Pastor's Column 12/4/2022

PASTOR’S COLUMN

“But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, are only a small village among all the people of Judah. Yet a ruler of Israel will come from you, one whose origins are from the distant past.”

Micah 5:2, NLT

2nd Sunday in Advent: “A Place of Hope!”

In our world that has become one of a Cybernation; offering us more and larger options, we often fail to discern the value in what is overlooked. Things considered small and insignificant, have been used throughout history to change the trajectory of life. In the early twentieth century people were dying in great numbers around the world, for lack of an antibiotic which provided a serum to produce a cure. Dr. Alexander Fleming was working in a lab at St. Mary’s Hospital in London in 1928, when he noticed “mold” started growing in a tiny petri dish that held a bacteria called genus penicillium. That tiny petri dish produced “penicillin,” the cure-drug that would, one day, save billions of lives. The Advent Season reminds us, that there is always hope; even when such hope comes from the least expected place. This fact should not be lost in the bold prophetic message of Micah. Micah, like his contemporary Isaiah, assured Israel that hope was on the horizon. However, this would not preclude God’s disciplining His people for their disobedience. Because God loved them, he would send a ruler who would come from the tiny town of Bethlehem; which during the time of King David and his grandmother, Ruth, was known as Ephrathah. This small village sat less than six miles from Jerusalem, and did not have the attraction of the larger urban city. From little Bethlehem, a great Savoir, the Messiah would be born. This message became a compelling one; especially later, to those living after the exile period. God has designated a “place of hope,” where our truest needs will be fulfilled. Hope is fulfilled from the place God deems is best for us!