I'm so thankful to be here. I love your pastor. I love this
assembly. It's a miracle of God's grace
that any of us are here. As Brother Tom was saying, I
thank the Lord and I tell the people, Often don't just assume that Katie
will be here next week. Brother Henry wrote a letter
to Brother Scott, and Brother Scott allowed me to read it.
And Brother Henry related that. He said, as a general rule, he
said, most long pastorates. And he put 50 plus years. He said, after that pastor, he
said, the Lord is pleased to remove the candlestick. And he
said, Katie may be the exception. And I, oh, I just, my heart just,
you know. Take your Bibles and turn with
me to the book of Micah. Find the book of Jonah, Micah's
next. Book of Micah chapter 7. I pray the Lord bless the services
tonight. I was looking over my notes and
I want to actually preach out of the verse 18. 19, 20, but I'm going to look at a few
of the verses leading up to that in chapter 7, and I was going
over my notes, and I was thinking, Bob, Lord, help me. Help me. Lord, give me a heart
to believe this. You know, that's a request from
me. Lord, give me a heart to believe
this. Lord, I believe. Help mine unbelief. I want to
know Him. That's what the Apostle Paul
said. He knew Him, and he said, oh,
that I might know Him. You know, I think I heard Brother
Henry say the other day in a message, preaching, and he said, the older
I get, he said, the more I realize I don't know. Boy, that's true. That's honesty, isn't it? People, they don't want to admit
that. Well, I do. I'll just be honest with you.
How little I know, but oh, what I know, Lord, teach me afresh. Micah chapter 7. I'm going to
read a few verses leading up to that 18th, 19th, 20th verse,
but this chapter actually begins with the prophets expounding
the great grief that he saw, he was grieved about what he
was looking at and beholding around him in his environment.
Look at verse 1. Woe is me, for I am as when they
have gathered the summer fruits, as the grape gleanings of the
vintage. There's no cluster to eat, my
soul desired the first ripe fruit, Good man is perished out of the
earth. There's none upright among men.
They all lie and wait for blood. They hurt every man his brother
with a net that they may do evil with both hands earnestly. The
prince asketh and the judge asketh for a reward and great man, he
uttereth his mischievous desire. So they wrap it up. The best
of them is as a briar. The most upright is sharper than
a thorn hedge. The day of thy watchman and thy
visitation cometh. Now shall be their perplexity. This prophet is just baring his
heart. And he looks around and he says,
what's going on here? What's going on? I mean everywhere
you look, everywhere you hear, just so much disrespect, so much
animosity and disrespect before God. Then he declares what he's going
to do for relief, relief to his soul. Look at verse 7. He says,
therefore, I will look unto the Lord. I will wait for the God
of my salvation. My God will hear me. That's some confidence. I'm going
to look to the Lord. I'm going to call on him. I'm
going to ask for some help. Lord, help me. Oh, you are the
God of my salvation. And then he comforts himself
and the church. with his only hope. Look at verse 8. Rejoice not
against me, O mine enemies. When I fall, and I know I will,
I stumble. Oh, the presence of sin that
just so, you know, just. Oh, wretched man, the Apostle
Paul said. Oh, wretched man that I am. Job
said, I loathe myself. I hate what I see in me. I try
to think a respectful thought and I was telling the folks at
Katie the other day, you try to pray. I want to think on that verse,
when you enter into your closet, Go into that place, it's secret. And God the Father that seeth
in secret. And I want to, I want to pray. When you pray, when you pray.
And I find myself just wandering, you know, and I'm thinking, Lord, if you marked iniquity,
Who could stand? This is what he says. Rejoice
not against me, O mine enemies. When I fall, I shall rise. When I sit in darkness, the Lord
shall be a light unto me. And with his heart refreshed,
He cries unto the Lord, Micah does, for help and comfort. Look at verse 14. Feed thy people
with thy rod, the flock of thine heritage, which dwell solitarily
in the wood, in the midst of Carmel. Let them feed in Bashan
and Gilead, as in the days of old. And then this chapter, ends
with these verses that I'd like to deal with, with Micah's praise,
his admiration to the Lord for pardoning mercy, for grace, sustaining
grace, keeping grace, preserving grace for the Lord's faithfulness
to His promises to His people. He says in 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 upon
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." Here is
the great statement of faith. Who? Who is a God like unto thee? Exodus 15, 11 says, Who is like
unto thee, O Lord, among the gods? Who is like thee, glorious
in holiness, fearful in praises, doing wonders? Who is? Here's
the answer. Nobody. None. None. Who is? Nobody but you, Lord. Isaiah 44, 6, Thus saith the
Lord, the King of Israel, and his Redeemer, the Lord of hosts,
I am the first, I am the last, and beside me there is no God. Who's like unto you? Nobody. And concerning him who alone
is God, what does the Holy Spirit set forth in Micah 7.18? That this one God does. There's nobody but you. Nobody but you. What does He
alone do? Here's what. He pardoneth iniquity. Now you know, I was, we were
in Crow a few weeks ago, Crow, West Virginia, just right outside
of Beckley. And I was thinking on that truth
set forth, he pardoneth iniquity. And I made this statement, I'd
made it before, but it's true, I'll make it again. One of these
days, if the Lord allows us to be aware that we're leaving this
world, We're going to know it. If we're allowed, I mean, I was
here when Brother Rob Locke was here. And it was on right here
behind, before that wall was put in there, there was a pew
right behind there. And I don't know, Brother Tom,
what he knew. He may have been gone that quickly.
