Israel presumes God’s patience is Infinite

Micah Israel

Wednesday 03/09/22 

Series: Thru the Bible

Message – Israel presumes God’s patience is Infinite

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Israel presumes God’s patience is Infinite

Micah’s ministry was approximately between 737-696 BC, making him a contemporary of the prophets Isaiah, Amos and Hosea. He prophesied during the reigns of Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah in Judah, not mentioning the terrible kings of the Northern Kingdom who reigned simultaneously.

He was from the tribe of Ephraim and was a prophet who came from the small town of Moresheth, a largely agrarian part of the country near the border of Judah and Philistia just twenty-five or so miles southwest of Jerusalem. Though he lived in Judah his ministry seemed to encompass both kingdoms.

He is considered one of the twelve minor prophets and was actively involved in his ministry before the fall of Israel to the Assyrian Empire 722 BC. which he also predicted in the sixth verse of the book. He also experienced the invasion of Sennacherib in Judah in 701 BC

Micah was one with the poor people in the land and was therefore easily able to identify with the mistreatment of the poor by the rich and powerful in the nation. Micah makes particular mention of the lame, the outcasts, and the afflicted in chapter 4:6 and by God’s Spirit directed a great deal of his prophetic warnings to the leaders of Samaria and Jerusalem, both capital cities of Israel and Judah, respectively.

Judah had been on a bit of a roller coaster ride in terms of kings and their spiritual deportment. They went from the good reign of Jotham (2 Kings 15:32–34); to that of Ahaz, an evil king (2 Kings 16:1–4) then to Hezekiah an outstanding king (2 Kings 18:1–7)…this continued beyond Micah’s life to Manasseh and evil king (2Kings 21:1-18) to Josiah arguably one of the greatest kings in either kingdom other than perhaps David (2Kings 21:19-26).

Micah is the only prophetic book to mention Bethlehem as being both little or insignificant among the thousands of Judah (Micah 5:2) but which was also to be the birthplace of Messiah

The book of Micah’s major topics were the judgment of Israel and Judah (Micah 1:1–3:12) AND the far future restoration of ALL of Israel in the millennial kingdom (4:1–5:15). 

Micah’s words seem to be held in very high esteem by later prophets and teachers. References to him are made many times. For example, the prophecy concerning the coming of a warless world, found toward the beginning of Chapter 4, is quoted more frequently than any other portion of the book and is identical to one found in Chapter 2 of the Book of Isaiah

Other than the passage regarding Messiah’s birthplace in lowly Bethlehem, perhaps the greatest and best known statement from this account is in Micah 6:6-8 where he clarifies most eloquently what God honestly requires of all mankind. He cuts through all the confusion surrounding the religious worship and observing of requirements regarding righteousness to their point, when he says,

“(6) With what shall I come before the LORD, And bow myself before the High God? Shall I come before Him with burnt offerings, With calves a year old?  (7)  Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams, Ten thousand rivers of oil? Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, The fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?  (8)  He has shown you, O man, what is good; And what does the LORD require of you But to do justly, To love mercy, And to walk humbly with your God?” ~ Micah 6:6-8  

Micah, as a seer in Israel was given the sight and understanding behind all the moral requirements of the law. That the offerings and the sacrifices, the feasts and the new moons were not ends in themselves but rather pointed to conditions of the heart where man longed for and adored their Maker in genuine awe and devotional love and BY THAT ordered the conduct of their lives.

So with that little bit of history under our belt let’s jump right into this amazing book of prophecy.

Micah 1:1-16, 

“(1) This is the LORD’s message that came to Micah of Moresheth during the time of Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, which he saw concerning Samaria and Jerusalem.  (2)  Listen, all you nations!” 

Here at the very beginning of Micah’s prophetic message is the word Shema. As we learned way back in Deuteronomy 6 in our lesson entitled, Shema Israel, the word Shema does not just mean to listen, but it means to hear and obey and carries with it the notion of respect.

