Brother John just said, rest.
Perfect. Peace and rest. My. Turn if you would to Micah. Micah
chapter 7. The name of the message is, Who
is a God like unto thee? Who is a God like unto thee? Micah chapter 7. We'll see today God's love and
compassion to His people in Christ. These scriptures are just a delight
to study. Micah chapter 7. And I'll read the last three verses.
Verse 18-20, Who is a God like unto thee? Who is a God like unto thee?
That pardoneth iniquity, and passeth by the transgression
of the remnant of his heritage. He retaineth not his anger forever, Look at this. Because He delighteth
in mercy. He will turn again. He will have
compassion upon us. He will subdue our iniquities.
Thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea. Thou
wilt perform the truth to Jacob. And notice who's performing it. Thou wilt perform the truth to
Jacob and mercy to Abraham, which Thou hast sworn unto our fathers
from the days of old." We see here before us how the prophet,
in admiring and adoring the riches and fullness of Almighty Grace,
lifts up our great God. He takes in His contemplation
of the greatness of God's grace and the depth of it from a vast
ocean, as the believer's sins are cast into the depths of the
sea. This is not just grace that the
prophet contemplates. This is abounding grace. Abounding
grace, which is full and free and sovereign. And the prophet
says, after contemplating who God is, who is a God like unto thee,
that pardoneth iniquity and passes by the transgression of the remnant
of His heritage, and that does not retain His anger forever,
because He delighteth in mercy. The God of the Bible delights
in mercy. And let us observe from these
wonderful verses the fullness of Almighty Grace. The fullness
of Almighty Grace which flows from the Father in and through
Jesus Christ to His people. And we know that because where
are our iniquities pardoned? Only in Christ. Nowhere else. Nowhere else. Oh, the abounding grace of God
in Christ. Turn, if you would, to Jeremiah
chapter 50. Now, Scriptures declare in Jeremiah, if the iniquity of Israel, being
God's elect, God's people, if the iniquity of God's elect,
God's church, the Israel of God, be sought for, there shall be
none. Oh, this is wonderful news for
sinners. There shall be none, for the
sins of Judah shall not be found. Look at this. Jeremiah 50, verse
20. In those days, and in that time,
saith the Lord, the iniquity of Israel shall be sought for. And there shall be none. But we're sinners. God's people
who are saved and redeemed are sinners. There shall be none, because
they're bought and paid for by the precious blood of Christ.
And we'll see that later on as we go in the message. In the
sins of Judah, and they shall not be found, for I will pardon
them whom I reserve. Now remember that, whom I reserve
in light of the transgression of the remnant of his heritage
in Micah 17, 18. That's God's church. That's God's elect. That's
God's people who were given to Christ before the foundation
of the world. So the fountain and source of mercy is found
in the one true God. The One who is revealed in the
Scriptures. Look again in Micah 7 verses 18-20, we'll read it
again. Who is a God like unto thee,
that pardoneth iniquity? Now we know that God is righteous
and holy and He can't just wink at sin, can He? But the Scriptures
here declare that He pardons iniquity and passes by the transgression
of the remnant of His heritage. He retaineth not his anger forever,
because he delighteth in mercy. He will turn again, he will have
compassion upon us. He will subdue our iniquities.
Thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea. Thou
wilt perform the truth to Jacob, and the mercy to Abraham, which
thou hast sworn unto our fathers from days of old. Only God may perform His truth
to Jacob and His mercy to Abraham. Let
us remember that this which is spoken of in verse 20, turn to
Genesis chapter 12. This which is spoken of in verse
20 is the covenant of redemption founded in the person and work
and offices of the Lord Jesus Christ. in whom Jehovah had promised
Abraham that he and his seed should be blessed in. Look at Genesis 12, verses 1-3. Now the Lord had said unto Abraham,
Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from
thy father's house, into a land that I will show thee. Now, we
see just from this first verse here, who's in control? God. And I will make, look it, Abraham
doesn't make himself this. And I will make of thee a great
nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great, and
thou shalt be a blessing. So just from these verses alone,
we go, who's a godlike unto thee? And I will bless them that bless
thee, and curse him that curses thee. And in thee shall all the
families of the earth be blessed. So verse 20 in Micah 7, go back
to Micah 7 again. Verse 20 in our text, Thou wilt
perform the truth to Jacob, and the mercy to Abraham, which Thou
hast sworn unto our fathers from days of old. This is speaking
of the everlasting covenant. Scripture declares in Micah 7,
18, who is a God like unto thee? So the first point I'd like to
look at from our text is this. Who is a God like unto the God
of the Bible? Now lots of folks will tell you
what they think about God and who they think God is, but we don't want man's opinions,
do we? Not at all. What does the scripture
say? Who does the scripture say God
is? This is where God is revealed.
