In this week’s Crisis Counsels we have looked at two Scripture passages which both emphasize the importance of moving beyond outward acts of piety to engage in a whole life of genuine faith –

With what shall I come before the Lord, and bow myself before God on high? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings… ? He has told you, O mortal, what is good. What does the Lord require of you, but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?
Micah 6:6,8

Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint, dill, and cumin, but have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. It is these you ought to have practiced without neglecting the others.
words of Jesus in Matthew 23:23

When Jesus calls for living in “justice and mercy and faith,” he is alluding to Micah’s threefold list: “to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God.” This is especially helpful to keep in mind when thinking about faith. Many people think of “faith” as referring simply to a belief system. But a much fuller understanding of faith is that it is “walking humbly with God.” Faith means living in relationship with God, “walking” with God – following God’s ways – and living in humility. Certainly the greatest model of such faith is Jesus! In our time, we see a lot of “faith” that is just posturing, or “faith” that involves little humility, or “faith” that pays scant attention to the example of Jesus. We are called in contrast to join with Jesus to walk humbly with our God.

Prayer – Lead us, O Lord, to live with authentic justice, mercy, and faith. Click To Tweet

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About the Author

Dr. David A. Palmer has been the senior pastor at the United Methodist Church of Kent since 1995. He has a B.A. from Wittenberg University, a Master of Divinity from Duke University, and a Doctor of Ministry from Princeton Theological Seminary. A native of Wooster, Ohio, he has served three other churches in east Ohio before coming to Kent. He and his wife, Mavis, have three children.