But As For Me, I Will Watch for the Lord
First B Jackson
2025-12-07

Automatically transcribed. Where this and the recording disagree, the recording is the record.

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Good morning, everybody. Would you stand and join us in song? You are at First Baptist Church here in Jackson, Wyoming, just in case you needed a reminder. And this is the second Sunday of Advent, and here's an encouraging word from Luke two to lead us into worship. It says, an angel of the Lord appeared to the to the shepherds, and the radiance of the Lord's glory surrounded them.

They were terrified, but the angel reassured them. Don't be afraid. I bring you good news that will bring great joy. Would you join us in singing God rest you merry gentlemen.

Amen. Y'all can have a seat. We'll get back to more of that kind of Christmas music. Today is a pancake breakfast between services. The boy scouts have been meeting at 1st B.

We've got scouting Sunday that's coming up in a couple of months, but sometime during the Christmas season, one of their good deeds for the week is to come in and feed y'all. So between services, there's a pancake breakfast down the hall. The boy scouts spent the night in the church last night and they are making breakfast for you right now. So down there in between, they've been meeting at first wherever first b was for ninety something years, which is pretty great. Pretty great.

Awana. Awana is happening this week and that's happening from 05:45 to 07:30 tomorrow, starting out here in this room and then going all over the church from there. KC? Crazy hair night. What's that?

Crazy hair night tomorrow. It's crazy hair night. Oh, I would be right on time time there. Crazy hair night. Crazy hair night tomorrow night at Awana.

This is this is the way to show up. We've got Angel Tree. There are new tags. There are new families. Tanya is kinda administrating that and getting all of that ready.

You can see the tags on the way out, you all know how that goes. And I've had several of you that have reached out to me because I said, reach out to us if you if you need to. And Tanya knows a whole lot more this than I do, so keep on looking until you find her because I'm terrible at this. Okay. I'm better at some other things, not this.

But Tanya will be glad to answer the questions for for Angel Tree and specific needs that are happening. Brother Breath Chili Cook Off is happening next week. It's already time. Next week, December 14. That's coming next Sunday evening in the evening, 04:30.

We'll start out. We'll go caroling first and we'll come back for the chili cook off. That's always fun. Connor's excited about that one already. Yeah.

It's a good one. One service on the twenty first, so two weeks from today, there's only one service and it's gonna be this service, 09:00. We're not changing it to ten. It's 09:00, this service and we're gonna have the children's choir present on that December 21 9AM. That's happening and that's going really well.

It's also potluck. So after the children's choir, after that service, we'll get together for a potluck. What would be between services is just gonna be after this one. So bring a dish to share on the twenty first. And I think that that's it, except it is the second Sunday in Advent.

I'm gonna invite the Hammonds to come forward. I think this is now. Now. It's now. So there we go.

You're supposed to read the scripture.

Right? Yes. That's right. That's good.

I didn't know if there was more to this than that, but we light the this Sunday the second in Advent, we light the candle of peace. As we prepare to celebrate the coming of the prince of peace, we are reminded that God's timing is always perfect and his provision is always sufficient. Amen? Amen. And the scripture for today is second Thessalonians three sixteen, which is up there I see.

Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with you all.

Amen. Would you stand? And we'll bring it back together with a song. Thank you, John. Thank you, Christy.

Treat one another. That'd be great.

Yes.

Amen. You can have a seat for a second. We're gonna enter a worship of time, worship through giving part of the service. And we're gonna sing a new song called hope for everyone. You may have heard it on there on the radio.

We are and the the chorus goes like this. We are waiting on the promise promise for the one who lights the darkness, bending low to be among us. Bring your glory in the highest, Jesus. Ray, can you pray for us?

God, thank you for for this morning. Thank you for those who are gathered here, Lord, in your name, and thank you for every family represented, Lord, every nation represented. I pray that you'd use this gathering to encourage the hearts of believers to draw those, Lord, that have not previously really understood or known you. So in Jesus name, Lord, we ask that the message of hope of Christmas would fall on fertile soil and that, Lord, you would be glorified. In Jesus name, we thank you that you're looking out for our good, lord.

