WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:06.020 Well, good morning, friends. Let's turn to God's Word. So, would you turn with me to Micah chapter 6? 00:00:07.360 --> 00:00:11.759 We are picking up our series in Micah this morning in verse 9. 00:00:12.400 --> 00:00:17.940 In verse 9 of Micah chapter 6, and we're going to look through Micah 7, verse 7. 00:00:19.320 --> 00:00:23.980 As we come to the Bible this morning, it's good to remember that the chapter and verse numbers 00:00:23.980 --> 00:00:28.460 in our kind of English translations were not part of the original text. Those were added later. 00:00:28.460 --> 00:00:35.719 So, sometimes the flow of thought in a biblical passage doesn't always line up exactly with our 00:00:35.719 --> 00:00:40.039 chapter and verse numbers. And that's the case with our passage today. So, we're going to pick up with 00:00:40.039 --> 00:00:46.420 the second half of chapter 6 and then go into the first half of chapter 7. That's page 731 in the 00:00:46.420 --> 00:00:51.040 Pew Bible if you want to follow along there. Kevin will have it on the screens as we read through it 00:00:51.040 --> 00:00:55.540 the first time, but it'd be good to have it open and just refer to it as we look at the text throughout 00:00:55.539 --> 00:01:03.879 our time together. So, Micah 6, 9 through 7, 7. Let me pray as we come to God's Word. 00:01:07.539 --> 00:01:14.859 Our Father in heaven, we draw near to you this morning with confidence because, as we have sung, 00:01:14.859 --> 00:01:20.819 we have a great high priest, our Lord Jesus Christ, who stands, Father, at your right hand, 00:01:20.819 --> 00:01:29.639 interceding for us, making a way for us sinners to draw near to your throne. And Father, as we draw 00:01:29.639 --> 00:01:36.280 near in the name of Jesus through his work, we find that your throne is a throne of grace, 00:01:37.299 --> 00:01:42.419 a throne of forgiveness, a throne of mercy. So, we come to your throne of grace and we ask for your help 00:01:42.420 --> 00:01:49.460 now as we come to your Word. Would your Holy Spirit, who inspired this Word, be working in our hearts 00:01:49.460 --> 00:01:55.599 to bring conviction about these things, a deeper sense of these things in our hearts and our lives, 00:01:55.840 --> 00:02:03.140 so that we can love you and love one another more fully as you have created us to do. We pray this in 00:02:03.140 --> 00:02:15.039 Jesus' name. Amen. All right, Micah 6, 9. The voice of the Lord cries to the city, and it is sound wisdom 00:02:15.039 --> 00:02:22.719 to fear your name. Hear of the rod and of him who appointed it. Can I forget any longer the treasures 00:02:22.719 --> 00:02:29.960 of wickedness in the house of the wicked and the scant measure that is accursed? Shall I acquit the man 00:02:29.960 --> 00:02:36.560 with wicked scales and with a bag of deceitful weights? Your rich men are full of violence. 00:02:37.439 --> 00:02:42.460 Your inhabitants speak lies, and their tongue is deceitful in their mouth. 00:02:44.600 --> 00:02:50.680 Therefore, I strike you with a grievous blow, making you desolate because of your sins. 00:02:51.620 --> 00:02:58.340 You shall eat but not be satisfied, and there shall be hunger within you. You shall put away but not 00:02:58.340 --> 00:03:05.539 preserve, and what you preserve I will give to the sword. You shall sow but not reap. You shall tread 00:03:05.539 --> 00:03:13.159 olives but not anoint yourselves with oil. You shall tread grapes but not drink wine. For you have kept 00:03:13.159 --> 00:03:20.659 the statutes of Omri and all the works of the house of Ahab, and you have walked in their councils. 00:03:20.659 --> 00:03:28.439 That I may make you a desolation and your inhabitants a hissing, so you shall bear the scorn of my people. 00:03:30.560 --> 00:03:36.939 Woe is me! For I have become, as when the summer fruit has been gathered, as when the grapes have been 00:03:36.939 --> 00:03:47.259 gleaned, there is no cluster to eat, no first ripe fig that my soul desires. The godly has perished from the 00:03:47.259 --> 00:03:55.899 earth, and there is no one upright among mankind. They all lie in wait for blood, and each hunts the 00:03:55.899 --> 00:04:03.099 other with a net. Their hands are on what is evil to do it well. The prince and the judge ask for a bribe, 00:04:03.659 --> 00:04:10.859 and the great man utters the evil desire of his soul. Thus they weave it together. The best of them 00:04:10.860 --> 00:04:21.060 is like a briar, the most upright of them a thorn hedge. The day of your watchmen, of your punishment 00:04:21.060 --> 00:04:29.980 has come. Now their confusion is at hand. Put no trust in a neighbor. Have no confidence in a friend. 00:04:31.220 --> 00:04:37.420 Guard the doors of your mouth from her who lies in your arms. For the son treats the father with 00:04:37.420 --> 00:04:42.439 contempt. The daughter rises up against her mother. The daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. 00:04:43.080 --> 00:04:54.280 A man's enemies are the men of his own house. But as for me, I will look to the Lord. I will wait 00:04:54.280 --> 00:05:04.420 for the God of my salvation. My God will hear me. Well, it's often been said that God's word 00:05:04.420 --> 00:05:11.500 is often like a mirror. God's word shows us not just what God is like, but like a mirror it holds 00:05:11.500 --> 00:05:20.920 up before us what we are really like. Shows us our true state. Now we live in a time when authenticity, 00:05:21.480 --> 00:05:26.900 you might say, we live in a time when authenticity, when knowing and kind of living out of what we 00:05:26.900 --> 00:05:33.020 perceive to be our true self, we live in a time when that's seen as one of, if not the highest virtue 00:05:33.019 --> 00:05:40.379 we could attain, right? And scripture comes to us and says that it can not just help us in that 00:05:40.379 --> 00:05:45.919 pursuit, but it can actually bring us to the place of deepest authenticity. It can actually show us who 00:05:45.919 --> 00:05:54.680 we really are. Because here in scripture, here is our creator holding up before us this mirror, 00:05:54.899 --> 00:05:59.659 showing us who we really are, showing us who we are really meant to be. 00:05:59.660 --> 00:06:05.740 And the first part of the answer that the Bible gives about who we really are, as it holds this 00:06:05.740 --> 00:06:14.800 mirror up to us, is that we are created in God's own image. That God has created us in his own image. 00:06:14.960 --> 00:06:20.140 That we as human beings are not simply the product of time and matter and chance, but that we're 00:06:20.140 --> 00:06:25.820 purposefully made and we're actually wonderfully made to reflect God's very self. 00:06:25.819 --> 00:06:32.500 So the Bible comes to us and says that there's almost no greater dignity that we could imagine. 