«Shall I count pure those with the wicked scales, and with the bag of deceitful weights?» (Micah 6:11).
In this case, God entered into a lawsuit against Israel. The mountains, hills, and foundations of the earth were the witnesses.
God reminded the people of what He had done every step of the way, in the conquests, and in every advancement to the Promised Land.
He reminded them that He was not pleased with the multitude of sacrifices and exclaimed, “He has shown you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God”. (Micah 6:8).
However, the people were doing the opposite. They falsified the weights, obtained treasures in a questionable way, and had false scales. Violence, lying, and deception reigned in the cities. How far they had strayed from God’s ideal!
The consequences were dire and fast approaching. The same thing awaits us if we believe that our righteousness is found in sacrifices, if we forget what God really expects of us, and if we believe that we can deceive the Sovereign of the universe by the way we live.
Money is always a sensitive topic and there are codes that indicate how far you can ask or discuss it in a conventional conversation. However, accounts must be clear with God—and with our neighbor, too.
There are many ways we can deceive others in relation to money. It can be the way we charge people, the business we do, how we get what we buy, how faithfully we follow divine and governmental business practices, and so on.
The truth is that by living in a world where society is already not theocratically governed, much of our reasoning or rules can be seen as outdated and even foolish. However, divine principles continue to be above everything, at least for us as Christians.
Let us not believe that simply by belonging to a church, we are free from divine judgment. It is just the opposite! Each one as a member plays an important role by keeping everything transparent and honest, and a large part of our witness to the world will be given just by our obedience to God in this regard. Let us begin by practicing justice, mercy, and humility today. We will have less time to take care of «wicke” and «deceitful» gains.