Don’t Be an Idiot

This is what he requires of you: to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God. ~ Micah 6:8 (NLT)

I used to watch a TV show called The Office. For those who have never seen it, here’s a brief description. The Office was a sit-com which was shot as a reality TV type of way. The “employees” of the office worked for a paper company under a boss, his name was Michael, who had a great big heart, but no leadership abilities whatsoever. They also had an Assistant To the Manager character named Dwight who was power hungry, but none of the employees paid any attention to him and showed him zero respect.

There was an episode at one point where the fake documentary producer was interviewing Dwight and asked the question, “What’s the best advice Michael has ever given to you?” His answer? “Don’t be an idiot. It changed my life.” It was one of the greatest lines from the show.

Oddly enough, in our own reality of faith, we might turn the question back on us. “What’s the best advice that God has ever given to you?” Though there may be a ton of different answers we could all offer up, the Old Testament prophet named Micah actually answers it for us in our verse today. He penned, “This is what he [God] requires of you: to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.”

So, let’s break this down. This is God’s way of talking to Israel, back in the day, and to us today. He’s talking about the fact that He calls us to love everyone. However, not everyone was getting it. So, God broke it down into simple to understand nuggets. “Do what is right.” In other words, always side with what God is calling you to do. Do what is right, even if others say you shouldn’t. “Love mercy.” This one can be a little bit more complicated, but let’s simplify. We should show love, give help, provide assistance, to those who need it. Finally, “walk humbly with your God.” This one should be pretty straight-forward. Realize that God ranks above you. He is the Lord. He is in charge. He is the one who leads. You come second in this relationship.

So, for those of us who call ourselves Christians, here’s what God is saying (in a much nicer way): “Don’t be an idiot.” Love God. Love others. It’s that simple.