I don't know. The Lord took him just in a moment. But if I'm aware. that I'm about to leave this
world. What would a believer want to know? What would a believer
want to know? Tell me one more time. You tell
me, because I'm getting ready to leave this world and I'm going
to leave this world with nothing. Everything worldly is gonna be
right here too. Now what, tell me one more time,
tell me again, in that day especially, tell me how God put away my sin.
Tell me one more time, and Lord, as I hear this, Lord, teach me
this afresh. I need to hear this one more
time. Who is a God likened to thee? that pardoneth iniquity. You know, by that statement right
there, you know what I know? I know number one, that in myself,
I'm guilty. Because for me to have my iniquity
pardoned, that means I was born in sin. I was ruined in the fall. But those two little words, pardoneth
iniquity, lifts it away. Pardon. Put it away. Satisfied. According to our Lord's death,
substitutionary death at Calvary. This is what the scripture says
he's done. Now this is a miracle, the miracle
of God's grace. He hath borne our griefs, and
carried our sorrows, wounded for our transgressions, and bruised
for our iniquities. Now he was made sin. And all of the attempts that
we might have to set forth the meaning of that, we'll never do it. Not in this
world. I'll never perceive. I know what
the words said. I know what it says. He was made
sin. He was made sin. I know that. In being made sin,
the scripture sets forth, He's born our grief. Now that's, again,
that's a miracle of God's grace. You can't do that for me, Tom.
Yeah, I mean, you could be sympathetic with me and, you know, but there's
no way that I can transfer and that you would truly be a true
substitute and actually be made guilty in my place. You can't
do it. Only God can do it. Who is a God likened to thee that pardoneth iniquity? And how has he lifted the debt
of my sin? He made him sin for us who knew
no sin. that we might be made the righteousness
of God in him. And by the grace of God, the
Holy Spirit sprinkling God's people with the blood of the
Lord Jesus Christ, they hear the glorious preaching of the
gospel. And God Almighty teaches them
by giving them faith to believe, gives them a new heart. I was
talking to someone the other day, we were talking about the
belief. And you know when you look up
the word belief, the devil's belief, and they tremble. And look up that word belief.
And then look up the word, what must I do to be saved? Apostle Paul says in Silas, and
they said, like I read that one day, they say a simultaneous
answer. He says, what must I do to believe?
And they said, you know, believe on the Lord. What must I do to
be saved? Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. You look up that
word believe. The devils believe, and what
must I do to believe? You know what? Same word. Same
word. Same word. What's the difference? Devils, they have a knowledge. Belief is having a knowledge. There's a belief, there's a knowledge.
When that demoniac came to the Lord Jesus there in the Gadarenes,
he addressed the Lord Jesus as the Lord. He addressed him, he
knew who he was. So he knew who he was. Then he
asked him a question, art thou come to torment us before our
time? You're going to pour out wrath
before our time. They knew that he was God Almighty,
all-powerful. He knew that he was the judge.
But you know what? They didn't have a heart for
him. They didn't have a heart to trust him, love him. They
didn't have faith. There were some that heard the
same thing Paul said we heard, but not being mixed with faith. There's a knowledge. I told this
person, I said, I believe in communism. I believe that there's
a such thing as communism. I believe that. I don't have
a heart for it. I'm a capitalist. I'm a capitalist. They believe, they know, but
they have no heart for Christ. Here the Spirit of God gives
God's people faith to believe, trust, new heart, trust Him. They hear the preaching of a
gospel. The Spirit of God teaches them, grants faith to believe,
they trust, they come to Christ, call upon Him for mercy, who
has already shown them mercy. Life is there. When we call,
believe me, we call because He's given us life. We didn't call
in order to get life. Who is a God like unto Thee that
can lift the guilt of sin from a sinner and make His Son? He, the Father, that made Him. Who can do that but God? Who
is a God like unto Thee? And passeth by covers the transgression
of the remnant of his people. Well, I know from that passage,
that part of it, that God has a people. I know that I'm guilty
because he pardons iniquity. I know he's a God that pardons
iniquity and passes by the transgressions of the remnant of his heritage.