Have you ever heard someone say this? Have you ever heard someone
say that they're the hands and feet of God, that God has no
hands but their hands, or God has no feet but their feet? I've
heard it so much, it's ridiculous. It's one of the most ridiculous
statements that people could ever make, but people make it
all the time. Just thinking about what they're
saying makes you realize that that God can do nothing without
them. That God can do nothing without
them. That God can do nothing without man. Or they say this,
that God loves everyone and that He died for everyone and you
just have to make a decision for Him in order for Him to be
saved. And that He can't save you unless
you let Him. I've heard that thousands of
times. Well, they are right. They are
right when speaking of their God. But this is not the God of the
Bible that they're speaking of. It's not the God of this word
that they're speaking of. their God who they've cooked
up in their imagination of their minds, who they've fashioned
by their own thoughts, and who they spliced up by their opinions,
is a God who can do absolutely nothing without the creature. A God who can do absolutely nothing
without them. Their God cannot pardon sins
unless they let Him. Their God can accomplish nothing
as He must have them as their hands and feet. Do you know they
worship the creation rather than the Creator? They exalt the creature over the Creator? The believer in Christ, what
does the believer in Christ do? What do we do? We give Him all
the glory, don't we? I can't do nothing. Can you save yourself? Can you
pardon your own iniquities? Can you redeem your own soul?
I can't. But I preach one who's mighty
to save. I preach the God of the Bible
who saves whom He will, when He wills. Oh, and He gets all the glory.
You know why? Because He's the all-sufficient Redeemer. He's the all-sufficient God. Who is a god like unto thee that
pardoneth iniquity and passes by the transgression of the remnant
of his heritage? He retaineth not his anger forever,
because he delighteth in mercy. Turn over, if you would, to Psalm
33. I went to Brother John's mom's funeral, and Brother Matt
read this portion of Scripture, and I thought, oh, this ties
right in. because I want to bring out who the God of the Bible
is according to the scriptures for the first point. What does
the scriptures say about the God of the Bible? Who does it
say that he is? Not man's opinion, because man's
opinion will make a weak God who can't do absolutely nothing. But the God of the Bible is all-powerful. And if He doesn't show mercy
to us, we're perishing our sins. Look at Psalm 33, and we're starting
in verse 4. Psalm 33. Who is a god like unto
thee? For the word of the Lord is right,
and all His works are done in truth. He loveth righteousness,
so He's a God who's absolutely righteous. and judgment, the
earth is full of the goodness of the Lord. By the word of the
Lord, look at this. This is the God of the Bible.
He needs no help. He needs no assistance from man.
We're just created beings who he's chosen to have mercy upon,
we who believe. Look at this. By the word of
the Lord, he spoke the worlds into existence. By the word of
the Lord were the heavens made. and all the host of them by the
breath of his mouth. He gathereth the waters of the
sea together." Brother John, you've been out in the sea. It's
vast. You are just on one ocean, right?
A couple are a couple, but still, it's vast. All the waters of
this world. He gathereth the waters of the
sea together as in heap. He layeth up the depth in storehouses. Let all the earth fear the Lord. Let all the inhabitants of the
world stand in what? In awe of Him. This is the God of the Bible. For He spake and it was done. When He commands that a sinner
should be saved, what happens? When it pleased God, He saved
me. Oh, for He spake and it was done. He commanded and it stood fast. The Lord bringeth the counsel
of the heathen to not. All those folks that shake their
fists at Him, bought to nothing. And one day they stand in His
presence and they cry for the mountains to fall upon them.
Oh, my. The Lord bringeth the counsel
of the heathen to nought. He maketh the devices of the people of
none effect. The counsel of the Lord standeth forever. The thoughts
of his heart to all generations. Blessed is the nation whose God
is the Lord, and the people whom he hath chosen for his own inheritance.
