The sins of the people
Micah 1.1 - 2.5
Woe to those who plan iniquity, to those who plot evil on their beds!
Prepare
What is distracting you today? Reflect on it and deliberately put it on one side (if it helps, picture doing it). Take a deep breath – be still – and let the air out, slowly.
Read
Explore
‘Hear... listen... look’ (1.2-3). Pay attention – this is important. Put down your smartphone, turn off your TV, forget about dinner – this is way more important. Pay attention...
The Lord is coming (1.3).
Wouldn’t you love to hear those four words? God’s people longed for that day, when the mountains would melt and the valleys split (1.4). The coming of God will be a wonderful moment, unless we have something to hide.
They did. They collected the nations’ idols as the wages of their prostitution (1.7), they coveted, stole and cheated (2.2); and that is only the beginning of the charges. And what is worse: they deliberately plotted and planned their sin (2.1). So God’s plan for them is disaster, ruin and ridicule (2.3-4).
I find it easier to confess the things I do by mistake, and the things I fail to do; it’s harder to admit the things I do deliberately. In those moments we forget how serious sin is. Micah’s response to Israel’s sin is sobering: he wept, wailed, howled and moaned (1.8).
Respond
Is there something you need to confess today, something you do deliberately and need to stop? Tell God about it: say sorry and receive his forgiveness. If appropriate ask a trusted friend or family member to hold you to account, to help you stop.