Pay attention, all inhabitants of earth! 

The Sovereign LORD will act as a witness against you

the Lord will accuse you from His majestic palace.  

(3)  Look, the LORD is coming out of His dwelling place! He will descend and march on the earth’s mountaintops!  (4)  The mountains will crumble beneath Him; and the valleys will split apart, like wax before a fire, like water dumped down a steep slope.  

(5)  All this is because of Jacob’s rebellion and the sins of the nation of Israel

And just what is Jacob’s rebellion? 

Isn’t it Samaria’s doings? 

And what is Judah’s sin? 

Isn’t it Jerusalem’s doings?  

(6)  “I will turn Samaria into a heap of ruins in an open field, into a place for planting vineyards! 

I will dump the rubble of her walls down into the valley, and lay bare her foundations.  

(7)  All her carved idols will be smashed to pieces; all her metal cult statues will be destroyed by fire. I will make a waste heap of all her images. 

Since she gathered the metal as a prostitute collects her wages, the idols will become a prostitute’s wages again.”  

(8)  For this reason I will mourn and wail; I will walk around barefoot and without my outer garments. I will howl like a wild dog, and screech like an owl.  

(9)  For Samaria’s disease is incurable. It has infected Judah; it has spread to the leadership of my people and even to Jerusalem!  

Beth Leaphrah = house of dust

“(10)  Don’t spread the news in Gath! Don’t shed even a single tear! 

In Beth Leaphrah roll about in mourning in the dust!”

Shaphir = beautiful  

“(11)  Residents of Shaphir, pass by in nakedness and humiliation!” 

Zaanan or Zenan a location in Judah = sheep pasture or place of flocks

“The residents of Zaanan have not escaped.” 

Beth Ezel = Possibly Azal near Jerusalem. It means “house on the side” or “house that is near”. Though so near, as its name implies, to Zaanan, Beth-ezel received no comfort or sympathy from Zaanan since they were both in the throes of the judgment. 

“Beth Ezel mourns, “He takes from you what He desires.”  

Maroth = bitter springs

“(12)  Indeed, the residents of Maroth hope for something good to happen, though the LORD has sent disaster against the city of Jerusalem.”  

Lachish was the place where the invading Assyrian King Sennacherib fixed his headquarters, having already made Nineveh Assyria’s capital. This was the first of Judah’s cities to introduce pagan worship of false gods.

“(13)  Residents of Lachish, hitch the horses to the chariots! You influenced Daughter Zion to sin, for Israel’s rebellious deeds can be traced back to you!”  

Moresheth = possession of. Gath was a city of the Philistines. It was called Moresheth-gath because it had temporarily fallen under the power of the neighboring Philistines of Gath. As the first verse of this book tells us, this was the native town of Micah.

“(14)  Therefore you will have to say farewell to Moresheth Gath.”

Achzib = lying. It was a city of Judah between Keilah and Mareshah which is the next city to me mentioned. As the name implies it will be a lie to Israel and disappoint them by providing no comfort of solace in her distress.

“The residents of Achzib will be as disappointing as a dried up well to the kings of Israel.”  

Mareshah = crest of a hill or summit

Adullam = justice of the people

“(15)  Residents of Mareshah, a conqueror will attack you, the leaders of Israel shall flee to Adullam.  

(16)  Shave your heads bald as you mourn for the children you love; shave your foreheads as bald as an eagle, for they are taken from you into exile.”

Micah 2:1-13, 

Micah here addresses the rich and powerful who use the authority their wealth and positions afford them for evil. Their desires for land, houses and possessions being so great that acquiring them from the poor was what they schemed about and dreamt of on their beds at night, only to make those desires and plans a reality the next day and that by evil force.

“(1) Beware wicked schemers, those who devise calamity as they lie in bed. As soon as morning dawns they carry out their plans, because they have the power to do so.  