All of us that you love and that's what you're doing. I pray that you'd use us, to show others your love. Would you bless these offerings, lord, to do your kingdom's work, whatever that is. Would you do it, your will, and your way, lord. We ask you as humble and obedient servants.

In Jesus name, amen. Amen. Amen. Thank you to the band. And it is time for children's church downstairs and that's going to create some poor space in the rest of the in the rest of the congregation.

If you want to come forward, you're welcome to. There's always room on the front row. It's just the way it is. So, are here and gathered and singing about Christmas and the hope and I have been going through, we have been going through as a church. We've been going through a study on the minor prophets.

And last week, at the end of the service or at the end of the sermon, I looked up and I just thought, they can't take another word, and I actually said that out loud. I said, y'all are toast. That was not a proclamation of judgment. That was a statement of fact. Okay?

It was just y'all are toast, you can't take another word. So we're gonna pick up more or less where we left off. The clicky clicker is not clicking. There we go. Micah.

So Micah is an old testament book from about seven hundred and fifty years before Christ. Seven fifty to seven hundred years before Christ. Contemporaneous with Isaiah, and during this time of year, hear a lot of quotes from Isaiah. We hear one specific quote from Micah, and we hear from some of the other prophets too. And as I'm going over this in my mind, I'm thinking, boy, another Sunday in the minor prophets of much judgment.

And my wife actually is thinking the same thing. Boy, how long are people gonna take this? It is the word of the Lord. Amen. It also, you know, we sing the line in Christmas songs, we sing the sing the line, long lay the world in sin and error, pining.

They're longing for hope. They're longing for it. Long lay the world in sin and error, pining. And this is forecasting the hope. Right?

So this judgment is the old covenant stuff. It is really really tough because it depends on what you do with the love of God. If you reject it, it is awful wrath and judgment, but hope is coming. The new covenant in Christ blood, now we as a New Testament Christians, we see that, but we need to read what it was like before that. We need to be reminded of that.

So judgment is coming in Micah seven fifty BC, but so is hope. And so we'll start off right here. This is the one we hear quoted this time of year. It is Micah five two. Micah five two is a proclamation of or a prophecy of where Messiah would be born.

But as for you, Bethlehem, Ephesians, that's that was just so you know which Bethlehem. Bethlehem, too little to be among the clans of Judah. You looked like you weren't very much, but from out of you, one, capital o, will come forth. For me, God says, to be ruler, capital r, in Israel. This is a proclamation of Messiah where he would be born.

When the wise men get together and they go and they ask the scholars, where is Messiah to be born? All of them know because it said so. Bethlehem, no doubt about it. City Of David. His times of coming forth are from long ago, even from the days of eternity.

Jesus is gonna be born in Bethlehem, and Micah knows that seven hundred and fifty years before. What a great thing to have. Merry Christmas. Ain't that cool? It's so cool.

Now, we're getting I have color coded last week's slides and hence this week's slides. The yellow up at the top or the gold up at the top is for hope. If there's red up at the top, that's judgment. We're gonna try to go through this today and just kinda bounce. Okay?

We're keeping it rolling. I think that the message is best heard at once, but you all proved last week that's not true. So therefore, he will give up 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 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 very ends of the earth. This is a messianic prophecy right there about Jesus. And this one Jesus will be our peace when the Assyrian invades our land.

Now that for us, we might not think, you know, Assyria, we don't worry too much about Assyria. But they they needed to be concerned because Assyria was the big cat, and they're the little mouse. Right? They are the ones that are surrounded by all these powerful kingdoms, and they needed to look forward to Christ the same way that we need to look backwards to him. Does that make sense?

