, why do you cast off forever? Why does your anger smoke against the sheep of your pasture? 2Remember your congregation, which you have purchased of old, which you redeemed to be the tribe of your heritage! Remember Mount Zion, where you have dwelt. 3Direct your steps to the perpetual ruins; the enemy has destroyed everything in the sanctuary!
The Story: We need to remind ourselves that Asaph began his work during the time of Solomon, the period of Israel’s greatest achievement and prosperity (1 Kings 10). Yet in this psalm – as in most of his psalms – Asaph decries the condition of the nation and the city of Jerusalem. To him God seemed to have cast off His people; Asaph saw the anger of the Lord smoldering against the people of Israel. He calls on the Lord to “remember” His chosen and redeemed people; that word, “remember”, has enormous covenant significance for those who are seeking renewal from the Lord (cf. Ex. 2:24). With the “second sight” of a prophet and a poet, Asaph saw through all the outward glitter and prosperity to the heart of a nation which had fallen through temptation into compromises of worship and everyday life. Even as the people enjoyed their greatest prosperity and peace, the enemy had ruined their souls; the destruction of the nation would not be far off.
The Structure: This large, continuous section of the psalms of Asaph (73-83) fittingly begins with Psalm 73. Asaph saw within himself the same destructive tendencies of sin that he could see at work in the nation. He pointed his finger first at himself, and only after that at the people of Israel. In a fallen age, when the powers of sin and corruption work hardest to forestall the progress of the Kingdom, we need prophetic voices who will speak the truth in love (Eph. 4:15) to the churches. Undoubtedly Asaph’s psalms caused people to look around and scratch their heads: “What in the world is he talking about?” But he insisted on forcing the eyes of their hearts inward, to the very soul of the nation, where compromise with idolatry and departure from the Law of God had already begun to take their toll. It is highly significant that, at a similar time, yet one when the destruction was everywhere in evidence, King Hezekiah instructed those who were charged with rebuilding the temple to sing the songs of Asaph as they built, doubtless to remind themselves of why this ruin, from which they were extricating themselves, had come about in the first place (2 Chron. 29:30). Do we need to be singing the psalms of Asaph in our own day?
In what ways do churches compromise with worldliness? What should church members do when they sense this is happening?
For more insight on reading the Psalms, get the book, How to Read the Psalms, by Tremper Longman III.
The Worldview Bible examines the teaching of Scripture according to the Story and Structure of Truth – the Framework of Christian Worldview – using only other Scriptures for illumination. Information about The Framework of Truth is available on this site. Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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By David R. Sincerbox|Published Date: February 05, 2012
Micah 2:13
13 He who opens the breach goes up before them;
they break through and pass the gate, going out by it.
Their king passes on before them, the Lord at their head.
The Story: This passage points to the coming Messiah who will open a breach in Israel’s captivity. Jesus has opened a breach in the dark gates of Satan’s domain which have held us in bondage (see Col. 1:13-14) and “transferred us” to His kingdom. Jesus, the exalted Christ, is our King and He goes before us as our “head,” our leader. Not even the “gates of hell” can stand against the purposes of God and His Christ.
The Structure: Old Testament prophecy invariably alternates between condemnation and comfort. Micah 2:12-13 is a comfort passage following the condemnation passage of 2:1-11. This future promise of salvation, however, is not merely parochial, restricted only to the remnant of Israel, but universal, in that it extends to all who hold steadfast to the Lord Jesus Christ. The declaration of judgment had as its purpose the expression of God’s desire to see His people repent so that they might, in turn, receive the comfort of forgiveness and restoration.
Why not thank God for Jesus’ act on our behalf in which he broke through the breach of our bondage to sin, death and darkness and transferred us to His kingdom of light? Are you diligently praying for those you know who are still in bondage?
For more insight to the prophet Micah, order the book, The Minor Prophets, Vol. 2: Micah-Malachi, by James Montgomery Boice, from our online store.
The Worldview Bible examines the teaching of Scripture according to the Story and Structure of Truth – the Framework of Christian Worldview – using only other Scriptures for illumination. Information about The Framework of Truth is available on this site. Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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By David R. Sincerbox|Published Date: February 04, 2012
Micah 2:12
12 I will surely assemble all of you, O Jacob;
I will gather the remnant of Israel;
I will set them together like sheep in a fold,
like a flock in its pasture, a noisy multitude of men.
The Story: Micah abruptly shifts his focus from the present to the future when God in His mercy will restore Israel to its former glory. As God reassured Elijah when He informed the tired prophet that He had reserved seven thousand who had not bowed the knee to Baal (1 Ki. 19:18), God reassures the faithful who will listen to Micah that he will gather a remnant of the faithful like sheep. During periods of apostasy, there always will be a remnant, sometimes no more than a family as in the days of Noah, sometimes many more, but still only a portion of the whole. Other passages pertaining to a remnant can be found in Is. 10:20-22; 11:11, 16; 46:3. Yet this remnant mentioned here seems to be an accumulation of various “remnants” throughout Israel’s history because of the phrase, “a noisy multitude of men.”
