Hope in God

You are seated.

If you have your Bibles, just keep them at Habakkuk 2,

because we'll continue in our study of the book of Habakkuk.

And last week, we considered the first chapter

where Habakkuk began his complaint against the Lord.

As he asked the question, how long?

You know, how long?

You see, all around him in Israel, you had injustice.

You know, unrighteousness taking place with fellow Israelites

for sinning against one another, taking advantage of the needy,

worshipping the Baals, the pagan gods.

And in the midst of all of this, with the king and the people,

were out persecuting and even killing the righteous,

those who had followed the Lord.

Habakkuk cries out to God

and receives this unexpected answer.

You see, the injustice of the Israelites will be dealt with

with the injustice of the Babylonians.

But how, Habakkuk says, can a people that is worse than Israel

come to judge them, to be used as an instrument of judgment?

Surely, this cannot be right.

And after Habakkuk's complaint to God,

we come to the first verse here in Habakkuk 2.

Where he says that he will stand

and he will wait to hear the Lord's response.

Habakkuk has said what he once said

and now he will wait to see what the Lord has to say to him.

And before we get into the sermon,

if you would, please pray with me.

Father, your servants are listening.

So we pray this evening that you may speak to us

by your Spirit.

In the name of Jesus,

in whose name we pray.

Amen.

Amen.

So dark days are before Habakkuk.

As we saw in chapter 1,

he is already surrounded by injustice.

But things are about to get worse.

And as Habakkuk finds himself surrounded

by the consequences of sin

in a fallen world,

what is God's message for him?

And what is indeed God's message for us this evening?

What's to hope in God?

To hope in God.

And why?

Well, to hope in God because God has spoken.

We see first that God has spoken.

And then second, that God will act.

God will act.

We see thirdly, that we shall live by faith.

You know, we shall live by faith.

And then fourthly, that the wicked will perish.

So first then, we'll consider to hope in God

because God has spoken.

If you would look at verse 2 with me.

We see that the very first thing

that the Lord has to say

in his reply to Habakkuk's complaint

to the challenge that Habakkuk had laid forward

of the way that God had planned things,

of how he was doing things,

as he was allowing the Babylonians to come

to roam the earth,

to kill the nation,

to torture them.

If you see that the very first thing

that the Lord responds with

is not a word of judgment.

It's not a word of condemnation.

And is that not what we should expect?

You know, if we stood up to God,

you know, if we told Him

that the way He was doing things was wrong,

you know, what if we as children,

you know, stood up to our parents,

complained to them,

said, no, you're doing it wrong,

I know better.

What should we expect?

But the response here

from the Lord

is not one of condemnation.

No, rather He responds with grace.

He responds with mercy

and with love.

See, dark days are ahead

as God has shown

and as Habakkuk has recounted to Him.

And for these dark days,

what is needed

more than anything else

is the Word of God.

It's the Word of God.

So God tells Habakkuk

to write down this vision,

to write down this message,

that we may have it.

See, the Word of God

is meant to be heard

by the people in Habakkuk's day,

but it's also meant

for future generations,

for those that are to come.

And as I mentioned last week,

within only a couple of years,

the Babylonians would come.

They would take people,

certain ones,

into captivity.

Within a couple of decades,

Jerusalem itself would fall

and be no more.

And most of the people

will find themselves

in a land

that is not their own.

Among a people

that is not their own.

And the promise

that was given to Abraham,

to Isaac,

and Jacob,

the promise

of a land,

the promise of a people,

it seems to be no more.

You know what happened

to this great promise

when they are no longer

a land

to call their own.

They're exiles.

They're sojourners.

They have been,

it seems in their own eyes,

abandoned by God,

left by Him.

And in that moment,

when they find themselves

without hope,

they will need

a message from God,

a prophecy

to explain

the why question.

Why

did this happen?

Do they need hope?

That they may know

that this is not

the end.

That they have not

been forsaken

by the Lord.

And for that reason,

God tells them,

write down this prophecy.

