“My forebears came over on the Mayflower.” I’ve met a couple of people who’ve made this claim. In this country, that’s about as far back (nearly 400 years) as anyone can lay claim to some sort of discernible relationship with previous generations of their family (well, at least for those who emigrated from Europe -- it may very well be that some descended from the native population at the time of the Pilgrims’ landing might claim a longer lineage). But I think it’s safe to say that few, if any, consider in a lively manner how the realities of an older generation affect their own. That was then, this is now. Biblically, however, it’s a different matter.
In chapter 6, Micah summons God’s people to hear the Lord’s indictment against them. Yahweh asks, “O my people, what have I done to you? How have I wearied you? Answer me!” They have no cause to abandon the Lord; he has been faithful. The proof? In verses 4-5 Yahweh asks that they “remember” his delivering of them from Egypt, his provision and protection as they journeyed, as well as their crossing over the Jordan to take possession of the land promised to their forefathers. “There’s your proof!” What we are likely to miss in this exchange, however, is how chronologically far removed Micah’s generation is from the events Yahweh cites. Moses lived circa 1400 BC, Micah circa 700 BC.Yet the Lord speaks as though it was they that he had shepherded into Canaan. Why does he do this? How can he do this? It’s because “my people” are covenant people.
More than any other factor, what defines God’s people as God’s people is that they are in covenant with him. From Abraham to Micah, succeeding generations had this constant: Yahweh was their God by reason of the covenant that he made with them. This is why Zechariah, prophesying over John the Baptist some 700 years after Micah, exults in God’s remembering “his holy covenant, the oath that he swore to our father Abraham.” Importantly, this why the apostle Paul can speak of non-Jewish believers in Jesus as the “offspring of Abraham,” “the circumcision,” and “the Israel of God.” Additionally, this is why God can put to the side circumcision and dietary and ceremonial laws, things identified with God’s people for a time, because these were not what ultimately defined them.
What does this mean? As in Micah’s day, so now, we are to remember God’s faithfulness in keeping covenant, which calls for faithfulness from his people, no matter the circumstance or century.
