Micha - More than Just an Old Memory (2/2)

Micah - More than Just an Old Memory (2/2) - Micah 4:1-2, 5

Thank you for being here this evening. I am honored and excited to open up Gods Word with you tonight and see what it has in store for us this evening…

If you were with us last week… you would remember that we looked at Micah 2:1-2 and learned to important take-aways from the passage:

Those who plan WICKEDNESS have been WARNED

In other words, it is wrong for us to meditate on, think about, and devise evil in our minds and hearts… to ponder, think about, and partake in sins is something we ought not do… and we have been warned by God to not do this…

We looked at Zechariah 8:17

Zechariah 8:17 (ESV)

do not devise evil in your hearts against one another, and love no false oath, for all these things I hate, declares the Lord.”

2. Those who COVET are setting themselves up for CATASTROPHE

If we COVET something… we deeply desire it above all else… the only one worthy of wearing the crown of what we covet is Christ… and no one else…

We also learned that Micah is the shortened name for Micaiah, that Micah prophesied for 25 years, and that book of Micah was believed to be written about 2,700 years ago (give or take a year or two)…

This week however, we are turning our attention to Micah 4:1-2 and verse 5…

But before we do… keep in mind that we always ask ourselves two very important questions when we approach God’s Word…

What is God Teaching us through this text?

How does this teaching apply to our lives today?

With those two questions in mind… please follow along with me as I read Micah 4:1-2 and verse 5

Micah 4:1–2 (ESV)

It shall come to pass in the latter days

that the mountain of the house of the Lord

shall be established as the highest of the mountains,

and it shall be lifted up above the hills;

and peoples shall flow to it,

and many nations shall come, and say:

“Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,

to the house of the God of Jacob,

that he may teach us his ways

and that we may walk in his paths.”

For out of Zion shall go forth the law,

and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.

Skip down to Micah 4:5

Micah 4:5 (ESV)

For all the peoples walk

each in the name of its god,

but we will walk in the name of the Lord our God

forever and ever.

So what is happening in Micah 4:1-2 and verse 5? What is God attempting to teach us through the Book of Micah and these verses?

POINT #1: Keep your FOCUS on the FUTURE

I can remember my parents telling me save my money when I was younger… in middle school… and in high school… because they knew that in the future… I would need it…

I can remember my teachers telling me to practice for and study for the ACT… for it would help me with scholarships when I went to college…

I can recall my coaches telling me to practice in the off-season in order to prepare for next years season…

But one thing I remember most is my mom telling me that I should be grateful for my brother and sister… that I should try to be nice and kind to them because they are gift and a blessing to have… she said this because she was an only child and wished she had a brother or sister to hang out with… my mom knew that friends come and go but family is something that lasts forever… My brother and I would fight constantly growing up… we were the complete opposite of one another… he was tall… I am short… he can sing… I sound like a deer that just hit in the throat with a stick… he can play the piano and saxophone… I have been trying to learn the guitar for about 8 months know and have retained nothing… I have a size 8 1/2 foot… he is a size 12… He can draw and is creative… the only thing I can do is write pretty… I played sports… he cant walk in a straight without falling… we literally are the exact opposites… and I did not see any reason why I should try to get to know him better or be intentional with him…

You see… my brother and I shared the same room… but never shared each others lives with one another…

Why? Because I was focused on me… what I was doing that day… my life in the moment… what was best for me… and not considering him at all…

In fact, I can remember making him so mad and it bringing me so much happiness. I would make fun of him and annoy him just for a reaction or explosion…

I share all this with you because my brother and I have a broken relationship today… I do not know him well…

I had not seen him in 3 1/2 years… but He was just in town this past weekend… and yet, we did not have an actual serious or intentional conversation… it was all subsurface… why? because our relationship is shallow…

My relationship with my brother today… is a result of me not looking ahead to the future…

My brother today struggles with sin… does not know the Lord as his savior… and is lost…

I wonder… if I would have listened to my parents… I wonder if I would have intentionally been their for him, loved him, and actually tried to get to know him, what he likes, and who he is…. I wonder if your future or today would look different…

You see… I was not focused on the future with my brother… and as a result the future that I have with my brother is fragile, shallow, and almost non-existant

You might be thinking… Oh Tanner… that is just unfortunate… brothers do not get along… it is a thing… it happens… people grow apart…

Sadly, I am working through a similar situation with my sister… I have a younger sister who just graduated from WKU… she just moved back home just a few months ago… Her name is Taite… and she is by far the coolest, kindest, and one of the most tender hearted people I have ever met… Brooke and I bought her a cheap kirige for her when she went to college… and she literally just completely fell apart and cried because she was so thankful for the kirige…

But, Taite and I have recently gotten together once a month to catch up, talk about life, and get to know each other better. But, one of the saddest moments occured that last time we met… she and I had just finished talking about our family… and she looked at me and said… “You know what Tanner… this might actually be our first serious conversation”…

My sister is 22 Years Old… and first the literal first time in 22 years… she and I just a couple months ago had our first serious conversation… why?

Because I wasn't worried about, thinking about, or considering the future with her… I did not invision what the future looked like with my siblings… and because I did not focus on a future with them… My eyes and heart were set on myself… and it cost me dearly…

In the same way, Micah 4:1 in the NLT says,

“In the last days, the mountain of the Lord’s house will be the highest of all - the most important place on earth.

It will be raised above the other hills, and people from all over the world will stream there to worship.”

