Series in Micah - Who Is Like Our God?

 

Who Is Like Our God?

Micah 7:18-20

God hasn’t changed nor will He. God's love for His creation is especially dear to Him, “So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.” (1 John 4:16) and as God has proven throughout time, He will give His most treasured for the lost and nothing can separate them from His reconciliation and forgiveness. “For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Rom. 8:38-39)

This is the God of creation, of the universe, and the God Micah knew. Throughout the book that Micah wrote, God brought judgment against those who oppressed the poor, orphans, and widows through rampant sin and then brought hope through deliverance by His hand. Even in the discipline of judgment God is love, and He purposes to demonstrate love and hope to all who will believe, obey, and trust Him. So let’s read the portion of the text. “Who is a God like you, who pardons sin and forgives the transgression of the remnant of his inheritance? You do not stay angry forever but delight to show mercy. You will again have compassion on us; you will tread our sins underfoot and hurl all our iniquities into the depths of the sea. You will be faithful to Jacob, and show love to Abraham, as you pledged on oath to our ancestors in days long ago.”

First, God demonstrates His essential nature for His creation, His willingness to forgive sin. Micah has been given the prophetic message and voice to God’s people and the forthcoming judgment, but God also showed that he will not condemn everything, but has a purpose and plan for the restoration of the faithful remnant. God had established and revealed His character and in love will pardon the sins of the repentant and forgives and doesn't remember their transgressions against Him evermore.

Micah knows that his covenant keeping God will honor His Word and Name above all things. 

Second, Micah had experienced God’s mercy and compassion in his own lifetime; they are and have been evident in what God does and doesn’t do to Israel, for He doesn’t “stay angry forever but delight to show mercy.” Micah understood from the Torah that before and since the fall in the garden, God has been compassionate and merciful. He clothed both man and woman, He didn’t destroy them but disciplined them and then compassionately watched over them, even after the first death, Cain. It seems that mankind was destined to fail. But God had a plan before time (Gen. 1-3) that would destroy sins as one would trample trash underfoot, and then He would bury them in the depths so that they would never be presented against us again. God revealed to Micah His plan to restore and love His creation in the millennial and eternal state.(Mic.4)

Last, Micah knows God is faithful to His covenant with Abraham, Issac, and Jacob. For He made an everlasting covenant, not based on the contingencies of mankind, but according to God Himself. He pledged by His own Name to save mankind and establish a people who will be His people and He will be their God. “I will dwell among the Israelites and be their God "..."but we will walk in the name of the Lord our God for ever and ever. ‘n that day,’ declares the Lord, ‘I will gather the lame; I will assemble the exiles and those I have brought to grief’”…The Lord will rule over them in Mount Zion from that day and forever.” “‘So you will be my people, and I will be your God.’”

(Exodus 29:45; MIcah 4:5b-6,7b)

Application - As I wrap up the book of Micah, I want to again like Micah restate the compassion and mercy of Almighty God. Yes, God will discipline and judge mankind for He is just and righteous in all His ways; but God has also given us His plan through His infinite purpose and will through His Son, Jesus Christ. He has revealed the Son to all who will believe and will trust in Him for eternal life and salvation through the work of the cross, a work of grace. One day, the Father will open the heavens and His Son will descend, first to gather up the Bride, a second time to stand upon this world and reign in Jerusalem as He promised to the patriarchs and prophets in Israel. And we too will shout with the throng of God, “Who is a God like you, who pardons sin and forgives the transgression of the remnant of his inheritance? You do not stay angry forever but delight to show mercy.”

Our God’s compassion and mercy are renewed everyday. “Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” (Lam. 3:22-23)

God, who placed His Son as judge and King will reign in perfect integrity, and as on the cross, all our sins were paid for and all we need to do is to submit and believe, trust and obey for our sins have been applied to the sanctifying work of the crucifixion. Jesus was our propitiation before God the Father and our substitution for all sins. But mankind will not realize their freedom from sins until they receive Jesus as Lord and Savior, God and King. 

With all the chaos in the world today, God has a plan and a purpose for it all. He will bring all that He has said in His word to perfect completion. We can trust in Him to fulfill His word.

As always, I want to end with presenting the gospel in the form of the ABC’s of salvation for all those who have not yet received Jesus Christ for salvation. For Jesus, God the Son, came to this world to save all who would believe and trust in him. He desires to reveal himself to you, He is the Light that overcomes the darkness of this lawless world. He hears your prayers, and all authority in heaven and earth have been given to him. He will answer you if you will truly believe. If you haven’t asked him to be your Lord and Savior, today could be that day.

 First, A - Admit that you are a sinner. This is where that godly sorrow leads to genuine repentance for sinning against a righteous God and there is a change of heart, we change our mind and God changes our hearts and regenerates us from the inside out. Romans 3:10 - As it is written: "There is none righteous, no, not one." Romans 3:23 - For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. (We are all born sinners which is why we must be born spiritually in order to enter the Kingdom of Heaven). Romans 6:23 - For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. The bad news is that the wages of sin is death, in other words our sin means that we have been given a death sentence, we have the death penalty hanging over our heads, that's the bad news. But here's the good news: The good news is that the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Ephesians 2:8-9 - For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith —and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. Second,

 B - Believe in your heart that Jesus Christ died for your sins, was buried, and that God raised Jesus from the dead. This is trusting with all of your heart that Jesus Christ is who he said he was. Romans 10:9-10 - That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved. Third, 

C - Call upon the name of the Lord. Every single person who ever lived since Adam will bend their knee and confess with their mouth that Jesus Christ is Lord, the Lord of lords and the King of kings. Romans 14:11 - For it is written: "As I live, says the Lord, Every knee shall bow to Me, And every tongue shall confess to God." Don't wait until later — do this now. Romans 10:13 - For "whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved." "O God, I am a sinner. I'm sorry for my sin. I want to turn from my sin. I believe Jesus Christ is Your Son; I believe that He died on the cross for my sin and that He was buried and You raised Him to life. I have decided to place my faith in Jesus Christ as my Savior, trusting only in His shed blood as sufficient to save my soul and to take me to heaven. Thank You, Lord Jesus, for saving me. Amen."

Please share this with someone this week, the Lord knows that we and they need it.

If you would like other lessons, please go to http://pmdinhisservice.blogspot.com 

Until next week, In His Service Mike Davis

I have revised my webpage on Spiritual warfare. Please give it a look. Thank you. http://uss-warfare3.webnode.com