The Prophet Micah once asked, “Who is a God like you?”—a rhetorical question meant to lead God’s people to the only possible answer: there is no god like the one, true God. Unlike the idols of this world—mere figments of sinful human imagination that demand their followers earn their favor—the true God stands apart. Yes, He also demands obedience: that we have no other gods, that we fear, love, and trust in Him above all else. His decrees are holy, and to break even one, even once, is to incur His condemnation. But what sets Him apart from all false gods is that, knowing our inability to meet His demands, He does what they never could—He pardons iniquity, passes over transgressions, and delights in mercy.

“Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time.” Only those who, like St. Paul, confess, “I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells… For the good that I will to do I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice,” will truly humble themselves before this holy God. The hypocrite scoffs, “Everyone knows he’s a sinner,” as if mere acknowledgment is enough. While it’s true that most people don’t claim to be perfect, few are willing to admit that we sin because we are born in sin, enslaved to it, and deserving only of God’s punishment.

This reality doesn’t make us feel good, nor is it meant to. “The law brings wrath,” explains the Apostle Paul. It demands what we cannot do and condemns us for failing. Yet it was precisely because of this condemnation that tax collectors and sinners—the moral outcasts of Jewish society—drew near to Jesus. Knowing their sinful lives earned only God's wrath, they saw in Jesus the Savior who had come to win God’s favor on their behalf.

The Pharisees, however, could not comprehend this grace. They grumbled, “This Man receives sinners and eats with them.” Their pride blinded them. They quickly condemned others while resisting any rebuke of their own sinfulness. In response, Jesus told four parables, two of which are included in this Sunday’s Gospel, to explain why He welcomed sinners. These parables expose the Pharisees' hypocrisy—those who removed specks from others’ eyes while ignoring the planks in their own.

In the first parable, a shepherd leaves ninety-nine sheep to search for one that wandered off. When he finds it, he carries it home with joy. This illustrates the Savior’s role: He carries. Jesus bore the world’s sin in His flesh, suffering God’s wrath even unto death. In doing so, He proved Himself the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.

But His work did not stop at the cross. Because we, like sheep, continue to go astray, the Lamb becomes our Shepherd, constantly seeking us out lest the devil, a roaring lion, devours us. Each time we wander into sin, He finds us and carries us back to the safety of His flock—even when we resist leaving our sin behind.

It is by His work alone that we have come today to receive His gifts, and by His work alone we will, on the Last Day, be counted among the sheep on His right hand, hearing, “Come, you blessed of My Father; inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.”

The second parable tells of a woman who loses a valuable coin. She lights a lamp and sweeps her house until she finds it. This woman represents the Church, the Bride of Christ. The coin symbolizes one of her own who has become lost in sin. Just as a coin cannot help itself be found, a sinner cannot return to God by his own power.

So the Church uses what her Bridegroom has given her: the light of God’s Word. The Law reveals the righteous path and our sinful divergence from it. Then she takes the broom—also the Word of God—as the Gospel sweeps away our sin and brings us back to the One who forgives.

These parables reveal a profound truth: there is no god like our God. He suffered for the punishment we earned. He searches for us in our sin. And when He finds us, He carries us back to His Church, where we are protected from the enemy and nourished by His Body and Blood—until He returns to bring us home. To Him be glory and dominion forever and ever.

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.