00:06:33.800 --> 00:06:36.240 And we have it, that we're made in God's image. 00:06:38.100 --> 00:06:43.680 But the Bible doesn't stop there. The Bible also explains what went wrong. 00:06:44.939 --> 00:06:51.819 Because after all, things aren't the way they're supposed to be. We're not the way we're supposed to be. 00:06:51.819 --> 00:06:56.759 You know, we were created in God's image to love him and to love one another, and yet we don't love God 00:06:56.759 --> 00:07:01.139 with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. And we don't love our neighbor as ourself. 00:07:02.620 --> 00:07:06.040 And this problem is what the Bible calls sin. 00:07:08.060 --> 00:07:12.079 So if we're really going to understand ourselves according to the mirror of God's word, 00:07:12.339 --> 00:07:14.500 we have to hold these two things together. 00:07:14.899 --> 00:07:18.560 That we're created in God's image with incomparable beauty and worth, 00:07:18.560 --> 00:07:24.439 and we're also fallen and sinful. It's as if we're kind of bent in on ourselves. 00:07:25.639 --> 00:07:28.660 And we don't love the things that we're supposed to love, at least not rightly. 00:07:28.939 --> 00:07:33.079 And we don't desire the things that we're supposed to desire, at least not in the right order, 00:07:33.180 --> 00:07:33.920 in the right proportion. 00:07:36.879 --> 00:07:40.060 And of course, it's that second part of what the Bible shows us, 00:07:40.199 --> 00:07:41.300 the part about sin, 00:07:42.379 --> 00:07:44.079 that we don't really like all that much 00:07:44.079 --> 00:07:45.420 as humans. 00:07:45.420 --> 00:07:49.720 And you know, for the past few hundred years, culturally and intellectually, 00:07:50.280 --> 00:07:54.379 that's the part that we've been trying to kind of write out of our human story. 00:07:54.660 --> 00:07:57.939 We've been trying to understand ourselves without that critical piece. 00:08:00.759 --> 00:08:02.660 But you know, trying to understand ourselves, 00:08:02.759 --> 00:08:06.020 trying to understand humanity without a robust understanding of sin, 00:08:06.340 --> 00:08:07.580 it just doesn't work. 00:08:09.000 --> 00:08:11.420 You know, imagine going to see a counselor 00:08:11.420 --> 00:08:14.600 because you're trying to work through some anger issues. 00:08:14.720 --> 00:08:17.879 You know, you always find yourself short-tempered or irritable. 00:08:18.120 --> 00:08:21.439 You're even losing your cool at times, you know, at work or with your kids. 00:08:21.819 --> 00:08:23.100 You just don't know where it's coming from. 00:08:23.120 --> 00:08:24.500 So you're like, man, I gotta go see a therapist. 00:08:25.220 --> 00:08:26.100 So you go to the counselor, 00:08:26.220 --> 00:08:27.920 and the counselor starts to ask you some questions. 00:08:28.280 --> 00:08:31.340 And you know, it comes to light that you've kind of suffered 00:08:31.340 --> 00:08:33.139 all these terrible losses in your life. 00:08:33.139 --> 00:08:35.360 And you've just kind of ignored them. 00:08:36.639 --> 00:08:39.639 You haven't really squared up with them and acknowledged those losses 00:08:39.639 --> 00:08:40.740 and really grieved them. 00:08:40.759 --> 00:08:42.379 And then your counselor one day looks at you and says, 00:08:42.439 --> 00:08:46.960 you know, I think I might know a part of where your anger's coming from. 00:08:48.220 --> 00:08:51.319 I think you need to grieve these very real losses in your life. 00:08:53.919 --> 00:08:56.539 But then what if in response, you just shut the whole conversation down? 00:08:56.679 --> 00:08:57.819 You're just like, no, no, no, that's not true. 00:08:58.500 --> 00:08:59.419 None of those things are real. 00:08:59.539 --> 00:09:00.279 None of those things matter. 00:09:00.519 --> 00:09:02.340 And you just sort of charge on, right? 00:09:03.960 --> 00:09:07.259 Well, obviously, you're never going to understand yourself or your anger 00:09:07.259 --> 00:09:10.039 unless you come to terms with those things, right? 00:09:12.740 --> 00:09:15.960 But that's a bit like what we've been trying to do as humans 00:09:15.960 --> 00:09:18.539 when we try to understand our humanity 00:09:18.539 --> 00:09:21.139 without any reference to our fallen human nature. 00:09:22.220 --> 00:09:23.939 You know, we want to understand what makes us tick 00:09:23.939 --> 00:09:25.699 and why we do the things we do. 00:09:25.819 --> 00:09:28.600 But we keep turning a blind eye to this very real, 00:09:28.779 --> 00:09:30.679 very glaring part of our own history 00:09:30.679 --> 00:09:32.700 of what makes us who we are, 00:09:32.700 --> 00:09:33.860 whether we like it or not. 00:09:38.020 --> 00:09:41.700 And so much of what God commissioned the Old Testament prophets to do 00:09:41.700 --> 00:09:46.640 was to confront people with this reality of their sin. 00:09:46.639 --> 00:09:54.939 The gift of the prophets is that they won't let us keep living in self-delusion. 00:09:56.740 --> 00:10:01.360 They won't let us continue to hide behind our veils of inauthenticity. 00:10:01.360 --> 00:10:04.539 They call us out into the open. 00:10:06.840 --> 00:10:11.159 And that's what our passage here in Micah, chapter 6 and chapter 7, is doing. 00:10:11.980 --> 00:10:14.460 Micah's holding this mirror up to God's people. 00:10:15.460 --> 00:10:18.539 And through Micah, God's showing his people their sin. 00:10:18.539 --> 00:10:23.860 And of course, we can look into this mirror and we can turn away. 00:10:24.659 --> 00:10:28.319 We can turn away like the person who refuses to listen to their counselor, 00:10:28.480 --> 00:10:30.599 refuses to deal with all the hard and painful stuff in their life. 00:10:30.620 --> 00:10:31.500 We can just run away. 00:10:33.399 --> 00:10:34.939 But how foolish would that be? 00:10:37.279 --> 00:10:39.000 Micah says right at the start of our passage, 00:10:39.000 --> 00:10:41.080 the voice of the Lord cries to the city. 00:10:42.440 --> 00:10:43.019 And then he says, 00:10:43.159 --> 00:10:46.539 it's sound wisdom to fear your name. 00:10:47.919 --> 00:10:50.740 It's sound wisdom to be in awe of God 00:10:50.740 --> 00:10:52.879 and to listen to what he says. 00:10:55.899 --> 00:10:56.860 So we can choose. 00:10:56.960 --> 00:10:58.559 We can choose the path of foolishness 00:10:58.559 --> 00:11:00.000 or we can choose the path of wisdom. 00:11:02.399 --> 00:11:04.220 Why don't we look at what Micah has to say? 00:11:04.620 --> 00:11:08.100 Why don't we look at what Micah has to say to us about our sin? 00:11:09.000 --> 00:11:13.060 What would be wise for us to listen to and to understand? 00:11:14.159 --> 00:11:15.920 Well, our text actually has three parts. 00:11:16.860 --> 00:11:17.779 And in the first part, 00:11:18.639 --> 00:11:21.420 Micah shows us the gravity of our sin. 00:11:21.840 --> 00:11:22.920 The gravity of our sin. 00:11:23.340 --> 00:11:25.560 This is verses 9 through 16 of chapter 16. 