Do You Really Expect God To Answer?

The prophet Micah in the Old Testament chastised the moral state of the national and religious leaders of his day.

The leaders of the nations of Northern Israel and Southern Judah were supposed to know right from wrong, but instead they were the very ones doing evil in the sight of God. Then when trouble came, they turned to God and begged for His help. But God couldn't even look at them because of their great evilness and selfishness.

"I said, 'Listen, you leaders of Israel!

You are supposed to know right from wrong,

but you are the very ones

who hate good and love evil.

Then you beg the Lord for help in times of trouble!

Do you really expect Him to answer?

After all the evil you have done,

He won't even look at you!'"

Micah 3:1-2a, 4 (NLT)

The religious leaders who lived during this time weren't any better. They were false prophets leading God's people astray from Him and His Word. They blessed those who supported them but cursed those who would dare speak up against their sins of hypocrisy. When they called upon God in their times of distress, there too was no answer from Him.

"This is what the Lord says:

'You false prophets are leading my people astray!

You promise peace for those who give you food,

but you declare war on those who refuse to feed you.

Now the night will close around you,

cutting off all your visions.

And you will cover your faces

because there is no answer from God.'"

Micah 3:5-6a,7b (NLT)

Micah further rebukes these leaders and prophets of Judah and Israel. He reports that the leaders were twisting what is right. They were building their nations on foundations of murder and corruption. They were making decisions based on bribes. And the prophets of God were only doing His work if they were paid. Yet all these corrupt leaders and prophets claimed to know God.

"Listen to me, you leaders of Israel!

You hate justice and twist all that is right.

You are building Jerusalem

 on a foundation of murder and corruption.

You rulers make decisions based on bribes;

you priests teach God's laws only for a price;

you prophets won't prophesy unless you are paid.

Yet all of you claim to depend of the Lord."

Micah 3:9-11a (NLT)

Does this all sound familiar? It should. Many of our national leaders today claim to know God, and yet they openly support gay marriages and the killing of unborn babies. Those who are committed Christians, whose heart's desire is to submit completely to God and His Word, find that the church and its religious leaders are hostile towards them. And it is difficult to find anyone in our modern churches who will work for God for free; they all expect to get paid substantially and to claim titles for themselves. All the while, God's heart is breaking. Because of this pervasion of evil, God can no longer look at us or answer our cries of help when He so desperately wants too!

Then we raise our fists and yell out to God, "Where are you?!"

And God grievously replies, "Yes, where am I?"