FINDING THE HEART OF REDEMPTION: THE WALK

We continue seeking God’s redeeming power for our lives in the sermon series, Finding the Heart of Redemption. Almost all of 2020 has been framed with fear, confusion, violence and uncertainty.  We are struggling with the darkness of uncertainty and despair.  Uncertainty is not knowing what we can believe.  Despair is realizing that the things we know are not good.  We have been walking in this darkness for months.  Redemption is the power to bring the light of trust and goodness to our lives.  We are not the first people to encounter difficult times or hard circumstances.  This week we turn to the prophet Micah.  The people in Micah’s time were building a vicious and destructive society because they refused to listen to God.  In Micah 6:14 God tells them the impact of their direction: ¹⁴ No matter how much you get, it will never be enough— hollow stomachs, empty hearts. No matter how hard you work, you’ll have nothing to show for it— bankrupt lives, wasted souls. Micah 6:13-14 (MSG) Is this the last word for them?  Never!  Micah 6:1-8 urges them to change their direction.  In the sermon, The Walk, these verses help us to move out of the shadows and the deepest darkness into the warmth of God’s redeeming power!  May you see the brightness of God’s redeeming love as you read Micah 6:1-8: Listen to what the LORD says: “Stand up, plead my case before the mountains; let the hills hear what you have to say. ² “Hear, you mountains, the LORD’s accusation; listen, you everlasting foundations of the earth. For the LORD has a case against his people; he is lodging a charge against Israel. ³ “My people, what have I done to you? How have I burdened you? Answer me. ⁴ I brought you up out of Egypt and redeemed you from the land of slavery. I sent Moses to lead you, also Aaron and Miriam. ⁵ My people, remember what Balak king of Moab plotted and what Balaam son of Beor answered. Remember your journey from Shittim to Gilgal, that you may know the righteous acts of the LORD.” ⁶ 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? ⁷ Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousand rivers of olive oil? Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? ⁸ He has shown you, O mortal, 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. (NIV)