Finding Joy: Habakkuk 3

So today we were starting our series in Psalms, and so we have been

doing it in the year's past, and November we didn't do it last year,

and we're going to start it this month. But I won't be preaching

in Psalms this morning. If you have your Bibles turned to Habacca, that's

one of the minor profits. I had a passage that I was working through

this week and just never could get settled. And that's what the Lord wanted

us for this morning. So Habacca three this morning. If you it's kind

of toward the end of the Old Testament, go to f and I take

a left, go to Nahum and take a right and you'll find Habacca.

Or just go to the very beginning your Bible table of context. Look at

what pages on my page seven eighty seven, if that helps you. But

Habacca chapter three started verse seventeen is just a little bit I you know.

I. One thing that I've enjoyed through the years is golf. And a

long time ago you used to pray play a good bit of golf with my

mentor preachergery and preaching. Here. He had a friend of his that would

go with us, and his name was Rod and I tell you, you've

ever met those people that just are I don't know how the how you describe,

just a little bit, very expressive and how they feel about certain things.

And and Rob was one of those types. You know. We'd go

to the tea box and we get onto the tea box to hit a drive.

And he would hit a drive and it go down the middle. He

goes, well, praise the Lord, and I was like, well,

goodness. You know, he just every time you know, something was good,

he would just you know, the Lord is my shepherd. You know.

He'd hit a putt and it would be a bird. He who says,

hitting the Lord good today. And I'm I'm just like, you know,

I'm not doing so good. I don't know what I'm doing if I'm

having problem with my rejoicing. But you know, and and Rob was really

good about praising the Lord when things were real good for him. But I'll

be honest with you, he didn't share that praise with me. I mean,

I would hit one, it'd be in the woods, he said,

it's in the woods. It's in the woods. I saw it go,

I'd hit it. He'd be on the other side of the fairway and I'd

hit it. It's in the water. I saw it in the water.

Praise the Lord. Mine's on the green, brother, you know, you

know, I just struggled with that, you know. But you know,

we do, we do. Many of us are like Rod in a sense

that we do tend to want to give God praise, and we should.

We should get praise to the Lord when when God provides for us, and

God does great things for us. And sometimes, unlike Rod, we don't

give him the praise enough that he deserves. But it is really difficult to

sometimes give the Lord the praise that he deserves. But it's really difficult to

give God's praise when the ball is in the water, when the ball is

in the woods. It's hard to praise the lords in those hard times.

As we come to Habacca chapter three, the prophet Habacca is actually rejoicing and

loss. As we come to Habacca chapter three. Uh, he, there's

there's a time that's coming in the life of Israel. That's just some seasons

of loss. Habacca has known that the nation of Israel. This was by

the time, by the way, when Habacca wrote, it was toward the

end of Josiah's reign. Josiah brought revival to the land. But after Josiah,

kings arose that brought corruption evil. Scripture would say they brought more evil

than any other king before, and as a result, they would sacrifice to

bail, they would do child sacrifices, they'd be given into just egregious immorality.

In chapter one, Habacca cries out to the Lord about the evil that's

in Israel, the idolatry that's in Israel, the wickedness that's in Israel.

And God responds to Habacca by explaining that he's raising up a country called the

cow Deans, and the cow Deans are gonna come and they're gonna rush Israel.

They're going to destroy Israel. He's going to see many killed for Habacca.

He will see lands destroyed, places of worship destroyed. Everything that Joshua

Josiah I mean rebuilt and revitalized or brought revival in Habacca is going to see

destroyed. And in that, in the context of where Habacca is, he's

not going to see good days. He's about to see bad days. And

in the midst of that, Habacca finds joy, joy in the midst of

loss, and that's the title of my sermon today, finding joy? How

do we find joy and loss? How do we find joy when we don't

have enough money to pay the bills? How do we find joy when the

car breaks down? How do we find joy when we get sick, cancer,

heart disease, diabetes? How do we find joy when we lose our

jobs? How do we find joy when someone we love dies? How do

we find joy in the midst of loss when tragedy comes? How do we

find joy? Wellbacca, I believe, shows us how we can find joy

today. So let's stand together unless read God's word together. Just three verses,

and let's walk through these to today. Habacca three, starting verse seventeen

through nineteen. Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor the fruit on

the vine be on the vine. The produce of the olive fell in the

fields of the yield no food. The flock be cut off from the fold,

and there be no herd in the stalls. Yet I will rejoice in

the Lord. I will take joy in God of my salvation. God,

the Lord is my strength. He makes my feet like that, and he

makes me try tread on high places. Let's pray together, Father, we

thank you for this passage of scripture, or I do believe that this is

what you've led us to for today, for these people, for these who

are here today, whether they're in person or watching on TV or online.

