“And He shall stand and feed in the strength of the LORD, in the majesty of the name of the LORD His God; and they shall abide: for now shall He be great unto the ends of the earth.” (Micah 5:4)
Micah prophesies about the birth of Jesus and His work in this chapter. Both Micah and Isaiah prophesied about Jesus feeding the people. “Behold, the Lord GOD will come with strong hand, and His arm shall rule for Him: behold, His reward is with Him, and His work before Him. He shall feed His flock like a shepherd: He shall gather the lambs with His arm, and carry them in His bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young.” (Isaiah 40:10-11) They use the same word for feed which means to tend as a herdsman or shepherd. When Jesus comes, He refers to Himself as a shepherd. “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of My hand.” (John 10:27-28) To understand the role of Jesus in our lives we must understand the role of the shepherd. Yes, it means to care for and as Isaiah prophesied, lead us. But the sheep were totally dependent on the shepherd not only to care for, lead and protect, but to have the sheep in the exact place he wanted for their good. He led them to the green pastures and still waters which they needed to sustain them. He led them to places that perhaps they didn’t want to go, but He gently nudged them to a place of protection and provision. Sometimes one would go astray, but they were never lost to the Shepherd. He would leave the ninety-nine to go after the stubborn one as in the parable He told of the Lost Sheep to illustrate His role as shepherd. (Matthew 18:11-14; Luke 15:4-7) Those that belong to Him are not lost forever. Jesus seeks us and finds us where and when we need Him to bring us back to Him. We belong to Him, the Great Shepherd and will never allow any power on earth or in the unseen world to snatch us out of His hand. We are forever kept in His hand and in the Father’s hand. (John 10:28, 29)
It's interesting that this Scripture says that Jesus assumes His role and does His work in the “strength of the Lord.” He is Lord and He is God. But we see this continually in the Gospels, He only did and said what the Father wanted. Everything is orchestrated by the Father. The Father is the ultimate word and the ultimate authority. And just as we can bear no fruit or be productive on our own, but must be connected to Jesus, all of creation bows to the Word and authority of the Father who is the One caring for everything. Jesus said, “I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman.” (John 15:1) In praying, Jesus said, “All things are delivered unto Me of My Father: and no man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal Him.” (Matthew 11:27) And at the end of all things, Jesus gives all back to the Father. “Then cometh the end, when He shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when He shall have put down all rule and all authority and power.” (1Corinthians 15:24)
We have to be so careful not to take the things of the Lord lightly. We do this unknowingly when we start doing things from rote memory and going through the motions without focusing on what we’re doing. Even prayer becomes this spiel of phrases that we use over and over and don’t have the meaning nor connection of our soul’s yearning for His presence for which reason we have come. It’s a privilege and honor given only to the children of God (Hebrews 4:16) and should not be a repetition of words, but heartfelt communication with our Lord and God. The word pray means different things in the Old Testament Hebrew and New Testament Greek. In the Old Testament it means an offering. In the New Testament it means a request. Jesus combines these two and teaches us how to pray. He taught that to pray is to address the Father, to offer praise and worship to the Father recognizing His majesty and greatness. Then Jesus taught that we can make requests for provision, natural and spiritual in asking for bread and forgiveness. (Matthew 6:9-13)
The phrase “...and they shall abide...” does not refer to the Father and Jesus, but Micah is referring to the remnant of Israel which will believe in Jesus their Messiah and become part of the church. Peter wrote about those who are born again to a living hope. “Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.” (1Peter 1:5) This refers to all, Jew and Gentile who will belong to Jesus. All will be revealed at the “last time” as Peter calls it.
Micah ends this verse with “... for now shall He be great unto the ends of the earth.” This is part of the promise from the Lord the angel pronounced to Mary. “He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto Him the throne of His father David: And He shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of His kingdom there shall be no end.” (Luke 1:32-33) John describes this scene in heaven with the seventh angel. “And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of His Christ; and He shall reign for ever and ever.” (Revelation 11:15)
Micah caught in entirety the role of Jesus and the Father from His coming prophecy by Isaiah to the proclamation of all things belonging to the Father. Jesus has fulfilled every prophecy about Him up to now. There is still prophecy that needs to be fulfilled, and it will be in God’s perfect time.
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