He's got a heritage. He's got a people. He's got a
bride for the Lord Jesus Christ. They are his chosen. I love,
I love election. I love the truth of election.
You know, if the Lord had not left us a small seed, a remnant,
we'd all been just like Sodom and Gomorrah. God has chosen
to show mercy. He has a people that He's everlastingly
loved. Oh, here's the grand question.
Why did He love them? Here's the grand answer. He chose
to. He did it according to His will.
Chose to show mercy. Here's the miracle of God's grace
to me that He'd show mercy to me. I mean I'm serious when I say
that. That God would show mercy to
me. I'm telling you, now all of us are here, we all know what
I'm about to say is so. We live in the midst of a People
all around us that have no heart, no heart for Christ. Why do we
have heart for Christ? Because He chose to show mercy. It passes by the transgression
of the remnant of His heritage. Why? Because He looked down in
eternity and saw that they would choose Him? No. Oh, He looked
down. He looked down. I love this. You know, I hear that, you know,
as soon as somebody starts telling me that, Tom, you know where
I'm going. Oh, Psalm 14. Psalm 14. Yeah, I tell them, I said,
yeah, the Lord looked. He looked all right. Psalm 14
too, the Lord looked down from heaven upon the children of men
to see if there were any that did understand. and seek God. And here's the conclusion. They're
all gone aside. They're all together become filthy. There's none that doeth good.
No, not one. Not one. Who is a God like unto
thee that passeth by the transgression of the remnant of his heritage? all of his bride, all of his
church. Last night I was going through
Ephesians and I was looking in the last few verses of chapter
1 of Ephesians and was talking about the church which is his
body. And, you know, we actually, when
we talk about the church, here's the church down in Pikeville,
that's how I refer to, you know, the church down in Pikeville,
church at Todd's Road, church at Katie, there's a local assembly. And then there's the universal,
there's the universal church. You know, now there's a big difference
within this local body. Here, There, there, there, Danville,
you know, College Grove, wherever, it's made up of those within
it that there's some in it that are believers. But there's always
some that are tares. Now the Lord set that truth forth. There's tares among the wheat.
that the wheat might be made manifest. You know that. Okay,
well, so in every local assembly there's some that they're there,
but they're not the Lord's. But in the church of the Lord
Jesus Christ, He's got a universal church of which all of God's
elect are truly members of that church. Who is a God like unto
thee that concerning them, God's elect, all their iniquity is
pardoned? Their transgressions are passed
over. They have been washed. Christ
has borne their sins. All of them, all of the guilt
of God's people put away. Every one of them has been chosen.
Every one of them is coming to Christ. All of them are going
to be saved. All of his heritage according
to the election of grace. Here in this world, but they're
not of it. They're warring with sin within,
but mercifully the Lord has passed by their transgressions. He takes no notice of it in wrath. Why? He dealt with his son on
their behalf. Doesn't impute, doesn't charge
them. Justice has been satisfied at Calvary and mercifully, mercifully,
he passes by. Who's a God like that? Oh, I
read this verse back in Exodus and you take the blood and you
kill the sacrifice and you apply the blood to the doorpost, get
inside, get inside, don't come out, get inside. I'm going to
pass through and when I see the blood, I'll pass over you. And I read that and I'm just
honest with you. It's what I say to me. Crying
unto him, Lord, pass by me. Lord, have mercy on me. Lord,
teach me afresh. Lord, the faith that you gave
me, Lord, to believe you yesterday or just a few minutes ago, I've
got to have faith right now. Give me faith, faith cometh,
cometh. I told someone, you know yesterday's
air is gone. I gotta have some more air right
now. I gotta have some fresh air right now. I just breathed
and just took a breath, but I just took another one. I gotta have
faith cometh. Lord, give me faith to believe
you right now. He retaineth, the scripture says,
not his anger forever. Oh, and loving chastisements. And I, you know, these chastisements,
these trials, these corrections that we go through, they grieve
us. I know that for the moment. That's what the Apostle says.
