Or we may think that God isn t fair when sufferings come our way while those who are wicked seem to enjoy life more and have more stuff than we do. Or we don t think God is fair when a young person dies while an old person who longs for death continues to linger in pain and enormous suffering.

Now some Jews say it is O.K. to be upset with God, even angry with him. They cite the example of Job who shook his fist at God and demanded that he answer for the way he treated him. They may even cite our text in which Israel accuses God of being unfair and wants to plead their case before him. I was at a funeral several weeks ago in which the pastor said that when we get to heaven, God will have to answer to us.

Really? God will have to answer to us? He, the creator of the universe, has to answer to the creature. I don t think so! In fact, I know that is not the case. Yes, we think God isn t fair sometimes. Yes, people in Bible times would question God. But we are wrong in our thinking.

God does not have to explain himself. In fact, when Job called on him to answer, God responded by asking him basically, Where were you when I founded the earth? and Who are you to question me? St. Paul says it this way, in Romans 10:33ff Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God!
How unsearchable his judgments,
and his paths beyond tracing out!
34 Who has known the mind of the Lord?
Or who has been his counselor?
35 Who has ever given to God,
that God should repay him?

Quotation from Isaiah 40:10ff
See, the Sovereign LORD comes with power,and his arm rules for him.
See, his reward is with him,
and his recompense accompanies him.
11 He tends his flock like a shepherd:
He gathers the lambs in his arms
and carries them close to his heart;
he gently leads those that have young.
12 Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand,or with the breadth of his hand marked off the heavens?
Who has held the dust of the earth in a basket,
or weighed the mountains on the scales
and the hills in a balance?
13 Who has understood the mind of the LORD,or instructed him as his counselor?
14 Whom did the LORD consult to enlighten him,
and who taught him the right way?
Who was it that taught him knowledge
or showed him the path of understanding?

God does not have to answer to us. And yet, in his love and mercy he will at times reassure us that even though life is not always fair, he, our God, is beyond fair. He makes this clear to the people of Israel through his prophet Micah in our text when he teaches them . . .
What God Requires of His People

Whereas Hosea prophesied to the northern tribes of Israel, and Isaiah to the court in Jerusalem,Micah, a Judean from Moresheth in the SW of Palestine, preached to the common people of Judah. His name means who is like Yahweh?

Micah ministered during the reigns of Jotham (750-732), Ahaz (736-716) and Hezekiah (716-
687) (1:1). Though for the most part a good king, Jotham did not remove the idolatrous high places from his kingdom. Ahaz, a wicked king (see 2 Kings 16:2-4), adopted a pro-Assyrian foreign policy, and during his reign the captivity of the northern tribes took place. Hezekiah, one of Judah s best kings, was anti-Assyrian and withstood the siege of Jerusalem that Sennacherib
led in 701 (2 Kings 18:13-19:36). For peasants and villagers, these were days of harassment from enemy armies, of hardship because of exploitation by the wealthy (2:1-13), and of oppression by the rulers (3:1-4) and false prophets (3:5-8). Micah, as Amos, cried for social justice.

Justice is a common theme in Micah. In this section the people of Judah seemed to indicate that God wasn t treating them fairly because of what was going on in their lives. They also didn t think it was fair that their nation was on the verge of being conquered by another country eventhough God told them that it was because of their sins.

And so, they wanted to plead their case against the Lord. But the Lord responds by leveling his own accusations. He points out that he had been more than fair to them but that they had ignored his acts of love. He cites what were to them familiar events in history but which many Christians
today have lost knowledge of because they don t know their Bibles.

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.
sent Moses to lead you,
also Aaron and Miriam.
5 My people, remember
what Balak king of Moab counseled
and what Balaam son of Beor answered.
Remember your journey from Shittim to Gilgal,
that you may know the righteous acts of the LORD.
Application: Again, we may think that God has been unfair to us. But the Lord would respond to that false assumption with a recounting of what he has done for us. He redeemed us, lost and condemned creatures, purchased and won us from all sin, from death, and from the power of the devil. Not with gold or silver but with the holy, precious blood of his son, Jesus, and his innocent sufferings and death. God has saved us from hell by sending Jesus, his firstborn son, to be our Savior. In grace God has poured out his Spirit into our hearts in baptism and through the Good
News of the Bible, assures us of forgiveness, eternal life, and salvation. We can add to that every spiritual blessing in Christ as well as our daily bread. Certainly, God has been more than fair to
his Old Testament people and to us as well. Who are we to question the goodness of God?

It seems as though these words of Micah about what God had done for his people were sufficient to silence them. Now they were in a response mode and wondering how they could make it right with the Lord whom they had offended? How could they do what God required?

Micah gives the answer in 6:6ff of Micah
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 oil?
Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression,
the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?
8 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.

Application: When we realize how fair God has been to us and what he has done for us, we too must bow in humility before God and sincerely ask, What do you require of me, Lord? Or as the Jailer at Philippi asked, What must I do to be saved? Or as the hymn says
How can I thank you, Lord,
For all your loving kindness,
That you have patiently
Borne with me in my blindness!
When dead in many sins
And trespasses I lay,
I kindled, holy God,
Your anger every day.

Note again the Lord s answer to Judah. He is not satisfied with just outward actions such as sacrifice and obedience to the Law. He seeks faith moved actions that demonstrate that God is their God.

How does this apply to us today? How can we be sure that we are doing what God requires of us in response to his love?

Whatever actions we do, if we are doing them only outwardly and not with faith in Jesus, it is of no value. Without faith it is impossible to please God.
Our actions are to be fruits of faith. Acts which flow from love for God that show that we really do love God above all else and our neighbor as ourselves.
Exactly what those actions are can be endless. A very short list is in our Church Constitution under the heading of the Rights and Privileges of Church Members. Longer and more detailed lists can be found in the Bible throughout. Micah gives us a short list here To act justly and tolove mercy and to walk humbly with your God.