But this vision here

is not only

for the people

in Habakkuk's day,

or for their generation

to come

that will be,

you know,

exiled,

that will be sojourners

in Babylon.

But this vision here

is also for us today.

Because we find ourselves

in a time

where the predominant view

is that God does not exist.

That God has not

ever spoken.

That even if there was a God,

He doesn't have anything

to do with us.

We cannot know anything

about Him,

so why even try?

And when terrible things happen,

the only hope there is,

is your own strength,

is your own self-sufficiency.

See, you must be strong.

You must be able

to get through this.

Life is hard.

Well, don't worry.

You know, be happy.

Look the other way.

Just focus on the positives.

Cut off people

from your life

that bring negativity

into it.

Don't put yourself

in a position

where your hope

is in an invisible being

that you can never know

who cannot do anything

to change your lot.

But we are to not listen

to the spirit of the age

which says these things.

In opposition to the lies

of the non-existence

or the absence of God

or the silence of God,

is the fundamental

Christian belief

in Deus Dixit.

The Lord has spoken.

You know, God has spoken.

All of Christianity

rests on this belief.

As my favorite theologian,

Herman Bovink,

you know, says it

when asked,

why do we believe?

Well, the Christian answer is

because God has spoken.

And when you are surrounded

by be it inner

or outer darkness,

why may you yet

have hope?

Because God has spoken.

See, He is the one

who when we walk

through the valley

of shadow of death

is there.

You know, it's His rod

and it is His staff

that is there

to comfort us

as He is with us.

When the clouds

of depression

are so dark

that we seem unable

to peer through it

to even get a glimpse

of light,

the possibility of hope

comes from the promises

that God has spoken.

This is what we see

of the prayer

in Psalm 42

as we sing

this evening.

You know,

why are you cast down,

O my soul?

And why are you

in turmoil within me?

Hope in God.

For I shall again

praise Him,

my salvation

and my God.

Now, in the case

of clinical depression,

medication indeed

may be necessary

to aid

in this great battle,

as will therapy,

but no amount

of medication

or therapy

will relieve

relieve that restlessness

of our heart

of which Augustine

spoke when he said,

you know,

you have made us

for yourselves

and our hearts

are restless

until they rest

in you.

So,

may we,

with the psalmist,

you know,

speak to our souls

to call ourselves

to hope in God

because God

has spoken.

And second,

we are to hope

in God

because God

will act.

You can look

at verse 3

with me.

We see how

God,

having told Habakkuk

to write down

this vision,

you know,

that the people

may have hope,

he goes on

to clarify the vision.

You see,

this vision

will not be fulfilled

tomorrow.

Of course,

the part of the prophecy

that says

the Babylonians

will destroy Israel

is not really

something to long for.

But it is

the second half

of this chapter,

of chapter 2,

that the people

will wonder

whether it will

come or not.

The destruction

of their Babylonian

captors.

You see,

Israel,

the Israelites

will be in Babylon

in a place

that is not their own,

surrounded by a people

not their own,

and they will have

this vision.

This vision here

that God has spoken

which speaks

of the destruction

of Babylon.

But the thing is,

it will take a while.

You know,

I mentioned last week

that Jeremiah

prophesies

around the same time

as Habakkuk.

And we see

the prophecy

in Jeremiah 25

where God says

that the land

of Israel

shall become a waste.

And Israel

will serve

the king of Babylon

for 70 years.

70 years!

You know,

can you imagine

that length of time,

70 years

of being away

from your land,

away from your home,

in Babylon

as captives?

How are you

to hope in God

when decades

have passed

and nothing

has changed?

You may hope

in God

because God

will act.

See,

He has promised

that He will act.

and if He seems slow,

He says,

wait for it.

It will surely come.

Do not,

it will not delay.

So the Israelites

are to live

with this expectancy,

waiting for the return

of the Lord.

Now,

have you ever told

a toddler

that you will do something?

You know,

we have a three-year-old

at home

and I quickly

learn to be careful

of when I say

we're going to do something

before we're actually

ready to do it.

