You still have your Bibles open
there to Psalm 71. Keep them open. If not, turn
back. I titled the message this morning,
Who is Like Unto Thee? I took my title from verse 19
of Psalm 71. Thy righteousness also, O God,
is very high. Who has done great things? O
God, who is like unto thee? Now, who is like God? Who can
even resemble God? Well, we already know the answer
to the question, don't we? We already know the answer is no
one. There's no one like God. God spoke in Isaiah 46, verse
nine. He said, remember the former
things of old, for I'm God and there is none else. I'm God and
there's none like me. That's one of the reasons we
don't make symbols of God An idol can't hold a candle to how
glorious God is. And this question, who is like
unto thee, is asked several different times in scripture. And each
time the question is asked, there's a subject, a specific attribute
of God that's being talked about. Here in our text, the theme is
God's righteous works. Who has done these righteous
works like our God? Back up in verse 15. David says,
my mouth shall show forth thy righteousness and thy salvation
all the day, for I know not the numbers thereof. I will go in
the strength of the Lord God. I will make mention of thy righteousness,
even of thine only. See, the one speaking here is
the Lord Jesus Christ. He's the one that came and declared,
he declared thy wonders, verse 17. Oh God, thou hast taught
me from my youth and hitherto have I declared thy wondrous
works. Christ came and declared God's
wondrous works. Now David and the rest of us,
Eric, this afternoon he'll go up there to Cottonfield. We'll
speak about God's wondrous works. We'll speak about his grace.
We'll speak about his wonderful character. But only the Lord
Jesus Christ declares them. We see all of those attributes.
We see all those works. fulfilled in Christ. The Savior
declares those wonderful works so his people believe them, so
that they see them. Now, there are too many of God's
wondrous works to mention specifically, but let me just mention a few
to kind of let you know what I'm talking about. God's election
of a people, his works even before the foundation of the world,
God's election of a people is a wonderful work. Almighty God,
the Holy One, He chose to save guilty sinners. Sinners who have
sinned against him, who've rebelled against him. He chose to save
guilty sinners. That's a wonderful work, isn't
it? And God's election of a people is declared in Christ. Now we
preach it, don't we? We talk about it, but God's election
of a people is declared in Christ. See, the father first elected,
he chose a savior for his people. He chose his son to be the savior.
And then he chose his people and put them all in Christ. Let
me show you that over in Isaiah chapter 42. God's election of a savior and
election of a people, that's a wonderful work. That work guarantees
the salvation of God's people because their salvation is all
up to Christ to perform. Once the father chose his son
to be the savior, now it's all up to the son and he can't fail
to do what he purposed to do. Look at Isaiah 42, verse one.
Behold my servant, whom I uphold, mine elect. See, Christ is God's
first elect, in whom my soul delighteth. I put my spirit upon
him, he should bring forth judgment to the Gentiles. He should not
cry nor lift up nor cause his voice to be heard in the street.
A bruised reed shall he not break, and the smoking flax shall he
not quench. He shall bring forth judgment
unto truth. He shall not fail nor be discouraged. Till he has set judgment in the
earth and the aisles shall wait for his law. Now that's a wonderful
work. Christ our Savior cannot fail. He cannot be discouraged. When
the father elected the Savior, he chose the right one, didn't
he? He chose one who cannot fail to save his people from their
sin. Then God's predestination. That's a wonderful work. And
that predestination is declared. God's predestination of a people
is seen for what it really is in Christ. You know, predestination
does not have anything to do with the place. You know, God
did not predestine some people to hell and some people to heaven.
Predestination have anything to do with the place. Predestination
all has to do with the person. It all has to do with the Lord
Jesus Christ, the Father, predestinated a people to be made just like
his son. Now that's wonderful, isn't it?
Let me show you that Romans chapter eight. Romans eight, beginning in verse
28. And we know that all things work together
for good. To them that love God, to them who are called according
to his purpose, for, here's how we know that's true, whom he
did for and owe, he also did predestinate to be conformed
to the image of his son, that he might be the firstborn among
many brethren. Now that is a wonderful work.
Can you think of anything more wonderful than Almighty God predestinating
you? sinful fallen you to be made
just like his son. That's a wonderful work. Then
God's adoption of sinners to be his children. That's a wonderful
one. You know, the father could choose
to adopt anybody he wants to. He's God, he can do what he will.
