Walk Humbly

Micah 6 is like a court case. God tells the people to stand in the dock and state their complaint (verse 1). He then explains His case against them (verses 3-5). Israel asks what they can do (verses 6-7). God says it is not a mystery, they have simply not done it. It is summed up in three simple things: act justly, love mercy and walk humbly (verse 8). C.S. Lewis said “Humility is not thinking less about yourself. It is thinking about yourself less.”

The repentance God calls for covers all of life. Without it, judgement will fall (verses 9-16). The book closes with the glorious mercy and pardon of God (verses 7:18-19). He delights in mercy. He is compassionate and forgiving. Indeed, who is a God like that? Trust Him.

 

STUDY THE SCRIPTURE

 Click here to access the reading from Micah 6:6-16; 7:18-19

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REFLECTION

He Keeps Forgiving

By Jennifer Jerrome

The question is often asked in the Old Testament how to honor, please and/or impress God. Multiple sacrifices are proffered, but “traditional” offerings are not what God is looking for. He’s after our hearts.

Chapter 6, verse 8 clearly states that what the Lord requires is “to act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” According to the Message, what God is looking for is quite simple. He wants us to be fair and just and compassionate and loyal.

God uses the Old Testament to TELL us and then he uses the New Testament to SHOW us. The Bible is our Show & Tell. God asks us to stop and listen. All the other things in life like money, work, food, etc. - they’re all in vain. The only thing that truly satisfies is God.

As the book of Micah continues, you can see God getting frustrated with how the Israelites are living. I’ve often wondered if God really could get angry and fed up. Does he experience those kinds of emotions? I think like any father, he does, but his love and forgiveness surpass anything we could imagine.

In Micah 7 we see that as his people keep sinning, God keeps forgiving. “You will again have compassion on us; you will tread our sins underfoot and hurl all our iniquities into the depths of the sea” (v. 19). How fantastic is it to know that God will continue to have compassion on us again and again?!

Thank you, Father, for your unending mercy and forgiveness. It helps me sleep at night and wake in the morning knowing you are there – not only telling me but showing me the way. When the world shouts in my ear, you are there to whisper words of validation. Your love propels me forward. 

UALC’S CAMPAIGN OF PRAYER - FRIDAY

FAITH - Pray for faith instead of fear, that many would come to faith in Jesus and that we would all trust God more deeply during this time.