So,

for example,

sitting at breakfast

and I happen to mention

that we're going to go

to the playground.

Well,

suddenly,

she doesn't want

to eat the breakfast

anymore

because she's ready

to go

because she loves

going to the playground.

And now,

I find myself

in quiet the conundrum

because she needs

to eat her breakfast

and we're not ready.

You know,

I say,

no,

we will go

after breakfast

but it's too late.

You know,

she is ready

but the thing is

we are way off

from being ready

to go

to the playground.

And the time

that it takes

between me

mentioning the playground

and actually

being able to leave

for the playground

seems far too long

for her.

It seems like

an eternity.

We will go,

I promise.

You know,

we are not ready

just now.

I think

in a similar manner

the Israelites,

they will hear

this vision

but they'll wonder

when it will actually

be fulfilled.

See,

God said

he will destroy Babylon

and we are ready

for it.

We are ready

right now.

But years

will pass.

Decades even

yet nothing

will seem different.

Can you relate?

You know,

for aren't we

waiting as well?

Aren't we

waiting for the

return of Jesus?

For him to take us

home?

Peter says

there will be

those who come

who say

where is this

promise of his

coming?

For ever since

the fathers fell

asleep,

all things are

continuing

as they were

from the beginning

of creation.

See,

these people

appeared in the

first century

and they're for sure

around today.

how can you say

that Jesus

is coming?

It's been

2,000 years.

Are you sure

he's really

coming?

What do we

answer to that?

What do we

say?

We see

Peter,

he goes on

to say,

do not

overlook

this one

fact,

beloved,

that with the

Lord one

day is as

a thousand

years and

a thousand

years as

one day.

The Lord

is not

slow to

fulfill his

promise,

as some

count slowness,

but is

patient towards

you,

not wishing

that any

should perish,

but that all

should reach

repentance.

See,

God will

act.

See,

he has

spoken and

he has

said that

he will

come.

He is

not slow,

but he

is patient.

See,

the family

of God

increases

each and

every day,

including

people of

every tribe,

tongue,

and nation.

And that's

a picture

that we

get in

the book

of Revelation.

As John

said,

and after

this I

looked,

and a

great

multitude

that no

one could

number from

every nation,

from all

tribes and

peoples and

languages,

standing before

the throne

and before

the Lamb,

clothed in

white robes,

with palm

branches in

their hands,

and crying

out with a

loud voice,

salvation

belongs to

our God,

who sits on

the throne

and to

the Lamb.

This is the

most wonderful

picture of

the people

that we

will spend

eternity

with,

forever

with.

So,

dear believer,

hold on to

this truth

today.

For as

John goes

on to

say,

he who

testifies

to these

things

says,

surely,

I am

coming soon.

Amen.

Come,

Lord Jesus.

So,

hope in

God,

because God

has spoken,

and because

God will

act.

And then

thirdly,

hope in

God,

because we

shall live

by faith.

So,

look at

verse 4

with me.

In the

first line

here,

we see

God

speaking

about

the

Babylonians.

Probably

emphasizing

the king,

Nebuchadnezzar,

his soul

is puffed

up,

meaning

he's full

of pride

and ego.

He thinks

himself

self-sufficient

and without

need of

anything

or anyone.

And in

contrast to

this,

God says

the righteous

shall live

by faith.

First of all,

as we consider

righteous,

we must

point out

that it

doesn't mean

perfect.

It doesn't

mean someone

who is

sinless

when that

is used

in the

Old Testament.

We see

the same

word used

in Genesis

6,

for example.

When God

comes down

and calls

Noah,

he calls

him a

righteous

man,

it doesn't

mean that

he is

perfect

or sinless.

It just

means that

the reason

that God

is,

you know,

when it

says

righteous,

is of

someone who

believes,

someone who

trusts in

the Lord,

who seeks

to follow

him and

obey him.

And the

righteous

one,

God says,

shall live

by his

faith.

See,

unlike the

Babylonian,

who is

filled with

pride,

the righteous

shall live

by faith

in God.