And when he adopted people to be his children, you know who
he adopted? The worst of the worst. He passed by the best. He passed by those self-righteous
and he chose the worst of the worst and he adopted those children
to make them his. He lifted them from the dunghill
and made them his children to sit at his table. And when God
adopts a child, he also births that child into his family so
that they have his nature. Let me show you that in Ephesians
chapter one. You know why God adopts sinful
men and women? Here's why, so that he can make
them just like his son. Ephesians 1 verse 4. According as he has chosen us
in him before the foundation of the world that we should be
holy and without blame before him in love having predestinated
us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself according
to the good pleasure of his will. Now God's adoption of children,
he chose sinners to be his children. That's a wonderful work. That's
a wonderful work. And since we've been adopted
into God's family, you know what Paul says in Romans chapter eight
to God's children, you've been adopted into his family, whereby
we can cry, Abba Father. That's your right to call the
God of heaven and earth your father. To cry unto him, Abba,
Father. Now that's a tender cry. It's
like crying, Daddy, Daddy, or Papa, Papa. That's what I am
to my grandson, Papa. He's trying to learn to say,
Papa. And a lot of times, it comes out, Abba. Boy, don't you
know Papa answers to that every time. It's a sweet, sweet, it's
a tender call. That cry of tenderness, a tender
love, a tender need, a tender relationship between a father
and a child, that's a relationship you have with God Almighty. If
you're His child, can you think of anything more wonderful than
that? I mean, that is just so soul thrilling to be able to
have that tender relationship with our Heavenly Father. Then how about the work of redemption?
from our sin. That's a wonderful work, being
redeemed from our sin. And redemption is declared, it's
seen, it's understood only when we see Christ. See, our sin has
put a price on our head. It's a price that we cannot pay
to God's justice. God's justice demands that price
be paid. But we can't pay the price. We
can't pay that price, that debt that we owe to God. So you know
what God did? He sent his son to pay the price. The debt is owed to God, and
God's the one who paid it. And here's how he paid it. With
the blood of his only begotten son. His beloved son. Now that's a wonderful work.
I mean, it'd be wonderful enough if God took out his wallet and
paid the price, wouldn't it? But he slaughtered his son to
pay the price his people owed. That's a wonderful work. That
makes us just speechless, doesn't it? In awe
and wonder. In all of those works, everything
God does is done in righteousness. David says back here in our text,
Psalm 71, in verse 16, I will make mention of thy righteousness,
even of thine only. You know, man's so-called righteousness
is not even worth mentioning, is it? They're rags of righteousness,
they're rags defiled with sin, but everything that God does
is righteous. When God adopted his children
into his family, he made it right to do it by the death of his
son. When God marked his people, their
debt, he marked it as paid in full. He was right to do it. It's righteous because he paid
the price with the blood of his son. When God justified his people,
he made it right to say that they're without sin. His son
put their sin away. He made it right to do it. And of all of God's works, all
the works that he has done, I'll tell you what God's greatest
work is. It's his work of salvation, his work of redeeming his people.
Now that's an amazing work, amazing work. Look over at Psalm 111. Everything God does, all of his
works, they're wonderful, they're righteous. But all of God's works,
his works of providence, all his works from all of eternity
are all put together to accomplish one work, his work of redemption. Here in Psalm 111, the psalmist
talks about God's works, plural. In, let me find my place, verse
four, he said, he has made his wonderful works to be remembered. In verse six, he said, he has
showed his people the power of his works. In verse seven he
says, the works of his hand are verity and judgment. In verse
two he says, the works of the Lord are great, sought out of
all them that have pleasure. Therein, that's all God's works,
the different acts of God. But all those things are put
together to accomplish one work. Verse three, his work. Now he's
talking about a singular work, his work, his greatest work,
his honorable and glorious. and his righteousness endureth
forever. Here, the psalmist talks about
God's work, his work of redemption, his work of salvation, and that
work is done in righteousness. Now, that's not just good doctrine.
I mean, if God's God, it has to be done in righteousness.
It has to be holy and right, doesn't it? But that's also given
to us for the comfort of God's people. If his work is done in
righteousness, his right, it can never be undone. It can never
be lost. It can never be taken away because
God made it right that his people be saved from their sins. It's
just. Now, that's a wonderful work.