We're not living in the same time as Jesus, but they had to look forward and their hope was in Christ, in the anointed one, in the Messiah. This one will be our peace. When the Assyrian invades our land, when the Assyrian tramples on our citadels, then we will raise against him seven shepherds and eight leaders of the people. They will shepherd the land of Assyria with the sword, the land of Nimrod and its entrances, and he will rescue us. We're looking to Messiah for our comfort at this time, seven fifty, seven hundred fifty years before.

From the Assyrian when he invades our land, and when he tramples our territory. So this is the prophecy of the coming king. In Bethlehem will be born a good ruler, and that is in contrast to five hundred years of bad rulers. Okay? In the Northern Kingdom, and this is a prophecy given to Jerusalem and Samaria.

In the Northern Kingdom, there had been no good kings, period, at all, and in the Southern Kingdom only a very few. But they had been going astray for a long time, And so the judgment of God is coming on them and their idolatry specifically, and yet Micah sees hope on the other side of exile, he sees hope on the other side of destruction, he sees hope on the other side of judgment. So he's giving us that hope. The coming king, gonna be born in Bethlehem, his goings forth are from long ago, he's eternal, and he will shepherd us, and he will be our peace. Praise God.

And then, the remnant of Jacob will be among the many peoples like dew from the land, like showers on vegetation. They do not wait for man or delay for mankind. The remnant of Jacob, there's always always a remnant of the faithful. Even in difficult times, can I get an amen? The remnant of Jacob will be among the nations.

Among many peoples, it's not just the people of Israel. It's a message for to the ends of the earth. He's already said that multiple times. And like lying among animals of the forest, like a young lying among flocks of sheep, which if he passes through tramples and tears, and there's no one who can rescue, he's the strongest of all, but we know he's talking about Jesus. That's not what he's he's coming to seek and to save.

And your hand will be lifted up against your adversaries, and all of your enemies will be eliminated. There is a a popular heresy of universalism that all would come to a saving knowledge of God no matter what, no matter how resistant they are. And the only problem with that is it's not biblical in any way whatsoever. So there will be those who stand up in pride against God as adversaries, and they will be eliminated. And that's a hard truth, but it's the truth.

Okay? So your hand will be lifted up against your adversaries, all your enemies will be eliminated. That's where we left off last week. Good luck. More judgment.

The red up on top right there. Right? And it will be on that day, declares the Lord, that I will eliminate your horses from among you. That sounds rough. And I'll destroy your chariots.

That's pretty rough. And I will also eliminate the cities of your land. I'll tear down all your fortifications. That sounds like judgment and it is. But it's also hope, because he says, I'm gonna eliminate the sorceries from your hand.

The way you're trying to manipulate the spiritual realm is not good for you at all. And I'm going to purge that, and it's difficult times that are gonna purge that, but I'm gonna purge that. And you will have no fortune tellers left. They're gonna be gone. You're not gonna trust in those type folks.

I'm gonna eliminate your idols, the carved images, and your memorial stones from among you, so that you will no longer bow down to the work of your hands. I'm gonna uproot your Asherim. Asherim are the Asherah poles, they're kind of fertility symbols usually, up to other gods, and they usually put them at the high places. And God says, I'm gonna rip those up by the roots from among you, and I'm gonna destroy your cities. And I will execute vengeance and anger and wrath on the nations which have not obeyed.

Okay? On the families which have not obeyed, on the peoples, all those are good translations, which have not obeyed. He's saying the invitation is open. We'll get to that in a minute too. This is helpful whether you think so or not.

Okay? The adversaries of God will fall, and those who have humbly cried out to him will be saved. So there's a promise of blessing. Micah foresees exile coming. He he foresees both Assyria taking over and Babylon exiling the people of Israel.

He sees both and he calls them out. But he also sees deliverance by this rescuer, which he's pointing towards and it's Jesus. Six one says this, hear now what the Lord is saying. Arise, plead your case before the mountains, and let the hills hear your voice. Listen, you mountains to what?

