395. Sins Cast in the Sea
Micah 7:19 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.
The prophet promises that God will turn again, He will have compassion on us, He will subdue our sins, and He will cast all our sins into the depth of the sea. When the Lord turns to us He turns with compassion. God’s awesome compassion on us and love for us caused the Lord to find a way (the only way) to justly forgive sins, overcome them, declare us righteous, make us holy, grant eternal life, restore us to Himself and receive us into the heavenly mansions. He sent His only Son to live and die for us. This is the kind of God we have: one who loves forever and finds a way to express that love in an effective way, one who comes to us and draws us with cords of love, overcomes sin, and causes us to return to Him where we belong.
We know this is true, and that God has kept His promises, when we hear the gospel, look at the cross, and see the bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ. One lifetime is not enough time to exhaust our comprehension of and appreciation for the Love of God. “Jesus looked on the crowd and had compassion on them.” The Lord looks at us and has compassion on us. Because of Christ, Almighty God, the Eternal Judge, does not look at us with scorn, contempt, disdain, scolding, judgment, a critical spirit, disappointment, or condemnation. He does not accept our sins and He does not overlook them; He forgives them and takes them away. In this way, God loves each of us in Christ. He sees Christ in us, the righteousness of God, the perfection of holiness, a cleansed and purified vessel. If only we had God’s compassion to see others and ourselves the way He does! It would change our lives and make us better people. The love of God for the person subdues iniquities and grows the fruit of the Spirit.
He can do all this because He loves the sinner but hates the sin. He promises to take all our sins and cast them into the depths of the sea. Our sins are removed from us as far as the east from the west, that is, an infinite distance. When our sins are gone, really taken away, out of sight and out of mind, and figuratively cast into the sea never to be seen again the only thing left in us is Christ in us. And the Father is well pleased with us. With this gospel promise come true and real in our hearts we live a better life and enjoy God ever more every day.