When I think of prophecy, I almost always think of foretelling the future. Maybe that’s what you think of, too. And, a modern day version of that might be what we call ‘forecasting.’ Now, there are many who ‘forecast’ today—two prominent ‘forecasters’ that come to mind are economic advisors … and the much coveted job of forecasting the weather. Looking to the future; that’s what forecasting is all about. And some, as you well know, have had much better luck at forecasting than others… What’s the old saying? Well, I don’t know which one you’re thinking of, but a gentleman by the name of Patrick Young once said, “The trouble with weather forecasting is that it’s right too often for us to ignore it … and wrong too often for us to rely on it.”
Well, to my mind and in at least one sense, ‘forecasting’ is kind of a modern-day version of what we see in the Bible as prophecy … but there are some distinct differences, too. We’ll want to talk about those. But, first, let me ask you this question: When it comes to biblical prophecy—thinking of it as foretelling the future, is it any more than that? Let’s go to our main Bible story for today and then we’ll talk more about it…
“Mobilize! Marshal your troops! The enemy is laying siege to Jerusalem. They will strike Israel’s leader in the face with a rod. 2 But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, are only a small village among all the people of Judah. Yet a ruler of Israel will come from you, one whose origins are from the distant past. 3 The people of Israel will be abandoned to their enemies until the woman in labor gives birth. Then at last his fellow countrymen will return from exile to their own land. 4 And he will stand to lead his flock with the LORD’s strength, in the majesty of the name of the LORD his God. Then his people will live there undisturbed, for he will be highly honored around the world. 5 And he will be the source of peace. When the Assyrians invade our land and break through our defenses, we will appoint seven rulers to watch over us, eight princes to lead us. 6 They will rule Assyria with drawn swords and enter the gates of the land of Nimrod. He will rescue us from the Assyrians when they pour over the borders to invade our land.” – Micah 5:1-6, NLT
The first thing we need to do is to define what prophecy really is (and those of you who were with me on Ash Wednesday have a bit of a head start, so be patient with me for a few moments here). Here’s my abbreviated version of what all is involved when it comes to biblical prophecy…
PROPHECY IS … foretelling. This is what most people think of when they think of prophets of the Old Testament and the prophecies that they told. Some have said that they are a prediction of the future (like weather forecasting), but I’ll be arguing that they are more than that when it comes to God’s prophets. I will agree that prophecy is foretelling, but I also want to say that it is much more than that.
Prophecy is also … forthtelling. So what is forthtelling? It’s a word from God for TODAY—not to an audience hundreds of years down the road, but for the prophets (or ‘preacher,’ if you will) audience to whom they were currently speaking—sharing the word from God. Some argue that every time a preacher gets into the pulpit (either actually or figuratively speaking), they are forthtelling or preaching. Here’s an illustration I used on Ash Wednesday that I want to share with all of you…
An Old Testament professor of mine (Dr. Victor Hamilton) always likened prophecy to ‘a double-edged sword.’ I think it’s a good visual for remembering what prophecy is. Both edges are important; both edges are used to accomplish the task at hand (swing forehand & swing backhand). But, at the same time, they are two distinct edges. Similarly, when it comes to prophecy, there are also two distinct messages involved—one for the audience of that day … and one for future audiences or readers of God’s word. So, prophecy is both … foretelling and forthtelling. But, is that all that prophecy is?
Here’s what else I want to tell you about biblical prophecy—and this is the Good News of biblical prophecy: PROPHECIES ARE ALSO … the PROMISES of God! The prophecies in scripture that have to do with Jesus’ first advent—his first coming—have all been fulfilled. As we take a look at many of those throughout this season of Lent, my hope is that we will all be able to see that prophecies really are … the promises of God—promises that will always be kept. And, therein lays our HOPE…
Folks, MESSIANIC PROPHECY GIVES US HOPE—TODAY, THROUGH THE PROPHET MICAH! Seven centuries prior to the birth of Christ, Micah tells of the coming of the Messiah! In the first verse of Micah, Chapter 5, Micah is speaking of the ruler of Israel at that time—a King by the name of Zedekiah. The ‘enemy’ that Micah is speaking of here is Nebuchadnezzar, who conquered the city of Jerusalem in the days of Zedekiah’s rule (2 Kings 25:1-2). Zedekiah was the last of the rulers in the line of David … until the Messiah is born. Let me share with you where the people—especially the religious leaders—were at in Zedekiah’s day…
Within today’s text, I want you to see the mindset in Micah’s day—a ‘tale of two cities’ if you will (and note the contrast):
- Jerusalem’s leaders were obsessed with themselves—with their own wealth and power and position … but Micah prophesied that mighty Jerusalem, with all its wealth and power, would be attacked and destroyed; its king (Zedekiah) could not save it…
- In contrast, Bethlehem—a tiny little town just south of Jerusalem and of no consequence to most people in that day—would be the birthplace of the only ruler who could save his people; this deliverer, the Messiah, would be born as a baby in Bethlehem … and eventually would reign as the eternal King (2nd Advent, Rev. 19-22).