That's God's allowance. The Lord looketh from heaven,
and beholdeth all the sons of men. From the place of his habitation,
he looked upon all the inhabitants of the earth. He fashioned their
hearts alike. He considered all their works.
There is no king, so the most powerful man in the world, right?
Think of whoever the most powerful man in the world is. There is
no king saved by the multitude of an host. He can't save himself.
A mighty man is not delivered by much strength. No matter how
strong you are, you can't save yourself by your strength. We
look today that we can't be redeemed by silver or gold or by traditions.
We can't be redeemed by anything we do at all. We must be redeemed
by Christ and Him alone. And a horse is a vain thing for
safety, neither shall he deliver. any by His great strength. Behold,
the eye of the Lord is upon them that fear Him, upon them that
hope in His mercy. I stand before you as sinners,
saved by the grace of God, and I hope in the mercy of God, in
Him alone. I have no hope but in Christ.
None at all. None at all. To deliver their
soul from death and to keep them alive in famine, our soul waiteth
for the Lord. He is our help and our shield. God is my shield and my refuge
from the wrath and justice of God. If we stand before God in our own presence, in our own
filthy rags, we'll be consumed by the wrath and justice of God. But the believer is shielded.
He's our help and our shield, the Lord Jesus Christ. For our
hearts shall rejoice in Him, because we have trusted in His
holy name. Let Thy mercy, O Lord, be upon
us according as we hope in Thee. The believer hopes in Christ.
And remember what I said in Sunday School, we're saved, right? And
when we're saved, we continue to trust in Christ. It's not
a one-time thing. It's not like, well, I'm good
now. I can go out and live however I want. No, the believer continues. He lives a life of faith, trusting
and resting in the Savior, hoping in Christ. Oh, my. So this is the God of the Bible
right here. What we've just read. That's the God of the Bible.
The God of the elect. And He's sovereign. And He's
almighty. And He sits upon His throne.
and glory. He is the one true God. This
is not my opinion. This is what Scripture says. This is what the Scriptures declare.
And this is who Paul declared. And this is who Peter declared.
And this is who faithful men have declared all through the
generations. Now let us look at our text and
see what mercy and what grace and what power The God of the
Bible, hence. Who is a God like Him today that
pardoneth iniquity? God pardons the iniquity of His
people in Christ. Remember, we looked in Jeremiah
50. The iniquity would be sought for, but there shall be none. The sins of Judah shall not be
found. Now the Hebrew word for pardon
in our text is defined to lift, lift up, to bear, carry, support,
sustain, endure, to take, to take away, to carry off, to forgive. The sins of God's people were
bore by the Lord Jesus Christ. He bore the full weight of God's
wrath. to put away the sins of His people.
He bore the full weight of God's wrath to put away our iniquity. And we by faith trust and believe
on the Lord Jesus Christ. He pardoneth iniquity. We as
humans, this is our greatest need as sinners. We cannot obtain
a pardon by our own works. We can never justify ourselves
before a holy and righteous God. The church of Jesus Christ in
the eye of God the Father by virtue of her union and oneness
with Christ is altogether beautiful. God looks upon His people and
He sees no spot or blemish. Why? Because He pardoneth iniquity. Because of what Christ has done
upon the cross and the place of His people, God beholds no
iniquity in Israel. Again, speaking of the church
of God in Christ. Our Lord Jesus Himself declares
of His spouse that she is all fair and that there is no spot
in her at all. Turn, if you would, to Numbers
23 and put your finger in Psalm to Psalm in 4-7. Numbers 23. Numbers 23, in Song of Solomon,
chapter 4. Who is a God like unto thee that
pardoneth iniquity? Numbers 23, verse 21. He hath not beheld iniquity in
Jacob, neither hath he seen perverseness in Israel. The Lord his God is
with him, and the shout of a king is among them. The shout of a
king is among them. Not beheld iniquity in Jacob.
Why? Because he's a God who pardons
sin. He's a God who pardons sin. And
then look at Psalm 47. Look at this. This is Christ
speaking of his bride. This is Christ speaking of his
elect. This is Christ speaking of the one that he redeemed with
his own precious blood. The only way that my sins, and
I'm a sinner by birth, nature, and choice. Now I'm still, I'm
saved now, but I'm still, I'm a saved sinner. But Christ has
paid for all my sins. All of them. Look at this beautiful
verse in Song of Solomon 4.7. Christ speaking of His bride.
