Micah 6:8

Walking With God

Act 1: The Problem & Tension

Setting:

Read Micah 6:1–8

Micah 6:1–8 CSB

Now listen to what the Lord is saying: Rise, plead your case before the mountains, and let the hills hear your complaint. Listen to the Lord’s lawsuit, you mountains and enduring foundations of the earth, because the Lord has a case against his people, and he will argue it against Israel. My people, what have I done to you, or how have I wearied you? Testify against me! Indeed, I brought you up from the land of Egypt and redeemed you from that place of slavery. I sent Moses, Aaron, and Miriam ahead of you. My people, remember what King Balak of Moab proposed, what Balaam son of Beor answered him, and what happened from the Acacia Grove to Gilgal so that you may acknowledge the Lord’s righteous acts. What should I bring before the Lord when I come to bow before God on high? Should I come before him with burnt offerings, with year-old calves? Would the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams or with ten thousand streams of oil? Should I give my firstborn for my transgression, the offspring of my body for my own sin? Mankind, he has told each of you what is good and what it is the Lord requires of you: to act justly, to love faithfulness, and to walk humbly with your God.

Prayer:

Heavenly Father, we come before You today with open hearts and ears, ready to listen and respond. Help us hear Your voice through the words of Micah, and give us the courage to walk humbly with You. Amen.

Inciting Incident:

The average age of a kid learning to walk is around 12 to 15 months. a late walker for a kid is around 17-18 months. For myself i didnt learn how to walk until just after i was 3 year old.

As a toddler, I’d watch other kids or my brother run and play while I just sat there—frustrated, left out, limited. Eventually, at around 34months I learned how to walk.

This story of physical delay has taught me something about the spiritual life: it’s possible to grow older without learning how to walk in the way God designed.

Some of us have been Christians for years but still don’t know how to walk with God. We know all the theology about God , check boxes of our spirtual disciplenes,or we can pray eloquent sounded prayers—but our walk is either frozen in place or veering into two opposite ditches .

Developing Tension:

We know that Micah was a prophet during the time of the kings Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah which we see in chapter 1 verse 1.

And so some context of what is going on:

the people in Micah are stuggling with these sins.

unjust business practices

2. Idoltary

3. mistreatment of women ands children

4. corruption in Government

5. Rebellion against God’s covenant

6. Lack of Justice and Mery

7. Faithlessness

these all can be brought into two major sins that the Israelites are struggling with here.

the perversion of worship (1:7; 3:5-7, 11; 5:12, 13) and injustice toward others (2:1, 2, 8, 9; 3:2, 3, 9-11; 7:2-6)

And so we seen now that

Micah 6 is God’s courtroom. He’s calling His people to account, not for ignorance, but for forgetfulness. They've kept the religious routines, but their hearts have wandered.

And So God

Micah 6:3 CSB

My people, what have I done to you, or how have I wearied you? Testify against me!

Israel hadn’t just strayed—they’d traded relationship for ritual. And the case here is clear: they had failed to do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with their God.

It wasn’t that they stopped walking. It’s that they stopped walking with God.

Launching the Quest – Sermon Question:

“How can we truly walk with God in a way that honors His call to act justly, love mercy, and walk humbly?”

Act 2: The Quest

Movement #1 – Walking With God

(Exegesis):

The phrase in Micah 6:8, “to walk humbly with your God,” echoes biblical language about intimacy with God.

Adam walked with God in the Garden (Gen. 3:8). Enoch walked with God and was taken up (Gen. 5:24). Walking is about alignment, direction, and nearness.

The there is the flip side of walking with the world. Looking at the kings the example Ahaziah it says 2 Kings 8:27

2 Kings 8:27 CSB

He walked in the ways of the house of Ahab and did what was evil in the Lord’s sight like the house of Ahab, for his father had married into the house of Ahab.

So we can see that there are 2 options, and to better hit home this idea,it says in

Deuteronomy 10:12 CSB

“And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God ask of you except to fear the Lord your God by walking in all his ways, to love him, and to worship the Lord your God with all your heart and all your soul?

And so in Micah’s day, the people were performing religious acts but walking alone. They were walking in accordance to the world.

