Gods word of explanation Bible Micah 6:1-8 25/02/07
Slide 1 Sinai peninsula and Israel. Slide 2
1. Once there were two men.
One of the men was familiar with the capital city. He came from an upper-class family, he was born in a palace, and he was a cousin to the monarch, and all his life he mixed with political leaders and people of influence.
The other man was from the countryside. His life had been lived in the hills, his people lived in the small villages and farming communities- far removed from the wealth and privilege of the city.
Two very different men, from very different backgrounds. It’s possible that the two men knew of one another. I don’t know.
What we do know is that both men knew God. And both men had chosen to make knowing him and being obedient to him the most important thing in their lives. These two men lived a little over 700 years before Jesus was born.
Slide 3
The city man, spent most of his life in Jerusalem. He was heard by the rich and powerful. Sometimes they took notice of him, most often they simply tolerated his presence among them. (Slide 3a) He was known by the name Isaiah. There’s a book in the bible named after him.
Slide 4
The man from the country lived there all his life. He knew the life of country villages. He was heard by shepherds and farmers rather than religious leaders and kings. As far as we know nobody rich or famous ever came to listen to him or ask his advice. (Slide 4a) He was known by the name Micah.
Slide 5
Both of these men were people with a message from God. And the word that God spoke through them was not just a word for political leaders and kings or just a word for ordinary country folk. It was a word for everyone and the word that God spoke through them challenged the people of their own time and of every generation since.
For a few weeks during Lent we are going to be giving our attention to the word that God spoke through the prophet Micah, (Slide 5a) the man who lived in the country. There are only 7 chapters in the Book of Micah… compared to the 66 chapters of the Book of Isaiah. But that doesn’t make it any less important.
Micah spoke to a people who were living in what you might call a 3D culture…
Slide 6
They were DIVIDED
They were DISOBEDIENT
They were DECIEVED
Slide 7
How were they Divided?
God’s people were divided politically… the nation that had been formed during the reign of King David and that grew to be so powerful during the reign of King Solomon, was now split into two rival Kingdoms… one in the North with it’s own temple and capital city in Samaria
and one in the south with the temple in the capital city Jerusalem.
And the people of God were divided socially. There was huge inequality between the rich and the poor.. in both of the kingdoms. The wealth that God had given to his people during Solomon’s reign was hoarded by the rulers and wealthy landowners and the poor were exploited by them.
Slide 8
They were Disobedient.
This people were descended from Abraham the tribal leader who heard God and in obedience walked with him all the way from the lands of Iraq, to the land that God had promised to bring him to. They were the descendants of the slaves rescued from Egypt by God, their ancestors had stood at the foot of Mount Sinai and heard Moses give the Ten Commandments and had entered into a covenant, a solemn agreement that they would be obedient to God’s laws... and in return they would be God’s special people.
They were a people who God had called to be a blessing to the whole world, so that through their example of faithfulness, kindness, and love and justice… other nations would be able to learn about the character of the one true God.
But they had turned away from him… yes they worshipped the God who had rescued their ancestors from Egypt.. and they worshipped the Gods of other nations as well. And in their dealings with one another the goodness, kindness, love and justice of God was not seen.
Slide 9
They were Deceived. They thought that all the God of Abraham and Moses required of them was that they offer the right sacrifices, and follow the correct rituals. They were deceived in thinking that God was more concerned about those things than about their conduct towards one another. And they were deceived in thinking that God judged us according to our outward actions rather then the according to the inward attitude of our hearts.
Slide 10
That is why the prophet Micah declared to the people…this is what he requires: to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
Slide 11 (blank)
Over the next few Sundays we will learn a little more about the situation in which Micah lived. We want to understand what God was saying to the people of Micah’s own time… who were divided, Disobedient and Deceived. But even more we want God to speak his word to us today through this book. For in our own time God’s people can be divided can’t they? Our Divided by our denominations, our traditions, our different theological views… and even within churches God’s people can become divided over so many different issues.
And God’s people can be disobedient today, as they were then. God’s people can so easily choose to ignore his commandments, to ignore the instruction that is given to us in the bible.
And God’s people can be deceived… and led astray by false teaching that is not faithful to the whole of what the bible teaches, or led astray by a dependence on feelings and a desire for spiritual experiences, rather than living lives that are firmly rooted in biblical truth about who God is and what he has done for us in Jesus. (So let’s pray… Pray.!)
What does God require?
Micah gives to his people a word of explanation. A word that answers the question, “What does God want from us?” They were asking….
Does he want sacrifices. are there particular religious practices that I must observe in order to please him. This morning we heard these words…
Should we offer him thousands of rams and tens of thousands of rivers of olive oil? Would that please the LORD? Should we sacrifice our firstborn children to pay for the sins of our souls? Would that make him glad?
And God’s word to his people through Micah is this…
No, O people, the LORD has already told you what is good, and this is what he requires: to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
Slide 12
To do what is right.
