“What is Good?”
Micah 6:6-8
Sunday, July 18, 2010
Introduction: For many people, the idea of goodness is relative. Meaning that they have no set definition that tells them what is good and what is bad. But the problem with this is, if goodness is relative, then who decides what is good, and what is not? We see that this idea creates many negative situations in our world, because if it is good for me to do whatever I need to do to get ahead in life, then in the process I will harm many other people along the way.
Thankfully, the Bible is there to give us guidelines into the idea of goodness. At the core of goodness is a kindness that is directed toward another who doesn’t deserve it. Even more, it is a desire that resides in us that permeates our whole being; we are good because that is who God has made us to be; we are good in character.
This morning our question to consider is: What is good? It is a question that is answered by our text. And so our goal this morning will be to put into perspective all that Micah 6:6-8 tells us.
I. Can I be good enough to please God?- (Micah 6:6-7; Hebrews 11:6;
2 Corinthians 4:18, 9:7)
a. What is required?- The prophet Micah, in this passage, is
pondering what God wants. This is a common issue that people have: What does God want of us? If we remember back to the first sermon of this series, we saw that Cain came before God with his offering, but God rejected it. We learned that it was rejected because Cain did not bring it with the right attitude. Cain brought it out of a feeling of requirement, as opposed to an attitude of desire. As Jesus Himself said in 2 Corinthians 9:7, “Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.”
Let me tell you 2 stories that have a connection…
Story 1: Many years ago, Al Capone virtually owned Chicago. Capone wasn't famous for anything heroic. He was notorious for everything from boot-legged booze and prostitution to murder. Capone had a lawyer nicknamed "Easy Eddie." He was Capone's lawyer for a good reason; he was very good! Eddie's skill at legal maneuvering kept Capone out of jail for a long time. To show his appreciation, Capone paid him very well. Not only was the money big, but Eddie also got special dividends. For instance, he and his family occupied a fenced-in mansion with live-in help and all of the conveniences of the day. The estate was so large that it filled an entire Chicago City block. Eddie lived the high life and gave little consideration to anything around him.
Eddie did have a son that he loved dearly. Eddie saw to it that his had all that he needed, including a good education. Nothing was withheld. Price was no object. And, despite his involvement with organized crime, Eddie even tried to teach him right from wrong. Eddie wanted his son to be a better man than he was. Yet, with all his wealth and influence, there were two things he couldn't give his son; he couldn't pass on a good name or a good example.
One day, Easy Eddie reached a difficult decision. Easy Eddie wanted to rectify wrongs he had done. He decided he would go to the authorities and tell the truth about Capone, clean up his tarnished name, and offer his son some semblance of integrity. To do this, he would have to testify against The Mob, and he knew that the cost would be great. So, he testified. Within the year, Easy Eddie's life ended. On Eddie’s dead body they found a rosary, a crucifix, a religious medallion, and a poem clipped from a magazine. The poem read:
"The clock of life is wound but once, And no man has the power to tell just when the hands will stop, At late or early hour. Now is the only time you own. Live, love, toil with a
will. Place no faith in time. For the clock may soon be still.
Story 2: Let me tell you a second story about a World War II heroes; Lieutenant Commander Butch O'Hare. He was a fighter pilot assigned to the aircraft carrier Lexington in the South Pacific. One day his entire squadron was sent on a mission. After he was airborne, he looked at his fuel gauge and realized that someone had forgotten to top off his fuel tank. He would not have enough fuel to complete his mission and get back to his ship. His flight leader told him to return to the carrier. Reluctantly, he dropped out of formation and headed back to the fleet. As he was returning he saw something that turned his blood cold: a squadron of Japanese aircraft was speeding its way toward the American fleet. The American fighters were all but defenseless. He couldn't reach his squadron and bring them back in time to save the fleet. Nor could he warn the fleet of the approaching danger. There was only one thing to do. He must somehow divert them from the fleet.
