With what shall I come before the LORD and bow down before the exalted God? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old? Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousand rivers of oil? Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.
-Micah 6:6-8 (NIV)

Oftentimes the people of Israel had a distorted understanding of sacrifices and rituals. Instead of viewing them as a way to receive grace, they viewed them as a way to get God off their backs. And in these verses from Micah, the list of things that they try to buy God off with gets increasingly preposterous… Year-old calves, thousands of rams, ten thousand rivers of oil, and firstborn children!

Can you sense the sarcasm? It’s as if God himself is saying, “Seriously? Do you really think those things are what I want?”

Then, God’s true interest is identified: our character. God wants changed lives. In particular, he wants us to:

  • Act justly. Whatever you do, be fair and true. Do what is right.
  • Love mercy. Be compassionate toward others. And love doing it. Why? Because God gave it to us first.
  • Walk humbly. Have a faithful relationship with God. Swallow your pride and understand that’s he’s greater than you.

So allow me to ask the question: What sacrifices do you make to please God?

You’re probably thinking, “Wait a minute… Don’t go lumping me together with those zany Israelites. Killing calves or rams or babies? Giving away oil? Hardly! I don’t do sacrifices!”

While that may be true, but we all do things with the ultimate intent of trying to please God. We think we are a “good” Christian because we pray before meals, or go to church almost every Sunday, or throw a little cash in the offering plate. That’s our modern-day “sacrifice”, but the problem is those things are definitely not what God thinks is good… They are certainly not what God requires… They are absolutely not what God wants.

God is more concerned with the the one making the offering than the offering itself. First and foremost, he wants our hearts. We try to make it so difficult, but in reality, it’s so simple, isn’t it?

Act justly. Love mercy. Walk humbly. That’s what God requires.