The righteous

one sets

his hope

not in his

own strength,

but in

God.

This verse

we see

picked up

several times

in the

New Testament,

one of

which is

Galatians

3.

We see

Paul saying,

now it

is evident

that no

one is

justified

before God

by the

law,

for the

righteous

shall

live

by faith.

See,

Paul is

clearly

stating that

our salvation

is not

by anything

we have

done,

but only

by faith

in God.

The author

of Hebrews

also picks

up this

verse,

as he

says,

but my

righteous

one

shall

live

by

faith,

and if

he shrinks

back,

my soul

has no

pleasure

in him.

See,

here the

author of

Hebrews

emphasizes the

need for

us to

continue in

our faith,

to remain

in faith,

to believe,

despite whatever

afflictions may

come upon

us.

So,

with these

two,

we see

emphasize that

we shall

live by our

faith.

First,

in Paul,

we see that

we live only

by the

faith,

in that it

is by faith

that we are

saved.

We have

moved from

darkness to

light by our

faith in

God.

And then

second,

we see in

Hebrews that

we shall

live by faith

as long as

we remain

in the

faith,

and as we

persevere in

the midst

of trials

and tribulations.

Christians.

So,

what may we

take from

these two

emphases,

and how we

may think

about faith,

how we

shall live,

and how it

all connects

to having

this hope

in dark

and dreary

circumstances.

You'll remember

that in

chapter 1,

after hearing

that the

Babylonians

would come

to destroy

Israel,

Habakkuk

said,

we shall

not die.

And here,

in the Lord's

response,

in this

vision,

God says

that the

righteous

indeed

will not

die.

They shall

live.

Those who

have been

justified

by faith,

as Paul

highlights,

shall live

by their

continual

faith,

by their

trust in

the Lord,

as emphasized

in Hebrews.

Now,

one of the

things that

is common,

at least in

the States,

I haven't been

here long

enough to

kind of get

a sense

of it,

is the

sharing of

your testimony.

What is

your Christian

testimony?

What is

your story?

There's

something exciting

about testimonies,

isn't there?

To hear of

the marvelous

work of how

God has

worked in

someone's

life,

of taking

them a

sinner,

a rebel,

an enemy

of God,

and making

them a

saint,

a friend,

a child

of God,

to see

that change

in the

life trajectory,

that 180

degree change.

But I'm

always a

little bit

disappointed

when I

hear a

testimony

that only

tells that

part of

the story,

of that

specific

point of

how God

worked in

that moment,

God

will

tell

anything

else.

They

don't go

on

saying

how

God

has

worked

in

their

life

after

that.

What is

your testimony

of God's

work in

your life

in the

past

five,

ten,

twenty,

forty,

sixty

years?

If

anything,

that is

even more

encouraging

and

praiseworthy.

So when we

see here that

the righteous

shall live

by faith,

the faith

here is

not merely

the faith

that saved

us,

the confession

and turning

from sin

based on

none of

our works,

but only

by the

work of

Christ.

The faith

here,

by which

the righteous

shall live,

is also

that continued

faith,

the daily

trust in

the Lord.

All of

the Christian

life is

repentance,

says Martin

Luther.

All of it,

the entirety

of our

lives

shall be

a life

of faith.

And this

is why

Habakkuk

may have

hope,

because despite

the coming

onslaught,

it is by

faith that

he shall

live,

and by

faith we

will live

also.

So we

may hope

in God

because God

has spoken,

because God

will act,

and because

we shall

live by

faith.

And then

fourthly and

finally,

we're to hope

in God

because the

wicked,

will perish.

And here

we're really

considering the

rest of the

chapter.

And we

won't spend

much time

here,

you know,

going verse

by verse,

but I want

to point

out the

five woes

that we

find here.

And,

you know,

an oracle

of woe,

as it is

called,

is a prophecy

of judgment.

And the

five that we

see are,

we see first

in verses

six and

eight,

that God

says that

because the

Babylonians

plundered the

nations,

they will be

plundered by

the nations.