Laying aside all thoughts of personal safety, he dove into the formation of Japanese planes attacking one surprised enemy plane after another. Butch fired at as many planes as possible until all his ammunition was finally spent. Undaunted, he continued the assault. He dove at the planes, trying to clip a wing or tail in hopes of damaging as many enemy planes as possible and rendering them unfit to fly.
Finally, the exasperated Japanese squadron took off in another direction. Deeply relieved, Butch O'Hare and his tattered fighter limped back to the carrier. Upon arrival, he reported in and related the event surrounding his return. The film from the gun-camera mounted on his plane told the tale. It showed the extent of Butch's daring attempt to protect his fleet. He had destroyed five enemy aircraft. For that action Butch became the Navy's first Ace of W.W.II, and the first Naval Aviator to win the Congressional Medal of Honor.
A year later Butch was killed in aerial combat at the age of 29. His home town would not allow the memory of this WW II hero to fade, and today, O'Hare Airport in Chicago is named in tribute to the courage of this great man. SO WHAT DO THESE TWO STORIES HAVE TO DO WITH EACH OTHER? Butch O'Hare was "Easy Eddie's" son.
b. Pleasing God- In the end, Easy Eddie’s son was a “good” man; a
hero. But is this what pleases God? I believe in part the answer is “yes” because anytime we do good things with our lives for others, God is pleased. But I believe it takes more than doing some good things to please God. In fact, the writer of Hebrews actually tells us what we have to have in order to please God; listen to Hebrews 11:6… “And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.”
How is it that we can’t please God without faith? Didn’t I just say that God is pleased when we do good to others? However, we must understand that without faith, when we do “good deeds,” we are really taking the credit for ourselves. Why is someone a hero? Because honor is shown to them for their actions. But to please God, we need to do acts that bless God, and honor God, and further the kingdom of God. While saving lives has its sense of importance in our world, there are actions that are important in the eternal realm.
Without faith, we fail to see that life is more than just what we know on this earth; more than what we can see. As 2 Corinthians 4:18 tells us, “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” What is seen is temporary…….what is unseen is eternal. God has work for us to do that has eternal impact. That is why when Jesus was on this earth, it would have been “GOOD” to heal people of their afflictions, or make their life “BETTER” in some way. But Jesus knew the eternal aspect of SALVATION was the more important aspect, and so Jesus came to “save us from our sins.”
The work we do for God is what pleases God far more than any work we do that honors ourselves, or others. EXAMPLE- If you have watched the news at all, even if you are not a basketball fan, I’m sure you have some knowledge of who LeBron James is, and the decision he just made. LeBron James is one of the best basketball players in the world right now. He has won the Most Valuable Player award the last two years. But there is one thing that has still avoided him, and that is a championship ring. For a player to be considered “GREAT” they have to have at least one championship ring. James was a free agent this year, and the debate was whether he would sign again with the Cleveland Cavaliers, or go to another team. In the end, James signed with the Miami Heat because he believed it to be his best shot at winning a title (that is because Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh, two of the other top players in the NBA also signed with Miami). Now James believed this act to be GOOD because he sacrificed money for the chance to win. He believed he wasn’t being selfish, but trying to do good for himself and others. However, almost nobody else, except for his family and the city of Miami believes this to be GOOD. Why? Because they believe it is just for himself; it is a selfish act in the eyes of others.
II. What is good according to God?- (Luke 10:25-37; Micah 6:8; Philippians 2:4; Proverbs 3:5-6)
a. The Good Samaritan- A lawyer once asked Jesus the question,
‘What must I do to inherit eternal life?’ Jesus in essence translates this question into the question, ‘What must I do to be good?’ We know this to be true because the story Jesus tells is about someone doing the good, God wants us to do in response to the lawyer talking about loving God and loving our neighbor. It is the story of the Good Samaritan. Of course in this story there is a man who is robbed and greatly injured. So who will show love to him? A priest happens by, but the priest passed by on the other side, not helping the injured man. Then a Levite came along, but he too passed by on the other side. Both of these men were obliged by their offices to show compassion to him, but they did not.