To the indictment by the Lord. So this is a grand jury set up, and it's an indictment by the Lord. He's the He's prosecuting this time. And you enduring foundations with earth because the Lord has a case against whom? His people.

Okay. Okay. As Christians, we need to hear this. We need to hear that he's got a case against his people, because I think that what we normally think is he's got a case against everybody else, but we're on the we're on the side of good. We're on the side of God.

So let's listen to what he has to say. Because the Lord has a case against his people, and dispute, he'll wrestle with his people Israel. So that's judgment. My people, what have I done to you, and how have I wearied you? And he asked for an answer, answer me.

Does that remind you of Job? Brace brace yourself like a man. Listen to what I have to say. Where were you when I hung the stars in place? What do you think you know better than I know?

And I think, you know what? A lot of times we do think we know better than God knows. He says, what have I done to weary you? Answer me. Indeed.

And God goes through a sort of a rehearsal of or a restatement of the ways that He has helped. Just a brief one. Indeed, I brought you up from the land of Egypt. I built you up in Egypt into a people that were numerous and powerful, and I redeemed you from that house of slavery. I brought you out of slavery, and I sent before you good leaders, Moses and Aaron and Miriam.

Maybe you're thinking, they very good leaders. You sound just like the followers. Stiff necked folks. There aren't any other kind. We're all stiff necked folks at some point.

My people, God's still calling them my people. My people, remember now what Balak, king of Moab planned? Do you all remember that? Okay. We'll get to that.

And what Balab, the son of Baor answered to Balak. And what happened from Shittim to Gilgal, so that you may know the righteous acts of the Lord. And you might read that and go, not Old Testament guy. Been listening to Ray for thirteen years. He hardly ever preaches from the Old Testament.

So Balak and Balaam, that story, I knew I didn't have time last week, but maybe I have time this week. Balak is the king of Moab, and he wants to curse Israel. He wants to curse Israel because they're very numerous, they're very powerful people. He felt a threat as the king of Moab from the Israelites, and so he had heard about Balaam who is a for profit prophet. He will bless the people that you ask him to bless for a fee, and he'll curse the people you ask him to curse for a fee.

Does that sound like a good guy? Not really. Yeah. So Balak tries to hire Balaam. If you want to know where this is, it's in numbers twenty two and twenty four.

I won't go through the whole thing. Alright? But the story of Balaam and his donkey is in there, and it's great. It's really, really good. But the point of why you should remember Balak, who wanted to curse Israel, and he wanted he was gonna pay to curse Israel.

And so, he hires Balaam, and Balaam is supposed to curse Israel, and God arrest him through some pretty supernatural means, and he arrests him and says, listen, you can go and you can prophesy for Balak. Yes, go right ahead. I'm upset with you for doing it, for taking the job in the first place. But the only deal is, you're gonna say exactly what I tell you to say. As a prophet, you're saying you're a prophet of God.

You're gonna be a prophet of God. And so, he gets up on the hillside over looking the field and he starts and everything that comes out of his mouth is curses for Moab and blessings for Israel. And so Balak says, what are you doing? I'm paying you to curse these Israelites and I'm praying you'd bless our people. And here you go.

He goes, let's go over to this other hill. So he goes from Snow King to the top of the pass, and he gets him up on top of the high places again, and he said, now go right ahead again. Here you go. And he blesses Israel, and he curses Moab, and the Amalekites, and other folks. He just keeps on.

And he says, but what can I do? But speak what God has said. Right? It's a good story. Read it this afternoon.

Numbers 22, 23, and 24. It's fantastic. But if you read it, you'll know the righteous acts of the Lord that no matter what somebody's paying you to say or do, what's gonna be my will is what I'm gonna do. Right? And I'm looking out for my people.

So number's 22, blah blah blah blah blah blah blah And then this line right here. This is not just a funny word. This is not just something that happened in that story. And what happened from Shittim to Gilgal? From what happened from Shittim to Gilgal?