Now, remember, we're sinners. But see, He's speaking of His
bride whom He's redeemed. whom he's purchased with his
own precious blood. In Song of Psalm in 4.7 says
this, Thou art all fair. Thou art all fair, my love. There is no spot in thee. She's perfect. She's perfect. And now I'll read you Ephesians
5. Verses 25-27, if you want to turn there you can, but I'll
read it. It says this, Husbands, love your wives even as Christ
also loved the church and gave himself for it. Why did he do
this? That he might sanctify it and
cleanse it. There's no spot in there. There's
no spot in there. That he might sanctify and cleanse
it with the wash and the water by his word. That he might present
it to himself. Think of this. God's bride, right? As I said, we're born sinners. That he might present unto himself
a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing,
but that it should be holy, and I love this, and without blemish. Oh my, sinners who have had their
iniquity pardoned, who've had their sins pardoned. Oh, what a great God. What a
great God. God pardons the iniquity of His
people in Christ and Him alone. God's judgment on the sins of
His people, God's judgment on the sins of His elect has been
satisfied in the sacrifice of Christ. Satisfied. If you get two words out of every
Gospel message, substitution, Christ died in the place of sinners,
and satisfaction, God is absolutely satisfied with that sacrifice.
He is satisfied. Think of this. We can't pay for
our sins at all, right? We can't redeem ourselves. Christ,
the perfect, spotless, sinless Lamb of God dies as the sinner's
substitute. We can't satisfy God's wrath
and justice and His law. Christ lives the perfect life
and then dies the substitutionary death in the place satisfying
the law and justice of God. Substitution and satisfaction.
Oh my. So God's judgment on the sins
of His people has been satisfied in the sacrifice of Christ. And
the only way for you and I to stand in the presence of the
God of the Bible and not be consumed by His wrath is to be found in
the Lord Jesus Christ. The next point I'd like to look
at is this. Look at Micah 7.18. Who is a God like unto thee that
pardoneth iniquity? We could just stop there, couldn't
we? That's wonderful. Wonderful! But look at this,
"...and passeth by the transgression of the remnant of his heritage." And look at verse 19 in light
of this, "...he will turn again, he will have compassion upon
us, he will subdue our iniquities, and thou wilt cast all their
sins into the depths of the sea." Let me tell you, if you throw
something into the sea, chances are you're never going to find
it again. He's gone. All the sins of all the ages
have been so cleansed that it's like they're cast into the sea. Now, our Scripture says here,
he passes by the transgression of the remnant of his heritage.
How does God, who is holy and righteous, pass by the transgression
of the remnant of his heritage? Turn, if you would, to Exodus
chapter 12. Now, remember too, the remnant of his heritage mentioned
in this text here is all the elect of all the ages. Those
who were given to Christ by God the Father in eternity past.
is the remnant of his heritage. All the elect. All of them. And scripture declares he passes
by the transgression of the remnant of his heritage. How does he
do this? By the precious blood of the
Lord Jesus Christ. Only through the blood of Christ.
Let us think back upon the night in Egypt when the Israelites
were told to slay a lamb. Not just any lamb. Not just any
lamb, but a lamb without blemish, a lamb without spot. This pointed
right to the Lord Jesus Christ in him alone. It pointed right
to him. He's the Lamb of God, without
spot and without blemish. He's perfect. And they were to slaughter the
lamb and then shed the blood upon the doorpost and the lentils.
Look at Exodus 12, verses 5-11. Your lamb shall be without blemish.
Your lamb shall be without blemish. No spot. Perfect. A male of the first year, the
Lord Jesus Christ is God incarnate in the flesh. The very God that
we read of in Psalm 33 became a man. The God-man. and died on Calvary's
cross before the holy and righteous
law of God and justice of God in the place of his people. He
was a lamb without spot and without blemish. A male of the first
year, you shall take it out from the sheep or from the goats.