Finally, a Samaritan came upon the man. The Samaritan was not obligated by position to help. Even more, as a Samaritan, the Jew would be his enemy, and would despise him as such. But the Samaritans’ heart was opened to the man, and he cared for the man, and bandaged his wounds, and took him to an inn so that he could get more care, and even offered to pay for the expenses himself.
Jesus uses this story to illustrate that love should not come from position, or trying to lift up oneself, or from even opportunity, but out of something much deeper. Jesus then asks the lawyer, in Luke 10:36-37: “‘Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?’ 37The expert in the law replied, ‘The one who had mercy on him.’ Jesus told him, ‘Go and do likewise.’” The lawyer astutely understood that it was about mercy; an act of love that is undeserved and unmerited.
b. What the Lord requires- This too is what the prophet Micah tells
us in Micah 6:8… “He has showed you, O man, 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 points out here three important qualities that the Lord requires of us; three qualities that make us good: justice, mercy, and humility. While there is a place for giving our offerings to God, God wants even more than that; God wants all of us. And in our giving ourselves over to God, God places in us the desire to be just, kind, and humble.
1. Justice- First, there is justice. Justice is about fairness;
being fair to all. For example, Tyler and Tiffany are both smart in their own ways, and good students. But for Tyler it comes much easier. There is just something about Tyler’s mind that helps him to pick up concepts easier than Tiffany does. Consequently, Tyler has always gotten straight A’s, while Tiffany always gets more A’s than B’s, but not all A’s. In this scenario, it might happen that we compare Tiffany’s grades to Tyler’s. But that would not be FAIR, because we know Tiffany works hard, and does her best (which is all that we want). So to be fair to others, we must render to them what is their due.
Fairness is also about not wronging others. Now there might be times when we inadvertently do something against another, but we must not willfully seek to do wrong. To be fair to all means that we treat all people with the same respect as we would anyone else, and that we seek to be good to others as much as we can.
2. Mercy (kindness)- Next, we are told to show mercy. Being
merciful is about being kind to others, especially those in need; ust as we saw in the story of the Good Samaritan. But Micah 6:8 stretches us even more, telling us that we aren’t just to “show mercy,” but we must “LOVE mercy.” This again can only come from God placing mercy in us. The Samaritan in the story could only have been as merciful as he was, as kind as he was, because God was fully alive in him. We cannot show this kind of mercy on our own. There are too many variables that can lead us to not be merciful. Only when our heart is fully given to God can we be so totally merciful in all situations. To be merciful we must do as Paul tells us to do in Philippians 2:4 and follow the example of Jesus, as he says: “Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interest of others.”
3. Walk humbly- Lastly, we are told to “walk humbly” with
God. To walk humbly with God is giving up our desires and our will so that we might seek the “will of God.” This is exactly what Jesus did: sought to live out the will of God, even to the end. For this reason, when the Father spoke of Jesus, He said: “This is my Son, with whom I am well PLEASED.” Our selfish nature leads us to want to do what we want, not what God wants. That is why so many people don’t come to church every week, because they want to sleep in, or watch a sporting event, or go to the beach. They want to be in control of what they do with their time. That is why people don’t give 10% of their income to God, because it would limit what they could spend on themselves.
In our desire to be grown-up, we seek to be independent. But this independence usually means independence from God as well. We want to make our own choices. But to walk humbly with God means that ALL of our choices are based on what God would desire for us. As Proverbs 3:5-6 says, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.”
Conclusion: Again, the question of the day is: What is good? And even though we can do things in life that are “good” in nature, true goodness comes from us loving God with all of our heart, and soul, and mind, and body. When we give ourselves over to God as a living sacrifice, instead of just ‘burnt offerings,’ our physical offerings, then we can begin to truly live our lives in goodness. We will desire to be just to others, to be merciful in how we care for others, and we will seek to live out the will that God has for us, instead of the will we set for ourselves.
It is the difference between doing something good on this earth for our own glory, and doing something that has eternal significance for the glory of God. By far, doing something that has eternal significance (like leading someone to salvation, or helping someone give themselves over to God’s will) is far more good than anything else we could possible imagine. SO, let us act justly, love mercy, and humbly walk with God, starting today. Amen.
