June 26, 2023
Passage Read: Micah 5 - Nahum 1
Meditation Verse: Micah 5:2
Thought
The priests of Jesus's day knew that the Messiah was supposed to be both in Bethlehem based on this verse, but they didn't recognize that his origin was from of old and from ancient times? It didn't occur to them that the Messiah might be someone very special and unique? Surely it would be hard to comprehend based on our usual experience and way of thinking, but when the prophet says that the one to come from Bethlehem and return as king would also be very ancient, shouldn't they expect something outside their experience? Moses or Abraham raised from the dead? God Himself?
Application
There are so many things that make the Bible hard to understand, and one of them is limiting God and His word by our understanding of the world around us. When He says something that I can't fathom, that is so far from the ordinary, I can't choose to ignore it. I can't accept half a verse because I can imagine how it can be fulfilled and reject the other half because I can't imagine how it could be true. Every word of God is flawless. There are no mistakes. So when He says something that seems impossible, I have to believe that He can bring it to pass. Though I don't understand how, it is still true. Jesus was born in Bethlehem and as God, His origin was from ancient times, His coming and going from eternity! God didn't lie and He didn't stretch the truth or use clever simile. He meant exactly what He said! I need to trust that every impossible-to-be-true passage will most likely come about exactly as written.