And ye shall keep it up until the fourteenth day of the same
month. And the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel
shall kill it at the evening. And they shall take of the blood
and strike it on the two side posts and on the upper posts
of the houses wherein they shall eat." So they put it on the sides
and on the limbs. And they shall eat the flesh
in the night." Notice they didn't leave the house. They stayed
in. Think of this. When Noah built
the ark and the Lord put him in and shut the door, the Lord
shut the door. All those who were in the ark were safe, right?
All who were outside perished. And they shall eat the flesh
in the night, roast with fire and unleavened bread, and with
bitter herbs they shall eat it. Eat not of it raw nor sodden
at all with water, but roast with fire his head with his legs
and the pertinence thereof." And this pictures the Lamb of
God enduring the wrath and justice of God in our place. And ye shall let nothing of it
remain until the morning. Not which remains of it until
the morning ye shall burn with fire. And thus shall ye eat it
with your loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and your
staff in your hand. And ye shall eat it in haste.
It is the Lord's Passover." What a picture of the sinless one
dying in the place of his people. They are told to get in the house,
to get under the blood. To get in the house and get under
the blood. And now the Israelites were told
to stay inside the house until the death angel passed. Oh, what a picture of the believer.
The believer in Christ, covered under the blood of Christ. Look
at Exodus 12, 12. For I will pass through the land
of Egypt this night, and will smite all the firstborn in the
land of Egypt, Both man and beast, and against all the gods of Egypt,
I will execute judgment. I am the Lord." God will execute judgment upon
sin, either in the sinner or in Christ. And how does God, who is holy
and righteous, pass by the transgression of the remnant of His heritage?
The answer is found in Exodus 12, and the blood shall be to
you for a token upon the house where ye are. And when I see
the blood, I will pass over you. Safe. Why? This pictures the precious
blood of Christ. This pictures those who are under
the blood of Christ. When I see the blood, I will
pass over you and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy
you. When I smite the land of Egypt, the wrath of God passes
by those who are under the blood. Why? Because the wrath of God
has been satisfied by the shedding of the blood of the Lamb. The
perfect, spotless Lamb. The Lamb of God, the Lord Jesus
Christ. When God sees the blood, He passes
by His people. He sees the blood of Christ upon
us. Turn, if you would, to Revelation
chapter 1. How does this occur? By the precious blood of Christ.
By the One who's loved us. And He's loved us with an everlasting
love. And He's washed us from our sins
in His own precious blood. Revelation 1, verses 5 and 6. And remember, again, Jesus Christ
is God incarnate in the flesh. The very One who gave the law
comes and fulfills the law in the room and place of His people. And from Jesus Christ, who is
the faithful witness and the first begotten of the dead and
the Prince of the kings of the earth, unto Him that loved us,
How long has he loved his people? Oh, he's loved his people with
an everlasting love. And washed us, look at this,
and washed us from our sins. How? In his own precious blood. When I see the blood, I'll pass
over you. Are you under the blood of Christ? When I see the blood, I'll pass
over you. Behold the Lamb of God, the Lord Jesus Christ. The next
point in our text is His anger is turned away from His people
in Christ. The wrath of God is extinguished
in Christ. Look at this. Who is a God like
unto Thee that pardoneth iniquity and passes by the transgression
of the remnant of His heritage? He retaineth not his anger forever. Psalm 7.11 says God judges the
righteous. Turn if you would there. Psalm
7. Because this Scripture declares
that God is angry with the wicked every day. And the Scriptures
declare this. But it also says something in
this verse. In the beginning of it. God judges
the righteous. And God is angry with the wicked
every day. It says God judges the righteous.
Not the ones who think they're righteous. Right? Not the ones who think
they're righteous. Not the ones who think they're
righteous in themselves. But this verse is speaking of
those who are made righteous. Made righteous by the obedience
of Christ in his life and his death. God has judged the righteous,
those who are made righteous, when his wrath against the sins
of his people was spent. when the sword of his justice
was plunged into the Lord Jesus Christ, his Son. And all the
sins of God's elect were punished in the Lord Jesus Christ. But
it does say, and God is angry with the wicked every day. The wrath of God has been extinguished
against his people in Christ. This is why the scripture declares,
who pardoneth iniquity, it's extinguished in the death of
Christ. The Lord Jesus Christ is the
sinner's only hope. This is why we say, look to Him
and Him alone. There's no other hope for you.
