MESSAGES FROM THE PROPHETS:
THE ANSWER FOR THE SOUL
MICAH 6:6-8
#6weeksintheprophets
INTRODUCTION… https://www.preceptaustin.org/micah_devotionals
It's a scene straight out of a Leave It to Beaver re-run. Two brothers are misbehaving, both equally at fault, but when Dad arrives he ignores one of the boys and heads for his brother, saying something like, "I saw what you did!"
In the meantime, the first brother breathes a quiet sigh of relief, thinking dad was overlooking his part in the fiasco. His relief melts away when his father suddenly turns to him and says, "And now for you, young man!" Cue the “laugh track.”
In the Bible, the southern kingdom of Judah may have felt relief when God miraculously delivered Jerusalem from Sennacherib, king of Assyria (2 Kings 18:13-19). This occurred in 701 B.C., a full twenty years after the northern kingdom of Israel and its capital had fallen to Assyria.
But God had a message of judgment for Judah as well. One of the prophets charged with delivering that message was Micah, a messenger to the common people. He served as a prophet during the reigns of three kings.
King Jotham was generally a good king, although he failed to remove Judah's ""high places"" where God's people practiced idolatry (see 2 Kings 15:35). God would take care of these evil places Himself when He came in judgment (Micah 1:3).
King Jotham's son Ahaz, a wicked man, inherited a kingdom that was strong both militarily and politically. But Ahaz greatly corrupted God's people, adopting the evil worship practices of the northern kingdom.
King Ahaz's son Hezekiah was one of Judah's greatest kings. He turned the nation back to serving the Lord. Although Micah prophesied primarily to Judah, his frequent references to Israel show that God had given Micah a word of warning for the entire nation.
TRANSITION
As I was reading through Micah, I am always drawn to Micah 6:8 which is a fantastic verse that is to the point and gives us so much guidance in this life we live. The verse speaks to the soul. It is also a great verse to memorize. Let’s read from Micah 6:6-8 this morning and dig around in the verse and apply what we find to our hearts. God has a message for us from the Prophet Micah that was preached to the People of God so long ago, but definitely has meaning for us today.
READ Micah 6:6-8
“With what shall I come before the LORD and bow down before the exalted God? 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 thousand rivers of oil? Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? 8 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.”
THE NECESSITY OF THE SOUL (VERSES 6-7)
As we begin to look at these verses, we see Micah describe some necessities of the human soul. Let me explain what I mean.
Micah uses the phrase “come before the Lord” twice in verse 6. Our soul needs to come before the Lord. The human soul was created to be in fellowship with God. This is a created fact about human beings… we were designed by our Creator to have a relationship with Him. Psalm 62:1 says, “My soul finds rest in God alone.” Augustine said: “Because You have made us for Yourself, our hearts are restless till they find their rest in Thee” (Confessions 1.1.1). It is a core of Christian belief that God is our Almighty Creator and that He made us for Himself. We are connected to Him whether we want to be or not. Our soul needs to come before the Lord.
Micah uses the phrase “bow down before the exalted God” in verse 6. Our soul needs to worship God. The human soul was created to worship God. Even as early as Genesis 4:26 we find people beginning to “call on the name of the Lord” in worship. Worship is bowing down before God. Worship is the limited finite created beings telling the eternal uncreated infinite God that He is awesome and thankful for Him. We were created to do that. Hebrews 12:28-29 says, “Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, 29 for our "God is a consuming fire." Our soul needs to worship God.
Micah mentions pleasing the Lord in verse 7. Our soul needs to please God. Over and over again the Bible speaks about living to please God. Pleasing God is good for our souls and brings a completeness to us.
Romans 8:8, “Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God.”
1 Thessalonians 2:4, “On the contrary, we speak as men approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel. We are not trying to please men but God, who tests our hearts.”
Hebrews 11:6, “And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him.”
1 John 3:22, “and [we] receive from Him anything we ask, because we obey His commands and do what pleases Him.”
Happiness, joy, a sense of peace, completeness, a sense of purpose, and a great sense of belonging come to the person who lives to please the Lord. Our soul needs to please God.
Micah mentions paying for the sin of the soul in verse 7. Our soul needs to be right with God, but our sins separate us from Him. Isaiah 59:2, “But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden His face from you, so that He will not hear.” Isaiah 53:6, “We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.” All of us have sinned (Romans 3:23, Romans 6:23) and have been separated from God. Micah knows that this relationship needs to be made right and even mentions giving up a child. God sent His Own Son for us (John 3:16-17). Our soul needs to be right with God.
SUMMARY
What does Micah say in verses 6-7?
Our soul needs to come before the Lord.
Our soul needs to worship God.
Our soul needs to please God.
Our soul needs to be right with God.
The Prophet Micah presents these ideas in verses 6-7. He presents us with these issues because they directly lead to verse 8 which is so impactful for us. Verse 8 speaks to the answer for the soul and gets to the heart of much of what our souls need to feel happy and complete and meaningful.
ILLUSTRATION… https://www.voicings.com/illustration/8831
There's an old "Leave it to Beaver" rerun in which Wally, Eddie Haskell and the Beaver are going to a movie. Mrs. Cleaver tells them to go see "Pinocchio," not the other movie in town, "Voodoo Curse." As they approach the theater, Eddie suggests a way around the problem. He says: "Your Mom told you not to take the Beaver to 'Voodoo Curse' -- but what if the Beaver took you?" With that rationalization, they were convinced they had done nothing wrong. They obeyed the letter of the law but not the intent.