That is the last place that the Israelites camped outside of the promised land, and it's the first place that they camped on the inside of the promised land. That's a good reminder that God brought them through out of Egypt and all the way into the promised land. Alright. Six seven. With what shall I come to the Lord and bow myself before the God on high?

Shall I come to him with burnt offerings? If you check out Balak and Balaam, they set up altars, seven altars with seven bulls on one hill, on another hill, and then a third hill. Right? And they came to him with burnt offerings, but the truth of God was still gonna be the truth of God out of Balaam's mouth. Shall I come to him with burnt offerings?

Shall I come to him with yearling calves? Does the Lord take pleasure in thousands of rams? If the gift were bigger, would it be better and more? 10,000 rivers of oil, oil was something that was precious and they used it as a sacrifice to God. Shall I give him my firstborn for my wrongdoings?

Shall I give him the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? Just let that rest for just a minute. Like, what can I do? And then we get to the most famous passage from Micah. He has told you mortal one, And it it sounds like right here, when he says mortal one, it sounds like he's talking about through your human conscience, not just through his word.

Not probably is both. But it sounds like he's saying this for everybody. Everybody ought to know this. In Borne, he ought to know this. He has told you, oh more to one, what is good.

And what is it that the Lord requires of you? But to do justice, to do righteousness, to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God. That's the center passage of Micah six eight. When I was in seminary, on the way to school, I get off of Highway 20, and I'm going on Monticello Road towards Columbia International University. And there's a little brick house with a plywood sign outside, and it had Micah six eight on it.

Every single day driving to the seminary, every single day going there. It's like, what is it that the Lord requires of you? But to do justly, to love mercy was the translation on that sign and to walk humbly with your God. So love mercy, love kindness, actually God's loving kindness, the steadfast love of the Lord, all of those are good translations. It is is the word.

And that is the steadfast love of the Lord, which in Psalms, we see repeated so often as a steadfast love of the Lord never ends. Right? He is continually working at loving you. Now, you can resist him by pride. You can resist him, but the steadfast love of the Lord is gonna continue.

Micah six nine through 11 says this, the voice of the Lord will call to the city and it is the sound wisdom to fear God's name. Here, you tribe, all tribes, who has designated the time of your tribe? Who has designated the time? Is it you or is it God? He's the one who lifts up peoples and nations.

He's the one. Is there a person in the wicked house along with the treasures of weakness in a short measure that is cursed? Can I really justify dishonest balances and a bag full of fraudulent weights? Can I really justify that? Should this be judgment or should it be hope?

I think that anybody that is considering their way, it's a hopeful thing when you consider your way, when you walk circumspectly and you go, I've been wrong, and I've been intentionally doing wrong. Can I really justify the way I've been acting? Can I really justify this bag of fraudulent weights? The voice of the Lord is calling out, and it's sound wisdom to fear. It's the beginning of wisdom to fear God.

Right? So I think this is a hopeful thing. Here, everybody who has designated his time, it's nice to know that God is the one who lifts up. He says in the New Testament, humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God so that he may lift you up in the proper time. Right?

For the rich people of the city are full of violence. This is a statement and this is where we get into this, where Tanya was going, oh, I just don't think I could take a whole lot more judgment. From here through the first part of chapter seven, it's a statement of what Micah is seeing around him. He's saying the rich of the city are full of violence. Her residents are speaking lies.

Their tongue is deceitful in their mouth. So also, I'll make you sick. I'll strike you down. I'll make you desolate because of your sins. You will eat, but you won't be satisfied.

There's always a chasing after that high, whatever you'll eat, but you won't be satisfied. There'll be filth in your midst. I'll try to remove You will try to remove valuables for safekeeping, but you won't be able to save it all. What you do save, I'll turn over by the sword. You don't know what's coming.

