Walk Humbly with God

Micah 6:8

Micah has been calling us to a journey marked by justice and kindness; now he comes to what in many ways is the climax of his trilogy of themes – the need to walk humbly with God. The three themes of Micah 6:8 are not separate and randomly selected concepts; they belong together, and together they illustrate what it means to be God’s person with integrity in all the varied issues and themes of life.

Now I don’t know about you, but whenever I hear the word “humble”, I think of that memorable character, Uriah Heep, created by Charles Dickens in his novel “David Copperfield”. Heep’s famous line was the need to “be ‘umble”; in reality, it was a mask for insincerity and sheer cunning. We today may not be quite as obvious as the Dickens character, but nevertheless it is something we need to watch.

We are called to “walk humbly with God”, and there are several points that might be made about that. The first is that the Hebrew word “humbly” is better translated as “wisely”. To walk wisely with God presents us with a fresh dimension; because wisdom in Biblical terms is not primarily about being clever or knowledgeable, but has more to do with Godliness. A second point, as we have noted previously, is that the “walk” has very practical implications.

In 1st Corinthians chapter 1, the Apostle Paul wrote:

“He (God) is the source of your life in Christ Jesus, who became the wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification and redemption”.

The essential clue to walking with God in humility, wisdom and integrity lies in knowing what God has done in Christ.

Put another way, the glue that binds everything together is simply this – that the Christian life, or the way of wisdom, does not depend on our quest for knowledge, important and helpful though that is; it is not in the various rituals of worship, necessary as they are. It isn’t based on learned skills promising stress management or happiness, and it certainly isn’t related to age. Rather, it is the simple yet profound discovery of Christ at the centre of our life and relationships; and allowing the Holy Spirit to mould our lives in the manner of Jesus Christ.

A prayer:

Gracious God, enable us by your Spirit to commit our way to you, if not with all the faith we need, then at least with all the faith we have. Draw us closer to you and to each other. Increase our faith, confirm our hope, and sanctify us in love as we seek to walk with you in humility and wisdom; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Clive W Ayre