Just Do This.
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· 4 viewsThe Lord requires us to walk humbly with Him and as a result we will do justice and show mercy.
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Q - Ever been in a spot where you asked, “What’s required of me?”
Q - Ever been in a spot where you asked, “What’s required of me?”
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Q - Don’t we feel this way when it comes to God and our relationship with Him?
Sometimes, all we want us clarity. If you tell me specifically what’s required of me, then I’ll do it. Well, God actually tells us specifically in the small, minor prophet book in the OT called Micah.
God’s Word
Micah
1 Hear what the Lord says: Arise, plead your case before the mountains, and let the hills hear your voice. 2 Hear, you mountains, the indictment of the Lord, and you enduring foundations of the earth, for the Lord has an indictment against his people, and he will contend with Israel. 3 “O my people, what have I done to you? How have I wearied you? Answer me! 4 For I brought you up from the land of Egypt and redeemed you from the house of slavery, and I sent before you Moses, Aaron, and Miriam. 5 O my people, remember what Balak king of Moab devised, and what Balaam the son of Beor answered him, and what happened from Shittim to Gilgal, that you may know the righteous acts of the Lord.”
God dialogues with His people and says:
Q - What have I done to you?
A - You mean, what have I done for you? I...
Led you out of slavery in Egypt.
I provided for you after giving you freedom from your enemies for 400 years.
God rescued Israel when they could not rescue themselves.
5 O my people, remember what Balak king of Moab devised, and what Balaam the son of Beor answered him, and what happened from Shittim to Gilgal, that you may know the righteous acts of the Lord.” 6 “With what shall I come before the Lord, and bow myself before God on high? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old? 7 Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousands of rivers of oil? Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?” 8 He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God? 9 The voice of the Lord cries to the city— and it is sound wisdom to fear your name: “Hear of the rod and of him who appointed it!
Micah 6:5-9
6 “With what shall I come before the Lord, and bow myself before God on high? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old? 7 Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousands of rivers of oil? Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?”
Micah responds with:
Q - Should I bow myself? Should I come to you with burnt offerings? Should I bring my one year old calf to you? Should I bring my firstborn to you for the sin of my soul?
Micah speaks for people in every age, asking what God wants from sinners. Escalating from less costly to more costly sacrifices, the prophet proposes even the unthinkable: human sacrifice. God does require “human sacrifice,” but he did not ultimately force us to pay for our sin with our own sons. What God requires is that we rest in the all-sufficient sacrifice of his own Son. What a scandal of mercy: God did not ask us to give our firstborn for our transgression; rather, he gives us his firstborn!
In , God gives His the key to the Christian life. The prized bit of wisdom. He says, “Just do this.”
8 He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?
Micah 6:8
It’s not rocket science. As followers of Jesus, we mirror Jesus to the world.
It’s not rocket science. As followers of Jesus, we mirror Jesus to the world.
Treat everyone fairly (and unfairly, like Jesus) Demonstrate kindness and mercy to others Walk closely, in humbleness, to God
The key to the list of three is the last one: walk with God. This is God’s will for your life - to walk humbly with Him through Jesus. If you walk with God, you will do justice and show mercy.
When you walk with God, you have experienced the justice & mercy of God.
If you’ve experienced the justice & mercy of God, then you cannot but help demonstrate to others.
When you walk with God, you have experienced the mercy of God.
Micah speaks for people in every age, asking what God wants from sinners. Escalating from less costly to more costly sacrifices, the prophet proposes even the unthinkable: human sacrifice. God does require “human sacrifice,” but he did not ultimately force us to pay for our sin with our own sons. What God requires is that we rest in the all-sufficient sacrifice of his own Son. What a scandal of mercy: God did not ask us to give our firstborn for our transgression; rather, he gives us his firstborn!
These verses foreshadow/point towards the gospel! Since no one can fully keep the requirements of the law of God, Jesus came to do perfectly do all three so that by leaning into Jesus in faith, He lives through us in doing justice, showing mercy, and walking humbly with God. Jesus through His indwelling, empowering Spirit enables us! We can’t do it by ourselves. We need Jesus!
The Spirit empowers us to carry out what God calls us to.
When we “do justice,” Jesus lives through us. When we “love mercy (kindness)”, Jesus lives through us. When we “walk humbly with our God,” He lives in us.
But here’s the deal - We can’t except God to live through us, if we aren’t allowing God to live in us. This is why so many Christians do not see any difference in their everyday lives as a Christian. They expect to change in their behavior without allowing Jesus to change their heart (internal).
Why should we do what says?