There is a day in the near future… when Lord’s house will be established… and his reign will extend across the globe… and where many will flood to him to hear his teaching…

There is a day in the near future… when the Lord will return…

There is a day in the near future… when all will proclaim the glory of the Lord and bow down in presence…

There is a day in the near future that every tongue will not be able to contain how great the Lord is…

My question to you this evening is… when is the last time you thought about this day…

When was the last time you got excited about the Lords return?

When was the last time you thought to yourself… I look forward and long for the day when Gods kingdom is established… when he rules and reigns?

When is the last time you talked to someone about when the Lord is coming and returning?

Or are your thoughts simply consumed with you… the game you went to the other day… the practice you had… the drama that is going on… the person you are interested in… your school work… your friends…

In other words… are you focused on a future that is framed around your savior? Or are you focused on a future that is framed around you?

Romans 8:19 says,

“19.) For all creation is waiting eagerly for that future day when God will reveal who his children really are…21.) Creation looks forward to the day when it will join God’s children in glorious freedom from death and decay!”

EAGER = “An intensely desired expectation with a high confidence of fulfillment”

Are you intensely desiring and expecting with a high confidence the future day when the Lord will return? If not… why not?

If you aren’t looking forward to it today, you will not ready for it tomorrow…

POINT #2: The Time you spend with someone TODAY… will reveal where you end up with them TOMORROW…

I want to be clear… you will not look forward to a future with the Lord… if you are not walking with Lord… If you are not spending time with the Lord today… it will reveal where your relationship is headed tomorrow…

I love my wife… she is way out of my league… in literally every aspect of my life…

I get frustrated with her sometimes because I make friends… then my friends meet her… and realize that she is way cooler than I am… and then they end up hanging out with her… (KAT)… She is so cool…

She broke me out of my box when I was younger… I was shy… and quiet… but Brooke… she was fun, exciting, just simply always seemed like she was living!

I can remember the first time she came over to my parents house… it was the 4th of July… and she convinced my parents to let us go up on the roof and watch the fireworks…

that same night… she looked at me in eyes and said… lets lay in the street and look up at the stars…

G‌uys… this girl was and in is absolutely amazing!

I was enamored by her… I could not stop thinking about her… and I could not imagine a life or a single day without her when we were dating…

I can remember staying up on the phone and talking for hours… in fact, one time we were on the phone all night… stayed up the entire night until the morning… just simply talking… I was so hooked… that she even got me to sing “I can only imagine” - by the casting crowns, over the phone…

Yes… it was sad… I was hooked… she was in complete control…

But she and Lived life together for 7 years… we got to know each other because we lived life together day-after-day. The future we had envisioned and dreamed of was built off of the day-to-day devotion we showed each other…

my point is this…

The tomorrow you have with someone… is built off your today…

The relationship that I have with my wife today… is based upon the time, effort, attention, affection, forgiveness, love, mercy, sacrifice, and grace that we displayed to one another yesterday…

I look forward to our future and tomorrow… because I know we will continue to walk narrow path of love. commitment, sacrifice, grace, love, mercy, and forgiveness today…

Look at Micah 4:5 NLT, it says,

“5.) Though the nations around us follow their idols, we will follow the LORD our God forever and ever”.

Notice what is at the end of this verse… we will follow the LORD our God forever and ever…

Friends… forever has a first day… In other words, to follow the LORD forever… requires that you have a first day with him… When does your first day of forever start?

When are you going to commit to a life that follows the Lord? When is that first day of forever for you?

Remember, you cant worship the Lord forever unless you have had a first day…

Brooke and I had a forever first day… it was at the drive in movie theater - the “Star Light Movie Theater”… Ands trust me… I was awkward… I was not proficient… smooth… or clean with it on our first date… I was nervous… not sure how to even go on a date… Next steps… didn't have them… no plan in place… I was not cool at all… all I had was clammy hands… but I knew that I wanted to spend forever with her… and every forever begins with a first day…

Guys, some of you today can not think about a life that worships the Lord forever… because your have not committed to a first day with the Lord…

In other words, in order to be excited about a forever with the Lord… you have to develop a daily devotion with him…

And I get it… you may not have a plan… it may be awkward… you may have no idea what you are doing… you may open your bible and think… where do I go next? How do I talk to you Lord? How should I pray? I get it… you may not be smooth with it… you may not be proficient at it… you may get clammy hands and get nervous to dive into your Bible… I got it…

But you have to remember… “The TIME you spend with someone TODAY will reveal where you end up with them TOMORROW…

Are you spending time with the LORD today?

Do you look forward to spending time with him Tomorrow?

Do you eagerly await a future with him forever?

Every forever has a first day…

*Bonus - your desire to spend time with the LORD each day and looking forward to a future with him must be fueled by LOVE…

Isaiah 53:5 (ESV)

But he was pierced for our transgressions;

he was crushed for our iniquities;

upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,

and with his wounds we are healed.

A future and forever with Christ is built upon his LOVE… if you have not experienced the love or compassion of Christ for your sins… tonight I want to let you know that you can know the love of Christ…

The love I have for my wife was not built upon a knowledge of who she is, her background, her family, her intelligence, or even her beauty… The love that I have broke comes from the reality that Brooke has loved me at worst… she has stepped into my life and shown me unconditional love when I do not deserve it… and our relationship is built on love…

friends… Jesus has stepped down from heaven into your mess… loved you not just with his words… but his actions… and he offers a future and a forever with him in heaven…

What is God teaching us through Micah 4:1-2 & verse 5?

1.) Keep your FOCUS on the FUTURE

2.) The TIME you spend with someone TODAY will reveal where you end up with them TOMORROW