Lord, I pray that your word would speak today. Lord, I ask,

Lord, you know how I believe you've led us to this passage.

And Lord, I pray that you would give us all ears to hear today,

Lord, what your spirit says to us. And Lord, as your

spirit speaks, may you open up our hearts and our minds to receive your

word, to respond to your word. So Lord, we ask Lord for

a movement of you today. Lord, we need you, and so God

we ask, may you come, God cleanse me, Lord, that you

might use me today, feel me that you might pour me out today.

Lord, may I decrease and may you increase. May you give me your

words to declare to your people today, Lord, move in a mighty and

powerful way. In your name, we pray, Man, you may be

seated. So how do we find joy and lost today? Well? First,

we find joy when our joy is founded in God. When our joy

is founded in God. Here Habacca says in verse seventeen, though the fig

trees should not blossom, nor the fruit be on the vine, or the

produce of the olive fell, or the fields you'll know food. The flock

be cut off from the fold, and there be heard in the stalls.

Yet I will rejoice in the Lord. Here Habacca is thinking about everything that

is going to come. He sees that armies are going to come into Israel.

The Chaldeans are coming, and they're going to destroy homes. They're going

to destroy Some of his friends are probably going to be killed. Some of

his neighbors are going to lose their lives. Some are going to be forced

to move to other places in other towns. Places of worship will be destroyed,

crops will be destroyed, animals will destroyed. There's loss is coming,

and verse seventeen he describes these these losses in different ways. He shows different

things, understandings of different things that they were going to lose. They were

going to lose items of luxury. If you will look at scripture says that

the fig tree should not blossom. The fig tree was an item of luxury.

It was something they would would use, but it was an item that

was luxury for people that it was mainly the rich who would have that not

only they were going to lose items of luxury, but there also would lose

items of convenience. Scripture says, nor fruit be on the vine. The

fruit on the vine were grapes, and grapes were used to make beverages.

And again this was the item of convenience. You could use water, but

they were grapes were used for beverages. It was an item of convenience.

Scripture says, not only to lose items of luxury, but they would lose

item of convenience. But they would also lose essential items. Scripture says,

nor the produce of the olive fail, I mean olive fail in the fields

of yield no food. All of us were key for the people of visual

This is what they would gather to make olive oil. This is this is

where they would the fields. There is imagery of the produce that were in

the fields. So here what they used to make food. Here what they

used to cook food. They were gonna lose. This is not only what

they would use to cook, but this is olives were used for trade.

So they're gonna lose their source of income. They're gonna lose their food.

They were gonna lose what they used to cook their food. These are essential

items they need for day to day to life. We're losing items of luxury.

They're we'll lose the items of convenience. Then we'll lose the items that

were central. But lastly they would lose the items that necessary. Scripture describes

here Habaka, though the flock be cut off from the fold, and the

herd be in the stalls. The flocks were the sheep, and they would

use the wool from the sheep to make clothing. Without the sheep, there

be no more clothes. Without the herds, there would be no more food.

These are items that were necessary for their survival. Habaca sees, all

these things are going to fail, all these things Chaldeans are going to come

and all those will be wiped away, be cut off. But the Bible

says in verse eighteen, listen to what Habacca says. Yet, though I

lose the items of luxury, though that I lose the items of that are

sentraal or necessary, yet I will rejoice in the Lord. You know.

The idea rejoicing is this idea of an outward expression of rejoicing. It's something

that the New Dictionary Bible Dictionary says both in the Old Testament and New Testament,

joy is consistently the mark of individual individually, of believers in corporately the

Church. It is a quality not simply an emotion grounded upon God himself and

indeed derived from Him, which characterize the Christian's life on earth and also anticipates

the joy of being with Christ forever in heaven. You know, joy is

not just as this says. It's not just an emotion and emotion. It

is a quality of a Christian. We are to exhibit joy as we look

to Habacca. Habacca in the midst of loss is demonstrating as a Christian,

as a believer joy. But I think it's important as we ask the question

how do we find joy? First we say we find joy when our joy

is founded in God. You notice something here for Habacca. For Habacca,

his joy is not founded in the sense items. His joy is not founded

in the luxury items. His joy is not founded in the items that are

necessity necessary for life. His joy is founded in God. You see,

many times we lose joy because we've got our joy placed in the wrong place.