(2)  They confiscate the fields they desire, and seize the houses they want. They defraud people of their homes, and deprive people of the land they have inherited.  

(3)  Therefore the LORD says this: “Look, I am devising disaster for this nation! It will be like a yoke from which you cannot free your neck. You will no longer walk proudly, for it will be a time of catastrophe.  

(4)  In that day people will sing this taunt song to you – they will mock you with this lament: 

‘We are completely destroyed; they sell off the property of my people. How they remove it from me! They assign our fields to the conqueror.’  

(5) Therefore no one will assign you land in the LORD’s community. (6)  ‘Don’t preach with such impassioned rhetoric,’ they say excitedly. 

‘These prophets should not preach of such things; we will not be overtaken by humiliation.’  

(7) Does the family of Jacob say, ‘The LORD’s patience can’t be exhausted – He would never do such things’? 

To be sure, My commands bring a reward for those who obey them, (8) but you rise up as an enemy against My people. You steal a robe from a friend, from those who pass by peacefully as if returning from a war.  

(9) You wrongly evict widows among my people from their cherished homes. 

You defraud their children of their prized inheritance.  

(10)  But you are the ones who will be forced to leave! 

For this land is not secure! Sin will thoroughly destroy it!  

(11)  If a lying windbag should come and say, ‘I’ll promise you blessings of wine and beer,’ he would be just the right preacher for these people!  

(12)  I will certainly gather all of you, O Jacob, I will certainly assemble those Israelites who remain. 

I will bring them together like sheep in a fold, like a flock in the middle of a pasture; they will be so numerous that they will make a lot of noise.  

(13)  The one who can break through barriers will lead them out; they will break out, pass through the gate, and leave. 

Their King will advance before them, The LORD Himself will lead them.”

This is talking about the future spiritual beginnings of the Kingdom of God, when the Messiah first comes. Though the passage which may correspond to it in the New Testament is quite difficult to translate, it “may” have reference to the Kingdom of God being powerful and those who enter it do so by seeking it fervently. However, that passage is quite possibly to be translated in the negative as if it is suffering violence and the violent or impetuous person persecutes it.

Micah 3:1-12, 

“(1) I said, “Listen, you leaders of Jacob, you rulers of the nation of Israel

You ought to know what is just,  (2)  yet you hate what is good, and love what is evil. You flay my people’s skin and rip the flesh from their bones.  (3)  You devour my people’s flesh, strip off their skin, and crush their bones. You chop them up like flesh in a pot – like meat in a kettle.”  

These words from Micah are not to be taken literally, but function rather as a comparison. The horrendous social injustices perpetrated by the rich and powerful throughout both kingdoms is being compared to cannibalism, because it threatens the very lives of those oppressed by them.

And this is how God responds…

“(4)  Someday these sinful leaders will cry to the LORD for help, but He will not answer them. He will hide His face from them at that time, because they have done such wicked deeds.”  

Notice God does not take away their power, for it originated FROM Him and the gifts and callings of God are without a change of heart. He WILL however demand an account from them and the way they performed their stewardship He gave them. They ought to have loved mercy and given to the poor and relieved the afflicted, but they rather used their power and influence for their own gain at the expense, suffering and even loss of life of others.

…and now God turns His attention to the false prophets among His people…

“(5)  This is what the LORD has said about the prophets Who mislead my people, “If someone gives them enough to eat, they offer an oracle of peace. But if someone does not give them food, they are ready to declare war on him.  

(6)  Therefore night will fall, and you will receive no visions; it will grow dark, and you will no longer be able to read the omens. 

The sun will set on these prophets, and the daylight will turn to darkness over their heads.  

(7)  The prophets will be ashamed; the omen readers will be humiliated. All of them will cover their mouths, for they will receive no divine oracles.”  

Now Micah expresses the joy of being true to the Lord and his call by Him.