00:11:25.620 --> 00:11:27.360 This is the second half of chapter 16. 00:11:27.759 --> 00:11:31.180 Micah drills down into the gravity of our sin. 00:11:32.100 --> 00:11:33.100 And again, as we said, 00:11:33.200 --> 00:11:35.899 in this section, Micah holds up a mirror to his contemporaries. 00:11:35.899 --> 00:11:38.480 And what shows up in that mirror as he holds it up? 00:11:39.159 --> 00:11:41.459 Well, in verses 10 through 12, 00:11:41.559 --> 00:11:42.799 kind of the first part of this section, 00:11:43.279 --> 00:11:45.639 we see that the problem that shows up 00:11:45.639 --> 00:11:48.779 is what we might call economic injustice. 00:11:50.220 --> 00:11:52.419 Commercial dishonesty. 00:11:53.759 --> 00:11:55.480 Specifically, in the marketplace, 00:11:56.439 --> 00:11:58.539 the merchants and business owners, 00:11:58.539 --> 00:12:02.899 they're using false scales and false weights 00:12:02.899 --> 00:12:04.879 to cheat and to deceive 00:12:04.879 --> 00:12:07.120 and to get rich at other people's expense. 00:12:08.159 --> 00:12:09.679 Imagine coming to the marketplace 00:12:09.679 --> 00:12:11.039 after a long week of work 00:12:11.039 --> 00:12:12.519 or maybe even a long season of work, 00:12:12.579 --> 00:12:13.439 of the harvest season. 00:12:13.779 --> 00:12:15.360 You've come with what you've grown 00:12:15.360 --> 00:12:17.279 and harvested on your farm 00:12:17.279 --> 00:12:18.939 that you and your family have spent 00:12:18.939 --> 00:12:20.919 weeks and months gathering 00:12:20.919 --> 00:12:22.980 and packing up and bringing into the city. 00:12:22.980 --> 00:12:25.639 And you put your produce on the scale 00:12:25.639 --> 00:12:28.240 and it reads 500 pounds. 00:12:28.920 --> 00:12:31.879 So the merchant pays you 500 pounds worth, 00:12:32.180 --> 00:12:33.060 you know, whatever that would be. 00:12:34.820 --> 00:12:36.500 But what if the scale was rigged? 00:12:36.600 --> 00:12:37.879 You know, what if the scale was rigged 00:12:37.879 --> 00:12:40.620 to actually read 20% less than the actual weight? 00:12:42.500 --> 00:12:45.060 You know, the scale said 500 pounds, 00:12:45.159 --> 00:12:46.300 but it was supposed to read what? 00:12:47.840 --> 00:12:48.700 600 pounds. 00:12:48.700 --> 00:12:51.500 But you only got paid for 500. 00:12:53.320 --> 00:12:55.400 And what if that just kept happening again and again? 00:12:56.200 --> 00:12:57.980 And all the merchant class are working together. 00:12:58.640 --> 00:13:00.120 So you can't go to another stall 00:13:00.120 --> 00:13:01.060 and sell there instead 00:13:01.060 --> 00:13:03.840 because they're working the same system. 00:13:04.580 --> 00:13:06.440 And then you go and you complain to the authorities, 00:13:06.920 --> 00:13:08.700 but you realize they're getting a part of the profits. 00:13:09.080 --> 00:13:10.480 So they just ignore your complaints 00:13:10.480 --> 00:13:11.400 and say, forget about it. 00:13:11.420 --> 00:13:12.520 That's just business as usual. 00:13:14.200 --> 00:13:15.640 Just take what you can get and be happy. 00:13:18.700 --> 00:13:20.140 But what does God say? 00:13:22.440 --> 00:13:23.759 Does he say forget about it? 00:13:23.800 --> 00:13:24.879 It's just business as usual? 00:13:25.000 --> 00:13:25.140 No. 00:13:25.259 --> 00:13:26.879 God says, can I forget? 00:13:28.100 --> 00:13:30.720 Can I forget these treasures of wickedness? 00:13:32.360 --> 00:13:35.780 Shall I acquit the man with wicked scales? 00:13:38.080 --> 00:13:39.259 And the answer is no. 00:13:40.680 --> 00:13:44.280 It's impossible for God to forget or to acquit 00:13:44.280 --> 00:13:46.620 because of who God is, 00:13:46.620 --> 00:13:48.460 because of his holiness 00:13:48.460 --> 00:13:51.560 and God's utter truthfulness and integrity. 00:13:53.039 --> 00:13:54.279 He cannot forget 00:13:54.279 --> 00:13:55.799 and he will not acquit. 00:13:56.580 --> 00:13:58.320 The way that they're cheating each other 00:13:58.320 --> 00:14:00.379 and stealing and lying from one another, 00:14:00.740 --> 00:14:02.539 all of this is a deep offense 00:14:02.539 --> 00:14:04.460 to the God who created them 00:14:04.460 --> 00:14:08.460 and who created humans in his image, remember. 00:14:09.440 --> 00:14:11.460 These humans that are being cheated 00:14:11.460 --> 00:14:12.919 and scammed and oppressed, 00:14:12.919 --> 00:14:15.060 they bear God's image. 00:14:15.059 --> 00:14:18.539 It's an offense to God to treat them that way. 00:14:20.159 --> 00:14:22.919 And God says he will not allow it to continue forever. 00:14:26.939 --> 00:14:29.639 Now, if you and I were to walk the streets of Jerusalem with Micah, 00:14:30.639 --> 00:14:32.919 would we see what God sees? 00:14:34.500 --> 00:14:36.419 Would we notice what God notices? 00:14:36.419 --> 00:14:43.099 Or would we be just like the upper class? 00:14:44.879 --> 00:14:47.539 Would we just shrug our shoulders and say, 00:14:47.819 --> 00:14:49.860 that's how business is done. 00:14:50.299 --> 00:14:51.459 What can you do? 00:14:54.699 --> 00:14:56.159 You see, the funny thing, 00:14:56.379 --> 00:14:58.000 the tragic thing for us as humans 00:14:58.000 --> 00:14:59.879 is that we have a tendency 00:14:59.879 --> 00:15:02.480 to not take sin very seriously. 00:15:02.480 --> 00:15:06.279 There are all sorts, 00:15:06.340 --> 00:15:08.000 in whatever culture we find ourselves in, 00:15:08.039 --> 00:15:10.379 there's all sorts of just respectable sins, 00:15:11.420 --> 00:15:11.720 you know, 00:15:12.340 --> 00:15:13.519 things that just culturally are like, 00:15:13.580 --> 00:15:14.019 that's fine. 00:15:14.220 --> 00:15:15.220 That's just the way it's done. 00:15:17.060 --> 00:15:19.019 Things that we just don't think are all that bad. 00:15:20.759 --> 00:15:23.580 But Micah here wants us to see the gravity of sin. 00:15:24.879 --> 00:15:27.500 It's not just skimming a little off the top. 00:15:27.500 --> 00:15:30.139 It's not just how business is done. 00:15:31.139 --> 00:15:32.919 It's lies and violence 00:15:32.919 --> 00:15:35.980 against a person made in God's image. 00:15:39.679 --> 00:15:40.360 Now, 00:15:40.779 --> 00:15:43.159 maybe you aren't engaged 00:15:43.159 --> 00:15:45.820 in corrupt financial practices. 00:15:48.519 --> 00:15:50.059 But are you and I 00:15:50.059 --> 00:15:51.840 willing to take a look 00:15:51.840 --> 00:15:54.539 at how we go about our work 00:15:54.539 --> 00:15:57.439 and how we approach our finances 00:15:57.439 --> 00:15:59.399 and ask, 00:15:59.879 --> 00:16:02.459 God, is there anything here I'm missing? 00:16:05.899 --> 00:16:07.519 You know, I read a statistic this week 00:16:07.519 --> 00:16:08.179 that something like 00:16:08.179 --> 00:16:10.099 10% of the world's population 00:16:10.099 --> 00:16:12.000 owns 90% of the world's wealth. 00:16:13.919 --> 00:16:15.139 Is there something we're missing? 