What does God want from us? (Micah 6:8) Part 4 / Conclusion

Today, we will finish this 4-part series about Micah and “What does the Lord require of you?

I. HE WANTS OUR ATTENTION.

A. He wants us to not forget Him…!

Deuteronomy 8:11-14,17 – "Beware that you do not forget the LORD your God by not keeping His commandments, His judgments, and His statutes which I command you today,

"...lest; when you have eaten and are full, and have built beautiful houses and dwell in them;

"...and when your herds and your flocks multiply, and your silver and your gold are multiplied, and all that you have is multiplied;

"...when your heart is lifted up, and you forget the LORD your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage....

then you say in your heart, 'My power and the might of my hand have gained me this wealth.'"

B. He wants us to listen to Him…!

Matthew 4:4- "But He answered and said, "It is written, 'Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.'""

II. HE WANTS OUR LOVE

That fact has always amazed me, and I don’t think I am alone in my amazement. Why would an omnipotent God want a puny human's love?

Psalms 8:3-5- "When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, The moon and the stars, which You have ordained, What is man that You are mindful of him, And the son of man that You visit him? For You have made him a little lower than the angels, And You have crowned him with glory and
honor."

He wants our undivided, unreserved love!

Deuteronomy 6:5- "You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength."

Matthew 22:37- "Jesus said to him,” 'You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.'"

III. HE WANTS OUR OBEDIENCE

An obedience that grows naturally from our love.

Psalms 51:16-19- "For You do not desire sacrifice, or else I would give it; You do not delight in burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, A broken and a contrite heart; These, O God, You will not despise...

Love is the underpinning for obedience.

Mark 12:33- "And to love Him with all the heart, with all the understanding, with all the soul, and with all the strength, and to love one's neighbor as oneself, is more than all the whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.""

IV. HE WANTS OUR LIVES

God should control our lives.

Galatians 2:20- "I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me."

Colossians 3:1-4- "If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are …where?…above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory."

God does not want an on again, off again, relationship. God does not want a some sort of wise, warm, and fuzzy relationship...

He wants all of you. And what is the practical expression of this?

How do we do this?

Ephesians 4:22-24- "that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness."

Philippians 3:13-14- "Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus."

I continue to press on toward the goal…

V. HE WANTS YOUR "COMPANY"

Surrounded by angels, He wants you there with Him. Once again, I am awe-struck by this, but the testimony of scripture supports it...

Look at what God has for us.

John 14:1-4- "Do not let your hearts be troubled. You have faith in God; have faith also in me. In my Father's house there are many dwelling places. If there were not, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back again and take you to myself, so that where I am you also may be. Where I am going you know the way."

Note, though, this homecoming is for people who have responded to what God wants from them!

In Revelation 14:12-13- we see "Here is the patience of the saints; here are those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus. Then I heard a voice from heaven saying to me, "Write: 'Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.' " "Yes," says the Spirit, "that they may rest from their labors, and their works follow them.""

The question that you need to ask yourself is this: “Am I walking humbly with my God?”

Maybe the best answer you can come up with right now is, "No, because you don’t have a relationship with God."

Perhaps you have never begun a walk with Him. Maybe you aren’t currently walking with Him. Perhaps you used to walk with God, but you have tried to do your own thing and walk on your own, your own way.

Maybe your answer is, “No, because my walk isn't all that humble." You may chafe at the thought of submitting to His will and His direction for your daily life, and you aren’t recognizing His position as sovereign Lord of your life. Perhaps you are too self-absorbed to see the needs of those around you.

I don’t know how you are doing with these "simple," painfully obvious, and easily overlooked things about our relationship with God, but perhaps you're beginning to think you need to change some things.

Well, this is the time, this is the dance, and there is no time like the present.

You can change whatever needs to be chaged in your life so that you will be abe to say, "Yes, I am walking humbly with my God!"

Justice, kindness and humility. Not a bad three words for the day...

Amen...