And,

you see the

second one,

in nine to

eleven,

as God says

that because of

their covetousness,

they shall be

shamed.

And the third,

we see in

verses 12 to

14,

that God

says that

because of

Babylon's

violence and

their injustice,

all their

strivings will

be for

nothing.

And the

fourth one,

in 15 through

17,

God says that

because of

their drunkenness

and perversion

and violence,

they will

become drunk,

they will be

shamed,

and they will

be destroyed.

And the

fifthly,

and finally,

the fifth woe

hits at the

heart of all

the sins of

Babylon,

which is

idolatry.

The Babylonians

worship a thing

they made

themselves,

but in

contrast,

the Lord

is in

his temple.

He is in

his throne.

He is

ruling and

reigning.

And this

is the part

of the

vision that

Israel cannot

wait to

be fulfilled.

The destruction

of their

enemies,

all the

evils that

the Babylonians

have committed

will return

to them

an eye for

an eye and

a tooth for

a tooth.

They will

face a

just

judgment.

But it

will take a

while.

as we've

already

seen.

Seventy

years must

pass,

but judgment

is coming.

In the book

of Revelation,

we're given a

glimpse of the

future,

of the second

coming of

Christ and

the restoration

of all things,

the day when he

will bring peace

and make all

things right.

And at one

point during the

vision,

John says,

I saw

under the

altar the

souls of

those who

had been

slain for

the word

of God

and for

the witness

they had

borne.

And they

cried out

with a

loud voice,

O

sovereign

one,

holy and

true,

how long

before you

will judge

and avenge

our blood

on those

who dwell

on the

earth?

And then

they were

each given

a white

robe and

told to

rest a

little

longer

until the

number

of their

fellow

servants

and their

brothers

should be

complete,

who were

to be

killed

as they

themselves

had been.

And here

we have

the men

and the

women

who have

died

for the

sake of

Christ,

martyrs

for the

faith,

and as

they look

to the

return

of Christ,

what do

they seek?

What is it

that they

call for

but the

judgment

of God?

Patience.

That's what

God tells

them.

The day

of judgment

is coming.

See,

throughout

scripture,

there is

no peace

or justice

without

the execution

of judgment.

For there

to be

justice,

injustice

has to be

dealt

with.

Now,

how can

we hope

in God

if the

wicked

will

continue

in their

evil

forever?

And this

is one

of the

parts of

the Christian

faith,

that the

modern

person

has

one of

the

toughest

times

with.

They say,

if God

is loving,

then how

can he

judge

people?

Of course,

at the

same time,

if pressed,

they would

say that

some people

are worthy

of judgment.

Hitler,

Stalin,

so on,

the really

bad ones.

Now,

the Christian

claim goes

even further

than this,

saying that

there's

none

righteous.

There's

not even

one who

is

righteous.

Each

one

of us

is bad

and stand

guilty

before the

Lord,

justly

deserving

his

judgment.

You

know,

we may

read the

description

that we've

seen here

of the

Babylonians

and agree

that saying,

yes,

these

Babylonians,

they're

terrible.

They

deserve

judgment.

But I

don't.

I'm not

that bad.

But when

we consider

who God

is,

the perfectly

holy

and blameless

and pure

and perfect

God,

the one

who made

the heavens

and the

earth,

and when

we,

on the

other hand,

see the

true

heinousness

and vileness

of our

sin,

we cannot

but admit

that,

yes,

we

justly

deserve

his

judgment.

We see

Paul in

Ephesians 2

spelling out

the states

that we

were in.

As he

says,

you are

dead in

your

trespasses

and sins

in which

you once

walked,

following

the course

of this

world,

following

the prince

of the

power

of the

air,

the spirit

that is

now at

work in

the sons

of disobedience,

among whom

we all once

lived in

the passions

of our

flesh,

carrying out

the desires

of the

body and

the mind,

and were

by nature

children of

wrath,

like the

rest of

mankind.

