We are commanded in Scripture by God, Micah chapter 6, to do just that. That command is often misunderstood, and today on Truth for Life, Alistair Begg unpacks the meaning of this passage so that, by God's grace, we can express the Gospel message through how we live. We're in part two of a message titled, What God Requires.
Well, he's not talking about his own ideas. Look at how the chapter begins. Hear what the Lord says. This is the role of the prophet. This is the role of the preacher of the Bible. Not for me or for anybody else to stand up and give you our views, but to stand up and say, Listen. Listen now. Listen to God.
And that's why we constantly say, You are sensible people. Examine the Scriptures to see if these things are so. Notice that he is speaking to his people. It is God here who is speaking, and he is speaking to his people.
And he has reason to contend with them, to indict them. And the reason for that is because, if you work your way back through the text, you will see that they have been devising wickedness, they have been working evil on their beds, they can't wait to get up in the morning to perform it, and it is in the power of their hand to do. That's the beginning of chapter 2.
Further on in chapter 2, in—where is it?—verse 8. Lately, says God, my people have risen up as an enemy. You strip the rich robe from those who pass by trustingly, with no thought of war. The women of my people you drive out from their delightful houses, from their young children you take away my splendor forever. Arise and go, for this is no place to rest, because of uncleanness that destroys with a grievous destruction.
And so it goes on. And so he is addressing them, and he is addressing them with reason for contention. Also, you will notice that in addressing them, his tone is one of entreaty. Twice in verses 3–5, you have the opening phrase, O my people! O my people! That sense of tenderness. Oh! It's a bit like, Oh, come on!
O my people! Now, what he then does is he reminds them of his righteous acts. You will see that down in verse 5. The righteous acts of the Lord. Now, he's just giving them, essentially, a little reminder of history—the redemption that he has brought about in verse 4, in bringing them safely out of Egypt. The leadership that he then gave to them so that they might make progress in Moses and Aaron and Miriam. The way in which, in the events of Balak and Balaam, God in his great providence turned curses to blessing.
And in the encounter from Shiddon to Golgal, he's simply reminding them of the events that were there when they crossed the Jordan. These, he says, are the righteous acts of the Lord. And notice that you may know the righteous rights of the Lord.
It doesn't mean that you might be able to rehearse them. No, the knowledge that he's speaking about here is a life-transforming knowledge—that you might know the righteous acts of the Lord, that when you think about what God has done for you, it might be transformative. In other words, that the knowledge of God's righteous acts stir them up, stir them up, and also steer them in where they should be going. Knowledge of the truth of God is the basis, then, for making sure that our emotions and our feelings are both given full effect and at the same time held in check. And so he says, I want you to know the righteous acts of God.
I don't want you just to be able to say, This is what happened, and this is what happened, and so on. No. That you may know. That's the real question.
Do you know God? His people had completely lost sight of all that God had done for them. That's why he says to them, What have I done to you? How have I wearied you?
Answer me! It had all become tedious. It had become tiresome. They were saying, Oh, it's the same old material. It was routine. It became irrelevant.
It was dangerous. And so we call… And there's actually a court scene here, really. We might set it in that way.
Plead your case. That's in verse 1. And now, in verse 6, let us call the counsel then for the defense.
What is the response of the would-be worshiper? Well, you have it here in verses 6 and 7. And we can read these verses, where you have this progression of expressions of devotion—burnt offerings with calves a year old. Whoa, a year old! That would cost more than just giving one up in its infancy.
Uh-huh! Well, what about thousands of rams, ten thousands of rivers of oil? What if I was like Abram and offered up my son in an expression of my desire to have my sin dealt with? Now, the way we need to understand this, of course, is in light of what Scripture tells us. We have an illustration of it when we studied in 1 Samuel many moons ago, if you will remember. And Samuel the prophet confronts Saul, you will recall, and he says to them, Has the LORD great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices? Does he have his great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD?
And of course, that's the point. He's not saying that the sacrifices were irrelevant or the expressions of devotion are irrelevant, but what God is looking for is obedience. You have it in a parallel passage in Amos, which, when I read it in Peterson's paraphrase, struck me forcibly.
And this is a similar context, where the prophet Amos is taking on the same issue. The people are saying, Well, we could come before God, and this is what we'll be able to say. We've done a wonderful job on sacrifices. We've been very self-giving.
We have been prepared even to go to the extremities of it. And God says, I can't stand your religious meetings. I'm fed up with your conferences and conventions.
I want nothing to do with your religion projects, your pretentious slogans and goals. I'm sick of your fundraising schemes, your public relations and image-making. I've had all I can take of your noisy ego music.
When was the last time you sang to me? Do you want to know what I want? I want justice. Oceans of it. I want fairness.
Rivers of it. That's what I want. That's all I want. Well, we say, that's fine. Because we haven't been doing anything with calves or sacrifices or anything at all. But what is our plea? You see, Israel was thinking, God wants to see evidence of my commitment.
