Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Evening Sermon Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/ev/ev20100214.htm

THRU THE BIBLE EXPOSITION
Micah: An Eloquent Presentation Of God's Salvation From Ungodly Leadership
Part III: Cycle Two Of Doom And Hope: God's Victory Over Errant Human Leaders' Idol Of Money
(Micah 3:1-4:5)
  1. Introduction
    1. There is a great temptation many civil and even religious leaders face today to pervert their God-directed functions in order to please those with money so as to secure their personal livelihood or gain.
    2. However, though many yield to this temptation, it is futile to do so: such sin causes both leaders and their subordinates to spiral down into judgment, but resisting this temptation brings God's blessing.
    3. This truth is dramatically revealed in Micah's prophecy at Micah 3:1-4:5 as follows:
  2. Cycle Two Of Doom And Hope: God's Victory Over Errant Human Leaders' Idol Of Money.
    1. In the "doom" part of the cycle of Micah 3:1-4:5, at Micah 3:1-12, God pronounced judgment on Judah's rulers, prophets and priests for their various sins that were motivated out of the LOVE of INCOME:
      1. Micah 3:1-4 has God's pronouncement of judgment on Judah's secular rulers for their sins of greed:
        1. Judah's government rulers were distorting justice in their court rulings, functioning abusively toward God's people in a figurative way much like butchers who cut up mere slain animal carcasses for cooking so they could serve their own appetites for personal gain, Micah 3:1-3.
        2. Thus, God would not hear the cries for help from these leaders when His judgment fell, Micah 3:4.
      2. Micah 3:5-7 has God's pronouncement of judgment on Judah's prophets for their sins of greed:
        1. The prophets announced "Peace" upon those who fed them and war upon those who gave them nothing, the motivation for each message arising only out of their lusts for personal gain, Micah 3:5.
        2. Thus, God would cease giving them any kind of vision, disgracing them in judgment, Micah 3:6-7.
      3. [The prophet, Micah, interjected that he functioned opposite such prophets, that he was powered by God's Spirit to declare the truth of Israel's sins with God's interests in mind versus his own! (Mic. 3:8)]
      4. Micah 3:9-12 sums up God's announcement of judgment on all Judah's leaders for their lust for gain:
        1. In summary, God addressed the sinful governmental rulers who distorted justice for bribes at the cost of innocent lives (Micah 3:9-11a), the sinful priests who functioned for the people for a price (Micah 3:11b) and the sinful prophets who prophesied for money (Micah 3:11c).
        2. He pronounced judgment on them for abusing their roles for personal gain while errantly saying, "Is not the Lord in the midst of us? No disaster shall come upon us," Mic. 3:11d ESV.
        3. Accordingly, God promised to plow Zion as a field, leaving Jerusalem a heap of ruins and the mount of the Lord a wooded hilltop where such leaders could not make any more money, Micah 3:12.
    2. In great contrast, in the "hope" part of the Micah 3:1-4:5 cycle, at Micah 4:1-5, God predicted the glories of His blessed leadership over mankind in direct contrast to the destiny of Judah under her greedy leaders:
      1. Opposite Judah's current situation, in God's Kingdom, the temple mount would not be destroyed, but inhabited and exalted above other hills, and men would come to it to be taught God's ways, Mic. 4:1-2.
      2. This blessing would occur since, in contrast to the false deeds of Judah's leaders for gain, God's Word would flow out of Zion to the whole world, and God would judge many strong nations, Micah 4:3a.
      3. Thus, opposite the destruction of Jerusalem by invading enemy Gentile nations as would occur in God's judgment on Micah's contemporaries in Judah, the nations in God's coming Kingdom would cease war, beating their weapons into farming implements, and every individual would enjoy private property ownership in an agricultural environment marked by peace as solidified by God's promise, Mic. 4:3b-4.
      4. Thus, though every Gentile nation in Micah's era was walking in the name of their own false gods, the people of Judah would walk in the name of the Lord their God for ever and ever, Micah 4:5.
Lesson: God pronounced judgment on Judah's leaders who abused their roles for the sake of personal gain, promising to reverse that judgment to produce great blessing even in the material realm via the installation of a Kingdom ruled by God where His WORD was upheld to the resulting blessing of all.

Application: May we who lead in civil or religious realms realize that GOD is the REAL Source of even our OWN MATERIAL blessing, and, like Micah (Micah 3:8) RELY on the HOLY SPIRIT to HEED GOD'S WORD in our roles! Otherwise, we will only experience God's discipline to our own loss!