Hear ye, O mountains, the Lord's controversy, and ye strong foundations of the earth: for the Lord hath a controversy with His people, and He will plead with Israel" (Micah 6:2).
It might not occur to average Christians that God is interested in presenting them with His arguments. They might not think it possible that they are in a state of controversy with God. Certainly the Jewish nation at the time of the prophets needed to be alerted to this fact. God challenged them further: "O my people, what have I done unto thee? and wherein have I wearied thee? testify against me" (v.3). God wanted to have a candid debate with his people.
The prophet Hosea similarly challenged the people about this divine controversy. "Hear the word of the Lord, ye children of Israel: for the Lord hath a controversy with the inhabitants of the land, because there is no truth, nor mercy, nor knowledge of God in the land" (Hosea 4:1).
The religious activity of the people in those days had become mere rote rituals without any emotional relationship. The prophet asked them, "Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, or with ten thousands of rivers of oil?" (Micah 6:7). God's primary desire is for our lives to be in conformity to His will, not for us to give Him a formalistic, token religious devotion. "He hath showed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?" (v.8).
Still today God carries this same desire for a frank, honest dialogue about our spiritual condition. Jeremiah 25:31 states, "for the Lord hath a controversy with the nations, He will plead with all flesh." We need to regularly pause, reassess our relationship with God, and prepare for a frank discussion. DW
INSTITUTE FOR CREATION RESEARCH www.icr.org
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