Micah 4:1-5:4

“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of you shall come forth to Me the One to be Ruler in Israel, whose goings forth are from of old, from everlasting.” (Micah 5:2, NKJV)

God loves to choose small things to do great work. Solomon tells us to consider the ant. Though they have no prince or governor or ruler to make them work, they labor hard all summer, gathering food for the winter (Proverbs 6:7–8). We should learn from this tiny creature and not be lazy.

When God wanted to bring forth His Messiah into the world, He chose a little town that was not even mentioned among the cities of Judah when Joshua conquered the land. But from Bethlehem would come the Ruler whose origins are from eternity.

“And He shall stand and feed His flock In the strength of the LORD, in the majesty of the name of the LORD His God, and they shall abide. For now He shall be great to the ends of the earth, and this One shall be peace.” (Micah 5:4–5a, NKJV)

We just celebrated His birth in Bethlehem. He is the Prince of Peace who brings us peace with God through His sacrifice for our sins. How wonderful is the perfect peace He brings to all who trust in Him! But we long for the day when He will come again to establish His kingdom reign on earth. Then there will be no more war. It will be a time of prosperity, worship and righteousness such as the world has never known.

But in the meantime, we can know this Ruler as our Shepherd and the King of our hearts. He feeds us with His Word. We abide in Him as our shelter from the enemy, and He protects us through the power of His Name. We don’t need to be afraid about the future because there will be no end to the increase of His government and peace (Isaiah 9:7).

You may be small and insignificant in the eyes of the world, but if you know Him, then you have a treasure beyond anything this world can offer.

Come, let us adore Him!