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Sermon of 04-21-01 How Do Prophets Feel
About Sin? Habakkuk 13
Scripture
– Isaiah 5:18-25 “Woe
unto them that draw iniquity with cords of vanity, and sin as it were
with a cart rope: That say,
Let him make speed, [and] hasten his work, that we may see [it]: and let
the counsel of the Holy One of Israel draw nigh and come, that we may
know [it]! Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put
darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet,
and sweet for bitter! Woe unto [them that are] wise in their own eyes,
and prudent in their own sight! Woe unto [them that are] mighty to drink
wine, and men of strength to mingle strong drink: Which justify the
wicked for reward, and take away the righteousness of the righteous from
him! Therefore as the fire
devoureth the stubble, and the flame consumeth the chaff, [so] their
root shall be as rottenness, and their blossom shall go up as dust:
because they have cast away the law of the LORD of hosts, and despised
the word of the Holy One of Israel. Therefore is the anger of the LORD
kindled against his people, and he hath stretched forth his hand against
them, and hath smitten them: and the hills did tremble, and their
carcases [were] torn in the midst of the streets. For all this his anger
is not turned away, but his hand [is] stretched out still.”
Time
Magazine in their Dec. 20, 1999 “Exclusive” Cover story showed this
picture of Eric Harris and Dylan Kliebold and what happened on April 20,
1999. The article was basically over the videotapes these two teenagers
had recorded. The video’s revealed what their motives and plans were
and how they intended to accomplish those motives and plans. Circumstances
like this article also upset me. I’m upset at what this world is
coming to. Upset because all of us are in danger wherever we go. Now
I’m no prophet but I wonder what a prophet would write about the days
we live in right now? Go
back to our scripture in Isa. 5:18-25. Verse 18 starts off with the 3rd
“Woe” of this chapter. The first two are found in verses 8 and 11.
But verse 18 is addressed to those
who persist in their evil ways, knowing fully of what they are doing. They
are willingly to stay bound to their sins with a rope cart. A
cart rope is thicker and stronger than a simple mere rope. In
Verse 20 we find those who are
unable to distinguish between good and evil. These are the ones who
honestly think right is wrong and wrong is right. Then in verse 25 we
find it speaking of the “anger” of the Lord. Friends, I hope you
understand that it is a fearful thing to stir up the “anger” of the
Lord. Now we know that the Lord God is “merciful
and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth”
(Ex. 34:6). He deeply loves every sinner. But
The Bible also teaches that God will not clear the guilty of their sin.
In fact He cannot do so and still be consistent with His own character
and laws. He cannot unless the guilty sinner repents of his evil ways. At
the time of Isaiah’s message here in chapter 5 the iniquity of Israel
had almost reached its limit. (See SDA Comm. 5T 208; 9T 13). So
God had Isaiah write down a warning to help His people them see their
wrong and repent. You see this is what a prophet does. They
write the “Lords warnings” and then explain what will happen if they
do not turn from their evil ways. Prophets often remind us of Gods truth
found in Hs Word. They spell out where we are falling short in Gods will
He has for us. Many
people today seem to avoid the writings of the prophets. They want to
read only the cheerful and joyful parts of the Bible. They want to leave
the rebuke and reprimand verses for others to read. They don’t want to
hear where they are falling short. I mean after all, many feel today
like verse 20 of Isa. 5; they feel they are not all that bad. And they
call good bad and bad good. Unfortunately
there is another Prophet’s Book that is often over looked. It is the
book of Habakkuk. This small book only has 3 chapters. But boy what a
message it sends to us today. It’s the 5th book from the
end of the Old Testament. Turn there with me if you will. Now
if you quickly read over this small book you might be left confused. The
author is Habakkuk himself. It appears he wrote this book during a time
when God’s people were in deep apostasy. Probably around the year 630
BC. Because
of their sins the prophet knew Judah was about to be taken captive by
Babylon. So Habakkuk forewarned Judah about this crisis. He also
predicted God’s judgment upon them if they didn’t repent. Though he
regretted Judah’s sins He knew that his people deserved their
punishment. When
you read this entire small book, you will find that it provides a
solution to the problem of why God often allows some sinners to prosper.
