It’s Not A Secret Formula

Religion

Coca Cola and Kentucky Fried Chicken closely guard their lucrative formulas, and your grandmother and mine talk about the “secret ingredient” that makes their gravy so delicious. So when we see people around us who seem to have a genuine relationship with God, we’re sure they have some super special secret that gives them confidence and assurance amid daily struggles and even when dealing with eternal realities.
We spend sleepless nights and anxious days fretting about pleasing God. Do we believe the right things; have we said the right prayers; do we have assurance that God loves us–that He really loves me–and that we’re going to Heaven when we die? Should we give more money or attend church more faithfully? Why can’t we just know?

People who profess to know God and who should really know God better have asked these questions throughout history. From the day Adam and Eve hid from God in the garden, we have been fearful; afraid of the One who professes to love us; always striving to measure up.

How can we ever know if we are accepted?

The prophet Micah dealt with just these issues thousands of years ago. People in his day were even more troubled, it seems; they even talked about sacrificing their children to appease God! They were asking questions like these: “With what shall I come before the LORD, and bow myself before God on high? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old? Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousands of rivers of oil? Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul“? Micah 6:6,7

Such fears and questions arise from a misunderstanding of God and His purposes. God does not want something from us for Himself; God wants something for us for our benefit. We do not need to placate or appease Him; we need to develop and mature into all that He created us and enabled us to be. It’s not a matter of getting God to accept us; it’s a matter of us embracing and enjoying all that He has provided!
Through the prophet Micah, God gave an answer to His people then that satisfies and instructs us even today: “He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God“? Micah 6:8 Three simple things. Things you and I can do today. Things we can apply to our lives and our every action. Things we can evaluate in our lives—with no need to compare ourselves to another.

These things are not for God’s benefit; they are to make us what we should be and must be in order to enjoy relationships with God and our family and our neighbors. All that God is and has He pours out on us, that we can be the kind of people who can have and enjoy Him and His creation! “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined the things that God has prepared for those who love him.”1 Corinthians 2:9

That action you’re about to do? Are you doing it because it’s right? That word you’re about to say? Is your motive kind? Will your words be gracious? The plans you have for today; are you trusting God to direct your steps? And if you’re successful and effective, will you see that He is glorified and deflect any praise to Him?

The Christian life is not rocket science, and it’s not a secret formula. It’s written down, for all the world to see. And for you and I to demonstrate. Do right. Be merciful. And consistently walk with God in humility. God is delighted when we are at our best.
But be doers of the word, and not hearers only…James 1:22

Please Note: Reprint of Michael Parham’s Religion Article from 11/18/11.

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