“(8)  But I am full of the courage that the LORD’s Spirit gives, and have a strong commitment to justice. This enables me to confront Jacob with its rebellion, and Israel with its sin.”  

“(9)  Listen to this, you leaders of the family of Jacob, you rulers of the nation of Israel

You hate justice and pervert all that is right.  (10)  You build Zion through bloody crimes, Jerusalem through unjust violence.  

(11)  Her leaders take bribes when they decide legal cases, 

her priests proclaim rulings for profit, 

and her prophets read omens for pay. 

Yet they claim to trust the LORD and say, 

“The LORD is among us. Disaster will not overtake us!”  

(12)  Therefore, because of you, Zion will be plowed up like a field, Jerusalem will become a heap of ruins, and the Temple Mount will become a hill overgrown with brush!”

Now Micah turns a corner and begins to look far off into the future, when Messiah would reign over the earth from David’s throne in Jerusalem in His earthly millennial kingdom.

As I have told you many times, this is one of the reasons why the Jews expected an earthly kingdom to come WITH the advent of the Messiah. They did not have the eyes to see the suffering, death and resurrection of the Messiah. The establishment of a true and lasting righteousness in which honest intimacy with God might be realized. They did not see the temporary falling away of the Jews making way for the time of the Gentiles. Nor did they see the time of great tribulation as taking place prior to the Kingdom of Messiah being established. 

ALL OF THIS conspired together to make Israel blind to the Messiah when He came, bias their opinions against Him, misunderstand His mission and ministry and reduce Him to a prophet at best or a blasphemer at worst.

Micah 4:1-13, 

“(1) In the future the LORD’s Temple Mount will be the most important mountain of all; it will be more prominent than other hills. 

People will stream to it.  

(2)  Many nations will come, saying, “Come on! Let’s go up to the LORD’s mountain, to the temple of Jacob’s God, so he can teach us His ways and we can live by His laws.” 

For instruction will proceed from Zion, the LORD’s message from Jerusalem.  

(3)  He will arbitrate between many peoples and settle disputes between many distant nations. 

They will beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks. Nations will not use weapons against other nations, and they will no longer train for war.  

(4)  Each will sit under his own grapevine or under his own fig tree without any fear. 

The LORD of Heaven’s Armies has decreed it!  

(5)  Though all the nations follow their respective gods, we will follow the LORD our God forever.  

(6)  In that day, says the LORD, “I will gather the lame, and assemble the outcasts whom I injured.  (7)  I will transform the lame into the nucleus of a new nation, and those far off into a mighty nation. 

The LORD will reign over them on Mount Zion, from that day forward and forevermore.”  

(8)  As for you, watchtower for the flock, fortress of Daughter Zion – your former dominion will be restored, the sovereignty that belongs to Daughter Jerusalem.  

(9)  Jerusalem, why are you now shouting so loudly? Has your king disappeared? Has your wise leader been destroyed? Is this why pain grips you as if you were a woman in labor?  

(10)  Twist and strain, Daughter Zion, as if you were in labor! For you will leave the city and live in the open field. 

You will go to Babylon, but there you will be rescued. There the LORD will deliver you from the power of your enemies.”  

Babylon is here being referred to both literally, as the exiling force against Judah, but also as the metaphorical, “larger than life” Babylon which is mentioned many times in scripture and in particular in the book of Revelation, which Babylon is used as a archetype of all evil and pagan influence over God’s people as well as their oppressor. 

“(11)  Many nations have now assembled against you. They say, “Jerusalem must be desecrated, so we can gloat over Zion!”  (12)  But they do not know what the LORD is planning; they do not understand His strategy. 

He has gathered them like stalks of grain to be threshed at the threshing floor.  

(13)  “Get up and thresh, Daughter Zion! For I will give you iron horns; I will give you bronze hooves, and you will crush many nations.” 

You will devote to the LORD the spoils you take from them, and dedicate their wealth to the sovereign Ruler of the whole earth.”