(Illustration):

I was at Jay’s and Caitlin's house the other day and observed the way they parent. I watched their son, Zion, who could walk and talk very well. He knew right from wrong, and was growing in confidence. But then I saw Carmen, the younger sibling, who needed more help. She was earning to walk while holding their parent’s hand. she woild stumble, wobble, lean—but the Jay was the one who made her steady.

That’s what God desires—not perfection, but connection. Not distance, but dependence. Walking with Him isn’t about pace—it’s about presence.

Are we walking with God, or just walking for Him from a distance?

Movement #2 – Act Justly

(Exegesis):

Micah says, “He has told you… to act justly.” This isn’t justice as punishment—it’s justice as alignment with God’s heart.

“It’s the Hebrew word mishpat, and it occurs more than 400 times in the Old Testament. It is a concept based in God’s character. God is just, so He wants His people to be just.”

“Micah 2 demonstrates, the majority of the people of Israel and Judah had rejected God’s command to act justly in their dealings with others.”

“When we think of the concept of justice, we should keep three other ideas in mind: integrity, honesty, and concern for the weak. These are the heart of justice. Integrity, at its core, is the consistent application of one’s moral code. For believers, this moral code is God’s truth contained in the Bible”

“If we are not passionate about the things God is passionate about, then all of our “religious activity” means nothing.”

“Act justly” isn’t just about solving world hunger or fighting global injustice—sometimes it’s as small as doing the right thing when nobody’s watching.

Justice, in God’s eyes, starts with a heart that cares enough to do right in the quiet moments.

Because real justice shows up in the unnoticed moments—when your character matters more than your comfort.

Movement #3 – Love Mercy, Walk Humbly

(Exegesis):

Next, “God told His people to “love faithfulness.” In many translations the latter word is translated “mercy.”

“It’s the Hebrew word chesed. This is another significant Old Testament word. It appears nearly 250 times in Scripture.”

“ It’s challenging to translate into English, but the best definition is “loyal love that contains mercy.” This, too, is a character trait of God. God’s love is revealed through His unwavering willingness to show mercy to sinful people.”

“it means “to show kindness to others willingly.” When we think about this definition, three other similar terms come to mind: love, grace, and forgiveness. We can know that we love faithfulness when we begin to view the world the way God does.”

To love mercy is to delight in giving grace. Not just accepting it, but embodying it.

Then Micah says, “Walk humbly with your God.” “The word translated “humbly” in this text is an interesting word, and it is used only here in the entire Old Testament. It’s the Hebrew word tsana. Like chesed, it’s challenging to translate into English. The best definition of this word is “lowly.”

“better.” The people of Israel and Judah had become filled with pride, and as a result they had reduced their covenant relationship with God to a spiritual “to do” list,”

“Humility, however, says this: “I believe God, and so I obey God.” That’s what it means to walk humbly with God.”

(Illustration):

If you know me, you would know that I have a lot of grace and great apprectiation for fast food workers. I worked in fast food for many years, and to this day In my opinion, it is one of the hardest jobs out there. You’re on your feet all day, constantly under pressure, youre usually understaffed, and half the time you’re dealing with people who are frustrated about their order or just having a bad day.

I Remember many times as a manager where a customer would come to us and bring up something that we either messed up on or they forgot to order. In this you would have 2 instances on how the customer would act. The customer can either lash out and start yelling at the people in the store/ restutarnt. Or they can nicely bring up there concerns. Many of us tend to the first option, and maybe imediately you said to yourself well i dont yell at them. but maybe you arent verbally yelling, maybe it is your heart that has a real frustration for these people.

The way you respond in those moments—when no one is watching—shows the true measure of your mercy.

It’s easy to show grace to people when it’s convenient. But loving mercy means choosing to extend grace when it’s hard—when you don’t feel like it. Walking humbly with God means remembering that we, too, have been shown mercy we didn’t deserve.

But even when we try our best to act justly, love mercy, and walk humbly—we fall short. We still get it wrong. We still make it about us.

And that’s exactly what Micah is confronting. The people were asking: “What more do you want from us, God? Do you want bigger sacrifices? More offerings? Our firstborn?”

That leads us into verse 7—where the tension hits its peak.

Act 3: Resolution – The Gospel and Our Response

Exegetical Clue – Zoom in on Verse 7:

“Would the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams or with ten thousand streams of oil? Should I give my firstborn for my transgression…?”