Micah 6:6-8
Sunday, July 18, 2010
Introduction: For many people, the idea of goodness is relative. Meaning that they have no set definition that tells them what is good and what is bad. But the problem with this is, if goodness is relative, then who decides what is good, and what is not? We see that this idea creates many negative situations in our world, because if it is good for me to do whatever I need to do to get ahead in life, then in the process I will harm many other people along the way.
Thankfully, the Bible is there to give us guidelines into the idea of goodness. At the core of goodness is a kindness that is directed toward another who doesn’t deserve it. Even more, it is a desire that resides in us that permeates our whole being; we are good because that is who God has made us to be; we are good in character.
This morning our question to consider is: What is good? It is a question that is answered by our text. And so our goal this morning will be to put into perspective all that Micah 6:6-8 tells us.
I. Can I be good enough to please God?- (Micah 6:6-7; Hebrews 11:6;
2 Corinthians 4:18, 9:7)
a. What is required?- The prophet Micah, in this passage, is
pondering what God wants. This is a common issue that people have: What does God want of us? If we remember back to the first sermon of this series, we saw that Cain came before God with his offering, but God rejected it. We learned that it was rejected because Cain did not bring it with the right attitude. Cain brought it out of a feeling of requirement, as opposed to an attitude of desire. As Jesus Himself said in 2 Corinthians 9:7, “Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.”
Let me tell you 2 stories that have a connection…
Story 1: Many years ago, Al Capone virtually owned Chicago. Capone wasn't famous for anything heroic. He was notorious for everything from boot-legged booze and prostitution to murder. Capone had a lawyer nicknamed "Easy Eddie." He was Capone's lawyer for a good reason; he was very good! Eddie's skill at legal maneuvering kept Capone out of jail for a long time. To show his appreciation, Capone paid him very well. Not only was the money big, but Eddie also got special dividends. For instance, he and his family occupied a fenced-in mansion with live-in help and all of the conveniences of the day. The estate was so large that it filled an entire Chicago City block. Eddie lived the high life and gave little consideration to anything around him.
Eddie did have a son that he loved dearly. Eddie saw to it that his had all that he needed, including a good education. Nothing was withheld. Price was no object. And, despite his involvement with organized crime, Eddie even tried to teach him right from wrong. Eddie wanted his son to be a better man than he was. Yet, with all his wealth and influence, there were two things he couldn't give his son; he couldn't pass on a good name or a good example.
One day, Easy Eddie reached a difficult decision. Easy Eddie wanted to rectify wrongs he had done. He decided he would go to the authorities and tell the truth about Capone, clean up his tarnished name, and offer his son some semblance of integrity. To do this, he would have to testify against The Mob, and he knew that the cost would be great. So, he testified. Within the year, Easy Eddie's life ended. On Eddie’s dead body they found a rosary, a crucifix, a religious medallion, and a poem clipped from a magazine. The poem read:
"The clock of life is wound but once, And no man has the power to tell just when the hands will stop, At late or early hour. Now is the only time you own. Live, love, toil with a
will. Place no faith in time. For the clock may soon be still.
Story 2: Let me tell you a second story about a World War II heroes; Lieutenant Commander Butch O'Hare. He was a fighter pilot assigned to the aircraft carrier Lexington in the South Pacific. One day his entire squadron was sent on a mission. After he was airborne, he looked at his fuel gauge and realized that someone had forgotten to top off his fuel tank. He would not have enough fuel to complete his mission and get back to his ship. His flight leader told him to return to the carrier. Reluctantly, he dropped out of formation and headed back to the fleet. As he was returning he saw something that turned his blood cold: a squadron of Japanese aircraft was speeding its way toward the American fleet. The American fighters were all but defenseless. He couldn't reach his squadron and bring them back in time to save the fleet. Nor could he warn the fleet of the approaching danger. There was only one thing to do. He must somehow divert them from the fleet.
Laying aside all thoughts of personal safety, he dove into the formation of Japanese planes attacking one surprised enemy plane after another. Butch fired at as many planes as possible until all his ammunition was finally spent. Undaunted, he continued the assault. He dove at the planes, trying to clip a wing or tail in hopes of damaging as many enemy planes as possible and rendering them unfit to fly.
