Trinity 3 June 25, 2023
Micah 7:18-20
Despicable Me!
v.19 He will again have compassion on us; He will tread our iniquities underfoot. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea.
Dear friends in Christ, in the summer of 2010 one of the most lucrative animated films of all time was released—Despicable Me. The film relates the story of a super villain, Gru, who is intent on stealing the moon. He is a wicked and nasty man who cares only for himself—even adopting three girls to be used as pawns in his nefarious scheme! In short, Gru is a no-good, nasty character—a despicable man.
Do you ever feel the same way? That is, despicable? Today's Scriptures point out the great sin that lies in each and every one of our hearts. The Law of God is good—does its work—shows our sin. It demonstrates that we are the chief of sinners—that we have taken the blessed gifts of our loving God and Father and spurned them—despising them in our selfishness and greed. We truly have sinned against both God and neighbor in thought, word, and deed, by the things we have done and left undone, as we confess each week in our divine service.
And while it is good for us to be called to repentance by the clear Word of God—it is good for us to recognize our great sin and error—indeed, to be brought to our knees before the judgement seat of God—the problem arises when we are then tempted to believe the lies of the devil and our own tortured consciences that declare, "God will NEVER forgive YOU—not for THAT sin! You are doomed to suffer eternal wrath and hell."
So, while it is good to hear God's Law and to be brought by the Holy Spirit to repent of our sin, it is NOT good—nor God's will—that repentant sinners enter into despondency on account of their sin—that guilt and shame send us to the depths of despair. For the Law of God does NOT have the final word, beloved, but rather the Gospel of Jesus!
Take our text, for example, from the prophet Micah. He was a contemporary of the prophet Isaiah. They both severely and sternly warned God's people of the coming wrath of God for their great sin of idolatry—worshiping false gods and failing to love their neighbor rightly according to God's Word. Micah was faithful in proclaiming the Word of the Lord to the people—even though it involved terrible judgments and prophecies of great doom, which were not well received by the people of his day. Indeed, the words of the prophet Micah are so powerful that we still employ them in the reproaches of God we hear in our Good Friday service each year (6:3), "O my people, what I done to you? How have I wearied you? Answer me!"
Having heard our Lord God's accurate accusations against us in His Word, we pray st. 1 of our Hymn of the Day (LSB 608—Lord, to You I Make Confession), "Lord, to You I make confession; I have sinned and gone astray, I have multiplied transgression, Chosen for myself my way. Led by You to see my errors, Lord, I tremble at your terrors."
Led by the Holy Spirit, we repent, beloved. We repent of our sin to the Almighty Judge of all. We make confession of our sin—that we have strayed from His Word and His will—following our own selfish will and desires. Having the clear light of God's Word shine in our hearts, we can now clearly see our sin—and it leads us to tremble before Him—for we know we are guilty and deserve nothing but His terrible wrath. We know we are unworthy of His love—that we are truly despicable—for we have not loved God nor our neighbor as we ought.
Which is why our text for today is so important—for it is pure sweet Gospel—Good News! For though it makes no sense—though it doesn't benefit God in any way—though we are truly guilty and dead to rights in terms of our sin—yet "He does not retain His anger forever, because He delights in steadfast love." Though God is Just and must punish sin to be true to His nature, yet His true delight is in exhibiting steadfast love—even (especially!) to those who least deserve it—you and me.
After having blasted the people with the harshness of God's Law, Micah turns in the final verses to share God's true joy and love with His people—to give them hope. That though He is angry with them on account of their sin, His anger will not last forever. Despite their great transgression, God will show compassion and mercy. Micah, whose name means, "Who is like the Lord?" ends his prophecy with these beautiful words of comfort and hope, "Who is a God like you, pardoning iniquity and passing over transgression for the remnant of His inheritance? He does not retain His anger forever, because He delights in steadfast love."
Indeed, beloved, who is a God like ours? Our God delights in pardoning the iniquity of His children—lifting that burden of guilt and shame from our shoulders and bearing it Himself in His own flesh to the cross. Our transgressions are passed over by God not by Him turning a blind eye to them, but by Jesus suffering for them in our place! Whatever sins keep you awake at night—whatever failures to keep God's Word worry and niggle away at your conscience—seeking to erode the confidence of God in your heart—fear not! For your God delights in steadfast love!
This is why in love the Father sent His Son Jesus! That Jesus—God Himself in our flesh—might bear the scorching wrath of God in our place while suffering on the cross. God had promised His people Israel to send One who would shepherd and redeem them. The great Messianic prophecy that declares where the Christ would be born—in Bethlehem—is found in Micah (5:2, 4-5a), "But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be named among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for Me One who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days… And He shall stand and shepherd His flock in the strength of Yahweh, in the majesty of the name of Yahweh His God. And they shall dwell secure, for now He shall be great to the ends of the earth. And He shall be their peace."
What joy and gladness, dear friends! For the Messiah has come! Jesus was born of the Virgin Mary…where? In Bethlehem! As prophesied by Micah. And He has not come to condemn you, but to save you! Hear the words of Micah once more, "He [Jesus] will again have compassion on us; He will tread our iniquities underfoot. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea."