If you're trusting in your works, you're trusting in any other
thing to be forgiven of your sins.
then you're trusting in a refuge of lies. There's only one hope
for believers. There's only one hope for sinners.
And that's Christ in Him alone. And as a result of God's people
trusting in Christ, listen to this verse in Romans chapter
8. Listen to this. There is therefore now no condemnation
to them which are in Christ Jesus. None. God's people rejoice. We rejoice
in this. Look at Micah 7, 19. Look at
Micah 7, 19. As a result of he retaineth not
his anger forever because he delighteth in mercy. Look at
this. He will turn again. He will have compassion upon
us. He will subdue our iniquities.
We can't subdue our own iniquities. All we are is sin. And that will
cast all their sins into the depths of the sea. Note again,
he will turn. He will turn again. He will have
compassion upon us. He will subdue our iniquities.
This is a God who can do all things, if He chooses. Does this
sound like a God who has no hands but your hands, and no feet but
your feet? No. This is a God who has mercy
on whomever He wills. He will have compassion upon
us. He will subdue our iniquities. And He has, beloved. For the
believer, He has in Christ. And as a result of what Christ
has done, He's cast all our sins into the depths of the sea. And
the believer says, praise His mighty name. The last point I'd
like to look at today is, look at this, the latter part of our
verse. God delights in mercy towards
His people in Christ. Who is a God like unto Thee,
that pardoneth iniquity, and passes by the transgression of
the remnant of His heritage? He retaineth not His anger forever,
because He delighteth in mercy. This mercy that God shows to
His people is absolutely unmerited. It's unmerited. And it flows
according to God's sovereign will and God's sovereign pleasure. Turn, if you would, to 1 Peter
2, and we'll look at verses 9 and 10. And remember this, He will turn
again, He will have compassion upon us, He will subdue our iniquities. And that will cast all their
sins into the depths of the sea. The God of the Bible is the God
who has mercy on whomever He pleases. Look at 1 Peter 2, verses
9 and 10. This is wonderful. This is wonderful. 1 Peter 2, verses 9 and 10. But
ye, speaking of God's elect, but ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood. Now this
is talking about sinners who've been saved. But ye are a chosen
generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a particular people,
God's particular people. And remember, remember, this
is totally unmerited. This is totally undeserved. If
we got what we deserve, we'd be in hell. "...that ye should show forth
the praises of Him who hath called you." He calls us where? Out
of darkness into His marvelous light. He reveals Christ to us. "...which in times past were
not a people." There was a time, and I know
for every one of us who are saved here, there was a time when we
didn't have any care at all for God, or for his people, or for
his gospel. But now you love the gospel,
don't you? Now you love the Christ of the gospel, the Christ who's
proclaimed. My, which in times were not a people, but are now
the people of God and why? What is bought about this great
change? What is bought about this great
change? We've been regenerated by the Holy Spirit, right? But
what is brought about this great change? Why does the Holy Spirit
regenerate His people? Because they're chosen in Christ,
right? But look at what the latter part of this verse says. Which
had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy. If you're
saved, the only reason that you're saved is because you have obtained
mercy. We don't get what we deserve. And like I said, this is totally
unmerited. And the believer knows that. He knows that. We know, we know
that we don't deserve this. Which had not obtained mercy,
but now have obtained mercy. And think of our verse. Think
of our verse, that our God delights in mercy. He delights in mercy. Now, the God I preach and the
Lord I preach is not trying to save anyone. He saves His people from their
sins. He's not trying. He does it. He does it. He saves His people
from their sins. And He saves whom He wills. And
He saves them when He wills. And he delights to show them
mercy. Here, bring one of his sheep who's out there wandering
away, wandering around. Here, bring him under the sound
of the gospel. And here, give him ears to hear.
and eyes to see Christ. Every one of you are here, me
included, by the providence of God today. It's by God's providence
that we're here today. It's not by chance. It's by the
providence of God. And he gives his sheep ears to
hear, and they obtain mercy. Mercy. God's mercy is abundant. Abundant mercy. It's sovereign
mercy. And it's freely given to His people in and through
the Lord Jesus Christ in Him alone. It's nowhere else. It's
nowhere else. God shows mercy to His people
in Christ Jesus our Lord. Do you know we're sought out?