I call that rationalization and arguing away the truth! I think verse 8 might present us with a temptation to think that if we do A, B, C that we have done the letter of the law and we are good. I want us to see the intent behind what Micah presents from the Lord from verse 8 because it is so important. These are not boxes to check or a list to go through, but a way to live life as we navigate each day.
RE-READ Micah 6:6-8
“With what shall I come before the LORD and bow down before the exalted God? 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 thousand rivers of oil? Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? 8 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.”
THE ANSWER FOR THE SOUL (VERSE 8)
Micah shares with us what the answer for our soul is. He tells us that God has shown us what is good. God has shown us what He demands of His creation. These three demands that Micah mentions are very spiritual in nature and feed our soul. They connect us to God in profound ways. Possessing a heart that is just, merciful, and humble means we are obedient to God and He will dwell with us.
ACT JUSTLY
Justness and uprightness should be a part of all our relationships. We should judge correctly the situations around us. We are not to treat others unjustly or to be honest… just according to what we deem as just. We are to act justly according to God’s definition and use His measures when navigating our relationships.
This is why Jesus teaches in Matthew 7:1-5, "Do not judge, or you too will be judged. 2 For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. 3 "Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? 4 How can you say to your brother, 'Let me take the speck out of your eye,' when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? 5 You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye.”
We like to stop reading at verse 1. Jesus teaches about acting justly. We are to be fair in the measure we use. We are to be mindful of our faults as we talk to others. We are to order our own lives rightly so that we can be a just person. Acting justly connects our soul with God because He is completely just and righteous. Acting justly is good for our soul.
How do we know if we are acting justly? Here are some questions we can ask ourselves:
Do we owe anything to anyone or maybe need to make a situation right?
Have we told a lie to someone and the truth was the casualty in our conversation?
Have we treated others as we want to be treated?
Are we telling someone not to do something that we ourselves do on a regular basis?
Are we living and navigating life by the narrow way Jesus taught?
LOVE MERCY
Mercy and compassion and grace are the needed coverings over sin and error and hardness of heart. God is known for His great mercy. Love and mercy are linked when it comes to God and His character. It should be linked with us as well as we follow Him.
Nehemiah 13:22, “Remember me for this also, O my God, and show mercy to me according to Your great love.”
Psalm 25:6-7, “Remember, O LORD, Your great mercy and love, for they are from of old. 7 Remember not the sins of my youth and my rebellious ways; according to Your love remember me, for You are good, O LORD.”
Jude 1:2, “Mercy, peace and love be yours in abundance.”
Jude 1:21, “Keep yourselves in God's love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life.”
That last verse in Jude (21) we just read reminds us that as we navigate this life day after day that we are to keep ourselves in God’s love and live in the mercy God provides. We do not keep that to ourselves, but be a person who loves mercy for those around us. Loving mercy is good for our soul.
How do we know if we love mercy? Here are some questions we can ask ourselves:
Are we a giving person only when it is convenient?
Are we merciful or gracious to someone who we know cannot pay us back?
Are we stocking up material things for no reason and we could be a blessing to others?
Is there someone we need to forgive?
WALK HUMBLY WITH GOD
I want you to notice that the last part, “walk humbly” is not just that, but the phrase continues with “with your God.” We are to be humble before God in our lives and live our lives in communion with Him.
To walk with God means He is continually in our hearts.
To walk humbly means we rightly take our place in our lives as #2 while we make God #1.
I also imagine that this means we are at peace with God, in order to humbly walk with Him. It also means we are obedient to Him. It means we submit to His will and allow Him to lead and we take the background. I imagine walking humbly with God means we understand we are forgiven and we do not take that lightly.
How do we know if we are walking humbly with God? Here are some questions we can ask ourselves:
Are we following the way of life taught by Jesus or are we living the way we want?
When making decisions, do we pray first?
Are we frustrated that we are not getting the recognition we deserve?
Do I live my life to benefit myself primarily?
Do we rely on our good deeds to count and make us feel good when our heart is far from God?
SUMMARY
What does Micah say in verses 6-7?
Our soul needs to come before the Lord. Our soul needs to worship God.
Our soul needs to please God. Our soul needs to be right with God.
How does Micah say to do that in verse 8?
Act justly; love mercy; walk humbly with God.
GOSPEL PRESENTATION
Earlier I mentioned that our soul has needs. My soul has needs. Your soul has needs. Every single person is created in the image of God and therefore has these same needs whether you realize it or not. Remember Augustine’s words I mentioned earlier, they are true: “Because You have made us for Yourself, our hearts are restless till they find their rest in Thee” (Confessions 1.1.1).
Our soul needs to come before the Lord.
Our soul needs to worship God.
Our soul needs to please God.
Our soul needs to be right with God.
In John 14:6, Jesus a, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection allows us to come before the Lord, allows us to worship God freely, pleases the Lord when we place faith in Jesus, and absolutely makes us right with God. Jesus does that. Jesus does all of that. I want to invite you to come forward today if that is a decision you need to make. Deciding to follow Jesus is the most important decision you will ever make.
PRAYER