God be praised! The compassion of God is evidenced in Jesus' work of salvation for us on the cross. As Paul writes in Romans 5:8, "but God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." You don't have to "clean up your act" before God will have mercy on you and forgive your sins. Jesus has come and taken your sin—all of it—every last bit of it—the big sins and the little sins—the sins that keep you up at night—and the sins you don't even know or care about or have forgotten completely—He has taken them all to the cross and suffered and died for them in your place.
The image Micah uses here is one of battle tumult. The victorious army trampling over their enemies—grinding them deep into the ground never to rise again. Just so has Jesus done with your iniquity. Furthermore, your sins have been cast into the farthest, darkest depths of the sea—again never to rise once more—never to see the light of day. For Jesus has paid for them in full—and so they are done with—forever!
For the Lord God has shown faithfulness in His promises to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the great patriarchs of old, to whom the Promise was given that the seed of Abraham would come forth and be a blessing to all the nations of the world. That seed has come and borne much fruit—for that seed is none other than Jesus. God promised He would come—and He did. Just as God promises you that your sins are forgiven fully and freely by the shed blood of Jesus—and so they are!
Dear friends, in the movie Despicable Me, the super villain Gru is changed as he experiences unconditional love from the three girls. He is moved to love them deeply in turn. Just so with you and me. Though we deserved it not, yet our Lord God has loved us fully and completely in Jesus. And we have been forever changed. We are able by God's Holy Spirit not only to repent of our sins—to turn away from them and seek God's good will (to love Him and our neighbor as we should according to His Word)—but we are also able to trust in His Word of promise and forgiveness that has been signed, sealed, and delivered by the blood of Jesus.
As st. 3 of our sermon hymn so beautifully puts it, "For Your Son has suffered for me, Giv'n Himself to rescue me, Died to save me and restore me, Reconciled and set me free. Jesus' cross alone can vanquish These dark fears and soothe this anguish."
So beloved, let not your hearts be troubled, nor let them be afraid. No matter what you have done—Jesus' blood has set you free. Cast off the burden of your guilt—for Jesus has taken it from you and borne it to the cross! He absolves you each week—pardons your iniquity—and strengthens you with His steadfast love as you partake of His body and blood in the Holy Supper. He remembers your sins no more—for they have been cast into the depths of the sea—indeed, they have been washed away in the cleansing flood of your Baptism. You are no longer despicable in His sight, but a beloved child of the heavenly Father. Who is a God like ours? Truly, there is none other because our God delights in steadfast love. Thanks be to God in Christ Jesus. Amen.
Micah 7:18-20
Despicable Me!
v.19 He will again have compassion on us; He will tread our iniquities underfoot. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea.
Dear friends in Christ, in the summer of 2010 one of the most lucrative animated films of all time was released—Despicable Me. The film relates the story of a super villain, Gru, who is intent on stealing the moon. He is a wicked and nasty man who cares only for himself—even adopting three girls to be used as pawns in his nefarious scheme! In short, Gru is a no-good, nasty character—a despicable man.
Do you ever feel the same way? That is, despicable? Today's Scriptures point out the great sin that lies in each and every one of our hearts. The Law of God is good—does its work—shows our sin. It demonstrates that we are the chief of sinners—that we have taken the blessed gifts of our loving God and Father and spurned them—despising them in our selfishness and greed. We truly have sinned against both God and neighbor in thought, word, and deed, by the things we have done and left undone, as we confess each week in our divine service.
And while it is good for us to be called to repentance by the clear Word of God—it is good for us to recognize our great sin and error—indeed, to be brought to our knees before the judgement seat of God—the problem arises when we are then tempted to believe the lies of the devil and our own tortured consciences that declare, "God will NEVER forgive YOU—not for THAT sin! You are doomed to suffer eternal wrath and hell."
So, while it is good to hear God's Law and to be brought by the Holy Spirit to repent of our sin, it is NOT good—nor God's will—that repentant sinners enter into despondency on account of their sin—that guilt and shame send us to the depths of despair. For the Law of God does NOT have the final word, beloved, but rather the Gospel of Jesus!
Take our text, for example, from the prophet Micah. He was a contemporary of the prophet Isaiah. They both severely and sternly warned God's people of the coming wrath of God for their great sin of idolatry—worshiping false gods and failing to love their neighbor rightly according to God's Word. Micah was faithful in proclaiming the Word of the Lord to the people—even though it involved terrible judgments and prophecies of great doom, which were not well received by the people of his day. Indeed, the words of the prophet Micah are so powerful that we still employ them in the reproaches of God we hear in our Good Friday service each year (6:3), "O my people, what I done to you? How have I wearied you? Answer me!"
Having heard our Lord God's accurate accusations against us in His Word, we pray st. 1 of our Hymn of the Day (LSB 608—Lord, to You I Make Confession), "Lord, to You I make confession; I have sinned and gone astray, I have multiplied transgression, Chosen for myself my way. Led by You to see my errors, Lord, I tremble at your terrors."