00:16:19.179 --> 00:16:21.639 Am I excusing or minimizing something 00:16:21.639 --> 00:16:24.360 that's actually dishonoring to you, God? 00:16:24.539 --> 00:16:28.620 Sin is serious. 00:16:29.639 --> 00:16:31.259 And we have to treat it that way. 00:16:33.079 --> 00:16:34.860 And in verses 13 through 16, 00:16:35.079 --> 00:16:36.059 God shows the people 00:16:36.059 --> 00:16:37.139 that judgment's coming. 00:16:38.639 --> 00:16:41.319 And the key word in verse 13 and verse 16 00:16:41.319 --> 00:16:42.259 that kind of bookends 00:16:42.259 --> 00:16:45.219 this second half of our section here, 00:16:45.399 --> 00:16:46.459 verses 13 and 16, 00:16:46.559 --> 00:16:47.679 is the word desolation. 00:16:49.579 --> 00:16:51.139 You know, the people keep amassing wealth 00:16:51.139 --> 00:16:52.379 through their unjust practices, 00:16:52.799 --> 00:16:54.399 but God says the day is coming 00:16:54.399 --> 00:16:55.699 when you'll be desolate, 00:16:56.279 --> 00:16:57.079 when you'll be empty. 00:16:57.939 --> 00:16:59.720 You shall eat and not be satisfied, 00:17:00.120 --> 00:17:01.899 and there shall be hunger within you. 00:17:02.419 --> 00:17:03.819 You shall put away, right? 00:17:03.939 --> 00:17:04.940 You'll save things, 00:17:05.000 --> 00:17:05.920 but it won't preserve. 00:17:06.319 --> 00:17:07.379 And what you try to preserve, 00:17:07.440 --> 00:17:08.579 I'm going to give to the sword. 00:17:10.180 --> 00:17:11.980 And what you shall sow, 00:17:12.079 --> 00:17:12.680 but not reap. 00:17:13.559 --> 00:17:14.759 You'll tread olives, 00:17:14.920 --> 00:17:16.139 but not anoint yourselves with oil. 00:17:16.139 --> 00:17:17.339 You'll tread grapes, 00:17:17.339 --> 00:17:18.379 but not drink wine. 00:17:20.399 --> 00:17:22.139 It's just images of futility, 00:17:22.519 --> 00:17:24.599 of the created order 00:17:24.599 --> 00:17:26.639 not working the way it's supposed to work. 00:17:27.079 --> 00:17:28.379 Things breaking down. 00:17:31.699 --> 00:17:33.399 And for the Old Testament people of God, 00:17:33.480 --> 00:17:34.879 what this meant was exile. 00:17:36.019 --> 00:17:36.959 All the wealth, 00:17:37.079 --> 00:17:37.720 all the fields, 00:17:37.819 --> 00:17:39.319 all the pleasure that they had amassed, 00:17:40.019 --> 00:17:42.099 God said it will collapse in a day 00:17:42.099 --> 00:17:44.079 when Babylon comes 00:17:44.079 --> 00:17:45.299 and topples Jerusalem. 00:17:47.099 --> 00:17:48.019 That's what verse 16 00:17:48.019 --> 00:17:49.000 is getting at at the end. 00:17:49.079 --> 00:17:49.599 You might have wondered 00:17:49.599 --> 00:17:51.119 who Omri and Ahab are. 00:17:51.639 --> 00:17:52.339 Well, Omri and Ahab 00:17:52.339 --> 00:17:53.919 were wicked rulers 00:17:53.919 --> 00:17:55.819 from a generation earlier 00:17:55.819 --> 00:17:57.819 in Israel's northern kingdom. 00:17:58.740 --> 00:17:59.899 The people in the north 00:17:59.899 --> 00:18:00.699 a generation ago 00:18:00.699 --> 00:18:02.339 followed in those king's footsteps, 00:18:02.899 --> 00:18:03.779 and God judged them, 00:18:03.779 --> 00:18:04.959 and they were sent into exile. 00:18:06.059 --> 00:18:07.139 And here Micah is saying 00:18:07.139 --> 00:18:07.919 to the people 00:18:07.919 --> 00:18:09.319 a generation later 00:18:09.319 --> 00:18:10.500 in the southern kingdom, 00:18:10.500 --> 00:18:12.519 you're just like them. 00:18:13.640 --> 00:18:15.160 You might think you're better, 00:18:15.819 --> 00:18:16.720 but you're not. 00:18:18.019 --> 00:18:19.700 Your sins are just as serious, 00:18:19.900 --> 00:18:20.740 just as grave, 00:18:21.539 --> 00:18:23.740 and exile will come for you too. 00:18:27.460 --> 00:18:28.619 How about us, friends? 00:18:30.240 --> 00:18:31.640 Do we think sin 00:18:31.640 --> 00:18:33.779 is that serious? 00:18:36.579 --> 00:18:37.519 Serious enough 00:18:37.519 --> 00:18:39.279 that God would be right 00:18:39.279 --> 00:18:41.500 to strip everything away from us 00:18:41.500 --> 00:18:42.339 because of it? 00:18:43.740 --> 00:18:45.440 Do we think sin is that grave, 00:18:45.519 --> 00:18:46.059 that serious, 00:18:46.139 --> 00:18:47.859 that God is right to judge it? 00:18:50.879 --> 00:18:51.799 You know, this is perhaps 00:18:51.799 --> 00:18:52.539 the greatest sign 00:18:52.539 --> 00:18:53.579 that we don't really think 00:18:53.579 --> 00:18:54.759 sin is all that serious, 00:18:54.980 --> 00:18:55.599 all that grave, 00:18:55.920 --> 00:18:57.259 is that we don't actually think 00:18:57.259 --> 00:18:58.200 God is within his rights 00:18:58.200 --> 00:18:58.799 to judge it. 00:19:00.440 --> 00:19:02.039 We think God should just overlook it 00:19:02.039 --> 00:19:03.039 and just forget about it. 00:19:03.039 --> 00:19:06.180 But if sin really is 00:19:06.180 --> 00:19:07.579 an offense against God, 00:19:08.059 --> 00:19:09.539 the infinitely holy 00:19:09.539 --> 00:19:11.500 and infinitely loving God, 00:19:11.879 --> 00:19:13.420 the infinitely worthy God, 00:19:14.000 --> 00:19:16.299 and if sin is against 00:19:16.299 --> 00:19:18.099 God's image bearers, 00:19:19.099 --> 00:19:22.019 then we have to agree 00:19:22.019 --> 00:19:23.220 that the penalty for sin 00:19:23.220 --> 00:19:24.399 must be massive. 00:19:24.400 --> 00:19:27.860 the just penalty 00:19:27.860 --> 00:19:28.620 for sinning 00:19:28.620 --> 00:19:29.800 against an infinitely 00:19:29.800 --> 00:19:31.200 worthy God 00:19:31.200 --> 00:19:32.980 is an infinitely 00:19:32.980 --> 00:19:33.980 weighty penalty. 00:19:37.720 --> 00:19:38.680 So where do we go? 00:19:38.780 --> 00:19:39.920 Where do we go to find help? 00:19:41.280 --> 00:19:42.200 How do we get out 00:19:42.200 --> 00:19:43.180 from under that weight? 00:19:43.759 --> 00:19:43.900 Right? 00:19:44.820 --> 00:19:45.600 Well, that brings us 00:19:45.600 --> 00:19:46.240 to the second part 00:19:46.240 --> 00:19:46.900 of our passage. 00:19:47.400 --> 00:19:48.240 Chapter 7, 00:19:48.320 --> 00:19:49.240 verses 1 through 6. 00:19:49.320 --> 00:19:49.980 After showing us 00:19:49.980 --> 00:19:51.240 the gravity of sin, 00:19:51.700 --> 00:19:52.300 Micah goes on 00:19:52.299 --> 00:19:52.980 in this next section 00:19:52.980 --> 00:19:53.440 to show us 00:19:53.440 --> 00:19:55.119 the extent of sin, 00:19:55.299 --> 00:19:56.299 the extent of it. 00:19:57.159 --> 00:19:58.419 In verse 1 of chapter 7, 00:19:58.500 --> 00:19:59.099 Micah begins 00:19:59.099 --> 00:20:00.480 with sort of a short allegory, 00:20:00.879 --> 00:20:01.579 with a short kind 00:20:01.579 --> 00:20:02.079 of illustration. 00:20:03.000 --> 00:20:03.879 He sort of pictures himself 00:20:03.879 --> 00:20:04.619 like a harvester 00:20:04.619 --> 00:20:05.779 going out into the fields 00:20:05.779 --> 00:20:07.759 looking for leftover fruit 00:20:07.759 --> 00:20:08.480 along the edges 00:20:08.480 --> 00:20:09.099 of the field. 