We put our joy in the things of this world, like our luxury

items, or our central items, or the things that we feel like are

necessary or the things that we are convenient. And we find joy in things

in this world. And when those when we lose those things, then we

lose our joy because our joy were founded on things that are temporary. I

heard a story of a Christian radio I don't know if you ever listened to

Kay Love, but many many years ago there was a radio personality that was

on the radio and he was talking about how he called his insurance agent,

and that was who's talking to his insurance agent that were asking him about his

property and things that he owned, his value, things that you know,

his kind of his net worth and things that he owned. And so he

was like, you know, he had given him much thought and it just

made a phone call to do a few things for the insurance. And he

said, well, I mean I own a car, own a house,

and I have a cat. I mean that was about it, you know,

And so as far as his value, that's all he was worth in

his mind. He was a house, a car, and a cat.

And he just started thinking, you know what he says, I'm worth more

than that. There's more to life than just my house, just my car,

and my cat. So he said to the lady, the insurance agent,

what are you worth? Well, Jesus. She kind of paused and

she said, sir, what did you say? He said, I'm worth

Jesus. A little pause again, and she said, Hallelujah, prais the

Lord. You're right, brother, that's right. You're worth more than your

car, are in your house and your cat. Who you are as an

individually individual is founded not on what you have, but who you are in

your relationship with Jesus. For Habacca, Habacca's identity, his value was not

found in the things of this world. His identity was founded in his relationship

with the Lord. Today. What do you place your joy intoday? Is

it? Are you finding joy in your luxury items like your your iPhones,

or your computers, or the technology that you may have in this life,

whatever the luxury items you have. Are you finding your joy in your homes

or your cars? Are you finding your joy in your Dunkin doughnuts or Starbucks

convenient items? Are you finding your joy in your clothes and your shoes and

your things that you can accumulate in the life. Or are you founding your

joy today in your relationship with Jesus. Habacca found joy when his joy was

founded on God, not on the things of this world. Not only was

his joy founded in God, but we found joy and loss when our joy

is founded in God's salvation. Listen what he says. Though the fig tree

should not blossom, or the fruit be on the vines, or the produce

of the olive fell, or the fields yield no food, the flock be

cut off from the field, and there be no herds in the stalls,

Yet I will joys in the Lord. I will take joy in the God

of my salvation. For Habacca, he understood that bad things were coming.

He's gonna lose the essential items of necessary items, luxury items. He's gonna

lose friends and loved ones, places of worship, all that we're gonna be

stripped from him and Israel the coming days. But there was one thing that

they could not take away from Habacca, and that was his salvation. And

Habaika says, I found joy today in God, but I found joy in

today that God has saved me. D Doctor Martin Lord Jones was one of

the most influential preachers of the twenty first century. He had a great preaching

ministry so much that there was media, he produced books, there was all

kinds of great things that he had done throughout his life. Toward the end

of his life, Doctor Lord Jones got cancer. He's not able to preach,

not able to do the media, the writings that he once did.

One day, as he was struggling with cancer and struggling with losing just the

ability that he wants to preach and do what he used to do, a

friend came to doctor Lord Jones and as he was dying of cancer, and

he asked, and he says, how are you managing to bear up?

Bear? How are you managing all this? He said, You've been accustomed

to preaching several times a week. You've begun a big Christian enterprise. You

have a lot of influence through tapes and books, and you have influenced all

through five different continents. And now you're you're really kind of put on the

shelf. You're able to preach, and I were to write, you're not

able to do all the things that you used to do in your ministry and

really been reduced to just sitting quietly at home. How are you managing all

that? And he says, I'm not talking so much about what the disease

of cancer, but the loss of your success. Doctor Lord Jones respect it

in this way. He quoted a passive scripture, and he quoted Luke ten

twenty. He says, nevertheless, do not rejoice in this that the spirits

are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.

He quotes Luke chapter ten and Luke chapter ten. And let's read it all

together. If you have it, you want to look with me. It's

Luke chapter ten, verse seventeen. Jesus is actually Luke tells us the story

of the disciples kind of sent out in the first missionary our, the first

training. Missionary training was the word I was looking for. Just come back

from that, and let's read what happens. It says in the seventy two

return with joy, saying, Lord, even the demons are subjected to us

in your name. And he said to them, I saw Satan fall lightning

from heaven, and behold, I've given you authority to tread on serpents and

scorpions and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall hurt you.

