“‘No, O people, the Lord has told you what is good, and this is what he requires of you: to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.’” Micah 6:8 NLT
Today we are on the final installment of examining the last three action clauses in Micah 6:8. Our focus today is to “walk humbly with your God.” The notion of walking humbly is certainly countercultural. In today’s society, we often hear messaging around being number one, pulling ourselves up by our bootstraps, and achieving success individually.
The prophet Micah reminds us that as children of God, we derive our achievement and success not from worldly pursuits but in “walk[ing] humbly with [y]our God.” Dictionary.com defines humbly as “in a way that is not proud or arrogant; modestly,” “in a way that shows insignificance, inferiority, or subservience,” and “in a respectfully courteous way.”
To walk humbly with God means that we see ourselves in right position when compared to Him. While we are co-heirs with Christ (Romans 8:17), fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139:14), and made just beneath the angels (Hebrews 2:7) anything good that we are, any prosperity that we hold, any intellect or resources we possess is nothing but the grace of God. It’s almost as if as we walk with God He reflects back to us showing us who we were, who we are, and where He intends to take us and shape us.
When we are in close relationship with Him, we are able to see our inferiority which should keep us in a perpetual state of gratitude and grant us the ability to show mercy to others and do what is good. If for no other reason then because we recognize our dependence on Him. To see ourselves as inferior does not mean we have low self-esteem. It does mean that we recognize we are nothing without Him and if our loving Father can show us so much lovingkindness and unmerited grace to us who do not deserve it, then we also should be able to do the same for others whether we think they deserve it or not.
Pride often prevents us from showing mercy because we want accountability for our wounds. Arrogance often keeps us from doing what is right because our nose is in the air at the condition of another because we think we could and would never find ourselves in those circumstances. Both pride and arrogance are the opposite of humility.
The beauty of walking humbly with our God is that as we stay connected to Him through prayer, confession, repentance, fellowship, fasting, praise, worship, and His Word we are gifted more awareness of the Holy Spirit in our lives which counsels us (John 14:26) and gives us more strength and power (Ephesians 3:16) to do exactly what it is that God has called us to do in Micah 6:8.
Reflection
Which definition of humbly resonates or connects with you?
“in a way that is not proud or arrogant; modestly,”
“in a way that shows insignificance, inferiority, or subservience,”
“in a respectfully courteous way.”
How can you grow more in your ability to walk humbly? What can you do to strengthen your walk with God? In which ways is the Holy Spirit counseling you to do what is right, love mercy, and walk humbly with your God?
Prayer
Lord, thank You for choosing me. Forgive me for any time I thought my greatness was because of me. Help me to walk humbly with You. Send Your Holy Spirit to counsel me and strengthen me so I may do what is good in every circumstance to all people, love mercy no matter the size of the infraction, and walk humbly with You. In Jesus’ name I pray, amen.
Photo by Laurenz Kleinheider on Unsplash
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