Can I pray for you in any
way? Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com.
In Christ, Mark
In Christ, Mark
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
** Follow The Christian
Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk
** Like posts and send friend
requests to the author of The Christian Walk, Mark Cummings on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mark.cummings.733?ref=tn_tnmn
** Become a Follower of
The Christian Walk at http://the-christian-walk.blogspot.com
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though
you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for Me One who
will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times.”
“Therefore Israel will be abandoned
until the time when she who is in labor bears a Son, He will stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the Lord,
in the majesty of the name of the Lord His God. And they will live securely,
for then His greatness will reach to the ends of the earth.”
Micah
5:2-3a, 4
This ends today’s reading from God's holy
word. Thanks be to God.
Have you ever read the Book of Micah?
Maybe I should ask if you have ever heard of it because it wouldn’t rank
in the top ten books that most people would say they have read nor would it
probably be in a list of top ten recommended books to read in the Bible.
And yet, as we see in today’s final devotion in the four devotion series
on predictions of Jesus’ coming found in the Old Testament scriptures, we find
Micah front and center, providing the following scripture passage:
“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of
Judah, out of you will come for Me One who will be ruler over Israel, whose
origins are from of old, from ancient times.”
“Therefore Israel will be abandoned until the time when she who is in
labor bears a Son, He will stand and shepherd his
flock in the strength of the Lord, in the majesty of the name of the Lord His
God. And they will live securely, for then His greatness will reach to the ends
of the earth.” Micah
5:2-3a, 4
Through the three prior devotions in this series, we have seen
predictions as to how Jesus would be conceived, what He would be named, what He
would bring to God’s people, and the qualities He possessed. The takeaway is
that this coming child was going to be no ordinary baby but one who was of God
fully, perfectly holy and righteous in every way, purposed to save all mankind
from their sins and offer a path to eternal life. Yes, we have learned a lot
from the prophecies found in the Book of Isaiah but in Micah we discover where
Jesus will hail from, the place where He would be born of a virgin.
Now if you asked any Israelite where they thought a Messiah would be
born, the consensus would have probably say Jerusalem, the most holy city in
Judah and the place where most renowned kings of Israel had ruled from. If God
was sending someone special to save His people, then surely such a king would
come from Jerusalem.
But as we see in our scripture passage, any forecast that Jesus would be
from Jerusalem would be wrong because God’s word clearly gives the distinction
to Bethlehem, referred to as “small among the clans”. Thus, now you know why we
sing the classic Christmas hymn, “O Little Town of Bethlehem”, because the town
of Jesus’ birth lacked the prowess and size of Israel’s holiest city, some five
and a half miles to the north.
Yes, Bethlehem was small and obscure but Jesus put it on the map per se,
not just in Israel but the world as map as well. Today, most people you talk to
will say that they have heard of the town of Bethlehem, perhaps just as many
that said they have heard of Jerusalem. This is because a great Leader and
Ruler came to be in Bethlehem more than 2,000 years ago in Jesus, the Son of
God who would shepherd His flock in strength as He ministered in the majesty of
His Father. He would bring security to His people and the power He would
possess would result in His greatness reaching to the ends of the earth.
Indeed, even today the name of Jesus is spoken in power within every nation of
the world by someone by those who profess and maintain a steadfast faith and
trust in Him as Savior.
So there you have it. Four predictions from the Old Testament scriptures which
tell us that a sign from God would be given to His people in the way of a
virgin giving birth to a Son named Immanuel (meaning God with us). That Son
would be the light in the world, one that would be able to break through the
darkness, but what God’s people would receive in Jesus would far transcend mere
light. For He would have the government on His shoulders when He comes
to be our Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, and Prince of
Peace.
Indeed, Jesus was one of a kind
because He was one in the same with a one of a kind God. He and God were one
and so all that was in God could be found in Jesus. This holiday season, give
thanks for the prophecies of old as they sought to prepare the hearts of God’s
people for the coming of their Messiah in the little town of Bethlehem. Without
the word of God, we would be a people without hope.
Tomorrow, we begin a three devotion
series covering Zechariah, the father of John who would announce the coming and
arrival of Jesus as He started His adult ministry.
Amen.
In
Christ,
Mark
PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com
No comments:
Post a Comment