Nevertheless, do not rejoice in this that the spirits are subject to you.

But rejoice that your names are written in heaven. Here these disciples just

came back from their first missionary training. They're rejoicing here. They're proclaiming,

they're excited, and they're rejoicing in their success a lot like that rod and

hitting those getting those birdies on the golf course. They're rejoicing what they've done.

They said, Look, even the demons were submission to us. Jesus.

They come and tell Jesus they rejoicing to Jesus, and Jesus hears them,

and Jesus says, and he gives them an image of a vision that

he has that he sees. In that vision, he says, I saw

Satan fall like lightning from heaven. He's given them a vision of something that,

Hey, you think this is great, but when I die on the

cross, I'm telling you, Satan's gonna fall like heaven. He's prophesying even

a greater victory that's coming through his death on the cross. He even then

goes and tells them that, hey, you've seen some great things today,

but you're going to see greater things in the future. You're gonna walk on

scorpions and serpents, gonna you're gonna have power over evil. He tells them

that all that greater things are to come. But then he cautions them with

this. He kind of gives them an instruction on they're rejoicing, He says

this. At the end of that, he says, nevertheless, do not

rejoice in this. Don't rejoice in how the demons are submission to you.

Don't rejoice and you're walking over snakes and scorpions. Don't rejoice. And the

greater things that you're going to see, rejoice instead? And something else?

And why are they to rejoice in? There? To rejoice their name is

written in heaven. There to rejoice that they are saved. The foundation of

rejoicing for the disciples for Jesus shouldn't be in the good things that they have

accomplished on this earth. It should be founded that they have been saved by

Jesus and their names are in heaven. You know, it is a great

temptation for all of us a lot like those disciples. There's a great temptation

for all of us to rejoice in our successes, rejoiceing the things that we've

done in our life, whether at our businesses or in our workplaces, and

our academics, and our hobbies and our relationships. We can rejoice as a

church. We can rejoice in the successes that we've seen, renovating this sanctuary

building, renovating the a building, some things that we've done and seen through

the last six years. Here a great temptation for us your joys and what

we believe. We have walked through some hard things. But the Lord would

caution us all today that our joy should be founded first and foremost that were

saved. You know, sometimes we look past just what God did in our

lives, and what a great honor it is to know that our names are

written in the Land's book of life. Today, how do we find joy

and loss? We found joy and when our joy is founded in God,

and when our joy is founded in our salvation. God, above all the

good things in this life that you've granted us and you've done in and through

us, greater than it all is that God, you saved my soul.

Today, will you find joy in finding your joy in the Lord, founding

your joy in your salvation? But lastly, how do we found joy and

loss when our joy is founded in Listen to this God's strength? Scripture says

in this passage, Yet our joys in the Lord. I will take joy

in the God of my salvation. God, the Lord is what my strength.

He makes my feet like the DearS. He makes me tread on high

places. Here, Habak, he actually says, here God the Lord.

It actually can be translated from the Hebrew yahweh my Lord. Here Habaka is

saying, you know what, I'm losing it all and I don't have There's

not gonna be anything left in this life. But one thing I do have.

I have my joy in God. I have the joy and that He

saved me, and have joy that I have a relationship with the Lord.

And he is the word. The term here when yahweigh my Lord is you

is used to describe that God is powerful, he is majestic. And he

says, listen, my God is more powerful than anything that I see in

this world. The Chaldeans may think they're great, but my God's greater,

and he says, and he's putting his trust in that majestic and powerful God.