Now, who are you going to compare that to? Boy, no man-made idol
can do that, can they? No, they need you to do the work
for them. They got no hands but your hands. No feet but your
feet. No mouth but your mouth. No arms but your arms. They need
you to do all the work for them. The true and living God, He's
done all the work for His people. He did it for them. And it's
right. It's right. All right, now look
back at Exodus chapter 15. Here's another time this question
is asked. There's none like God in His
praise. Exodus chapter 15. Verse 11. Who is like unto thee, O Lord,
among the gods? Who is like thee? Glorious in
holiness, fearful in praises, doing wonders. Now that phrase
there, fearful in praises, means that God's people praise him
in astonishment. It's just astonishing what God's
done. And it also means in reverence
and fear. That's not fear like God's gonna strike us down if
we don't praise him well enough. It's this fear. We're afraid
not to trust him or not to praise him. It's just astonishment. Now this is part of Moses' song
of praise after the Lord delivered Israel through the Red Sea and
he destroyed Pharaoh and his army in the very same place in
the Red Sea. And remember what happened before
that. Israel had gone out from Egypt and now here they are at
the Red Sea And they're trapped in that little peninsula. They're
trapped between the Red Sea on one hand and Pharaoh's army,
the mightiest army in the world. They're trapped. And they thought
they were goners for sure. I mean, there's no escape. The
people were so afraid. And what did Moses tell the people?
Just be still. Just be still. And see the salvation
of the Lord. And Lord opened that sea up and
Israel went through on dry land. Every last one of them went through
on dry land. There was a fiery pillar behind
him that kept Pharaoh and his army from coming in. And once
Israel got all the way across, that pillar lifted. And Pharaoh
said, it's wide open, boys, let's go get them. And they went down
in there and God fought those waves. Those walls come in and
drowned every last one of them. Now, just a few days ago, this
was the terror of the world. This is what kept Israel in bondage,
this mighty army. And now they're standing there
and every last one of them is dead. Not one man survived, not
one. They're free. Everything they're
afraid of is dead. And Moses sang this song of deliverance. And the people stood there in
astonishment. Astonishment. They walked through
the sea on dry ground. and God killed all their enemy
without them ever having a fire shot. They just praised God in
astonishment. And part of this praise, Moses
said, God is glorious in His holiness. His holiness. I know we think of that word
as sinlessness. Being without sin, it's true.
But I look that word up and it means a partness. A partness. God is a part. from sinful man. He's separate. He's the opposite
of sinful man. He's perfect. There's no fault
in him. There's not even any imperfection
in him. What are the angels who fly around
God's throne? Why do they cry? Holy, holy,
holy is the Lord God of hosts. He's a purer eyes than to behold
iniquity. Holiness, that's God's chief
attribute. Everything God does must be holy. Yes, God is love, but his love
must be shown in a holy fashion. Yes, God is gracious, he's merciful,
but when God's gracious, he must be holy when he does it. He has
to make it right for him to do it. And holiness, now that's
apart from you and me. That's the opposite of you and
me. That's called the beauty of the Lord. That tells you something
about us, doesn't it? What is the opposite of us? That's
what beauty is. Beauty is, the beauty of the
Lord. God's greatest glory. Has he found a way to be merciful
to sinners and still be holy when he does it? And he does
it by the sacrifice of Christ. Now here's something that will
make God's people worship him, praise him in astonishment. The
way the father delivered his people from condemnation, the
condemnation their sin deserves. You know how he did it? He did
it by condemning his own son in our place. The father gave
his son the justice and the punishment that the sin of his elect deserves
so that the father could deliver his people in mercy and grace
and be right to do it because their sin has been already been
paid for. The father took that sinful people
and he made them holy. He made them just like his son. Now, if that doesn't make your
heart burst with praise, just astonishment and praise, being
thankful to God, I'm afraid that means you have a dead heart.
I'm afraid that's what that means. God's beauty is His holiness.
He found a way to redeem His people and be holy to do it.
Make His people just like His Son. None like Him. Nobody else does that. Every
other idol just ignores your sin. It's still there, but we'll
just ignore it. Our God, He makes His people
what He accepts. Makes them holy. All right, now
look at Psalm 35. Here's the third time this question
is asked. There's none like God in who
He saves. Not just how He saves, but who
He saves. Psalm 35, verse 10. All my bones shall say from my
innermost being, Lord, who is like unto thee? Which delivers
the poor from him that is too strong for him. Yea, the poor
and the needy from him that spoileth him. Now, who's like our God
and who he saves? You know, idols, don't they all
save those that can help themselves? They help those that help themselves.
