Timeless Truths: What God Wants – Part 1
#23. Timeless Truths: What God Wants – Part 1
June 16, 2016
6 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 olive oil? Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? 8 He has shown you, O mortal, 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.
Micah 6:6-8
All Scripture quotations are from the NIV.
This week we look at the background information that will help understand what Micah is conveying in the highlighted sentence above. Next week, we’ll look at those words in depth.
Like Habakkuk, Micah was a prophet of God. It’s important to know what it took, and takes, to be a prophet of God. To do that we need to investigate characteristics exhibited by several prophets. What we’ll end up with is a list that reads like a job description.
To be a prophet of God you must
- Not compromise. In Daniel 1:1-16, we find that Daniel is unwilling to eat what we would consider non-Kosher food. He and his three companions demonstrate God’s concern for His people by eating only vegetables, which they knew were healthy and legal under the Law. After only ten days, the Hebrews “looked healthier and better nourished than any of the young men who ate the royal food.” [Daniel 1:14]
- Be willing to stand alone. In Jeremiah 1:4-10, we read God’s call of Jeremiah. While God gives many assurances, His bottom line is “today I appoint you” [Jeremiah 1:10]. God didn’t appoint a group—only Jeremiah.
- Demonstrate rugged determination. In Ezekiel 2:1-7, the prophet hears God calling him. “The people to whom I am sending you are obstinate and stubborn… 7 You must speak my words to them, whether they listen or fail to listen”[Ezekiel 2:4,7] God makes it clear that there is no room for a wishy-washy prophet in His plan.
- Be a person of prayer and integrity. In Daniel 6, King Darius is duped into signing a law that is designed to get Daniel killed. The king is distraught when he discovers the subterfuge of his underlings. Daniel continues with his daily routine of public prayer, even though he knows he’ll end up in a den filled with hungry lions. 10 Now when Daniel learned that the decree had been published, he went home to his upstairs room where the windows opened toward Jerusalem. Three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed, giving thanks to his God, just as he had done before. [Daniel 6:10].
- Be outspoken critics of social ills. Amos pulls no punches when he tells Israel, “For I know how many are your offenses and how great your sins. There are those who oppress the innocent and take bribes and deprive the poor of justice in the courts.” [Amos 5:12] Amos speaks God’s words even when it’s unpopular.
In addition, the prophets in the Old Testament saw and wrote of the coming of the Lord. In Zechariah 14:1-11, the prophet paints a picture of the coming of the Lord’s Kingdom. At first, the picture is grim. Verses 1-5 describe nothing but bad events the prophet has seen. Halfway through verse 5, the picture brightens. By verse 11, Zechariah announces that “[Jerusalem] will be inhabited; never again will it be destroyed. Jerusalem will be secure. [Zechariah 14:11]
- Micah’s name means “who is like God?”
- He preached to a very religious group who were not at all godly.
Before looking at what God wants, we need to answer the question:
Are you religious or related?
Religious people are concerned with:
- Rules.
- Regulations.
- Rituals.
- They emphasize the “do’s and don’ts.” This leads into dangerous territory. Religious people are usually known for what they are against and not what they are for.
- Jesus most angry reaction was to religious people who lacked good relations with others.
Relationship people are concerned with:
- Help.
- Healing.
- Hope.
- They emphasize ideals seen in Christ.
- It is possible to have the religious thing down pat but have no relationship with God. In fact, it’s far too common.
Now that we've got some background and context, we’ll go back to Micah and find out…
What God Wants – Part 2
Next Thursday, in my Timeless Truths series
Thanks to Dr. Keith Newman for the central teachings used in this blog.
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