14 day plan

Summer of Love

Day 14 of 14

GNT

Micah 6:6-8

What the Lord Requires

6What shall I bring to the Lord, the God of heaven, when I come to worship him? Shall I bring the best calves to burn as offerings to him? 7Will the Lord be pleased if I bring him thousands of sheep or endless streams of olive oil? Shall I offer him my first-born child to pay for my sins? 8No, the Lord has told us what is good. What he requires of us is this: to do what is just, to show constant love, and to live in humble fellowship with our God.

Reflection:  Nothing in My Hand I Bring There is nothing you can do for God. Do you really believe that? Most of us have an instinct to try to please, to hope that we can earn the love of God through our deep-down goodness, our occasional benevolence, or perhaps some great act of sacrifice and service. That’s not the way it works. Micah gets it: God is after our hearts. He wants us to love like he loves. That means mingling justice and mercy, just as God has done for us. It means humbling ourselves before God’s will.
And it means walking with God, just as Adam and Eve did back in the Garden of Eden, alongside the great Lover as his wonderful plan for us unfolds. Coming to the Lord empty-handed is the only way to please him.

Question: Do you trust in your own innate goodness or your good works to please God? How can you wean yourself off this mistake? Can you humble yourself?

Prayer:  Lord, I come before you with nothing. I throw myself on your mercy, and I ask you to align my heart with yours. Teach me how to love like you love.

We have been reading the Bible with Greg Clarke. Tomorrow we begin a new series, Alive & Active, with Katie Haldane.

Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition) © 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. Bible text from the Good News Translation (GNT) is not to be reproduced in copies or otherwise by any means except as permitted in writing by American Bible Society, 101 North Independence Mall East, Floor 8, Philadelphia, PA 19106-2155 (www.americanbible.org). LICENSEE shall reproduce the following trademark and trademark notice on the copyright page of each copy of the Licensed Products: ®

Days

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14

Suggested Plans

14

Peace

14

Signposts to Christ from Isaiah

Micah 6:1-16

The Lord's Case against Israel

1Listen to the Lord's case against Israel.

Arise, O Lord, and present your case; let the mountains and the hills hear what you say.

2You mountains, you everlasting foundations of the earth, listen to the Lord's case! The Lord has a case against his people. He is going to bring an accusation against Israel.

3The Lord says, “My people, what have I done to you? How have I been a burden to you? Answer me. 4 I brought you out of Egypt; I rescued you from slavery; I sent Moses, Aaron, and Miriam to lead you. 5 My people, remember what King Balak of Moab planned to do to you and how Balaam son of Beor answered him. Remember the things that happened on the way from the camp at Acacia to Gilgal. Remember these things and you will realize what I did in order to save you.”

What the Lord Requires

6What shall I bring to the Lord, the God of heaven, when I come to worship him? Shall I bring the best calves to burn as offerings to him? 7Will the Lord be pleased if I bring him thousands of sheep or endless streams of olive oil? Shall I offer him my first-born child to pay for my sins? 8No, the Lord has told us what is good. What he requires of us is this: to do what is just, to show constant love, and to live in humble fellowship with our God.

9It is wise to fear the Lord. He calls to the city, “Listen, you people who assemble in the city! 10In the houses of evil people are treasures which they got dishonestly. They use false measures, a thing that I hate. 11How can I forgive those who use false scales and weights? 12Your rich people exploit the poor, and all of you are liars. 13So I have already begun your ruin and destruction because of your sins. 14You will eat, but not be satisfied—in fact you will still be hungry. You will carry things off, but you will not be able to save them; anything you do save I will destroy in war. 15You will sow grain, but not harvest the crop. You will press oil from olives, but never get to use it. You will make wine, but never drink it. 16 This will happen because you have followed the evil practices of King Omri and of his son, King Ahab. You have continued their policies, and so I will bring you to ruin, and everyone will despise you. People everywhere will treat you with contempt.”

Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition) © 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. Bible text from the Good News Translation (GNT) is not to be reproduced in copies or otherwise by any means except as permitted in writing by American Bible Society, 101 North Independence Mall East, Floor 8, Philadelphia, PA 19106-2155 (www.americanbible.org). LICENSEE shall reproduce the following trademark and trademark notice on the copyright page of each copy of the Licensed Products: ®