00:20:09.819 --> 00:20:10.099 You see, 00:20:10.159 --> 00:20:10.759 in ancient Israel, 00:20:10.879 --> 00:20:11.579 the harvesters 00:20:11.579 --> 00:20:12.079 were commanded 00:20:12.079 --> 00:20:13.159 to sort of leave fruit 00:20:13.159 --> 00:20:13.819 along the edges 00:20:13.819 --> 00:20:14.240 of the field, 00:20:14.319 --> 00:20:15.159 to leave some of the crops 00:20:15.159 --> 00:20:15.579 and produce 00:20:15.579 --> 00:20:16.399 along the edges 00:20:16.399 --> 00:20:16.960 of the fields 00:20:16.960 --> 00:20:18.500 so that anyone afterwards 00:20:18.500 --> 00:20:19.500 could go and kind of harvest 00:20:19.500 --> 00:20:20.240 and gather something 00:20:20.240 --> 00:20:20.980 for themselves. 00:20:20.980 --> 00:20:22.140 But when Micah 00:20:22.140 --> 00:20:23.019 goes out into the field, 00:20:23.240 --> 00:20:24.420 he finds nothing. 00:20:25.120 --> 00:20:26.299 It's all gone. 00:20:27.360 --> 00:20:28.640 There's not a single fig 00:20:28.640 --> 00:20:29.900 to be found. 00:20:31.799 --> 00:20:33.539 And then in verses 2 through 4, 00:20:33.660 --> 00:20:35.339 he gives the interpretation 00:20:35.339 --> 00:20:37.400 of this short allegory. 00:20:38.400 --> 00:20:39.740 And what is the interpretation? 00:20:40.059 --> 00:20:41.059 What's the word picture 00:20:41.059 --> 00:20:41.620 all about? 00:20:42.620 --> 00:20:43.140 Verse 2, 00:20:44.140 --> 00:20:46.400 The godly have perished 00:20:46.400 --> 00:20:46.940 from the earth, 00:20:47.539 --> 00:20:49.380 and there is no one upright 00:20:49.380 --> 00:20:50.860 among mankind. 00:20:50.980 --> 00:20:54.160 In other words, 00:20:54.360 --> 00:20:56.000 Micah is looking for someone, 00:20:56.160 --> 00:20:57.259 for anyone, 00:20:57.579 --> 00:20:58.599 who might be able to help. 00:20:59.339 --> 00:21:00.920 Someone who's truly upright. 00:21:01.460 --> 00:21:02.940 Someone who's genuinely righteous. 00:21:03.400 --> 00:21:04.799 And he finds no one. 00:21:06.980 --> 00:21:07.620 In other words, 00:21:07.660 --> 00:21:08.620 what Micah sees 00:21:08.620 --> 00:21:09.380 is that sin 00:21:09.380 --> 00:21:11.059 isn't just a serious problem. 00:21:12.360 --> 00:21:13.720 It's everybody's problem. 00:21:15.400 --> 00:21:16.440 Sin reaches into 00:21:16.440 --> 00:21:17.920 every human structure, 00:21:17.920 --> 00:21:20.700 every human relationship, 00:21:21.300 --> 00:21:22.519 every human heart. 00:21:25.360 --> 00:21:26.460 Micah goes on to paint 00:21:26.460 --> 00:21:27.779 a pretty bleak picture 00:21:27.779 --> 00:21:28.980 of what the powerful people 00:21:28.980 --> 00:21:29.759 are doing in his day, 00:21:29.840 --> 00:21:30.740 the princes and judges, 00:21:31.140 --> 00:21:32.060 the ones who are supposed 00:21:32.060 --> 00:21:33.220 to be protecting the people 00:21:33.220 --> 00:21:34.220 and upholding justice. 00:21:34.440 --> 00:21:35.320 Turns out they're doing 00:21:35.320 --> 00:21:36.039 just the opposite. 00:21:36.740 --> 00:21:38.100 They're not protectors. 00:21:38.300 --> 00:21:39.440 Micah says they're hunters. 00:21:40.600 --> 00:21:41.860 They're weaving nets 00:21:41.859 --> 00:21:43.619 nets of lies 00:21:43.619 --> 00:21:44.939 and serving their own interests 00:21:44.939 --> 00:21:46.119 at the expense of others. 00:21:46.539 --> 00:21:48.000 Micah says the best of them 00:21:48.000 --> 00:21:49.319 is like a briar. 00:21:49.740 --> 00:21:51.439 They're like a tangle of thorns. 00:21:52.379 --> 00:21:52.579 You know, 00:21:52.599 --> 00:21:53.579 the princes and the judges, 00:21:53.679 --> 00:21:54.099 they were people 00:21:54.099 --> 00:21:55.379 you were supposed to be able 00:21:55.379 --> 00:21:56.219 to run to 00:21:56.219 --> 00:21:57.439 and get help. 00:21:57.819 --> 00:21:58.500 But Micah says, 00:21:58.639 --> 00:21:59.839 go ahead and run to them. 00:22:00.079 --> 00:22:00.939 You'd just be running 00:22:00.939 --> 00:22:02.659 into a bunch of thorns. 00:22:02.660 --> 00:22:06.140 But this corruption 00:22:06.140 --> 00:22:07.080 among the powerful 00:22:07.080 --> 00:22:08.320 has gone down 00:22:08.320 --> 00:22:09.980 into every level of society, 00:22:10.100 --> 00:22:10.680 Micah says. 00:22:11.220 --> 00:22:12.640 Look at verses 5 and 6. 00:22:13.779 --> 00:22:14.500 What a sad 00:22:14.500 --> 00:22:15.600 and heart-wrenching picture. 00:22:16.759 --> 00:22:17.900 No one can be trusted. 00:22:19.140 --> 00:22:19.860 Not a neighbor, 00:22:20.740 --> 00:22:21.620 not a friend, 00:22:22.360 --> 00:22:24.080 not even your own spouse 00:22:24.080 --> 00:22:24.759 or children. 00:22:25.940 --> 00:22:27.019 It's just a picture 00:22:27.019 --> 00:22:28.040 of anarchy, 00:22:28.180 --> 00:22:29.300 of total breakdown. 00:22:32.660 --> 00:22:34.420 So what's Micah's point? 00:22:36.019 --> 00:22:36.940 Is he just like 00:22:36.940 --> 00:22:38.779 having a particularly bad day? 00:22:39.080 --> 00:22:39.759 Did he like 00:22:39.759 --> 00:22:41.400 wake up on the wrong side of bed 00:22:41.400 --> 00:22:41.820 and he's just like, 00:22:41.880 --> 00:22:42.779 I'm done with humanity. 00:22:42.920 --> 00:22:43.840 They're all a bunch of, 00:22:43.840 --> 00:22:44.380 you know, 00:22:44.680 --> 00:22:45.360 no goods. 00:22:46.360 --> 00:22:47.820 Was he just exaggerating 00:22:47.820 --> 00:22:48.560 for effect, 00:22:48.800 --> 00:22:49.100 you know? 00:22:53.019 --> 00:22:54.500 Well, I think Micah's point 00:22:54.500 --> 00:22:56.120 is that ultimately 00:22:56.120 --> 00:22:57.560 the stain of sin 00:22:57.560 --> 00:22:59.759 affects everyone. 00:22:59.759 --> 00:23:02.640 We can't just point 00:23:02.640 --> 00:23:03.720 to those people 00:23:03.720 --> 00:23:04.660 or to those people 00:23:04.660 --> 00:23:05.400 or to those people 00:23:05.400 --> 00:23:06.400 or to that group of people 00:23:06.400 --> 00:23:07.879 or to that particular group 00:23:07.879 --> 00:23:08.279 of people 00:23:08.279 --> 00:23:09.759 as the really bad ones, 00:23:09.799 --> 00:23:09.980 right? 00:23:11.079 --> 00:23:12.779 No, the extent of sin 00:23:12.779 --> 00:23:13.579 is universal. 00:23:15.140 --> 00:23:16.879 We're all infected. 