Of Justice, Kindness and Humility

“What does the Lord require, but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?”

– Micah 6:8

This was the reading in my devotional. The passage is both simple and difficult. It is simple because it does not require a sermon series to unpack its meaning. There is no metaphorical, hidden, or sophisticated language to cloud our understanding. What is simple in the spiritual life is often the most difficult. Today’s reading requires daily discernment of what is right and just. And then the passage calls us to act on that discernment. The passage is all about action, we are called to Do, Love, and Walk. The temptation of acting on what we think is just is wearing our authoritarian mask. Don’t we just love people who have all the answers, all the time, and who are always right? Micah’s antidote is to “Walk humbly with our God.” The virtue of Humility requires taking off all our masks, which is most difficult.

So much of our stewardship talk focuses on use of money, and the role money plays in our lives. This is largely due to money and all its power being the biggest obstacle in our faith journey. Our culture feeds the lust for money and material goods through high-powered marketing campaigns. Resisting the lure of wealth is not easy. Micah offers us a counter-cultural path. Rather than loving money he says to love kindness. And rather doing what makes us happy or content, Micah tells us to do justice. Micah offers us a new path to walk, and instructs us to walk it humbly with our Lord. It sounds so simple. Who knew it would be so difficult.