Power in the Pulpit | Micah 6:1–8

Introduction: Good evening everybody. I am excited to be back here tonight after us not meeting last week and then being out of town this weekend. If you have your Bible with you tonight, please turn to Micah chapter 6. If you need help finding it, go to the beginning of the New Testament, and then start going backward and you should get there. If you get to Obadiah or the book of Jonah you have gone too far. As you already know, these are the last two weeks of The Walk. We will not meet weekly during the summer. But when we begin next semester, we are going to be looking at the book of Matthew. So we are going to spend the next two weeks and our times during the summer looking at some Old Testament scriptures that will help give us context for understanding the book of Matthew.

The next two weeks we are going to be looking at the book of Micah. Micah wrote to the southern kingdom of Judah while the Assyrians were on the march. The northern kingdom of Israel had not been conquered yet, but it was coming. It looked like the Assyrians were coming to take over both kingdoms. Meanwhile, the people of Judah were living despicable lifestyles. Idolatry was rampant, a mockery had been made of the justice system and the rich were exploiting the poor. But other than that everything was good. Well, it looked like it. The people looked religious. The temple was in good shape at this time because lavish gifts were being given for its upkeep and the people were offering sacrifices, but yet evil was everywhere. So in chapter 6 of Micah, God has Micah announce and indictment against his people. What we see is the call to the messenger and the witnesses, and the announcement of the Indictment, the bringing and defense of the accusation, the response of the people and then God’s answer to them. What we see is God wanted a people not filled with cold actions, but with warm hearts of affection. As we do at Maynard, please stand as we honor the reading of God’s Word.

Exposition: Starting in verse 1 we read Micah 6:1 “Hear what the Lord says: Arise, plead your case before the mountains, and let the hills hear your voice.” We see God starting to place everything into action. We see Him first call on his messenger, Micah. This is different than how most OT prophecies start when we are reading the OT. They usually start with something like, “The Word of The Lord was upon Him or came to him,” but this here is being used to demonstrate the courtroom scene. God starts by telling Micah to arise and and plead his case amongst the mountains and hills. God has called his messenger and assigned him witnesses. Then we read in verse 2 Micah start the process of announcing the indictment God has placed on the people of Israel and calling his witnesses. He writes in verse 2 Micah 6:2 “Hear, you mountains, the indictment of the Lord, and you enduring foundations of the earth, for the Lord has an indictment against his people, and he will contend with Israel.” In this time period, having a reliable witness was important so that nobody could get railroaded. The mountains were thought to have their foundation all the way at the bottom of the earth in the ocean. The mountains had also existed since the beginning of the earth. Therefore, there was no more reliable witness to the goodness of God than the mountains.

Application: This speaks to the longstanding truth of who God is. It speaks to how long God has existed. God was not created when the Bible was written. We serve the creator God.A structure that has existed as long as the world has existed can attest to how good God has been to the people of this earth because it would have seen it. But God is the creator of those things. His goodness goes beyond that because He goes beyond that. We can trust in our God in big ways because He is a big God. We can trust in HIs goodness because it hasn’t failed yet.

Exposition: But this eternal God has a problem. He has an indictment against His people. He doesn’t have a an indictment against the people of another nation. He has an indictment against his people. It’s important to recognize that God is still calling them His people. After all that they have done to forsake Him, he’s still calling them His people. He hasn’t given up on them. He hasn’t quit being their God.

Application: No matter what path we go down in life, we have to remember that God is our God. He is still there. He doesn’t turn out back on us and He is still a God that loves us.

Transition: So we see that God has called tells his messenger, the prophet to arise and announce the charges and then he announces them to the people. He then calls on the witnesses that have been reliable witnesses for as long as the earth has existed. Now, he is ready to present the charges.

Exposition: God introduces His charges in a strange way. He says through Micah in verse three Micah 6:3 ““O my people, what have I done to you? How have I wearied you? Answer me!” He asks them what He has done to weary them? Remember, this is a time in which the people of Judah are hearing stories of the conquest of the Assyrian army. And they are wanting God to preserve them. So God’s indictment isn’t to list all the things that they have done wrong. He isn’t listing all the ways they have been unfaithful though we see that in other parts of the book. Instead, he is listing how He has been faithful.

Verses 3-5: Giving of charges and defending of charges

Verse 3

God introduces charges by asking what it is he has done wrong to the people

The indictment is a lack of respect for what the people have done.

Micah has already touched throughout the book about all that has been done wrong.

Verse 4

Egypt

Moses

Aaron

Miriam

Verse 5

Balak

Shittim

Gilgal

Righteous acts of the Lord

Transition: So God’s charges are him saying what all he has done for His people after asking what he has done to wrong them. He has just gone through the Jewish history and shown how time and time again he has been a righteous and good God to the people. But the reaction that the prophet perceives and reports is not one that realizes it needs to be more grateful.

Verses 6-7 The people’s response

Verse 6

Standard humility

one year old calf

Verse 7

Calves and oil= hyperbole

First born=Issac

All of this is to just see what it is they have to do to please God. No appreciation for God.

Transition: So the people are just coldly offering to do things, even somewhat sarcastically so that they can win the favor of God and not be destroyed by the Assyrians. Micah responds by saying it’s not any of that that God requires.

Verse 8: God’s Response

Justice-How Bible says we should treat one another

Love Kindness- Not just show kindness but love it as God has given it to us

Walk Humbly- Have a manor of life that reflects who God is.

Conclusion: I want to close by asking you tonight about your why? What drives you to do the things of God? Is it because you were made to or is it because you believe that Jesus Christ died for your sins and rose again? If it is just because you feel like it’s what you are suppose to do, it probably gets pretty exhausting. You probably get pretty tired. Because what you are ultimately working towards is your own approval, and that isn’t big enough. But when we realize that we serve the Creator God who loved us enough to send His Son to die for us, everything changes. When we ponder the goodness of God, we see that there is no better place to be than in His will. We see that His ways are better and that He has already given us more than we could ever imagine giving to Him. When we serve out of an understanding of who God is, then that changes everything. If you feel tired with faith, maybe you realize that you have never truly given your life to Christ. Maybe you realize you have not trusted and accepted who He is. If that is you, don’t let tonight pass. Because He is better.