Isn't that what you hear? Well, if I can help myself, my
question is this, then why do I need the idol? If I can help
myself, I'll just help myself. I don't need the idol to help
me. That's not our God. There's none like Him in who
He saves. He'll not save those who think
they help themselves. No, He won't do it. He saves
the poor and needy. God saves those who are so poor,
they're spiritually bankrupt. It's not like they got a little
bit of money, they got none. They're spiritually bankrupt.
They don't have any goodness. No, no, any righteousness. They
don't have anything that God wants. They don't have one blessed
thing that God wants. There's no goodness in them.
They have a debt and they can't pay that first penny that they
owe to God. They're poor. Now, those are
the people that God saves. God saves those people by paying
the debt for them. Those people saying Jesus paid
it all. All the debt I owe. He paid,
I couldn't pay anything. He paid it all. They're poor
and they're needy. That word needy means they're
the lowest, lowest class. They can't get any lower. But that's who God saves, those
that can't get any lower. He delivers the poor and needy.
They're so low, other sinners look down on them. But God saves
them in condescending grace. He reaches way, way down there
to the bottom and he pulls them up, sets them at his table. That's
condescending grace. He saves the poor and the needy.
And he saves the weak. He saves those who are so weak
they can't move a muscle to help God save them. That's what our
lesson was about this morning. He saved that man who was paralyzed. But that's the only people God
will save. If you've got something that you can give God to help
God out, He won't save you. If you've got some good words,
some morality, some righteousness that you can contribute to this
thing, He won't save you. The Lord only saves sinners who
are so weak they can't do one thing for Him. Now, I've got good news for you.
If you need Christ to do all of the saving for you, He will. He will. God will save every
sinner if he can get all the glory for saving. Every one of
them. Now, do you need Christ to do
all the saving for you? Come to him. He came to save sinners. He'll deliver us. He delivers
his people from the enemies that are too strong for us. Well, every enemy is too strong
for me. How about you? The law, that's too strong for
us. And the law's in full effect,
in full power. The law must be obeyed if we
would be in God's presence. Well, that's too strong for me.
I can't obey any of it. Well, Christ came and he delivered
his people from that stronghold of the law. He kept the law. He obeyed it. And then he satisfied
the law's last demand when he died for the sin of his people.
Christ took the law out of his way. out of the way of his people.
Don't look to the law as a way that you can come to God. Don't
look to the law as a way you can clean yourself up a little
bit and then you come to God. Christ took the law out of the
way so that his people can go straight to Christ for mercy
and grace and salvation. You go to him, he'll deliver
you. If you go to the law, you won't be delivered, will you? Then how about God's justice?
Oh, God's justice is too strong for us. It crushes. But Christ
came and he delivered his people from God's justice. He satisfied
God's justice by dying as a substitute for his people. Justice is satisfying. My friend, if Christ died for
you, don't be looking behind your back, seeing if the law
is chasing you and don't look at the law and seeing what the
law is requiring of you. God's justice is not looking
for you. If Christ died for you, it's
satisfied. Don't hide in fear. Go to Christ
for mercy. See, he's the one that delivers
us from constant justice. And then there's Satan. See,
he's an enemy. Now, he's a real enemy. He's too strong for us. But Christ delivered his people
from Satan's power, didn't he? He crushed Satan's head at Calvary.
When Christ died, he shed his blood to put away the sin of
his people. He took away Satan's power to accuse. Now he'll still
accuse. He's the accuser of the brother.
That's his name, right? That's what he's called. But
he can't make any charge stick against God's people. Christ
took that power away. His blood took their sin away. And then here's a big enemy.
My old man. Now that old man is too strong
for us, isn't he? We can't defeat him. If you don't
believe me, just in the next two seconds try not to see him. We can't defeat him, can we?
No, we can't hush him up. We can't make Him quit yelling
in our ear, you better start flying right. You better start
doing right, now God's gonna get you if you don't do right.
Why? You're not being blessed because you're not keeping the
law well enough. You start keeping a few laws, then maybe God will
heal your prayer. You can't shut Him up. You can't shut Him up.
But Christ has delivered His people from that old man by giving
us a new man. That new man reigns. In the heart
of every believer, there's two distinct opposite natures. There's
the nature of the flesh that we're born with. It's sinful,
rotten, dead flesh, and that's all it ever will be. God's not
gonna change flesh. He's gonna put it in the ground.