His hand of correction is grievous for right now. And we know that
these corrections issue from mercy for our good. I told them the other day, I
use illustrations that I think are really good. And right now I'm so thankful
for Gabe. I'm thankful the Lord raised
him up and has given him a heart for Christ. I believe the Lord's done something
for him, given him a heart and called him to pastor and put
him somewhere and I'm so thankful. But, oh, listen, when he was
growing up, you know, he and I had to do business often. And I'm telling you, bless his
heart, there'd be times that I'd just, you know, think, Gabe, you know what's coming. Why? Why? I think he was 18 years
old and he told me, he said, Dad, the best thing you ever
did for me is whip me. And I said, well, yeah, well,
you're probably right. Yeah, you're probably right.
But I'm telling you, these loving, chastening, kind trials that
the Lord sends us for our good, Why does he not retain his anger
forever? This is what scripture says.
Last part of verse 18, because he delighteth in mercy. Delights in mercy. Jeremiah,
let me read this for you. Jeremiah 9, 23, 24. Thus saith
the Lord, let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, Neither
let the mighty man glory in his might, let not the rich man glory
in his riches, but let him that glorieth, glorieth in this, that
he understandeth and knoweth me." That's life eternal. That's what the Lord said. This
is life eternal. That they might know thee. The
only true God in Jesus Christ, whom thou sent. Let him that
glorieth, glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth
me, that I'm the Lord. which exercise loving kindness,
judgment, righteousness in the earth. For in these things I
delight, saith the Lord." According to his word, according to his
revelation, he has revealed. Now we wouldn't know this any
other way, except the Lord told us. How are we going to know
this? This precious book right here, God's word, This glorious
gospel of Christ that the Lord has given to his people. Now
listen, how would we know that he delights in mercy except he
tell us? How would I know that? He delighteth
in mercy, takes pleasure. being merciful and compassionate
to whomsoever He will. That truth right there means
absolutely nothing to an unbeliever. You tell an unbeliever that,
they don't care. They don't care. Lord, that old sin that is within
me, that old man, that still doesn't care. There's an old
man in me that still doesn't care, but there's a new man that
cares. And these two men are contrary one to another, and
that new man in me, that one that the Lord has passed by my
transgression, pardon my iniquity, That one that truly says, who's
a God likened to Thee? That man right there is thankful
that the Lord delights in mercy. For those that been made willing
in the day of His power, oh, how great is His mercy. Almighty
God has been merciful. Look at Luke 1, 68, we talk about mercy as being, and it is, it
is, it's an act of God's grace. But let me tell you something,
when we speak of the mercy of God, the mercy of God is a person. It's a person. Look at Luke 1,
68 to 72. Luke 1, 68, blessed be
the Lord God of Israel for he hath visited and redeemed his
people. Now we know who that is. It's
the Lord Jesus. Blessed be the Lord God of Israel.
He has visited, redeemed his people and has raised up an horn
of salvation for us in the house of his servant David as he spake
by the mouth of his holy prophets which hath been since the world
began." Here He was speaking, telling, teaching. This is the
Lord of glory, the Lord God of Israel that was speaking through
His prophets. That we should be saved from
our enemies from the hand of all that hate us to perform the
mercy promised to our fathers and to remember His holy covenant. to perform, to establish peace,
the mercy of God is the Lord Jesus Christ. That's Him. The
Lord Christ, the mercy promised, there's no mercy except in Him. for God to be merciful. He's
a just God. He's a just God. He's a Savior. This is the thought of unbelief. That God's justice can just be
swept under the carpet. Just don't worry about it. God
just forgives. Just walk down an aisle, He just
forgives. No, He's a just God. Justice must be satisfied. The
law must be honored. God's law must be honored. For
God Almighty to show mercy Justice has got to be satisfied. The
law has got to be honored. Righteousness must be established. For me, I have one, the Lord,
our righteousness. He is the mercy of God to me. You look up the word mercy and
all of the definitions of mercy, here's the mercy of God, Christ
Jesus. Mercy in Him alone. And here's
the great promise to God's elect. Verse 19, He will turn again.
You know, not in the sense when people talk about the Lord changing
his mind. He doesn't turn as far as his
purpose. He said, I'm the Lord, I change
not. But I know that though there's no variableness, shadow of turning
with him providentially. He manifests what He has eternally
purposed to do. Shows mercy. Shows mercy. He turns in the dealings the
way we understand, the way we see, providentially manifest
in time toward His people that which He has always done. He's always loved them. I didn't
know that. I didn't know that. Before the
Lord was pleased to reveal Himself to me, I didn't know anything
about the love of God. I didn't care anything about
the love of God. But in time, Almighty God, who speaks to His
people lovingly, calls them, gives them a heart to come. They
come made willing in the day of His power, teaches them. He
will turn again. And I tell you, not only does
He turn in His revealing to us what He's done for us, Turn me,
turn me. Jeremiah 31, 18, thou hast chastened
me and I was chastened as a bullock unaccustomed to the yoke. Now
listen, only a believer is gonna ask this. Turn me and I shall
be turned. Only a believer will ask that.