You will sow, but you won't harvest. You will tread the olive press, but you won't anoint yourself with oil and tread out sweet wine, but you won't drink the wine at all. All of your work will come to nothing. The statutes, why? Because the statutes of Omri and every work of the house of Ahab are maintained.

Do you know who those folks are? Omri is the worst king that they had. And it says, Omri was the worst of all kings. He did evil in the sight of the Lord, and he is the worst of all the kings that Israel had, period. And then after him is his son, Ahab, and it says, and Ahab was worse than Amri.

Bad king. And you're going by what the bad kings say. Now, successful in monetary terms? Yeah, kinda. But Ahab was the one that turned all of Israel to the worship of Baal instead of Yahweh.

That's bad. Y'all went after Omri and Ahab and not, and it says, and you walked by their plans. You've taken the way of the world, you have not taken my way. Therefore, I'm gonna give you up for destruction. All your inhabitants for derision, and you will suffer the taunting of my people.

Now, there's a call to witnesses. What more could I have done? I've done lots. What more could I have done? So the proper response, God has told you, oh mortal, what it is to do justly, mercy, to walk humbly.

That's the proper response to God. So the verdict is, they haven't done that. So those folks would be given over to destruction. So this is Micah's lament, and this is a statement of what he is seeing. Okay.

This is not just him seeing it as the prophet of God. He's looking around in his time and in his people and in the politics of his era. He's looking around and seeing and he goes, woe to me. I am undone. I am like harvest of summer fruit, I'm about to rot.

Like the gleanings of grapes, there's not a cluster of grapes left to eat, nor an early fig, which I crave. I'm so hungry for something that satisfies. It seems to me the godly has perished from the land. There's no upright person among mankind. Romans three is a statement.

There's no righteous one, no not even one. There's no one who understands. There's no one who seeks after God and that's a quote from both Psalms in 14 and Psalms 53. Did you know Psalm 14 and Psalm 53 are exactly the same? Probably a different tune.

You know how hymn books do. But it's the same thing that we hear. There's no one righteous, no, not one. Nobody's seeking after God. That's what Micah is seeing.

He's saying that we all, and this is hopeful to me, equal. All of us are equal at the foot of the cross. There's no one righteous, no, not one. Don't take it as I'm saying, oh, I'm up here on this platform and y'all are awful. No, we're all awful except, well, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.

Now, they had to look forward to Messiah. We look back to him. He says all of the people around me, it seems like they're lying in wait for bloodshed. Each of them is hunting the other with a net. It's just a dog eat dog world.

It's constant. And it doesn't feel like it's gonna get any better. He says, as for evil, both hands do it well. Now, what I wanted for this to say is right and left both do it equally well. It's not what it says.

It's not what it says. It's saying the leader asked for a bribe, also the judge asked for a bribe, and the great one speaks his capricious desires of his soul, and they all plot together. It's about intensity. Everybody gets together and plots. Both hands do it well.

The leader, the judge, the great one, they plot together. And the best of them is like a thorn bush, the most upright is like a thorn hedge. The day when you post your watchman, your punishment is coming. So he is being the watchman right here. Micah is saying, the day when you post your watchman, we know the punishment is coming.

He's pronouncing judgment, and he's saying, then their confusion will occur. There are a lot of people who think that they're doing the right thing because it's the way of the world and they've just figured out a system. They're receiving some sort of charge for it, some sort of financial or fame or whatever. And the reason that they're doing it is for that, and then the confusion will occur when all of that is not God's way. It was not God's way.

Micah goes on, don't trust a neighbor, don't have confidence in a close friend, guard your lips from her who lies in your arms because dysfunction abounds. Son disavows father, daughter rises up against mother, daughter-in-law against mother-in-law, a person's enemies or the people of his own household. This is what Micah is seeing and he is dismayed by it. He is lamenting it. He finds no godly people, sees injustice abound, family disorders abounding.

And then he gets to this, and it is super hopeful. But as for me, I'm gonna be on watch for the Lord. Can can we agree with Micah right here? Do y'all look around and think, man, it's pretty rough. But as for me, I'm gonna look out for you, Lord.