00:23:19.079 --> 00:23:20.319 Now, thanks to God's 00:23:20.319 --> 00:23:21.680 common grace, 00:23:21.879 --> 00:23:23.839 we are all not as bad 00:23:23.839 --> 00:23:25.140 as we could be. 00:23:25.140 --> 00:23:29.160 But every part of us 00:23:29.160 --> 00:23:31.660 is bent by sin. 00:23:33.280 --> 00:23:34.540 The corruption of sin 00:23:34.540 --> 00:23:35.880 goes the whole way down. 00:23:39.820 --> 00:23:40.620 And that means 00:23:40.620 --> 00:23:42.160 we ultimately can't look 00:23:42.160 --> 00:23:44.540 at the end of the day 00:23:44.540 --> 00:23:46.540 to our princes and judges 00:23:46.540 --> 00:23:47.600 to rescue us. 00:23:49.280 --> 00:23:50.080 And that means 00:23:50.080 --> 00:23:51.240 we ultimately can't look 00:23:51.240 --> 00:23:51.880 to our friends 00:23:51.880 --> 00:23:52.480 and our neighbors 00:23:52.480 --> 00:23:54.180 to rescue us. 00:23:55.140 --> 00:23:56.420 And that means 00:23:56.420 --> 00:23:57.380 we ultimately can't look 00:23:57.380 --> 00:23:58.180 to our spouses 00:23:58.180 --> 00:23:59.100 or our families 00:23:59.100 --> 00:24:00.580 to rescue us. 00:24:02.780 --> 00:24:03.640 And that means 00:24:03.640 --> 00:24:04.860 we ultimately can't look 00:24:04.860 --> 00:24:06.380 to our own selves 00:24:06.380 --> 00:24:08.280 to rescue us. 00:24:10.740 --> 00:24:12.180 The more we try 00:24:12.180 --> 00:24:13.920 to get those relationships 00:24:13.920 --> 00:24:15.780 to be our Savior, 00:24:16.780 --> 00:24:18.400 the more disappointed 00:24:18.400 --> 00:24:20.520 and broken we will be. 00:24:20.519 --> 00:24:25.139 So where does that leave us? 00:24:26.859 --> 00:24:27.579 Is that the end? 00:24:27.639 --> 00:24:28.200 Is that all the Bible 00:24:28.200 --> 00:24:29.460 has to say about who we are? 00:24:29.839 --> 00:24:30.799 Is that all the mirror 00:24:30.799 --> 00:24:31.500 shows us? 00:24:31.579 --> 00:24:32.400 That we're created 00:24:32.400 --> 00:24:33.039 in God's image 00:24:33.039 --> 00:24:33.759 and that we're fallen 00:24:33.759 --> 00:24:34.339 into sin? 00:24:34.559 --> 00:24:35.440 That we're beautiful 00:24:35.440 --> 00:24:36.119 but broken? 00:24:36.299 --> 00:24:37.599 Is that the final word? 00:24:40.799 --> 00:24:41.379 Well, actually, 00:24:41.420 --> 00:24:42.180 there's a third part 00:24:42.180 --> 00:24:42.779 to the story. 00:24:44.180 --> 00:24:45.240 We humans are created 00:24:45.240 --> 00:24:46.019 in God's image 00:24:46.019 --> 00:24:47.279 and we humans 00:24:47.279 --> 00:24:48.539 have fallen into sin, 00:24:48.619 --> 00:24:49.279 to desperate, 00:24:49.619 --> 00:24:50.139 serious, 00:24:50.480 --> 00:24:51.079 universal, 00:24:51.519 --> 00:24:52.139 grave sin. 00:24:53.259 --> 00:24:54.220 But third, 00:24:55.359 --> 00:24:56.799 God has acted 00:24:56.799 --> 00:24:59.019 to redeem us 00:24:59.019 --> 00:25:00.579 and to repair 00:25:00.579 --> 00:25:01.460 what's been broken. 00:25:03.460 --> 00:25:04.839 But this doesn't come 00:25:04.839 --> 00:25:05.379 from us, 00:25:05.980 --> 00:25:06.639 this healing, 00:25:06.799 --> 00:25:07.359 this repair, 00:25:07.500 --> 00:25:08.059 this forgiveness. 00:25:08.059 --> 00:25:10.919 it comes from God. 00:25:12.779 --> 00:25:13.859 In verse 7 00:25:13.859 --> 00:25:15.079 of Micah chapter 7, 00:25:15.139 --> 00:25:16.639 the last sort of verse 00:25:16.639 --> 00:25:17.579 that we're looking at 00:25:17.579 --> 00:25:19.940 this morning, 00:25:20.460 --> 00:25:22.480 after recounting 00:25:22.480 --> 00:25:23.819 the kind of grim reality 00:25:23.819 --> 00:25:25.519 of sin for 14 verses, 00:25:25.980 --> 00:25:26.779 after abandoning 00:25:26.779 --> 00:25:27.440 any hope 00:25:27.440 --> 00:25:28.359 of finding rescue 00:25:28.359 --> 00:25:29.279 in sinful humanity, 00:25:29.639 --> 00:25:30.839 Micah says in verse 7, 00:25:32.059 --> 00:25:32.899 but as for me, 00:25:34.299 --> 00:25:35.619 I'll look to the Lord. 00:25:35.619 --> 00:25:38.039 I'll wait 00:25:38.039 --> 00:25:39.319 for the God 00:25:39.319 --> 00:25:40.199 of my salvation 00:25:40.199 --> 00:25:42.559 and my God 00:25:42.559 --> 00:25:43.259 will hear me. 00:25:46.059 --> 00:25:46.779 And so, 00:25:46.879 --> 00:25:47.619 after showing us 00:25:47.619 --> 00:25:48.699 the gravity of sin 00:25:48.699 --> 00:25:49.799 and the extent 00:25:49.799 --> 00:25:50.319 of sin, 00:25:51.059 --> 00:25:52.459 Micah here is pointing us 00:25:52.459 --> 00:25:53.819 to the answer 00:25:53.819 --> 00:25:54.379 for sin. 00:25:55.199 --> 00:25:56.219 To the answer. 00:25:58.039 --> 00:25:58.839 And the answer 00:25:58.839 --> 00:25:59.239 for sin 00:25:59.239 --> 00:25:59.819 doesn't come 00:25:59.819 --> 00:26:00.699 from any human source. 00:26:00.859 --> 00:26:01.699 How could it, right? 00:26:02.459 --> 00:26:03.219 If you and I 00:26:03.219 --> 00:26:04.339 both can't swim 00:26:04.339 --> 00:26:05.559 and we fall 00:26:05.559 --> 00:26:06.259 into the deep end 00:26:06.259 --> 00:26:06.720 of the pool, 00:26:07.220 --> 00:26:08.139 the last thing 00:26:08.139 --> 00:26:08.720 that we should do 00:26:08.720 --> 00:26:09.619 is cling to each other 00:26:09.619 --> 00:26:10.139 for rescue. 00:26:10.639 --> 00:26:10.919 Right? 00:26:12.119 --> 00:26:13.359 That's not going to work. 00:26:16.359 --> 00:26:17.299 We need a rescue 00:26:17.299 --> 00:26:17.839 that comes from 00:26:17.839 --> 00:26:18.599 outside of us. 00:26:20.899 --> 00:26:21.839 So where do we look? 00:26:23.759 --> 00:26:24.259 You know, 00:26:24.299 --> 00:26:25.299 and this is the other tragedy 00:26:25.299 --> 00:26:26.539 of human existence. 00:26:27.019 --> 00:26:28.199 Not only do we just minimize 00:26:28.199 --> 00:26:29.599 and downplay 00:26:29.599 --> 00:26:30.240 and pretend 00:26:30.240 --> 00:26:31.359 and just sort of 00:26:31.359 --> 00:26:32.699 act like sin 00:26:32.699 --> 00:26:33.359 isn't really there, 00:26:33.359 --> 00:26:36.259 the other tragedy 00:26:36.259 --> 00:26:36.799 is that 00:26:36.799 --> 00:26:40.439 we look everywhere 00:26:40.439 --> 00:26:42.339 for rescue 00:26:42.339 --> 00:26:44.379 except for the one place 00:26:44.379 --> 00:26:45.279 where it can be found. 00:26:48.079 --> 00:26:49.199 We'll look anywhere 00:26:49.199 --> 00:26:50.079 and everywhere 00:26:50.079 --> 00:26:51.099 for an answer 00:26:51.099 --> 00:26:53.740 except for the one place 00:26:53.740 --> 00:26:54.639 where God says, 00:26:54.819 --> 00:26:56.039 here's the answer. 00:26:57.119 --> 00:26:58.079 Here it is 00:26:58.079 --> 00:26:59.500 because I love you. 00:26:59.500 --> 00:27:03.420 And where is it found? 00:27:05.319 --> 00:27:06.759 It's found in God himself. 00:27:09.000 --> 00:27:10.180 Micah knew enough 00:27:10.180 --> 00:27:11.480 about God's character 00:27:11.480 --> 00:27:12.440 and God's nature 00:27:12.440 --> 00:27:13.240 to know 00:27:13.240 --> 00:27:14.680 that his only hope 00:27:14.680 --> 00:27:15.619 in the midst 00:27:15.619 --> 00:27:18.400 of his just sin-sick world, 00:27:18.400 --> 00:27:20.980 his only hope 00:27:20.980 --> 00:27:21.960 was to look to God 00:27:21.960 --> 00:27:23.079 and to wait 00:27:23.079 --> 00:27:24.160 for the God 00:27:24.160 --> 00:27:24.880 of his salvation. 00:27:24.880 --> 00:27:28.260 He knew enough 00:27:28.260 --> 00:27:28.840 about God 00:27:28.840 --> 00:27:29.420 to know 00:27:29.420 --> 00:27:31.260 that if he waited 00:27:31.260 --> 00:27:32.180 on that God, 00:27:33.220 --> 00:27:34.100 God would answer. 