The minor prophets were messengers sent by God to call the People of God back to covenantal or relational faithfulness. When the covenant is broken, the relationship is broken, and there is fallout from the broken relationship. However, God does not just leave the people in their brokenness. He works to restore His relationship with them, the covenant through the prophets. He helps them learn to live in his new kingdom.
The ugliness of reality is often uncomfortable to look at. It makes us restless. It drives us to distractions. It makes us desperate for a savior. Malachi, the final book of the Old Testament, sums up the experiences of the Israelite people and articulates their hope in God's salvation; reminding them that it is a salvation worth waiting for.
Against the pain, chaos, and suffering life can inflict we can be left wondering, “Why believe?” Like the Israelites mourning bygone days and the beauty of a city they will never see, we can find ourselves hopeless. But the Prophet Zechariah’s message to the Israelites, and to us, is to renew our trust in God and discover faith again.
Procrastination is an experience all humans know well. We can put off eating better, a financial goal, a work deadline, or a house project. But we can also procrastinate our discipleship to Jesus, we can put prayer, study, or community on the back burner, waiting to start when we are “less busy.” The challenge of Haggai to an Israelite people who have put off rebuilding the temple is to get started! Get to work and experience the blessing of God.
The Prophet Zephaniah warns his fellow Israelites and neighboring nations of the coming judgment of the Lord. Zephaniah’s poetic work ties God’s justice and hope together promising the people of God correction, love, and restoration.
When our world is filled with evil, heartbreak, and injustice the natural question is why? The book of Habakkuk is one prophet’s honest dialogue with God around this subject; it is a divine conversation in which God assures his followers and promises his justice.
The Prophet Micah’s instructions to ‘act justly, love mercy, and walk humbly’ first function as an indictment against Judah’s rich and powerful. Judah’s political and religious leaders had turned to exploitive practices to line their pockets and accumulate influence all at the detriment to the disenfranchised. Thus, Micah’s prophesy reverberates through the ages as a poignant reminder for the people of God to use whatever power we have at our disposal for the flourishing of others.
The Prophet Micah’s instructions to ‘act justly, love mercy, and walk humbly’ first function as an indictment against Judah’s rich and powerful. Judah’s political and religious leaders had turned to exploitive practices to line their pockets and accumulate influence all at the detriment to the disenfranchised. Thus, Micah’s prophesy reverberates through the ages as a poignant reminder for the people of God to use whatever power we have at our disposal for the flourishing of others.
The story of Jonah lives in the imagination of many as the story of a runaway prophet and a big fish. While those are elements of the story they are far from the point. Rather, Jonah is the startling and bizarre story of what happens when our enemy-hate runs into the grace of God.
Pride is any internal deliberation, or outward attitude that diminishes others. It is an insidious emotion that disrupts the community and isolates us from others. The Prophet Obadiah’s message is a divine pride check for the nation of Edom centuries ago and for us today who maintain the same sense of unhealthy pride. In order to become a spiritually, and emotionally healthy community, we must reflect on the destruction egotistical pride has the potential to cause in our life, and then we must look to our subversive savior for direction.
Whether it is multi-million-dollar settlements where companies do not have to admit guilt, ministries hiding sexual abuse or covering up theft, or platforming the narcissistic pastor so that they can save face. We have witnessed the fallout from wrongdoing, both on a personal and national level. This is just how the world works, right? The Prophet Amos challenges this status quo and reminds the people of God that we have a role to play in bringing about justice.