The God and father of our saviour Lord Jesus is the same God who gave his commandments to Moses. He is passionately concerned about what we do. About how behave towards one another. God has the greatest respect and concern for each and every person to whom he has given the gift of life… each one is made in his image… so of course he is concerned about how we treat one another.
It’s not just about God and me… it’s about God and me and others. A huge part of the new testament is about how to live as a member of the people of God, the family of God. Just look at all the letters that Paul wrote to the new church communities… and the letters of the other new testament writers, they are full of explanation and instruction about how we do what is right as we live as people who belong to Jesus.
Doing what is right in God’s eyes, matters. As one new testament writer puts it… “Faith that doesn’t show itself by good deeds is no faith at all—it is dead and useless.” James 2:17
God is concerned about how we behave towards one another.
So to apply this word from God, given through Micah to your life… you need to honestly ask him… Father… am I doing what is right in YOUR eyes. Show me, help me to see any part of my life where I am doing something that is displeasing to you, something that upsets and offends your Holy Spirit. And help me… help me to change - to stop doing what is wrong and start doing what is right.
And it is not just about how we behave towards others within the family of the church.
We are becoming an increasingly polarised society… a society where norms of behaviour for most people, are very far removed from what the bible teaches. In that situation it is very easy for Christians to slip into a way of speaking that simply denounces and condemns the conduct of those around us. It is important that we must understand that we are to LEARN from the ministry of the prophets, like MICAH who declared God’s judgement on people who refused to do what is right… but we are not meant to COPY that ministry and simply do the same thing. We are not prophets of the Old Covenant today.
We are called to speak out and say what is good, and right and true. But because we live on the other side of the cross - We do not pronounce God’s judgement on others. Jesus bore God’s judgment for all people for all time. When those who do not yet know God meet with us - they must not meet with judgment and condemnation, but with the love of Jesus.
If they don’t… then we are not doing what God requires. Slide 13
For Jesus himself said “God did not send his Son into the world to condemn it, but to save it.” John 3:17
Which brings us to the next phrase.
Slide 14
To love mercy.
You see even on his side of the cross… hundreds of years before Jesus was born, the prophet Micah knew God well enough to say…
Slide 15 “You cannot stay angry with your people forever, because you delight in showing mercy.”
We heard read in church last week, the words of Jesus who said “God blesses those who are merciful, for they will be shown mercy.” Matthew 5:1
The prophet Micah knew that MERCY is part of the character of God. And it is his image, God’s character that God wants to see reflected is us.
Slide 16 Do you “Love” mercy?
How much do you love the fact that God has been merciful to you... is merciful to you day by day? How much do you appreciate the forgiveness, the constant forgiveness and understanding that he shows to you. And does your love for his mercy mean that you cannot help but find yourself being merciful towards others who hurt you, who let you down, who disappoint you in some way?
Do you know the story that Jesus once told of a servant who owed his master a huge debt (Matthew 18) and his master forgave him that debt. But then this same servant refused to forgive the much smaller debt that was owed to him by another man. And when the master heard what had happened he was angry and said to the servant… Shouldn’t you have mercy on your fellow servant, just as I had mercy on you?
And the story Jesus told ends in tragedy as the unmerciful servant was condemned to prison.
The meaning of Jesus’ story is clear.. either we choose to love mercy.. and choose to be merciful in our actions and words to others… or we condemn ourselves to a prison that we make for ourselves when we refuse to show the mercy of God in our dealings with others.
Slide 17
and walk humbly with your God.
It is the only way. It was God’s word to his people in the time of Micah… and it is still God’s word to us today.
Slide 18
Hear these passages from the New Testament…
Since God chose you to be the holy people whom he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Colossians 3:13
Paul talking to Titus about anyone who exercises a ministry of leadership in the church…
They must not speak evil of anyone, and they must avoid quarrelling. Instead, they should be gentle and show true humility to everyone. Titus 3:2
And a word from Peter to the Church
You younger men, accept the authority of the elders. And all of you, serve each other in humility,
for scriptures says…
and hear Peter is summarising the teaching of many different passages from the OT, rather than just quoting one verse…
“God sets himself against the proud, but he shows favour to the humble.” 1Pe 5:5
To be humble is to recognise our complete dependence on the mercy of God.
It is not humility to say things like “I’m not good enough. I’ve got no skills or talents. I can’t do anything for God.” That just a form of self-centred pride.
It is humility to say
“On my own, I can’t do anything that is of worth… but by his Holy Spirit God can be at work even through me”
Slide 19 then 19a
To be humble is to put into practice what we say in our commitment prayer each year…
Lord Jesus, I am no longer mine, but yours.
Call me to serve you as you will; in your way and not in my way. Humble me or exalt me, let me have plenty or let me have little. In joy or in sorrow, I know that you will be with me always. I freely offer my whole life to you; all my thoughts and words all my ambitions and actions, all I am, and all I have I give to you my Lord, my Saviour and my friend. Amen