Turn, if you would, to Isaiah 62. Brother John brought this
up in his message at his mom's funeral yesterday. And I brought
this in. This is beautiful. Do you know
that God's people are sought out people? They're sought out
people. They're given to Christ before
the foundation of the world, and they're redeemed by the precious
blood of Christ, and the Holy Spirit makes them willing, and
they flee to Christ, and they're made holy in the Lord Jesus Christ,
and you know they'll never be forsaken. Now, other people may
leave us. In our lives, friends may leave
us, family may even leave us over the gospel or over just
life. But you know that God, when He
saves His people, He'll never, ever, ever leave them. He doesn't
even leave us before we're saved. Because we're the sheep given
to Christ before the foundation of the world. And He'll never,
ever forsake us. Never, never. What comfort and
hope and peace this gives the believer in Christ. Look at this
in Isaiah chapter 62. Not only are we sought out, but
we'll never ever be forsaken. Look at this. Isaiah 62, verse
11 and 12. Behold, the Lord hath proclaimed
unto the end of the world, Say ye to the daughter of Zion, Behold,
thy salvation cometh. Behold, His reward is with Him,
and His work before Him. Christ came to this earth to
redeem His people from their sins, and He did it. He did it,
and now He's ascended up into glory. And look at this, and
they shall call them, being God's people, the holy people. Now, they're sinners saved by
grace, but they're called the holy people. The redeemed of the Lord, the
ones who have been ransomed, purchased by the precious blood
of Christ on Galilee's grounds. Redeemed means purchased. bought with a price, the redeemed
of the Lord. And thou shalt be called sought
out." Why? Because we never sought Him,
did we? But He sought us out. He sought us out. He seeks His
people. And God's preachers are on the
trail of God's sheep. We preach and proclaim the Gospel,
and God does the saving. He does the drawing. He brings
His sheep in. Oh, if you're saved, be thankful,
beloved, because God, not only did He redeem you, not only did
Christ redeem you, He sought you out. He sought you out. And then look what it says here.
A city not forsaken. God's people will never be forsaken. Never. Because they're in Christ.
They're in Christ Jesus the Lord. Now, I've had people forsake
me in my life. And I know some of you have too.
And it hurts. It hurts. And the pain is real. But my
God will never leave me nor forsake me. And if you're a believer,
you're a city not forsaken. We're in God's hands. My. Can we not say after looking
at these Scriptures that our God is a God who delights to
show mercy? And how can we say that? How
can we who have been redeemed say that? Because He redeemed
us. Because He sought us. My. And we're a city not forsaken. He is the only God who pardons
the iniquity of His people. He's the only God who passes
by the transgression of the remnant of His heritage. And He does
all this in Jesus Christ in Him alone. He is the only God who
retaineth not His anger forever against His people as it has
been extinguished. His justice has been satisfied
by the sacrifice of Christ Jesus our Lord. The shedding of Christ's
blood for His people, He was made an atonement for our sins. Remember, He's the perfect, sinless,
spotless Lamb of God dying in the room and place of His people. And He is the one true God. He's the one true God. And He is the only God who delights
in mercy. And if He's been merciful to
you, rejoice, beloved. Rejoice. Rejoice in Jesus Christ,
our King. Rejoice in what He's done for
you. Oh, He's the only God. He's the
only one who will subdue our iniquities. He's the only one
who will cast all the sins of His people into the depths of
the sea, where they can never be found no more, never again. Never again. Why? Because all those sins are forgiven
in Jesus Christ by His sacrifice on Calvary's tree. Psalm 115,
I'll close with this. Verse 3 says this, But our God
is in the heavens. He hath done whatsoever He hath
pleased. Gracious Heavenly Father, Oh, we come before Thee. What
a mighty, majestic God You are. We bow before Your sovereignty.
We bow before the fact that You are a God who pardons the iniquity
of Your people, who passes by the transgression of the remnant
of Your heritage. Oh, that Your wrath has been
appeased in the Lord Jesus Christ for Your people. We just marvel
in this, we who believe. We pray that if it's Your will,
You'd use this message to draw Your lost sheep to Thee. That
they might be given eyes to see and ears to hear, just as You've
done for us who believe. And we'll be sure to give You
all the glory. And we love You because You first loved us. In
Jesus' name, Amen.