Finally, the exasperated Japanese squadron took off in another direction. Deeply relieved, Butch O'Hare and his tattered fighter limped back to the carrier. Upon arrival, he reported in and related the event surrounding his return. The film from the gun-camera mounted on his plane told the tale. It showed the extent of Butch's daring attempt to protect his fleet. He had destroyed five enemy aircraft. For that action Butch became the Navy's first Ace of W.W.II, and the first Naval Aviator to win the Congressional Medal of Honor.
A year later Butch was killed in aerial combat at the age of 29. His home town would not allow the memory of this WW II hero to fade, and today, O'Hare Airport in Chicago is named in tribute to the courage of this great man. SO WHAT DO THESE TWO STORIES HAVE TO DO WITH EACH OTHER? Butch O'Hare was "Easy Eddie's" son.
b. Pleasing God- In the end, Easy Eddie’s son was a “good” man; a
hero. But is this what pleases God? I believe in part the answer is “yes” because anytime we do good things with our lives for others, God is pleased. But I believe it takes more than doing some good things to please God. In fact, the writer of Hebrews actually tells us what we have to have in order to please God; listen to Hebrews 11:6… “And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.”
How is it that we can’t please God without faith? Didn’t I just say that God is pleased when we do good to others? However, we must understand that without faith, when we do “good deeds,” we are really taking the credit for ourselves. Why is someone a hero? Because honor is shown to them for their actions. But to please God, we need to do acts that bless God, and honor God, and further the kingdom of God. While saving lives has its sense of importance in our world, there are actions that are important in the eternal realm.
Without faith, we fail to see that life is more than just what we know on this earth; more than what we can see. As 2 Corinthians 4:18 tells us, “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” What is seen is temporary…….what is unseen is eternal. God has work for us to do that has eternal impact. That is why when Jesus was on this earth, it would have been “GOOD” to heal people of their afflictions, or make their life “BETTER” in some way. But Jesus knew the eternal aspect of SALVATION was the more important aspect, and so Jesus came to “save us from our sins.”
The work we do for God is what pleases God far more than any work we do that honors ourselves, or others. EXAMPLE- If you have watched the news at all, even if you are not a basketball fan, I’m sure you have some knowledge of who LeBron James is, and the decision he just made. LeBron James is one of the best basketball players in the world right now. He has won the Most Valuable Player award the last two years. But there is one thing that has still avoided him, and that is a championship ring. For a player to be considered “GREAT” they have to have at least one championship ring. James was a free agent this year, and the debate was whether he would sign again with the Cleveland Cavaliers, or go to another team. In the end, James signed with the Miami Heat because he believed it to be his best shot at winning a title (that is because Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh, two of the other top players in the NBA also signed with Miami). Now James believed this act to be GOOD because he sacrificed money for the chance to win. He believed he wasn’t being selfish, but trying to do good for himself and others. However, almost nobody else, except for his family and the city of Miami believes this to be GOOD. Why? Because they believe it is just for himself; it is a selfish act in the eyes of others.
II. What is good according to God?- (Luke 10:25-37; Micah 6:8; Philippians 2:4; Proverbs 3:5-6)
a. The Good Samaritan- A lawyer once asked Jesus the question,
‘What must I do to inherit eternal life?’ Jesus in essence translates this question into the question, ‘What must I do to be good?’ We know this to be true because the story Jesus tells is about someone doing the good, God wants us to do in response to the lawyer talking about loving God and loving our neighbor. It is the story of the Good Samaritan. Of course in this story there is a man who is robbed and greatly injured. So who will show love to him? A priest happens by, but the priest passed by on the other side, not helping the injured man. Then a Levite came along, but he too passed by on the other side. Both of these men were obliged by their offices to show compassion to him, but they did not.
Finally, a Samaritan came upon the man. The Samaritan was not obligated by position to help. Even more, as a Samaritan, the Jew would be his enemy, and would despise him as such. But the Samaritans’ heart was opened to the man, and he cared for the man, and bandaged his wounds, and took him to an inn so that he could get more care, and even offered to pay for the expenses himself.