See,

if you are

here this

evening,

and you

do not

believe,

and you

do not

rest on

Jesus Christ

alone for

salvation,

this here is

true of you.

That you

are dead,

you are

separated from

God,

you are

a rebel,

an enemy

of God,

and nothing

but judgment

awaits.

But there's

good news.

No,

there's amazing

news,

for God

did not

leave us

in our

sins.

He did

not leave

us to be

His enemies.

No,

but He

sought us

out.

He came

after us.

That's the

entire story

of the Old

Testament,

that it's

showing us

God seeking

after His

people,

even when

they don't

want Him.

Even here

in Habakkuk,

what we see

is God

seeking

after His

people.

Israel have

turned from

Him,

worshipping the

pagan God,

becoming thieves,

adulterers,

murderers,

and liars,

yet God

still seeks

after them,

because He

wants them

and He

wants you.

Do you

believe

that truth

this evening?

That God

desires you.

See,

so Paul

goes on

to say

that yes,

you are

dead in

your sins,

but God,

but God

being rich

in mercy

because of

the great

love with

which He

loved us,

even when

we were

dead in

our trespasses

and made

us alive

together with

Christ,

by grace

you've been

saved and

raised up

with Him.

See,

even when

dead in

our sins,

God took

the initiative.

We did not

want Him,

but He came

for us anyway.

The coming

of the Son

of God,

of Jesus,

the Christ,

in that we

have the

clearest

picture of

the seriousness

of our

sin on

the one

hand,

and the

depth of

the love

of God

on the

other.

Because the

sin of

humanity is

so vile

and so

terrible that

it took

the death

of the

Son of

God

Himself,

the One

who existed

for all

eternity,

in perfect

union with

Father and

Holy Spirit,

the Alpha and

the Omega,

in order for

sin to be

dealt with,

and for us

to be

reconciled

to God.

So hope

in God,

because God

has spoken,

God will

act,

we shall

live by

faith,

and the

wicked

will perish.

Now,

dear Christian,

do you hope

in God

this evening?

Do you

take hope

in the fact

that God

has spoken?

He could

have remained

far off,

but instead

He has spoken,

He has given

us His

Word.

Do you

in the dark

days when

your soul

is cast

down,

the psalmist

was describing,

do you turn

to God's

Word?

Do you

hear His

words,

His promises?

And do you

take hope

because God

will act?

God has

said that He

will come,

but do you

believe it?

I know

especially on

the days

when the

clouds of

our soul

are dark

that it

is difficult

to believe.

Even asking,

can it

really be

true

that God

loves

a wretch

like me?

We may

even find

ourselves

agreeing

with the

scoffers.

Things have

been the

same for

so long.

Can it

really be

that God

is coming?

Well,

you may

take hope

and the

promises we

have looked

at this

evening,

for He

is coming.

He will

surely

come.

And do

you take

hope?

Because you

shall live

by faith.

Good

doctrine and

good theology,

it will not

save you.

Good works

are of no

use without

faith in

the risen

Savior,

Jesus Christ.

that alone

is what

will save

you.

And is

that your

hope this

evening?

Do you

take hope

because even

though you

as sinner

deserve

judgment,

God has

shown you

mercy?

Habakkuk

said,

are you not

from everlasting,

O Lord my

God,

my Holy

One?

We shall

not die.

And this

is true.

The

everlasting

One,

Jesus Christ,

has taken

your place

on that

cross.

He died

so that you

may live.

He died

an innocent

and a

righteous

man that

you,

a guilty,

unrighteous

sinner,

may live.

So that

you no

longer

shall be

called

sinner.

I shall

be called

saint.

No

longer

wretch,

but

beloved.

No

longer

estranged,

but

child

of God.

May

this be

the source

of our

hope.

May this

be the

source of

our comfort

this evening

and all

the days

to come

until

Christ

returns

or he

takes us

away.

Let us

pray.

Amen.

Father God,

during our

days on

this earth,

there are

days,

many even,

that it is

difficult

to believe,

that it is

difficult

to hope.

Oh,