And so I will show him evidence of my commitment in these things, with an ever, if you like, intensifying sense of duty and engagement of activity. I say, what would be parallel? I don't know.
People always say, I don't know. What programs do you have at your church? How many Bible conferences do you have?
Marriage seminars, college events, prison ministry, prayer times, soccer leagues. And on and on it goes, ever-ascending expressions of the fact, God, you know, we're really into this. We're very committed. Ralph Davis says, but why do we think we have to be so frantic? Why do we have this hypertensive view of the Christian life?
Why do we think God wants us to organize more Christian things to do? That's what their answer was. God says through his prophet, What are you guys up to? They say, Oh no, we've got it covered. Finally, the prophet responds, and in verse 8. Now, this 8 verse is of course quoted frequently.
I'm sure you will have turned to it in the past few days, and understandably so. Interestingly, Newton, the hymn writer and the pastor, commenting on this, said, There is hardly any one passage in Scripture more generally misunderstood. Now, you've read it, and I have read it, and you may find yourself saying, Well, it seems pretty straightforward to me.
There's essentially only three points. Number one, to do justly. That is, to act in such a way that is the reversal of all that was taking place. That it means doing justly in accord with the will and purpose of God as he has both manifested it and as he has revealed it to us in Scripture. So, for example, in Deuteronomy, Moses says, God executes justice for the fatherless and the widow and loves the sojourner, giving him food and clothing. So, within the framework of God's revelation of himself, we want to take seriously these things—perhaps far more seriously than we have been giving credence to to this point. But taking that seriously is not the same, I suggest to you, as this commentator's explanation of what doing justice quotes according to the Bible really means. It is, he writes, creating a situation and a society where everything is right—a society where every last person in it, including the most vulnerable and the weakest, can flourish and thrive.
That's not my purpose to interact with that for now, but it is to set it out before you so that you, like me, can be thinking along these lines. To do justly to love mercy—a heart attitude. If doing justly is the action, then loving mercy or loving kindness is the attitude of the heart—warmhearted compassion. These actions take in place not as a performance of some demanded duty but as a glad and spontaneous action.
It's not going to be possible for us to really believe that, Father, your love is a faithful love, and then for us to be faithless in our expressions of love. And then, thirdly, to walk humbly—to walk humbly. In other words, to walk in submission to God's will. In New Testament terms, it's Romans 12 2, to offer your body as a living sacrifice that is an acceptable form of worship to him.
Humility means that I don't take myself too seriously, that I don't cherish exaggerated ideas of my own importance, that I don't assume that I have everything buttoned down and know how it should be—which is, of course, one's tendency. Well, you say, that's fairly comprehensive, and it's fairly clear. Why did Newton say, quotes—again, there's hardly a passage in Scripture more generally misunderstood? Well, he's not here to answer the question, but I think at least this would be true of what he meant. Number one, because of how this verse is attempted without the gospel. How it is attempted without the gospel. And then it becomes just a display of natural virtue.
Then it becomes the sort of normal, nice religion of virtuous life. The person says, How can I come before the Lord? verse 6. And answer, I'm gonna come before the Lord. The way I do it is by doing justly, loving mercy, and walking humbly. It's just another version of a good God, if he exists, will reward nice people if they do their best. And part of the way of doing your best involves justice, it involves mercy, and it involves being humble about it.
I think Newton must have had that in mind. How easy it is for us to attempt this without the gospel. Also, how easy it is for pastors to proclaim it in place of the gospel. In place of the gospel.
You see, this is a very easy slide. Men and women by nature are keen to contribute to their standing before God, to contribute to it on account of their own endeavors. And so, if the message that comes across is, Why don't you go out and have a really good week and do justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with God?
They say, I'll take a stab at that. But you see the inherent danger. Am I wrong in suggesting to my friend that he ought at least to be wary of explaining Micah 6.8 as, quote, creating a situation and a society where everything is right? That is called the new heaven and the new earth. We've got to read the prophets in light of the apostles. We've got to interpret the Old Testament in light of the new. You've got to ask yourself of that kind of explanation how it fits within the epistles of the New Testament and the emphasis of the apostles. Who themselves had a prophetic ministry? But our time has gone, so let me just tell you the third reason that I think it is one of the misunderstood passages—because of how it is attempted without the gospel, because it may be proclaimed in place of the gospel, and because it needs to be understood that it is only possible by the gospel. By the gospel.
Micah is not here charting a path as a means to acceptance with God. And I, for one, am really thankful. And if you are a believer today, you ought to be as well.
If God were, on the day that he is fixed—which we read of in Acts 17—if God were on that day to judge me by this text, I would have no basis for appeal. Because if I even do my own assessment, I'm not even getting an F on justice and kindness and humility. And I'm talking about just myself on my bed. I'm not even talking about the people who know me. I don't want their assessment.