This book can be compared, to the book of Job and why God sometimes
permit good people to suffer. You see Habakkuk sincerely loves God. He
earnestly longed for the triumph of righteousness. But he could not
understand why God appeared to allow the apostasy of Judah to go
unchecked and unpunished. He insisted that God stop the Jews from doing
what they were doing. This morning I want to take a quick glance at three aspects of a Prophet. There are more but we will look at three of them. The first thing you need to understand is that Prophets hate sin! Prophets were men and women that burned inside because they felt the terrible effect of sin and what it does to God’s people. Whenever they got to speak or write about a subject they often did so with enormous energy and emotion. They would go to almost any magnitude to express their pain at what they could see. Just like today often most of the crowds would listen for a while then simply walk away and ignore them. Listen
to chapter 1:12. In these verses Habakkuk expresses his anger toward
God. The Prophet sees all the evil and he asks in verse 2; “How
long do I have to call for help before You listen?” (Clear
Word). He’s
worried about the sinfulness of his people and what might happen to them
if they don’t repent. Habakkuk is perplexed why God has “not”
heard his cries and stop Judah’s wickedness. The verses imply that
Habakkuk is more interested in righteousness and justice than God is. Friends
tell me you haven't had those same feelings sometime in your life. Tell
me that when you lost your job you didn’t wonder where God was. Tell
me that when your spouse left you for another or if their life was taken
suddenly you didn’t question where God was. Tell me that when the
doctor discovered cancer you disputed God’s judgment. Tell me that
you’ve never had moments when you begged God for relief for a miracle
and it didn’t come. Tell me you’ve never gotten upset about moments
like this article here in Time magazine before! A
sure indication that proves you are becoming a true child of God is when
you burn inside whenever you see the devil working his evil around you.
God’s people, like His prophet’s, hates sin and evil! Habakkuk’s
question is; "God, Why don’t you do something? How can You let
these things happen to Your people?" A Prophet sometimes got so
upset with evil that they even question God’s judgment. The second thing Prophets do is; they diagnose things. A problem most of us have is we look only on the surface of things. But Prophets looked beneath the subsoil, down into the foundation or root of the problem. While we might look for quick answer and cure prophets would take a long look at the entire problem. Prophets tried to remember God's past pattern blessings and judgments. And they knew in the end the purpose of God for His people would in some way be fulfilled. How do I know this? Listen
to verse 12. With
this declaration of faith Habakkuk rested his case. He knew that every
believing child is in the hands of a compassionate God. (See PK 386) Now
Listen to Chapter 2:13. God’s children know His purpose for their
future. In verse 1 Habakkuk clearly
demonstrates his faith in God. He represents himself as a watchman on
some high place so that he can see and hear what is coming. Then in
verse 2 the Lord answers his faith and encourages Habakkuk to write out
the Lord’s plans and make it simple for everyone to understand. In
verse 6 we find another series of passages like we read in Isaiah, which
has the word “woe”. Listen to verses 6-19. These are not happy
passages. Prophets
look at the deeper moral and spiritual issues that move people. Prophets
see arrogance in the lives of others. In
verse 6 the prophet sees crime becoming a way of life and people getting
rich on things that do not belong to them. In verse 9 he sees blackmail
as an acceptable part of life. Verse 19 simple says, "Woe to those
who make gods out of wood or stones and then expect them to give all
security and wisdom." Habakkuk
speaks to people of our “world” today. Those who participate
knowingly or unknowingly in a system that tolerates crime. Courts that
allows people in the courts to get away with murder only because they
have enough money for a good lawyer. A system that laughs at sexual
immorality. Prophets
make us look at the evil that will send whole cities and mountains into
the oceans at the end of time. Yes, 1st Prophets burn when
they observe evil. 2nd Prophets diagnose the problem. And
lastly the 3rd aspect is good news; Prophets always give
hope. Back
again in chapter 2 did you notice I skipped verse 4? Listen; Verse
4 proves that those who trust in God
have the assurance that God will guide, protect, and bless those who do
His will. Habakkuk affirms that anyone who lives by simple faith and
trust in the Lord will be saved! He also says, “those
who are proud will not be saved.” This phrase,
"The just shall live by faith”
Paul repeats 3 times. Later today read the
verses in your bulletin insert. Rom.
1:16, 17; Gal. 3:11; and Heb. 10:38, 39. As
you and I look upon a world where there is murder and crime, when it
looks like the bad guys wins most of the time Habakkuk says, "Yes,
I know for the moment it looks like that. People have lost their moral
and spiritual resistance. But I want to tell you, there's a day coming
when the whole earth will be filled with the glory of the Lord.” Listen
to chapter 3, verses 18-19: This
book began with Habakkuk crying out, "Lord Everything is going to
the dogs!" And he ends with, "But I will be joyful. I will
wait. I will be patient. I will be silent. I will pray and I will trust
You Lord." Friends,
that must be our agenda today. We don’t always understand everything
that happens in this world. We won’t always understand why Bad things
happen to Good people. We won’t always understand why it appears that
the bad guys win some of the time. But chapter 3 shows how God responds to our questioning hearts. God
explains to Habakkuk that the chastisement of the Israelites is for
their ultimate good. God told the apostle Paul in 2 Corinthians 12:9:10;
"My grace is sufficient for thee: for My
strength is made perfect in weakness." Then
in gratitude the tested servant of God responded: "Most
gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power
of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in
reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's
sake: for when I am weak, them am I strong."
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