Led by the Holy Spirit, we repent, beloved. We repent of our sin to the Almighty Judge of all. We make confession of our sin—that we have strayed from His Word and His will—following our own selfish will and desires. Having the clear light of God's Word shine in our hearts, we can now clearly see our sin—and it leads us to tremble before Him—for we know we are guilty and deserve nothing but His terrible wrath. We know we are unworthy of His love—that we are truly despicable—for we have not loved God nor our neighbor as we ought.
Which is why our text for today is so important—for it is pure sweet Gospel—Good News! For though it makes no sense—though it doesn't benefit God in any way—though we are truly guilty and dead to rights in terms of our sin—yet "He does not retain His anger forever, because He delights in steadfast love." Though God is Just and must punish sin to be true to His nature, yet His true delight is in exhibiting steadfast love—even (especially!) to those who least deserve it—you and me.
After having blasted the people with the harshness of God's Law, Micah turns in the final verses to share God's true joy and love with His people—to give them hope. That though He is angry with them on account of their sin, His anger will not last forever. Despite their great transgression, God will show compassion and mercy. Micah, whose name means, "Who is like the Lord?" ends his prophecy with these beautiful words of comfort and hope, "Who is a God like you, pardoning iniquity and passing over transgression for the remnant of His inheritance? He does not retain His anger forever, because He delights in steadfast love."
Indeed, beloved, who is a God like ours? Our God delights in pardoning the iniquity of His children—lifting that burden of guilt and shame from our shoulders and bearing it Himself in His own flesh to the cross. Our transgressions are passed over by God not by Him turning a blind eye to them, but by Jesus suffering for them in our place! Whatever sins keep you awake at night—whatever failures to keep God's Word worry and niggle away at your conscience—seeking to erode the confidence of God in your heart—fear not! For your God delights in steadfast love!
This is why in love the Father sent His Son Jesus! That Jesus—God Himself in our flesh—might bear the scorching wrath of God in our place while suffering on the cross. God had promised His people Israel to send One who would shepherd and redeem them. The great Messianic prophecy that declares where the Christ would be born—in Bethlehem—is found in Micah (5:2, 4-5a), "But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be named among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for Me One who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days… And He shall stand and shepherd His flock in the strength of Yahweh, in the majesty of the name of Yahweh His God. And they shall dwell secure, for now He shall be great to the ends of the earth. And He shall be their peace."
What joy and gladness, dear friends! For the Messiah has come! Jesus was born of the Virgin Mary…where? In Bethlehem! As prophesied by Micah. And He has not come to condemn you, but to save you! Hear the words of Micah once more, "He [Jesus] will again have compassion on us; He will tread our iniquities underfoot. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea."
God be praised! The compassion of God is evidenced in Jesus' work of salvation for us on the cross. As Paul writes in Romans 5:8, "but God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." You don't have to "clean up your act" before God will have mercy on you and forgive your sins. Jesus has come and taken your sin—all of it—every last bit of it—the big sins and the little sins—the sins that keep you up at night—and the sins you don't even know or care about or have forgotten completely—He has taken them all to the cross and suffered and died for them in your place.
The image Micah uses here is one of battle tumult. The victorious army trampling over their enemies—grinding them deep into the ground never to rise again. Just so has Jesus done with your iniquity. Furthermore, your sins have been cast into the farthest, darkest depths of the sea—again never to rise once more—never to see the light of day. For Jesus has paid for them in full—and so they are done with—forever!
For the Lord God has shown faithfulness in His promises to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the great patriarchs of old, to whom the Promise was given that the seed of Abraham would come forth and be a blessing to all the nations of the world. That seed has come and borne much fruit—for that seed is none other than Jesus. God promised He would come—and He did. Just as God promises you that your sins are forgiven fully and freely by the shed blood of Jesus—and so they are!
Dear friends, in the movie Despicable Me, the super villain Gru is changed as he experiences unconditional love from the three girls. He is moved to love them deeply in turn. Just so with you and me. Though we deserved it not, yet our Lord God has loved us fully and completely in Jesus. And we have been forever changed. We are able by God's Holy Spirit not only to repent of our sins—to turn away from them and seek God's good will (to love Him and our neighbor as we should according to His Word)—but we are also able to trust in His Word of promise and forgiveness that has been signed, sealed, and delivered by the blood of Jesus.
As st. 3 of our sermon hymn so beautifully puts it, "For Your Son has suffered for me, Giv'n Himself to rescue me, Died to save me and restore me, Reconciled and set me free. Jesus' cross alone can vanquish These dark fears and soothe this anguish."
So beloved, let not your hearts be troubled, nor let them be afraid. No matter what you have done—Jesus' blood has set you free. Cast off the burden of your guilt—for Jesus has taken it from you and borne it to the cross! He absolves you each week—pardons your iniquity—and strengthens you with His steadfast love as you partake of His body and blood in the Holy Supper. He remembers your sins no more—for they have been cast into the depths of the sea—indeed, they have been washed away in the cleansing flood of your Baptism. You are no longer despicable in His sight, but a beloved child of the heavenly Father. Who is a God like ours? Truly, there is none other because our God delights in steadfast love. Thanks be to God in Christ Jesus. Amen.