The Answer For The Soul Series

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.