Micah 4 … Consider What He Has Purposed in the Last Days

Originally posted: 10/31/2021

And it will come about in the last days
That the mountain of the house of the Lord
Will be established as the chief of the mountains.
It will be raised above the hills,
And the peoples will stream to it, (4:1).

Some days it’s a challenge to see the light that is coming. And I’ll be honest, sometimes looking for hope when things seem to be going so wrong takes a lot of faith muscle. And when it feels like evil is ahead in the race, where do we turn? When life casts the shadows of doubt that threaten to obscure our hope and sap our strength, what are we to do?

And surely there were some in Micah’s day who believed the Word of the Lord, who were fighting to persevere amidst the corruption and injustice. Though they may have been small in number, they were not insignificant. For the Lord had a plan and Purpose for His remnant; and what He has planned and Purposed cannot be thwarted

The LORD of Hosts has purposed, and who can thwart Him? His hand is outstretched, so who can turn it back? (Isaiah 14:27 BSB).

And all those who would not be swept away by the tide of popular opinion, would be brought in to What He Has Purposed in the Last Days.

Consider What He Has Purposed in the Last Days

• In the Last Days, He Has Purposed His place of worship will be established and elevated.
  • And it will come about in the last days
    That the mountain of the house of the Lord
    Will be established as the chief of the mountains.
    It will be raised above the hills,
    And the peoples will stream to it, (4:1).

• In the Last Days, He Has Purposed He will teach us to walk in His ways.
  • Many nations will come and say,
    “Come and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord
    And to the house of the God of Jacob,
    That He may teach us about His ways
    And that we may walk in His paths.”
    For from Zion will go forth the law,
    Even the word of the Lord from Jerusalem, (4:2).

• In the Last Days, He Has Purposed there will no longer be any weapons or war.
  • And He will judge between many peoples
    And render decisions for mighty, distant nations.
    Then they will hammer their swords into plowshares
    And their spears into pruning hooks;
    Nation will not lift up sword against nation,
    And never again will they train for war, (4:3).

• In the Last Days, He Has Purposed there will be peace without fear.
  • Each of them will sit under his vine
    And under his fig tree,
    With no one to make them afraid,
    For the mouth of the Lord of hosts has spoken, (4:4).

• In the Last Days, He Has Purposed to gather the outcasts who have been afflicted.
  • “In that day,” declares the Lord,
    “I will assemble the lame
    And gather the outcasts,
    Even those whom I have afflicted,” (4:6).

• In the Last Days, He Has Purposed He will make the remnant strong under His eternal reign.
  • “I will make the lame a remnant
    And the outcasts a strong nation,
    And the Lord will reign over them in Mount Zion
    From now on and forever,” (4:7).

• In the Last Days, He Has Purposed He will establish the dominion of His Kingdom.
  • “As for you, tower of the flock,
    Hill of the daughter of Zion,
    To you it will come—
    Even the former dominion will come,
    The kingdom of the daughter of Jerusalem,” (4:8).

• In the Last Days, He Has Purposed He will bring judgment against those who have gloated in their haughty ignorance of His thoughts and purpose.
  • “And now many nations have been assembled against you
    Who say, ‘Let her be polluted,
    And let our eyes gloat over Zion.’
    ¹² “But they do not know the thoughts of the Lord,
    And they do not understand His purpose;
    For He has gathered them like sheaves to the threshing floor,” (4:11-12).

How do we respond to What He Has Purposed in the Last Days?

I had a routine doctor’s appointment with my Physician’s Assistant this week. I look forward to these routine visits because my PA is a believer who loves Jesus. And a great deal of our time is spent in sharing the great things the Lord has done in our lives and in our families. And besides that, he has twins sons who are now in college, so as the grandmother of young twins, I appreciate his insight on how to thrive through the throes of “twinsanity.”

And this week, we couldn’t help but talk about the condition of our times, both agreeing that even though the future seems shaky and uncertain, we are certain of our future because we know and love Jesus and can confidently trust What He Has Purposed in the Last Days.

“Do not let your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me. ² In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. ³ If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also,” (John 14:1-3).

Jesus has assured us that He has gone to get our place in heaven prepared before He returns to takes us to live with Him in His established place of worship, to eternally learn His ways in perfect peace, and to forever live as His strengthened remnant under His rule and reign. And until that Day, He has called us to live by faith in all His promises and believe What He Has Purposed in the Last Days, so that we will not lose heart during these days of our waiting here on earth.

Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day. ¹⁷ For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison,  ¹⁸ while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal, (2 Corinthians 4:16-18).

So how are to “look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen;” when the stuff we see presses in all around us? We need His Word each and every day. For in His Word He reveals to us the eternal things, the things that we can’t see, but the things that truly matter. It is in His Word that He reveals His eternal Perspective:

His Promises. His Plans. His Provision. His Power. His Peace. His Presence. His Purpose for those who belong to Him! And our eternity so far outweighs the problems of this life!

When we fixate on the problems of life we lose our confidence in the light that is coming. Oh, let us daily choose to focus on the Truths of His Word in the midst of our afflictions; so that even when things seem to be going so wrong, even when it feels like evil is ahead in the race, even when life casts the shadows of doubt that threaten to obscure our hope and sap our strength, let us never forget that the problems of this life are temporary!

Oh, that we would have the faith of Job to stand on His Truth with the full assurance that What He Has Purposed in the Last Days can never be thwarted!

“I know that You can do all things,
And that no purpose of Yours can be thwarted,” (Job 42:2).

Let’s Grow Together!