He even goes forth in this passage to describe that my Lord, my

God, this is what he is going to do for me. He even

says the God, Yahweh, my Lord, He says, listen to this

is my strength. When I lose it all and I have nothing left to

give, or nothing left of this world to hold onto, what do I

hold on too? I hold on to my Lord because he is powerful,

he is majestic, and he's my source of strength. And listen to the

imagery. As a result of him holding on to the Lord, what the

Lord? How will the Lord in Powerbacca will Habaccah describes that he listen to

the terms. There he makes my feet, he makes me tread in scripture,

this imagery of he uses some imagery to describe just how that what the

Lord will do for him, the strength that God will give him. A

deer in here is known for stability, secure footing in high terrain. So

here he's saying, listen, God will give me secure footing, not to

fall when things fall away the Lord. When things begin to trouble in Israel,

the Lord will give me a feet like deer that even in the rockiest

times, even in the hard times, he will help me stand. He

describes that he makes my feet like the deers. Listen that he makes my

feet like the deers. He makes me tread on high places in Habacca three

nineteen. Only will you secure me from falling, but the imagery here you'll

tread me on high places. You'll give me strength to climb higher than I

can on my own. God. Not only will you give me strength to

stand when there was when there's rocky times about God, you'll give me strength

to climb. There's a story of two friends that were in prison. They

were that they were the next day going to be executed for their faith,

and one of the friends said to the other. He says, oh,

I dread tomorrow morning. I'm afraid when I when I feel the fire,

I fear that I'm going to recant. I've never been good at bearing pain,

and and I've heard the pain of burning to death is very dreadful.

And I'm afraid that I will I'll give in, and I'll recan on my

faith. The other one took turn to that one. It says, I'm

just ashamed that you're talking like that. I know you know very well that

we're doing this for Christ, and we're going to die for Jesus. And

I'm sure that I will have no fear, and I will bear a thousand

deaths for Jesus. And I feel couraging my spirit that I will not dread

the pain, and I won't be ashamed of Jesus, and I'll be able

to stand in the fire. Then the next day they both came and they

took them out of prison. They took them outside, and there they tied

them down, and they set them on fire and begin burning to death.

De boastful man recanted to save his own skin. The poor timid man bravely

stood in the midst of the fire, only to be burned to death.

And his words the entire time was Lord help me, Lord help me.

You see, he's an example of saying, you know what, Lord,

even in the hardest times, God, you'll give them feet strength to stand

in. God, you'll give me strength to climb, even when all the

odds are against me. I'm want to ask you today as we close today's

service. I don't know what you're facing. I don't know what you're in

today. I don't know what loss you've experienced. But I can promise you

all of us and this life will face loss, will lose items of luxury

and necessity, essentials, all kinds of things that will face in our life.

How can we find joy today? How are you today, believer finding

joy in the Lord, in God, not in the things of this world,

but in the Lord. How are you today, believer finding joy in

your salvation? And how are you today, believer finding joy in God's strength,

not in your home strength? Today? Will you pray with me today?

Everybouty, every I close, Lord, We thank you Lord for this

morning. We thank you Lord that today you know who You've brought here today.

And you know there's those who today are struggling with financial situations. There's

those who are struggling with losses of loved ones. There are those who are

struggling with just other areas of loss in this life. And I pray there'd

be those today that would find joy in You, Lord, and they would

place their joy not in the things of this world, but in You.

Father. Lord. We're all guilty at times of wanting to find joy in

the things that we've accomplished and our successes. But today I pray that we

would be believers that would find our joy and that you saved us today.

Father, and Lord, I know there'll be those today that are all across

this room. They're tired, they have been struggling in their life, trying

to work through problems and situations in and of their own strength, maybe at

times thinking like that man in prison, that they've got this, only to

find out that every time they try to do it on their strength, they

continue to fail. And I pray they be those today would cry out like

that man that was within the fire. Lord, God help me today,

Lord, I need your strength. So Lord, I pray they be those

today that would cry out you for your strength today and find joy God in

your strength. Lord. I pray the day for someone in this room or

online that's not a believer today doesn't know the joy of a relationship with you,

doesn't know the joy of salvation, doesn't know the joy of your strength.

Today, I pray that be those today would put their faith in You

for salvation. It would admitt today that their sinner, They would believe that

You died on a cross for their sins, and today they would confess Lord

that they need you. And I pray that be those in this room or

watching online would pray a prayer today to put their faith in what You've done

for them on the cross, and today they'd be saved. Lord, So

lead those today to salvation. Lord, we love you, We thank you

Lord for this morning, lead us in this time and response. I pray

the'd be those this morning. I need to come to this altar and and

Lord, just lay some things down at this altar before you. Lord,

I pray that you do that. Lord, if you lead others to come

and I can pray with them, and Lord, I pray you'd lead them

to do that. Wherever, God, you lead us, whether we're praying

in our seats, God, I pray this would be a time that we

would reflect on what your word has said to us, and we'd respond.

Lord, in your name, we pray Amen Jesus to