3 Heartbreaking Trends

Woe is me!Micah 7:1In order to understand Micah’s misery, we must look at three things that were happening among God’s people. The loss of godly character. Micah says, “The godly has perished from the earth” (7:2). He is talking about a loss of godly character: “I look at how people are living, and all I can see is godly character being swept away. I look for models of upright living, but I’m not seeing them.” The rise of self-interest. “As I look across the country,” Micah is saying, “here is what I see: The ruler demands gifts, the judge accepts bribes, the powerful dictate what they desire—they all conspire together” (7:3). It’s all about pressure groups with their own agendas and self-interest that has replaced the common good. And when that happens, family life starts falling apart. The breakdown of family life. Micah saw something deeply distressing: “guard the doors of your mouth from her who lies in your arms; for the son treats the father with contempt, the daughter rises up against her mother” (7:5-6). He observed a loss of trust between husbands and wives, and a loss of respect between kids and parents. What’s breaking Micah’s heart is that this is happening among God’s people. Micah says, “As I look at what is happening among God’s people, it breaks my heart!”What concerns you most: the loss of godly character, the rise of self-interest, or the breakdown of the family in the culture and among God’s people?