Jesus uses this story to illustrate that love should not come from position, or trying to lift up oneself, or from even opportunity, but out of something much deeper. Jesus then asks the lawyer, in Luke 10:36-37: “‘Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?’ 37The expert in the law replied, ‘The one who had mercy on him.’ Jesus told him, ‘Go and do likewise.’” The lawyer astutely understood that it was about mercy; an act of love that is undeserved and unmerited.
b. What the Lord requires- This too is what the prophet Micah tells
us in Micah 6:8… “He has showed you, O man, 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 points out here three important qualities that the Lord requires of us; three qualities that make us good: justice, mercy, and humility. While there is a place for giving our offerings to God, God wants even more than that; God wants all of us. And in our giving ourselves over to God, God places in us the desire to be just, kind, and humble.
1. Justice- First, there is justice. Justice is about fairness;
being fair to all. For example, Tyler and Tiffany are both smart in their own ways, and good students. But for Tyler it comes much easier. There is just something about Tyler’s mind that helps him to pick up concepts easier than Tiffany does. Consequently, Tyler has always gotten straight A’s, while Tiffany always gets more A’s than B’s, but not all A’s. In this scenario, it might happen that we compare Tiffany’s grades to Tyler’s. But that would not be FAIR, because we know Tiffany works hard, and does her best (which is all that we want). So to be fair to others, we must render to them what is their due.
Fairness is also about not wronging others. Now there might be times when we inadvertently do something against another, but we must not willfully seek to do wrong. To be fair to all means that we treat all people with the same respect as we would anyone else, and that we seek to be good to others as much as we can.
2. Mercy (kindness)- Next, we are told to show mercy. Being
merciful is about being kind to others, especially those in need; ust as we saw in the story of the Good Samaritan. But Micah 6:8 stretches us even more, telling us that we aren’t just to “show mercy,” but we must “LOVE mercy.” This again can only come from God placing mercy in us. The Samaritan in the story could only have been as merciful as he was, as kind as he was, because God was fully alive in him. We cannot show this kind of mercy on our own. There are too many variables that can lead us to not be merciful. Only when our heart is fully given to God can we be so totally merciful in all situations. To be merciful we must do as Paul tells us to do in Philippians 2:4 and follow the example of Jesus, as he says: “Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interest of others.”
3. Walk humbly- Lastly, we are told to “walk humbly” with
God. To walk humbly with God is giving up our desires and our will so that we might seek the “will of God.” This is exactly what Jesus did: sought to live out the will of God, even to the end. For this reason, when the Father spoke of Jesus, He said: “This is my Son, with whom I am well PLEASED.” Our selfish nature leads us to want to do what we want, not what God wants. That is why so many people don’t come to church every week, because they want to sleep in, or watch a sporting event, or go to the beach. They want to be in control of what they do with their time. That is why people don’t give 10% of their income to God, because it would limit what they could spend on themselves.
In our desire to be grown-up, we seek to be independent. But this independence usually means independence from God as well. We want to make our own choices. But to walk humbly with God means that ALL of our choices are based on what God would desire for us. As Proverbs 3:5-6 says, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.”
Conclusion: Again, the question of the day is: What is good? And even though we can do things in life that are “good” in nature, true goodness comes from us loving God with all of our heart, and soul, and mind, and body. When we give ourselves over to God as a living sacrifice, instead of just ‘burnt offerings,’ our physical offerings, then we can begin to truly live our lives in goodness. We will desire to be just to others, to be merciful in how we care for others, and we will seek to live out the will that God has for us, instead of the will we set for ourselves.
It is the difference between doing something good on this earth for our own glory, and doing something that has eternal significance for the glory of God. By far, doing something that has eternal significance (like leading someone to salvation, or helping someone give themselves over to God’s will) is far more good than anything else we could possible imagine. SO, let us act justly, love mercy, and humbly walk with God, starting today. Amen.
posted by Logan's Blog at 11:33 PM
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