“These questions just drip with arrogance and pride.”

Here’s the powerful irony—Israel, in their sin, thought they could appease God with extravagant sacrifices. They thought if they gave more, God would be satisfied. They thought they could just go through the motions of religious performance to make up for their lack of obedience.

But God doesn’t want our sacrifices. He wants our obedience, our hearts, and our relationship. He doesn’t need our religious performance—He desires our transformation.

Just like today for us, he doesnt want more us..

This brings us to the heart of the gospel. The people in Micah’s day were asking, “Should I give my firstborn for my transgression?” But God answers with a powerful yes—but not in the way they expect.

Centuries later, God would give His firstborn Son, not for His sin, but for ours. Jesus, the perfect Lamb, would be sacrificed in our place. Jesus came to live the life we could never live—a life of perfect justice, mercy, and humility—and to die the death we deserve, so we could be reconciled to God.

(Scripture Connection): In Colossians 1:15, Paul writes, “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.” Jesus perfectly embodied the justice, mercy, and humility that we are called to reflect. He not only lived these virtues in perfect harmony with God’s will, but He made a way for us to live them through His death and resurrection. Jesus walked in perfect justice by protecting the oppressed, rebuking the powerful, and standing in the gap for the vulnerable. He displayed mercy by offering forgiveness to the very people who crucified Him. And He walked humbly, submitting His will to the Father even unto death on the cross.

Crisis:

Micah 6:8 isn’t a checklist—it’s a mirror. When we look at it, we see not just how far we fall short, but how desperately we need Jesus.

Am I truly walking with God? Or am I just going through the motions? The crisis isn’t just in the culture—it’s in the church. We’ve memorized this verse, quoted it on mugs and T-shirts, but do we live it? If we’re honest, none of us perfectly walk justly, love mercy, and walk humbly. We fail daily. We take shortcuts in our relationships. We show mercy only when it's convenient. We avoid the hard work of justice when it feels too costly.

But here's the good news: Jesus didn't come to just call us out for our failures—He came to take our place in all of them. He lived the life we should have lived and died the death we should have died. Through His sacrifice, He makes us new, empowering us to walk justly, love mercy, and walk humbly.

Big Idea:

“God’s ultimate desire for us is not ritualistic performance but a life that reflects His justice, mercy, and humility—a life made possible through the sacrifice of Jesus.”

This is not about what you bring to God. It’s about how you walk with God. Jesus didn’t die to make us more religious—He died to bring us into a right relationship with God, so we could walk in step with His Spirit, reflecting His justice, mercy, and humility in the world.

Resolution – Living in the Power of the Gospel:

So what does this look like tomorrow? It looks like Jesus—not just as an example, but as our Savior and the source of our transformation. To act justly, we need the strength that only Jesus can give. We need to stand up for what is right, even when it costs us, and we need to remember that we can only do so because He stood up for us, even at the cross.

To love mercy, we need to remember that Jesus is the embodiment of mercy. He showed us the ultimate kindness by laying down His life for us. The mercy we extend to others is simply the overflow of the mercy He has poured into our hearts.

To walk humbly, we need to recognize that Jesus humbled Himself in the greatest way possible by becoming a servant, even to the point of death on the cross. His humility is what empowers our humility. Without His sacrifice, we would never be able to walk humbly before God or others.

Micah here contrasts Judah’s and Israel’s sinful kingdoms with God’s righteous and just messianic Kingdom built on the foundation of Christ..

Application – A Life Transformed:

When we stand before God on that final day, He won’t ask us about our religious performance, our sacrifices, or how much we did for Him. He will ask us about how we walked with Him. Did we walk with Him in justice, mercy, and humility? Did we reflect His heart in our relationships with others?

But the beauty of the gospel is this: we don’t have to wait until the end of our lives to answer that question. Jesus has already made the way. By His grace, we can start today. We don't have to strive to earn God's love—we walk in His love, empowered by His Spirit, transformed by His mercy. We don’t just reflect the values of Micah 6:8; we reflect the very life of Jesus Himself.

Let us not settle for walking around God… or ahead of Him… but with Him. God doesn’t want something from you. He wants to walk with you. And because of Jesus, you can.