Micah 5:1-15, 

“(1) But now slash yourself, daughter surrounded by soldiers! We are besieged! 

With a scepter they strike Israel’s ruler on the side of his face.  (2)  As for you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, seemingly insignificant among the clans of Judah – from you a king will emerge Who will rule over Israel ON MY BEHALF, 

One Whose origins are in the distant past.”  

Look at these verses and try, if you will, to view them as an ancient Israelite may have. Consider their meaning as one who does NOT know the fulfillment in Christ Jesus.

This is a very clear reference to Jesus and it accurately depicts Him as ruling the Kingdom ON BEHALF of God the Father.

This is further explained by Paul to the church at Corinth, in 1Cor. 15:21-28,  

“(21) For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead also came through a man.  (22)  For just as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive.  (23)  But each in his own order: Christ, the firstfruits; then when Christ comes, those who belong to Him.  (24)  Then comes the end, when He [Jesus] hands over the kingdom to God the Father, when He [Jesus] has brought to an end all rule and all authority and power.  

(25)  For He [Jesus] must reign UNTIL He [the Father] has put all His [The Father’s] enemies under His [Jesus’] feet.  

(26)  The last enemy to be eliminated is death.  

(27)  For He [the Father] has put everything in subjection under His [Jesus’] feet. But when it says “everything” has been put in subjection, it is clear that this does not include the One Who [the Father] put everything in subjection to Him [Jesus].  (28)  And when all things are subjected to Him [Jesus], then the Son Himself will be subjected to the One [the Father] Who subjected everything to Him [Jesus], so that God [the Father] may be all in all.”

Micah 5

“(3)  So the LORD will hand the people of Israel over to their enemies until the time when the woman in labor gives birth. 

Then the rest of the king’s countrymen will return to be reunited with the people of Israel.  

(4)  He will assume His post and shepherd the people by the LORD’s strength, by the sovereign authority of the LORD His God. 

They will live securely, for at that time He will be honored even in the distant regions of the earth.  

(5)  He will give us peace. 

Should the Assyrians try to invade our land and attempt to set foot in our fortresses, we will send against them seven shepherd-rulers, make that eight commanders.  

(6)  They will rule the land of Assyria with the sword, the land of Nimrod with a drawn sword. 

Our King will rescue us from the Assyrians should they attempt to invade our land and try to set foot in our territory.  

(7)  Those survivors from Jacob will live in the midst of many nations. They will be like the dew the LORD sends, like the rain on the grass, that does not hope for men to come or wait around for humans to arrive.  

(8)  Those survivors from Jacob will live among the nations, in the midst of many peoples. 

They will be like a lion among the animals of the forest, like a young lion among the flocks of sheep, which attacks when it passes through; it rips its prey and there is no one to stop it.  

(9)  Lift your hand triumphantly against your adversaries; may all your enemies be destroyed!  

(10)  “In that day,” says the LORD, “I will destroy your horses from your midst, and smash your chariots.  (11)  I will destroy the cities of your land, and tear down all your fortresses.  (12)  I will remove the sorcery that you practice, and you will no longer have omen readers living among you.  

(13)  I will remove your idols and sacred pillars from your midst; you will no longer worship what your own hands made.  

(14)  I will uproot your images of Asherah from your midst, and destroy your idols.  (15)  With furious anger I will carry out vengeance on the nations that do not obey Me.”

Micah 6:1-16, 

“(1) Listen to what the LORD says: 

“Get up! Defend yourself before the mountains! Present your case before the hills!”  

(2)  Hear the LORD’s accusation, you mountains, you enduring foundations of the earth! For the LORD has a case against His people; He has a dispute with Israel!  

(3)  “My people, how have I wronged you? How have I wearied you? Answer me!”  

“(4)  In fact, I brought you up from the land of Egypt, I delivered you from that place of slavery. 

I sent Moses, Aaron, and Miriam to lead you.  