God has caused in the hearts of his people to be born a new
man. That's what the new birth is all about. It's the birth
of a new man, a new nature. And those two natures live inside
every believer. That's the civil war, that's
the struggle that we feel within that old man and that new man
warring and lusting against one another. That's in the heart
of every believer. And we cry with the Apostle Paul,
who shall deliver me from the body of this dead? How in this
world am I ever going to get rid of this old man? He feels
like he's beaten me every day, every day. But he's not. If you have a new man in you,
I promise you that new man's reigning. Now, don't get scared on me. Don't think, well, I must not
be a believer because it feels to me like that old man's reigning.
All I ever do is see him. Let me show you how the new man
reigns. You know how that new man reigns? Oh, now he hasn't
shut up the old man. He hasn't diminished the power
of the old man. Here's how the new man reigns.
Now you believe what you once could not believe. Ever been
in that situation where you try to make yourself believe? And
now you believe what you used to not be able to believe. Now
you love what you used to not love before. Used to be the gospel
was the most boring thing in this world to you. Now you love
it. What happened? There's a new
man that reigns. And try as that old man might,
he can't make you not believe. Skinny. That's the new man reigning. And he's gonna reign until this
flesh gets put in the ground and God calls the new man home.
Now that's a wonderful word. Who is like God? Who else can
do something like that? None. None. Then there's none
like God in his faithfulness. Look at Psalm 89. Psalm 89 verse
eight. Oh, Lord God of hosts, who is
a strong Lord like unto thee, or to thy faithfulness round
about? Now who's a faithful like our
God? Every idol man's ever come up with, they are not faithful.
They're only as faithful as their worshipers. They'll be faithful
to you as long as you're faithful to them. If you quit being faithful,
they will too. That's an idol. God's people
know nothing of that. God's people saying, great is
thy faithfulness. Great is thy faithfulness. God
is faithful to save his people. He promised he'd do it, and he's
faithful. He's faithful to them. He's so
faithful he promised, I'll never leave you nor forsake you, never. God is faithful to his covenant
promises. Before time began, Father, Son,
and Holy Spirit entered into a covenant. the covenant of grace. It's God's covenant, his promise
to save his people by the doing and dying of his son. That's
a promise made by God who cannot lie. He'll be faithful to his
promise. You can rest assured in it. He's
faithful and he'll save his people by his faithfulness and he'll
keep his people by his faithfulness. Not our faithfulness, his. See,
God's people are saved. We're saved by grace through
faith. Through faith, that's how we
receive, that's how we see Christ. But we're saved by the faithfulness
of Christ. Of Christ, great is His faithfulness.
We won't turn to these scriptures for time's sake. Let me just
read them to you. Romans 3, verse 22. Even the righteousness of
God, which is by faith of Jesus Christ upon all unto all and
upon all them that believe. Philippians 3, 9, and Paul says,
my desires be found in him. Not having my own righteousness,
which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of
Christ. The righteousness which is of
God by faith. God's people are made righteous
by the faithfulness of Christ. By the faithfulness of Christ
to do everything it took to obey the law for them, to suffer and
die for their sin, to put their sin away, were made the righteousness
of God in him, by his faithfulness to accomplish our righteousness.
Galatians 2.16 says, knowing that a man is not justified by
the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ. Even we have believed in Jesus
Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not
by our works of the law, for by the works of the law shall
no flesh be justified. Sinners are justified by the faithfulness
of Christ, to justify his people, to make them without sin by putting
their sin away with his precious blood. And we're justified by
faith in Christ, by the faith that he gives us to believe him
and rest him, trust him to be our righteousness, trust him
to be our wisdom, our righteousness, our justification and our sanctification. And then Ephesians 3.12, in whom
we have boldness and access with confidence by the faith of Him. By the faith of Him. Now that
puts away this business that you're not being faithful enough,
you're not being good enough, so God won't hear you. We have
boldness and access, confidence to come to God in prayer by the
faith of Him. By the faith of Christ. The only
way we can have confidence to come before Almighty God in prayer
is the faithfulness of Christ. that he did everything it took
to make me accepted. Accepted in the beloved. Not
accepted in anything about me, accepted in the beloved. In his
faithfulness to do everything that God required. And if I come
to God, begging for mercy for Christ's sake, do you know I
can have confidence? God will hear me for Christ's
sake. Well, he'll forgive me for Christ's sake, Would God
slaughter His Son and shed His blood and then not forgive sin
for His blood's sake, for His sacrifice's sake? Of course not.