Unbeliever won't ask that. turn me and I shall be turned
for thou art the Lord my God. He delights in mercy. He will
have compassion. That's what it says. He will
have compassion upon us. How has the Lord had compassion
on us? Listen to this, Hebrews 2.14,
for as much then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood,
he also himself likewise took part of the same, that through
death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that
is the devil. I and you that know him, you
know what we need? I need a priest before God. I need a mediator. I need one
to answer. I need one to make reconciliation
for me. He will have compassion. That's
what I need. Listen to Hebrews 2, 16 to 18. For verily he took not on him
the nature of angels, but he took on him the seed of Abraham.
Wherefore, in all things it behooved him to be made like unto his
brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things
pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people."
I tell you, I need one that has experienced what I have. I need a high priest and a mediator
to stand, God Almighty have compassion on me. He will have compassion. He will have compassion. He will
have compassion. When somebody tells me something
and I have experienced what they have, I've been through it. I had someone tell me something
last night that they're going through. And Tom, I went through
the same thing. I went through just exactly what
they're going through. And they were telling me, and
my heart just broke for them. Because I knew as soon as they
told me what it was, I thought, I said, well, the Lord's grace
is sufficient. You know what? He will have compassion. I need one that knows my need
by experience. Here's what, look, verse 18,
for in that he himself has suffered being tempted, he is able to
succor them that are tempted. I need one that knows where I
am. He does. By experience, made
like unto his brethren, he will have compassion for he has experienced. He's learned. Touched with the
feeling of our infirmity. All points, the scripture says,
tempted like as we are yet without sin. This is what I want to say
as respectfully as I know how to say it. And I mean this respectfully.
He'd been there. He'd been there. He knows. Made like unto his brethren.
He will have compassion. That's what scripture says. He
will turn again. He'll have compassion. He will
subdue our iniquities. Pardons. takes away the dominion
of sin. Sin shall not have dominion over
you. It's still there. The presence
of it's still there. The debt of it's been paid, but
the power of it. Sin shall not have dominion over
you. For you're not under the law,
but under grace. God's purpose, God's grace, Almighty
God has promised he will subdue our iniquities. And I'll tell
you this, one of these days, the very presence of him will
be gone. And thou will cast all their sins into the depths of
the sea. You know, the depth of his mercy that which
has been performed, wrought, accomplished by the blood of
the Lord Jesus Christ. He said, I'll remember them no
more. He who never forgets said, I'll
remember them no more. I know this, not against them,
not against their people. Behind his back, where is that? The scripture says, here's the
beauty of it, thou will cast all their sins, how many of them?
All of them, all of them, into the depths of the sea. Oh, again, that scripture that
we just quoted a while ago, when I see the blood, I'll pass over
you. And then in closing, he said,
thou wilt perform the truth to Jacob. You know, that's a sweet
thought. You know, Jacob have I loved.
He saw if I hate it. He wrestled that night, Jacob
wrestled with the man. And the Lord, you know who it
was. And the Lord who held on to Jacob,
Jacob holding on to the Lord because the Lord held on to Jacob.
And he said, let me go. And Jacob said, I won't let you
go unless you bless me. That's what a believer says.
I can't let you go. Where would I go? Lord, if I
don't have you, where would I go? To whom would I turn? Not unless
you bless me. You know why he asked that? The
Lord gave him a heart for that. The Lord made that man willing
in the day of God's power. That's why he asked that. What's
your name? What is your name? Jacob. Supplanter. Huckster. Trickster. Manipulator. He said no more. No more. Your name is Israel. You're a prince with God. Boy,
that's mercy, isn't it? What was it in Jacob that the
Lord would look and show mercy? What was it in Jacob? Thou wilt
perform the truth, the truth of Christ, the truth of mercy.
Thou wilt perform Christ. who is the truth to Jacob, and
the mercy to Abraham, according to promise, which thou hast sworn
unto our fathers from the days of old. Who is a God like unto
thee, which pardoneth iniquity, 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 upon
us. He will subdue our iniquities.
Thou will cast all their sins into the depth of the sea. That's
a good hope. That's a good hope. Lord bless
these words to our heart. For Christ's sake. Amen.