If you show me your way, I'll walk in it. He's given us his word. He's given us an example of what it's like to live without the Holy Spirit indwelling us in the Old Testament and then the possibility of that indwelling Holy Spirit in the New Testament by Christ sacrifice. As for me, I'll be on watch for the Lord. That's super hopeful.

I will wait for the God of my salvation. I'm not gonna make a worldly selfish move on my own behalf. I'm waiting for the God of my salvation. My God will hear me. I'm reaching out to him.

Don't rejoice over me, enemy of mine. Though I fall, I will rise. Humble yourself under the mighty hand of God and he will exalt you at the proper time. Though I live in darkness, which is a statement of humility. Though I live in darkness, the Lord is a light.

Amen. Is that hopeful or what? Yeah. God is good. Y'all didn't do the all the time thing.

Every time I ever say that, God is good. All the time. And all the time. Even in the midst of all this judgment, right? Personal salvation is still possible.

He's only asking that you humble yourself before him, you acknowledge him. Whether you have little or where you have much, he's just asking that you acknowledge him. Do justly love, mercy, and walk humbly with the Lord your God. I will endure. Micah says, I will endure the rage of the Lord.

I trust him because I have since sinned against him. I know I have. I know I don't deserve the salvation he offers. I will endure whatever rage he has because I've sinned against him until he pleads my case, Jesus. Until he executes justice for me, he will bring me out to the light, and I will look at his righteousness.

This is glorious Christmas news right here. And then my enemy will see, and the enemy will see and shame will cover her who said to me, where's the Lord your God? Why is he why is he not acting on your behalf? And my eyes will look at her. At that time that she'll be trampled down like the mud of the streets, And I will be and it will be a day for building your walls.

On that day, your boundary will be extended. It will be a day when they'll come up from Assyria and the cities of Egypt, from Egypt to the Euphrates, even from the seed of the mountain of the mountain, and the earth will become a wasteland because of her inhabitants on account of the fruit of her deeds. This is hopeful, whether it sounds like it or not, because God will not be mocked. Shepherd your people. This is his prayer, that first part was a lament.

This is a prayer, and we're closing in on the end of this book. Shepherd your people with your scepter. Your king Jesus, shepherd your people. The flock of your possession, which lives by itself in the woodland in the midst of the fruitful field. Let them feed on good pasture land in Bashan and Gilead as in the days of old.

As in the days when you went out from the land of Egypt, I will show you miracles. He's quoting and he's asking God to show them his way. Shepherd your people. Nations will see and they'll be ashamed of all their might, and they will put their hand to their mouth, and their ears will be deaf, and they'll lick up the dust like a snake like reptiles of the earth. They will come trembling out of their fortresses to the Lord.

That's hopeful. It sounds awful, honestly, at the beginning. It sounds really, really bad. But he's saying they're gonna recognize the limits of worldly power. That's hopeful.

They're gonna come to the Lord, and they will come in fear, and that's the beginning of wisdom. Who is a God like you? Who is a God like you who pardons wrongdoing and passes over the rebellious acts of the remnant of his possession? Who is a God like you? The character of God is on display.

He, it says, delights in mercy. He does not retain his anger forever because he delights in mercy. Now, we talk about grace and mercy a lot. Grace is when you get something good you do not deserve, and mercy is when you don't get something bad you do deserve. And God delights in mercy.

Every sin that's ever been committed will either be justly condemned or it will be mercifully forgiven. And God delights in mercy. So all he's asking for is humility because the steadfast love of the Lord endures forever. He will again take pity on us. Micah says confidently, he will trample on our wrongdoings.

Yes, Lord. Like you promised, you'll cast all of their sins into the depths of the sea and you will give truth. Jesus says, I'm the way, I'm the truth, and I'm the life. You'll give truth to your people and you'll give favor to Abraham, which you swore to our forefathers from the days of old, and you, Lord, are not a liar. You are good.