I can't imagine how bad it is. So what is the answer? Well, you see, the answer is not in our righteous acts but in the righteous acts of the Lord. Verse 5. He has shown you, O man, what is good.
Jesus is good. If your Bible is open, you'd just go back a page, and you'd find yourself in the Christmas narrative. But you, O Bethlehem, have fret, although you are too little be among the clans of the Judah, from you shall come forth from thee one who is to be the ruler in Israel.
You read it all the way down. And verse 5, and he shall be their peace. He shall be their peace. Therefore, being justified by faith, we have peace with God. Or as we have it in Titus, for the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all people. When Newton preached on this passage, he entitled his sermon on this verse, No Access to God but by the Gospel of Christ. No Access to God but by the Gospel of Christ. And I'm pretty sure that is what he meant when he said, This is so misunderstood, so taught or received in such a way as to say, You know, this is the missing link.
This is the key. But what the passage is saying is, Would you come before God, then come in the name of Jesus? You'll find acceptance. Because remember, before Jesus left, he said, Whoever comes to me, I won't cast out.
And if we don't come by way of that entrance, there is no other way. And if we're worried about what kind of response we will receive, go to the end of the chapter, go to the closing verses of the chapter where the prophet says, Who's a pardoning God like you? Who pardons sins like you? Who forgives iniquities? Who cleanses us? Who fits us for your presence?
You do. What you essentially have in verse 8 are the credentials of our justification—not the things that contribute to our justification but the evidences of our justification. And I find myself saying, You know, I think my credentials could do with a bit of a polish. He said, Here, all my people—all my people—all Alistair, all Parkside, all American Christianity—well, loved ones, we can't fix the world. But with God's help, we can make a pledge to one another to declare our willingness to live the gospel in expressions of justice and kindness and humility. And as strange as it will sound to an onlooking world, God has provided in the local church the genetic blueprint of a broken world remade.
Does an orchestra need a conductor? Surely. Do we need a Savior?
Surely. To him we look. Gracious God, we have not served you as we ought. Alas, the duties we've left undone.
So much of ourselves and our selfishness have taken hold of the way in which we adjudicate on things and seek to chart our course. So we pray that you will help us not to get on the wrong side of Newton's most misunderstood text. God grant that we may not attempt it without the gospel, that we may not proclaim it instead of the gospel, but that we may live it by the gospel. For in Christ's name we pray. Amen. Living justly, kindly, and humbly by the gospel. Welcome reminder as we start 2021. You're listening to a message titled What God Requires on Truth for Life with Alistair Begg.
Please keep listening. Alistair will be back in just a minute with a special New Year's greeting. As we think about what it means to live the gospel, it's fitting that we would also think about sharing that good news with others. And today we want to tell you about a book written by author and evangelist Roger Carswell that calls us to both love and to be burdened for those who don't yet know Jesus as their Savior and their Lord.
He wrote a book titled Facing a Task Unfinished. Now keep in mind Facing a Task Unfinished is not a book about how to evangelize. Instead, this is a devotional that through scripture reading and a collection of hymn lyrics and prayers will help you gain a deeper desire to tell other people about Jesus.
This is a great book to use as we begin a new year. This book will help you discover practical routines that will keep your heart focused on the Lord and will stir in you a fresh desire to reach the lost. Request your copy of Facing a Task Unfinished when you make a generous one-time donation by tapping the image you see on the mobile app, or you can visit truthforlife.org or call us at 888-588-7884.
Maybe as you have listened to me describe this book, you thought to yourself, I want to know more about what it means to follow Christ. If that's the case, we want to invite you to visit truthforlife.org slash the story. You will find there a helpful video presentation that explains how Jesus' sacrifice on the cross frees us from sin and brings us salvation. God's saving grace is nothing if we can earn it on our own. It's a free gift given to those who believe.
Again, go to truthforlife.org slash the story. Now here's Alistair again with a special greeting. Well here we are for those of us who have been asking for some months now to be able to fast forward into 2021. The wait is over. We're here. And the good news is that God is the Lord of human history, that he is the one who watches over us, provides for us, sustains us, and keeps us. And that was our confidence in looking back, and it is our confidence in looking forward, and it makes today a great day because it is the day that the Lord has made. I look forward to many days together as we look out into the new year, and on behalf of all of us at Truth for Life, a very happy new year to everyone who's listening now. Thank you, Alistair.
I'm Bob Lapine. Thanks for joining us on this New Year's Day. Keep in mind Alistair's preaching at Parkside Church is streamed live most weekends. If you'd like to find out if you'll be in the pulpit this weekend, you can go to truthforlife.org slash live. Be sure to listen again Monday as we begin a new series titled A Light in the Darkness. We'll learn about people whose lives were transformed as they encountered Jesus. The Bible teaching of Alistair Begg is furnished by Truth for Life, where the Learning is for Living.
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