The Structure: A question arises: To what event is this passage referring? Is it referring to the end of King Sennacherib’s siege (Micah 1:12)? Is it referring to the end of the Babylonian exile? Or is it referring to the end of the age? Prophecy is both forthtelling and foretelling. When it is foretelling, it can predict something that will happen in the near future as well as something that will happen in the far future. In Isaiah 7:10-14, Isaiah speaks to King Ahaz and says that the Lord will give the king a sign in which a virgin “shall conceive and bear a son.” This in all likelihood was fulfilled in some way during Ahaz’s time. But we also know that it foretold the virgin birth of Jesus many centuries later (Matt. 1:22-23). Micah 2:12 might already in one sense been fulfilled yet its ultimate fulfillment is yet to be (Rom. 11:26).
We can take comfort in the fact that regardless of how difficult things might become, God will keep His promises to those who remain faithful and bring them into His presence. Even if we think we are the only ones left who are His, He has kept a remnant!
For more insight to the prophet Micah, order the book, The Minor Prophets, Vol. 2: Micah-Malachi, by James Montgomery Boice, from our online store.
The Worldview Bible examines the teaching of Scripture according to the Story and Structure of Truth – the Framework of Christian Worldview – using only other Scriptures for illumination. Information about The Framework of Truth is available on this site. Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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By David R. Sincerbox|Published Date: February 03, 2012
Micah 2:10–11
10 Arise and go,
for this is no place to rest,
because of uncleanness that destroys with a grievous destruction.
11 If a man should go about and utter wind and lies,
saying, “I will preach to you of wine and strong drink,”
he would be the preacher for this people!
The Story: In v. 8, the evildoers, God’s people, rose up “as an enemy.” Micah now tells them, “Arise and go…” You are going into exile! There is no “rest” for them in the land of promise, for they have forsaken the Lord and His ways. What do the false prophets say? “O, no, we will enjoy wine and strong drink, the good life!” But Micah states that their words are “wind and lies.” These are just the kind of preachers a wayward people will hear.
The structure: Verse 11 ends Micah’s woe oracle, the only one in his prophecy. He has contended with the false prophets and relayed God’s intention to carry the nation of Israel into captivity. In the next two verses, Micah will offer hope for the future.
When a nation abandons its moral compass, it succumbs to greed and envy. Its political life becomes corrupted and the powerful take advantage of the weak. We see that at work in America today. We still are blessed despite the loss of traditional values, but more and more of these blessings are eroding. Pray for the country. Pray that its people will repent and come to their senses. Is your church actively praying for revival in America?
For more insight to the prophet Micah, order the book, The Minor Prophets, Vol. 2: Micah-Malachi, by James Montgomery Boice, from our online store.
The Worldview Bible examines the teaching of Scripture according to the Story and Structure of Truth – the Framework of Christian Worldview – using only other Scriptures for illumination. Information about The Framework of Truth is available on this site. Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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By David R. Sincerbox|Published Date: February 02, 2012
Micah 2:8–9
8 But lately my people have risen up as an enemy;
you strip the rich robe from those who pass by trustingly
with no thought of war.
9 The women of my people you drive out
from their delightful houses;
from their young children
you take away my splendor forever.
The Story: “But lately” is literally “yesterday”. Micah now describes the effects of greed upon the powerless and vulnerable. The traveler who expects safe passage is stripped of his “rich robe” as if he were an enemy; the traveler himself has “no thought of war” whatsoever, but merely wants to be on his way. “The women of my people” seems likely to refer to widows. Unscrupulous manipulation by the schemers results in these vulnerable women being driven from their “delightful houses” resulting in their young children being deprived of their very spiritual lives. Without the security and shelter of a home, these children could not spend time growing in the faith and maturity, but rather, as street urchins, or perhaps even sold into slavery, they were condemned to cultivate mere survival, being deprived of the benefits of their birthright as children of the covenant.
The Structure: When one acts upon one’s covetousness, it not only violates the Tenth Commandment (Ex. 20:17, Dt. 5:21) which forbids coveting, much less acting on it, but it also violates the security and stability of families. Envy violates the holy character of God Himself through the desire to usurp things that have not been given to one by the Creator. Because of this, Paul states that coveting is idolatry (Col. 3:5).
Because of our special relationship with God the Father through Jesus the Son, we, being in Christ, have a certain splendor that reflects the splendor of God who, according to Psalm 145:5, is clothed in splendor. Do you think of yourself as having splendor? The fact that we do and that it comes from God is a profound and humbling reality. According to Paul, we are being transformed from glory to glory (2 Cor. 3:18). How should this knowledge impact our lives?
For more insight to the prophet Micah, order the book, The Minor Prophets, Vol. 2: Micah-Malachi, by James Montgomery Boice, from our online store.
The Worldview Bible examines the teaching of Scripture according to the Story and Structure of Truth – the Framework of Christian Worldview – using only other Scriptures for illumination. Information about The Framework of Truth is available on this site. Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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