Aj Schwanz

Yesterday at our worship gathering we watched a dramatic presentation of the book of Micah:¬† not necessarily a Hallmark, touchy-feely event.¬† As a church body we’ve been working through the book for the past couple of weeks, noting that there’s some hard stuff dealt with (condemnation’s rarely easy), but that there’s also a message of hope and deliverance.
While the Israelites probably didn’t have a multiple readers (much less a boy and girl both reading the parts of God and Micah) or choreographed movements, they did intend for their Scriptures to be read outloud, and I can understand why.¬† Man, it was hard to avoid the reality of the events:¬† the blatent turning away from God that Judah and Israel performed, the harsh pronouncements of judgment, the pain and suffering that was coming no matter how hard they tried to squirm out of it.¬† I squirmed in my seat a number of times, wanting to get up and leave as they actors chanted, “Doom.¬† Doom.¬† Doom.”

At the end of service, Gregg shared hope that came out of Micah:  a promised Deliverer whose reality we live in today.  We offered up words of hope and experience.

While I think it was good, though uncomfortable, to experience this, I wonder if there should’ve been more words offered giving background context – not so much on the book of Micah (we’ve gotten that), but on the purpose of the prophetic books . . . in society today.¬† See, I’ve sensed that the days of the Doom and Gloom prophets have set:¬† this seems to be a pre-Christ thing.¬† Now that Christ has come and we are called ot live in the Kingdom of God *now*, it doesn’t seem that such voices are accurate: they contain truth, but it’s truth viewed through an Old Testament/pre-Christ lens.

I couldn’t pinpoint my dis-ease until a Friend stood up and shared, “In Christ, there is no condemnation!”¬† and my heart rang out with a hearty, “YES!!!”¬† We have been put into Christ; our sins forgiven.¬† We are called to walk a different path, live a different life, sit at the feet of God and allow Him to redeem and transform us.

So, where do the Old Testament prophetic voices fit into our lives today?  What do prophetic voices of today sound like?  Do I know how to listen for the right voice?  Am I faithful to respond?