00:27:35.500 --> 00:27:36.060 After all, 00:27:36.140 --> 00:27:37.100 wasn't this the God 00:27:37.100 --> 00:27:38.760 who heard the cry 00:27:38.760 --> 00:27:39.400 of the people 00:27:39.400 --> 00:27:39.920 in Egypt 00:27:39.920 --> 00:27:40.840 when they were in slavery 00:27:40.840 --> 00:27:41.520 and who came 00:27:41.520 --> 00:27:42.640 and eventually set them free? 00:27:43.460 --> 00:27:44.460 Wasn't this the God 00:27:44.460 --> 00:27:44.920 who led them 00:27:44.920 --> 00:27:45.880 through 40 years 00:27:45.880 --> 00:27:46.440 in the wilderness 00:27:46.440 --> 00:27:48.200 and then finally brought them 00:27:48.200 --> 00:27:49.160 into the promised land? 00:27:49.800 --> 00:27:50.640 Wasn't this the God 00:27:50.640 --> 00:27:51.440 who answered their prayers 00:27:51.440 --> 00:27:52.240 again and again 00:27:52.240 --> 00:27:53.120 when they were oppressed 00:27:53.119 --> 00:27:54.759 and subjected to pagan rulers 00:27:54.759 --> 00:27:55.599 and foreign gods? 00:27:55.919 --> 00:27:57.099 Wasn't this the God 00:27:57.099 --> 00:27:57.979 who did all this 00:27:57.979 --> 00:27:59.419 even though the people 00:27:59.419 --> 00:28:00.559 were sinful 00:28:00.559 --> 00:28:01.619 and rebellious 00:28:01.619 --> 00:28:02.839 and didn't deserve 00:28:02.839 --> 00:28:04.259 any of God's favor? 00:28:04.699 --> 00:28:05.879 Hadn't he shown himself 00:28:05.879 --> 00:28:06.599 to be gracious 00:28:06.599 --> 00:28:08.739 time and time again? 00:28:10.399 --> 00:28:11.759 And so Micah looks 00:28:11.759 --> 00:28:12.439 to this God 00:28:12.439 --> 00:28:12.939 and says, 00:28:13.199 --> 00:28:14.839 I'll wait for you. 00:28:16.519 --> 00:28:17.859 I'll entrust myself 00:28:17.859 --> 00:28:19.179 into your hands, God. 00:28:20.679 --> 00:28:21.819 And then he ends 00:28:21.819 --> 00:28:23.939 with this just amazing prayer 00:28:23.939 --> 00:28:25.759 of simplicity 00:28:25.759 --> 00:28:27.279 and faith 00:28:27.279 --> 00:28:28.859 and confidence. 00:28:29.079 --> 00:28:29.619 He says, 00:28:30.879 --> 00:28:32.279 my God will hear me. 00:28:36.899 --> 00:28:37.500 But friends, 00:28:37.579 --> 00:28:38.220 how much more 00:28:38.220 --> 00:28:40.619 can we say the same thing? 00:28:41.679 --> 00:28:42.700 How much more ought we 00:28:42.700 --> 00:28:43.700 to have the same 00:28:43.700 --> 00:28:45.099 kind of turn 00:28:45.099 --> 00:28:45.939 and response 00:28:45.939 --> 00:28:46.539 as Micah 00:28:46.539 --> 00:28:48.339 knowing what we know 00:28:48.339 --> 00:28:49.220 from the New Testament? 00:28:50.279 --> 00:28:51.119 Micah could look back 00:28:51.119 --> 00:28:51.679 to the Exodus, 00:28:52.059 --> 00:28:52.819 back to the wilderness, 00:28:53.319 --> 00:28:53.839 back to the period 00:28:53.839 --> 00:28:54.379 of the judges 00:28:54.379 --> 00:28:55.099 and the kings. 00:28:55.899 --> 00:28:57.359 But we can look back 00:28:57.359 --> 00:28:58.479 to the very heart 00:28:58.479 --> 00:28:59.719 of the gospel itself. 00:29:03.059 --> 00:29:04.079 And what is the heart 00:29:04.079 --> 00:29:04.539 of the gospel? 00:29:05.099 --> 00:29:07.000 What is the very good news 00:29:07.000 --> 00:29:08.019 at the center 00:29:08.019 --> 00:29:08.699 of the Bible? 00:29:11.579 --> 00:29:12.239 Well, we've been 00:29:12.239 --> 00:29:13.799 walking through 00:29:13.799 --> 00:29:14.539 that story 00:29:14.539 --> 00:29:15.479 really all morning 00:29:15.479 --> 00:29:16.479 if you think about it. 00:29:16.480 --> 00:29:19.240 that there's one God 00:29:19.240 --> 00:29:20.440 who's holy 00:29:20.440 --> 00:29:20.980 and good 00:29:20.980 --> 00:29:22.620 and this one God 00:29:22.620 --> 00:29:23.880 made all things 00:29:23.880 --> 00:29:25.039 and made you and me 00:29:25.039 --> 00:29:25.620 in his image 00:29:25.620 --> 00:29:26.559 to love him 00:29:26.559 --> 00:29:27.279 and to serve him 00:29:27.279 --> 00:29:27.640 and to know 00:29:27.640 --> 00:29:28.779 infinite delight 00:29:28.779 --> 00:29:29.440 in his presence 00:29:29.440 --> 00:29:30.099 with one another. 00:29:31.160 --> 00:29:32.019 But rather than 00:29:32.019 --> 00:29:33.160 turning to God 00:29:33.160 --> 00:29:34.180 in obedience 00:29:34.180 --> 00:29:35.019 and in love, 00:29:35.079 --> 00:29:35.839 we've turned away 00:29:35.839 --> 00:29:36.319 from God 00:29:36.319 --> 00:29:36.860 in sin 00:29:36.860 --> 00:29:39.220 to be our own rulers 00:29:39.220 --> 00:29:40.319 and to live without God 00:29:40.319 --> 00:29:40.700 in the world 00:29:40.700 --> 00:29:41.440 that God has made. 00:29:41.440 --> 00:29:44.720 And because God 00:29:44.720 --> 00:29:45.920 is holy and good, 00:29:46.600 --> 00:29:47.700 that turning away 00:29:47.700 --> 00:29:48.279 in rebellion 00:29:48.279 --> 00:29:52.019 deserves punishment. 00:29:52.980 --> 00:29:53.860 Because God 00:29:53.860 --> 00:29:55.100 is so holy and good, 00:29:55.180 --> 00:29:56.100 he won't leave 00:29:56.100 --> 00:29:56.880 our rebellion 00:29:56.880 --> 00:29:58.680 unjudged. 00:30:00.180 --> 00:30:01.500 But in love, 00:30:02.160 --> 00:30:03.539 God makes a way 00:30:03.539 --> 00:30:05.580 to both exercise 00:30:05.580 --> 00:30:06.640 his just judgment 00:30:06.640 --> 00:30:07.960 and to forgive 00:30:07.960 --> 00:30:10.920 his fallen image bearers. 00:30:11.440 --> 00:30:13.360 How does God do it? 00:30:16.100 --> 00:30:17.000 God becomes 00:30:17.000 --> 00:30:17.740 a human being. 00:30:19.960 --> 00:30:21.240 And in Jesus Christ, 00:30:21.360 --> 00:30:21.820 God lives 00:30:21.820 --> 00:30:23.120 a sinless human life. 00:30:23.920 --> 00:30:25.140 And then on the cross, 00:30:25.200 --> 00:30:25.779 he dies 00:30:25.779 --> 00:30:26.360 in the place 00:30:26.360 --> 00:30:26.980 of sinners 00:30:26.980 --> 00:30:29.000 taking the wrath 00:30:29.000 --> 00:30:30.580 that their sins deserve. 00:30:31.980 --> 00:30:33.460 And then three days later, 00:30:33.559 --> 00:30:34.279 Jesus Christ 00:30:34.279 --> 00:30:35.500 was raised from the dead 00:30:35.500 --> 00:30:36.279 to demonstrate 00:30:36.279 --> 00:30:37.320 that his sacrifice 00:30:37.320 --> 00:30:37.940 for sins 00:30:37.940 --> 00:30:38.880 was complete 00:30:38.880 --> 00:30:39.820 and perfect 00:30:39.819 --> 00:30:41.700 and that it paid 00:30:41.700 --> 00:30:42.879 for all of the sins 00:30:42.879 --> 00:30:44.220 for everyone 00:30:44.220 --> 00:30:44.740 who would turn 00:30:44.740 --> 00:30:45.659 and trust in him. 00:30:49.220 --> 00:30:50.039 Jesus Christ 00:30:50.039 --> 00:30:51.119 is raised from the grave 00:30:51.119 --> 00:30:52.240 to give forgiveness 00:30:52.240 --> 00:30:52.980 of sins 00:30:52.980 --> 00:30:54.339 and new spiritual life 00:30:54.339 --> 00:30:55.220 to all who believe 00:30:55.220 --> 00:30:55.599 in him. 00:30:56.740 --> 00:30:57.439 And Jesus 00:30:57.439 --> 00:30:58.000 then ascends 00:30:58.000 --> 00:30:59.200 to the Father's right hand 00:30:59.200 --> 00:31:00.620 and he now 00:31:00.620 --> 00:31:01.299 intercedes 00:31:01.299 --> 00:31:01.940 for all 00:31:01.940 --> 00:31:02.720 who come to him 00:31:02.720 --> 00:31:04.660 and he promises 00:31:04.660 --> 00:31:05.960 to return one day 00:31:05.960 --> 00:31:07.860 to make all things new 00:31:07.860 --> 00:31:09.840 and to release creation 00:31:09.840 --> 00:31:10.700 from its bondage 00:31:10.700 --> 00:31:11.220 to decay 00:31:11.220 --> 00:31:12.779 and to establish 00:31:12.779 --> 00:31:13.580 the renewed heavens 00:31:13.580 --> 00:31:14.039 and earth 00:31:14.039 --> 00:31:15.620 free from sin 00:31:15.620 --> 00:31:15.980 and death 00:31:15.980 --> 00:31:16.840 once and for all. 00:31:19.140 --> 00:31:19.620 Friends, 00:31:19.660 --> 00:31:20.299 if we really want 00:31:20.299 --> 00:31:21.220 to know ourselves, 00:31:22.580 --> 00:31:23.240 if you really want 00:31:23.240 --> 00:31:24.019 to know yourself, 00:31:25.519 --> 00:31:27.960 don't look to yourself. 