(5)  My people, recall how King Balak of Moab planned to harm you, how Balaam son of Beor responded to him. 

Recall how you journeyed from Shittim to Gilgal, so you might acknowledge that the LORD has treated you fairly.”  

“(6)  With what should I enter the LORD’s presence? With what should I bow before the sovereign God? Should I enter his presence with burnt offerings, with year-old calves?  (7)  Will the LORD accept a thousand rams, or ten thousand streams of olive oil? Should I give him my firstborn child as payment for my rebellion, my offspring – my own flesh and blood – for my sin?  (8)  He has told you, O man, what is good, and what the LORD really wants from you: He wants you to carry out justice, to love faithfulness, and to live obediently before your God.”  

(9)  Listen! The LORD is calling to the city! It is wise to respect your authority, O LORD! Listen, O nation, and those assembled in the city!  

(10)  “I will not overlook, O sinful house, the dishonest gain you have hoarded away, or the smaller-than-standard measure I hate so much. (11)  I do not condone the use of rigged scales, or a bag of deceptive weights.  

(12)  The city’s wealthy people readily resort to violence; her inhabitants tell lies, their tongues speak deceptive words.

(13)  I will strike you brutally and destroy you because of your sin.  

(14)  You will eat, but not be satisfied. Even if you have the strength to overtake some prey, you will not be able to carry it away; if you do happen to carry away something, I will deliver it over to the sword.  

(15)  You will plant crops, but will not harvest them; 

you will squeeze oil from the olives, but you will have no oil to rub on your bodies; 

you will squeeze juice from the grapes, but you will have no wine to drink.  

(16)  You follow Omri’s edicts, and all the practices of Ahab’s dynasty; you follow their policies. 

Therefore I will make you an appalling sight, the city’s inhabitants will be taunted derisively, and nations will mock all of you.”

Now Micah begins to speak for Israel in the first person…

Micah 7:1-20, 

“(1) Woe is me! For I am like those gathering fruit, and those harvesting grapes, when there is no grape cluster to eat, and no fresh figs that my stomach craves.  

(2)  Faithful men have disappeared from the land; there are no godly men left. They all wait in ambush to shed blood; they hunt their own brother with a net.  (3)  They are experts at doing evil; 

government officials and judges take bribes, 

prominent men announce what they wish and then they plan it out.  

(4)  The best of them is like a thorn; their godly are like a thorn bush. 

Woe to your watchmen; your appointed punishment is on the way. The time of their confusion is now.  

(5)  Do not rely on a friend; do not trust a companion! Even with the one who lies in your arms, do not share secrets!  

(6)  For a son thinks his father is a fool, a daughter challenges her mother, and a daughter-in-law her mother-in-law; a man’s enemies are his own family.  (7)  But I will keep watching for the LORD; I will wait for the God Who delivers me. My God will listen to me.  

(8)  My enemies, do not gloat over me! Though I have fallen, I will get up. Though I sit in darkness, the LORD will be my light.  (9)  I must endure the LORD’s fury, for I have sinned against Him. But then He will defend my cause, and accomplish justice on my behalf. 

He will lead me out into the light; I will witness His deliverance.  

(10)  When my enemies see this, they will be covered with shame. They say to me, 

“Where is the LORD your God?” I will gloat over them.” 

This next portion is of course speaking of all Israel’s punishment, but very likely finds a future fulfillment in the Great Tribulation

“Then they will be trampled down like mud in the streets.  (11)  It will be a day for rebuilding your walls; in that day your boundary will be extended.  

(12)  In that day people will come to you from Assyria as far as Egypt, from Egypt as far as the Euphrates River, from the seacoasts and the mountains.  

(13)  The earth will become desolate because of what its inhabitants have done.”  

…and ends with once more speaking of the final Day of the Lord in the millennial kingdom

“(14)  Shepherd Your people with Your rod, the flock that belongs to You, the one that lives alone in a thicket, in the midst of a pastureland. Allow them to graze in Bashan and Gilead, as they did in the old days.  

