For many, me included, this is a “life verse”. You know, one
of those ones that you memorize and attempt to live by. For all believers, this
is a very succinct way to summarize what the Lord wants of us. And He does not
leave us alone to figure it out ourselves—no, by His sufficient grace, we have
the power of the Holy Spirit within us to meet this calling on our lives. Matthew
Henry explains further: (1.) We must do justly, must render to all their due,
according as our relation and obligation to them are; we must do wrong to none,
but do right to all, in their bodies, goods, and good name. (2.) We must love
mercy; we must delight in it, as our God does, must be glad of an opportunity
to do good, and do it cheerfully. Justice is put before mercy, for we must not
give that in alms which is wrongfully got, or with which our debts should be
paid. God hates robbery for a burnt-offering. (3.) We must walk humbly with our
God. This includes all the duties of the first table, as the two former include
all the duties of the second table [*]. We must take the Lord for our God in
covenant, must attend on him and adhere to him as ours, and must make it our
constant care and business to please him…
*[The first and second
table refer to the Ten Commandments when they are separated into the categories
of 1) our relationship with God, and 2) our relationship with humanity]
As Henry points out, our adherence to the mandate laid out
in the Micah passage will allow us to fulfill the Ten Commandments of our God. You
may be saying, “Wait a minute! We are no longer under the law. With the coming
of Christ, we are now under grace!” Yes, those commandments appear in the Old
Testament, as also the words in Micah, but as the words of Christ were recorded
in Matthew 4:17-18, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the
Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For truly I tell
you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least
stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is
accomplished…” Although we are standing in the grace of God (Romans 5:2) we
ought not to fool ourselves into thinking that these divine requirements are
now moot. Indeed they are still relevant to us today. But again, mercifully, we
have His Holy Spirit to empower us to live according to His will, and we can
stand before a righteous God and be seen as righteous because of the sacrifice
of our Savior!
So, what is your life verse? Do you have one? Maybe you have
several of them! Feel free to share with us!
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