00:31:29.200 --> 00:31:30.299 look to the Lord 00:31:30.299 --> 00:31:31.080 Jesus Christ 00:31:31.080 --> 00:31:33.759 because in him 00:31:33.759 --> 00:31:34.660 we see what's 00:31:34.660 --> 00:31:35.960 really true about us 00:31:35.960 --> 00:31:37.980 that we're forgiven 00:31:37.980 --> 00:31:39.100 sinners 00:31:39.100 --> 00:31:40.880 made in God's image 00:31:40.880 --> 00:31:42.039 but loved 00:31:42.039 --> 00:31:43.100 and the recipients 00:31:43.100 --> 00:31:45.400 of God's undeserved grace. 00:31:47.440 --> 00:31:48.920 That's who you really are. 00:31:51.660 --> 00:31:52.799 And if you look 00:31:52.799 --> 00:31:53.539 at Jesus Christ, 00:31:53.640 --> 00:31:54.299 you see that he will 00:31:54.299 --> 00:31:55.640 one day release us 00:31:55.640 --> 00:31:57.220 from all brokenness 00:31:57.220 --> 00:31:57.680 and sin. 00:31:59.180 --> 00:32:00.500 And if you know yourself 00:32:00.500 --> 00:32:01.360 in light of Jesus 00:32:01.360 --> 00:32:03.380 as a forgiven sinner 00:32:03.380 --> 00:32:04.360 loved by God, 00:32:05.240 --> 00:32:05.620 then you know 00:32:05.620 --> 00:32:06.240 what you can do? 00:32:07.660 --> 00:32:09.180 You can take stock 00:32:09.180 --> 00:32:11.059 of even your worst 00:32:11.059 --> 00:32:12.900 flaws and failures. 00:32:13.640 --> 00:32:15.180 You can really look 00:32:15.180 --> 00:32:16.140 at those in the mirror 00:32:16.140 --> 00:32:18.799 and not be crushed 00:32:18.799 --> 00:32:19.400 by it 00:32:19.400 --> 00:32:21.700 because you know 00:32:21.700 --> 00:32:23.279 that you're forgiven 00:32:23.279 --> 00:32:24.980 and loved. 00:32:26.759 --> 00:32:27.960 And so you can look 00:32:27.960 --> 00:32:28.519 at those sins 00:32:28.519 --> 00:32:29.039 in the mirror 00:32:29.039 --> 00:32:31.139 and you can say, 00:32:31.399 --> 00:32:32.680 those don't really 00:32:32.680 --> 00:32:33.660 define me. 00:32:34.519 --> 00:32:35.619 And you can turn 00:32:35.619 --> 00:32:36.440 away from them. 00:32:37.299 --> 00:32:38.240 And you cannot be 00:32:38.240 --> 00:32:39.519 defined by those habits 00:32:39.519 --> 00:32:40.559 and patterns 00:32:40.559 --> 00:32:41.680 and desires. 00:32:43.559 --> 00:32:44.279 And you can do 00:32:44.279 --> 00:32:44.899 the hard thing 00:32:44.899 --> 00:32:45.980 of asking for help 00:32:45.980 --> 00:32:47.259 to break out 00:32:47.259 --> 00:32:48.359 of destructive cycles 00:32:48.359 --> 00:32:48.960 of sin 00:32:48.960 --> 00:32:50.359 and selfishness. 00:32:50.359 --> 00:32:52.939 and you can be 00:32:52.939 --> 00:32:53.319 open 00:32:53.319 --> 00:32:54.179 and you can be 00:32:54.179 --> 00:32:54.740 transparent. 00:32:57.579 --> 00:32:58.599 And you can let 00:32:58.599 --> 00:32:59.619 your life 00:32:59.619 --> 00:33:01.000 be found 00:33:01.000 --> 00:33:03.699 in the love of God 00:33:03.699 --> 00:33:04.159 for you 00:33:04.159 --> 00:33:05.019 in Christ. 00:33:06.599 --> 00:33:07.559 And you can walk 00:33:07.559 --> 00:33:08.179 in holiness 00:33:08.179 --> 00:33:09.459 and obedience 00:33:09.459 --> 00:33:10.179 before him. 00:33:11.419 --> 00:33:12.359 Let's pray together. 00:33:12.359 --> 00:33:19.579 Oh, Father in heaven, 00:33:21.119 --> 00:33:24.199 that is what we long 00:33:24.199 --> 00:33:24.539 for, 00:33:24.919 --> 00:33:26.319 to be free 00:33:26.319 --> 00:33:26.859 from sin 00:33:26.859 --> 00:33:28.299 and to walk 00:33:28.299 --> 00:33:28.779 in the freedom 00:33:28.779 --> 00:33:29.359 of holiness, 00:33:30.019 --> 00:33:30.479 righteousness. 00:33:33.119 --> 00:33:33.639 But, Lord, 00:33:33.679 --> 00:33:34.179 we know that 00:33:34.179 --> 00:33:35.059 in order to get there, 00:33:35.959 --> 00:33:37.039 we sometimes have 00:33:37.039 --> 00:33:37.759 to take a hard look 00:33:37.759 --> 00:33:38.179 in the mirror. 00:33:38.180 --> 00:33:42.060 Father, 00:33:42.160 --> 00:33:43.019 perhaps your spirit's 00:33:43.019 --> 00:33:43.680 been doing that 00:33:43.680 --> 00:33:44.220 this morning 00:33:44.220 --> 00:33:45.960 in our midst. 00:33:48.779 --> 00:33:49.700 Perhaps in our hearts 00:33:49.700 --> 00:33:50.140 you've been putting 00:33:50.140 --> 00:33:51.240 your finger on sins 00:33:51.240 --> 00:33:52.279 that need to be confessed 00:33:52.279 --> 00:33:53.299 and turned away from. 00:33:55.900 --> 00:33:56.799 Perhaps this morning 00:33:56.799 --> 00:33:57.580 your spirit's been 00:33:57.580 --> 00:33:58.600 working in the hearts 00:33:58.600 --> 00:34:00.000 of those 00:34:00.000 --> 00:34:01.240 who don't know you 00:34:01.240 --> 00:34:02.759 and who've been 00:34:02.759 --> 00:34:03.480 trying to 00:34:03.480 --> 00:34:04.560 live under 00:34:04.560 --> 00:34:05.380 their own righteousness 00:34:05.380 --> 00:34:06.700 and their own steam 00:34:06.700 --> 00:34:07.920 and their own identity 00:34:07.920 --> 00:34:11.519 O Lord, 00:34:12.639 --> 00:34:13.460 would your spirit 00:34:13.460 --> 00:34:13.920 come 00:34:13.920 --> 00:34:17.099 and shine his light 00:34:17.099 --> 00:34:18.139 into those places 00:34:18.139 --> 00:34:18.900 of our hearts 00:34:18.900 --> 00:34:22.480 and then, 00:34:23.019 --> 00:34:23.220 spirit, 00:34:23.320 --> 00:34:23.840 would you turn 00:34:23.840 --> 00:34:24.920 our eyes to Christ 00:34:24.920 --> 00:34:27.579 and help us 00:34:27.579 --> 00:34:28.579 to see the forgiveness 00:34:28.579 --> 00:34:29.480 of our sins. 00:34:31.559 --> 00:34:32.019 O Lord, 00:34:32.119 --> 00:34:33.420 grant saving faith 00:34:33.420 --> 00:34:34.200 to those 00:34:34.200 --> 00:34:36.840 who are far from you 00:34:36.840 --> 00:34:38.039 this morning. 00:34:41.039 --> 00:34:41.579 And Lord, 00:34:41.660 --> 00:34:42.539 by your Holy Spirit 00:34:42.539 --> 00:34:42.920 in us, 00:34:43.019 --> 00:34:43.480 would we 00:34:43.480 --> 00:34:44.740 put sin to death 00:34:44.740 --> 00:34:46.780 and walk 00:34:46.780 --> 00:34:47.280 in the newness 00:34:47.280 --> 00:34:47.680 of life 00:34:47.680 --> 00:34:48.320 that you have 00:34:48.320 --> 00:34:48.860 given us. 00:34:50.280 --> 00:34:51.600 Pray this in Jesus' name. 00:34:51.780 --> 00:34:52.039 Amen.