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Micah 6.8 (NIV)
He has showed you, O man, what is
good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk
humbly with your God.
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| You can never be the same after the unveiling of a truth.* |
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When
I am learning how to do something new, I like step-by-step, written procedures.
Even if it’s only three steps, I’d rather see them spelled out. Micah says that
God has shown us what is good and he tells us how to accomplish it in our
lives. We don’t have to guess how; here he presents our procedures, setting “the
highest standards for godly living.”*
Micah
is addressing people who have been going through the motions of religion. They
were offering extravagant sacrifices but weren’t leading lives of obedience – like
people today who attend church and tithe while they also cheat - on their
income taxes, on their wives, at their jobs. Instead of being valuable, their
offerings had become “odious to God.”*
Not
only must we act justly, we must love mercy – which speaks to a whole
other level of commitment. To act justly may not involve emotional involvement
but loving mercy requires us to be
merciful without regret, resentment, or coercion. Walking with God requires
action – obedience – but to walk humbly
with him requires us to examine ourselves so that we conform our thoughts to
his.
Perhaps
this verse is less a list of actions and more a “trio of attitudes.”* If we make an effort to put on these attitudes, we will begin to establish a
lifestyle that is pleasing to God.
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| True spirituality isn’t achieved through keeping a rigid formula.* |
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