(15)  “As in the days when you departed from the land of Egypt, I will show you miraculous deeds.”  

(16)  Nations will see this and be disappointed by all their strength, they will put their hands over their mouths, and act as if they were deaf.  (17)  They will lick the dust like a snake, like serpents crawling on the ground. They will come trembling from their strongholds to the LORD our God; they will be terrified of you.  

(18)  Who is a God like You? Who forgives sin and pardons the rebellion of those Who remain among His people? Who does not stay angry forever, but delights in showing loyal love?  (19)  Who will once again have mercy on us? Who will conquer our evil deeds? Who will hurl all our sins into the depths of the sea?  

(20)  You will be loyal to Jacob and extend your loyal love to Abraham, which you promised on oath to our ancestors in ancient times.

Blessings!

Hi my name is Mark and though I am opposed to titles, I am currently the only Pastor (shepherd/elder) serving our assembly right now.

I have been Pastoring in one capacity or another for nearly 30 years now, though never quite like I am today.

Early in 2009 the Lord revealed to me that the way we had structured our assembly (church) was not scriptural in that it was out of sync with what Paul modeled for us in the New Testament. In truth, I (like many pastors I am sure) never even gave this fundamental issue of church structure the first thought. I had always assumed that church structure was largely the same everywhere and had been so from the beginning. While I knew Paul had some very stringent things to say about the local assembly of believers, the point of our gatherings together and who may or may not lead, I never even considered studying these issues but assumed we were all pretty much doing it right...safety in numbers right?! Boy, I couldn't have been more wrong!

So needless to say, my discovery that we had been doing it wrong for nearly two decades was a bit of a shock to me! Now, this "revelation" did not come about all at once but over the course of a few weeks. We were a traditional single pastor led congregation. It was a top-bottom model of ministry which is in part biblical, but not in the form of a monarchy.

The needed change did not come into focus until following 9 very intense months of study and discussions with those who were leaders in our church at the time.

We now understand and believe that the Bible teaches co-leadership with equal authority in each local assembly. Having multiple shepherds with God's heart and equal authority protects both Shepherds and sheep. Equal accountability keeps authority and doctrine in check. Multiple shepherds also provide teaching with various styles and giftings with leadership skills which are both different and complementary.

For a while we had two co-pastors (elders) (myself and one other man) who led the church with equal authority, but different giftings. We both taught in our own ways and styles, and our leadership skills were quite different, but complimentary. We were in complete submission to each other and worked side-by-side in the labor of shepherding the flock.

Our other Pastor has since moved on to other ministry which has left us with just myself. While we currently only have one Pastor/Elder, it is our desire that God, in His faithfulness and timing, may bring us more as we grow in maturity and even in numbers.

As to my home, I have been married since 1995 to my wonderful wife Terissa Woodson who is my closest friend and most trusted ally.

As far as my education goes, I grew up in a Christian home, but questioned everything I was ever taught.

I graduated from Bible college in 1990 and continued to question everything I was ever taught (I do not mention my college in order to avoid being labeled).

Perhaps my greatest preparation for ministry has been life and ministry itself. To quote an author I have come to enjoy namely Fredrick Buechner in his writing entitled, Now and Then, "If God speaks to us at all other than through such official channels as the Bible and the church, then I think that He speaks to us largely through what happens to us...if we keep our hearts open as well as our ears, if we listen with patience and hope, if we remember at all deeply and honestly, then I think we come to recognize beyond all doubt, that, however faintly we may hear Him, He is indeed speaking to us, and that, however little we may understand of it, His word to each of us is both recoverable and precious beyond telling." ~ Fredrick Buechner

Well that is about all there is of interest to tell you about me.

I hope our ministry here is a blessing to you and your family. I also hope that it is only a supplement to a local church where you are committed to other believers in a community of grace.

~God Bless!