Amen. Now, that concludes Micah, but this hopeful forecast is in the day when we would have access to God by way of the blood of Christ. He gives us a little picture. Zechariah gives us a little picture. We have a lot of different little pictures that are Christ concealed in the Old Testament, but this is a new testament table about the new covenant.

It's an open table to anybody who has put their faith in Christ. I don't care what denomination you are. Okay. It's an open table. So if you have put your faith in Christ, this is a time of communion with the church, the capital c church, all believers.

I'm gonna invite the elders, ushers to come forward and band to come back forward. Actually, let me just get Lisa and Em. Thank you. And would you pray with me? Lord God Almighty, I thank you for I thank you for giving us the good news.

Lord, it stands out in such stark contrast when we also pay attention to the bad news. So as we turn our hearts toward Christmas and the joy of the season, may we find that joy in Jesus and may that be what drives us, Lord. For his life that was perfectly lived out, we are gonna distribute this little this little representation of his body, this little cracker, which is a representation of the perfect record of Jesus that was given on behalf of all who would believe. So, Lord God almighty, I pray that you'd bless this as we distribute it in each family, each individual, and each family would be blessed through it in Jesus name. Amen.

Thy people free from our fears and sins release us. Let us find our rest indeed. Israel's strength and consolation, hope of On the same night that Jesus was betrayed, he took bread after supper and after he had given thanks, he said to those who were there with him and his voice rings out in scripture to us still today. He says, this is my body which is given for you. This, take it in and eat of it as often as you will in remembrance of me.

Next, we're gonna pass out a little plastic cup of grape juice. And I know it was wine in the day and it probably wasn't gluten free bread in the past either. It's a different thing, but it is a symbol of all that Christ had done in his life and in his death. And so I'm gonna pray. Lord, would you bless each one that partakes, each one that accepts the blood of the covenant, the new covenant, Lord, that's represented right here in this little plastic cup of grape juice.

In Jesus name, Lord, we gather and I pray that for anyone whether they have known this and believed it for many many many years or whether it's been in the last fifteen minutes, they've come to trust you, Lord. All of those, Lord, are welcome to this open table. In Jesus' name, I ask your blessing on this little representation of his blood as we distribute it. Amen. Amen.

In the same manner that he had taken the bread, he also took the cup and he said to his disciples there, that this is the new covenant in my blood. Amen. This is the new covenant in my blood. Take it in, drink of it as often as you will and do it in remembrance of me. Amen.

I've got one quick story. Do I have time? Boy scouts are here this morning. I had a boy scout little meeting in my office a while back and there are two boy scouts, one of them been in church his whole life, one of them had not. And these two boy scouts were doing the religious badge.

And I said, so tell me what is it that you do? I mean, I I explained the whole deal. They they said, say what you gotta say. Explained the whole gospel, did what I did. We met for several weeks.

I said, so tell me what it is. Is it that God expects from us? What is the way of salvation? What is the gospel? Can you tell me that?

And the boy who'd been in church his whole life goes, I gotta be nice to my little sister. I gotta be do this. I gotta be this. He listed off the old covenant stuff. And then I looked at the other kid and he goes, you said Jesus did it.

Right? I said, yeah. He goes, I'll take that. That's it. Would you stand with us?

We're gonna close with a song. Amen. Russ and Yvonne Wood are here this morning. If you all heard last week about the accident that they had on Saturday evening, they're here and they're thankful. And they said, thank you for the meal train, which is ongoing.

We really really appreciate it. And they are here. If you wanna greet them and see them, don't squeeze them too hard because they have broken ribs. But they love you and they wanted to kind of announce a thank you to the church for all that y'all have done in the in the past week for them. So, thank you very much and may God bless you.

May we all do justly and love, mercy, and walk humbly with the Lord our God. Amen. Good job. Perfect. Great stuff.

Yeah.