I can have confidence coming begging for Christ's sake, begging
for mercy for Christ's sake. Now, I can't have any confidence.
Lord, hear me, because I preached this week, because I studied
this week, because I prayed this week, because I lied less this
week, because I did... I can't have any confidence in myself.
But if I come pleading Christ's name, pleading his merit, pleading
his blood. I can have confidence the father
will hear me. Now find me another God like
that. Who's like him in his faithfulness? No other idol can do that. And
then here's the last thing. Look in Micah chapter seven. Micah is right between Jonah
and Nahum. Micah chapter seven. There's
none like God in his salvation. Micah 7, verse 18. 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,
because he delighteth in mercy. He will turn again. He will have
compassion on us. He will subdue our iniquities,
and 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 the days of old. Now, this is a prophecy of the
coming Messiah. This is what he's gonna do for
his people when he comes. And if you're a guilty sinner,
This is a soul-thrilling promise. This is something we can hang
on to. There is none like our God, how He pardons iniquity. You know, it was the sin of Israel,
the sin of idolatry at the time of Micah that put them into bondage
at that time. It was their sin that put them
in bondage. But it's God's pardoning mercy that's going to set them
free. They've been carried away from Jerusalem, away from Israel,
but it's God's pardoning mercy that's gonna bring him back home.
Well, it's our sin that's put us in bondage to sin and to the
law. Our sin has put us in bondage
to death. You know, we're in bondage to
death. You have to do, eventually, what death says, don't you? We're
gonna die, and you can't stop it from happening. Take care
of yourself all you want. Eat right all you want. Exercise
all you want. And by all means, do all that
stuff. You'll feel better while you're here. But death's coming.
We're in bondage to it. We have to die because of our
sin. But we're saved by God's pardoning
mercy. You know, in our day, we've cheapened
this word pardon. A governor or a president, you
know, pardons one of their cronies being convicted of a crime, they're
in jail, and the president, the governor pardons them so they
can be set free. They say, well, your punishment's
enough. You're guilty, but we're just gonna set you free. That's
not how God pardons you. This word pardon, it means to
lift up and carry away. Christ made his people not guilty. That's why God pardons his people
because Christ made him not guilty. He lifted the sin of his people
off of them. And he took it into his own body
upon the tree. He was made sin for his people. He put it on him just like that
scapegoat of old. Remember the scapegoat, the high
priest would lay his hands on the head of that scapegoat and
confess the sin of the people. Their sin was symbolically transferred
to that goat. And then a fit man would carry
that goat, lead that goat out into the wilderness and leave
it there, laying it uninhabited, never saw that goat again. That's
a picture of what Christ has done for his people. He took
their sin away from them, put it on himself, and he carried
it away. It'll never be seen again. You
know why? Not because it's hidden out in
the desert, because his blood put it away. It'll never be seen
again. God pardons his people because
there's nothing to charge them with. Christ took their sin away. And Micah tells us here God will
pass by the transgression of the remnant of his heritage.
You know why God passes by the transgression of his people?
Because Christ put that transgression away. He obeyed the law for his
people. There's no transgression left
to be charged to their account. He shed his blood to put it away.
And just like that first Passover, God said, when I see the blood,
I'll pass over you. I'll pass over your transgression.
I won't punish it a second time. The blood tells me it's been
punished already. The blood of Christ tells me it's been punished.
I'll pass over you. There's no need to punish you
if Christ has died in your place. He passes over the transgression
of his people because Christ suffered for us. It's always
because of the blood of Christ. It's always because of the blood
of God's son. Who's like our God? Who else
would sacrifice their darling son to put your sin away? None but God. There's none like
him, is there? There's none like him. I pray
God will give us faith to trust him. He's worthy, isn't he? All
right, let's bow together. Our Father, human words can't be found to praise you
and thank you as you ought to be praised, as you ought to be
thanked. But Father, we do thank you. We do praise your matchless
name. Father, thank you for the full
and free redemption found in our Lord Jesus Christ. Thank
you for your mercy and your grace the most undeserving, the weakest,
the poor, the needy, the helpless. Father, how we thank you. And
Father, I thank you for this time that you've given us together
to worship you and to read and study your word. Father, I beg
of you that you would send your word forth in power to reach
the hearts of each one of us here this morning, that you might
enable us to leave here, believing in and trusting in and resting
in Christ our Savior. Father, it's for His sake and
for His glory, we pray. Amen. All right, Sean.