That would not have been a message that the people of King Zedekiah’s day would have wanted to hear (including King Zedekiah)! The religious leaders in particular were full of themselves! This made Micah’s job that much harder. But, he was faithful to God (and we’re thankful for that), because he delivered a message not only for the people of his day (forthtelling/preaching), but also a message that was delivered and recorded for future generations (foretelling). Now, let’s turn to the New Testament Gospel of Matthew…
Matthew reminds us of the prophecy of Micah, thereby showing us the faithfulness of God (NT fulfillment)! Remember, this text from Matthew comes in the midst of the story about the wise men coming to seek the Messiah, the Christos, the Anointed One that Daniel talked about (see Ash Wednesday message)…
“Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the reign of King Herod. About that time some wise men from eastern lands arrived in Jerusalem, asking, 2 ‘Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star as it rose, and we have come to worship him.’ 3 King Herod was deeply disturbed when he heard this, as was everyone in Jerusalem. 4 He called a meeting of the leading priests and teachers of religious law and asked, ‘Where is the Messiah supposed to be born?’ 5 ‘In Bethlehem in Judea,’ they said, ‘for this is what the prophet [Micah] wrote: 6 And you, O Bethlehem in the land of Judah, are not least among the ruling cities of Judah, for a ruler will come from you who will be the shepherd for my people Israel.’” – Matthew 2:1-6, NLT
The religious leaders of Jesus’ day, as well as others I’m sure, were well aware of Micah 5:2 and other prophecies about the Messiah. Matthew repeatedly shows us both their knowledge AND their unbelief! Most religious leaders, you see, believed in a literal fulfillment of all OT prophecy; therefore, they believed the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem as foreseen by the prophet Micah … seven centuries earlier (Micah 5:2). But, in spite of the prophecy they said they believed in … JESUS WASN’T WHAT THEY EXPECTED! Ironically … when Jesus was born, some of these very same religious leaders became his greatest enemies! When the Messiah for whom they had been waiting finally shows up, they didn’t recognize him!
During this season of Lent, this is what comes to my mind. Are we going to recognize him? Are we going to see the Jesus that God wants us to see, as we come face-to-face once again with our ‘condition’—sin. As we hear from God himself about the Messiah through the voices of the Old Testament prophets, are we going to be his friends?
You know, it doesn’t even matter what age you are … or how long you’ve been around the institution of the Church. There were some who had been studying God for decades, as well as the coming of the Messiah. And THEY STRUGGLED WITH JESUS! Again, JESUS WASN’T WHAT THEY EXPECTED!
This is the season, folks, where we remember that we have a condition … called sin. And, we are separated from God, due to that condition (kind of like we’re in isolation), until we can get better—until we can get help with our very serious condition. God’s word assures us that there is a cure. But, the only treatment that will help us … is a personal relationship with God’s Son, Jesus. By faith, we need to accept that Jesus is God’s Son and he was the perfect sacrifice (the cross) to cover our sin. He paid the debt so that we don’t have to. That’s why God sent him. That’s why Jesus (as Kenny Rogers said in that old 60s song) “Just dropped in to see what condition our condition was in.” And he dropped in … so that he could do something about it. We’re going to be reminded of that through the OT prophets all through this season…
And, folks, whatever you do, don’t forget to look for the HOPE! It’s God’s great gift through the prophets; it’s also God’s great gift through Christ! BORN IN BETHLEHEM was the promise … and BORN IN BETHLEHEM was the fulfillment of that promise! God keeps his promises. And in a day where it doesn’t seem like there’s much we can count on, it’s wonderful to know that this is one thing we can take to the bank…