Habakkuk (1)

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Well, I want to invite you to take your Bibles and turn with me to Habakkuk,

the book of Habakkuk in the Old Testament Minor Prophets.

It may take you a couple of minutes to get there, so take your time,

and we will start a brand new study today.

It's a brand new study in this book that I think is going to be beneficial to us.

From time to time, people will ask me what my favorite book of the Bible is,

and almost always my answer to that question is whatever book I happen to be studying

at the time that I get asked that question.

And this is the same exact case today.

I have found in my personal study of the book of Habakkuk over the last couple of weeks

to be a really fruitful time of study.

It's been actually really fantastic.

I've enjoyed myself in it, and it's quickly becoming one of my favorite books of the Bible.

I don't really know exactly how you're supposed to pronounce the name of this book.

In fact, if you follow me on Facebook or Instagram,

you probably saw earlier this week that I was trying to get some people to help me out with that.

What I've come to determine is that if you are from the United States,

you probably say Habakkuk,

and if you are from anywhere else, you probably say Habakkuk or Habakkuk.

And if you're Jewish, there's some ways in there that I can't even pronounce anyways,

at least in a way that wouldn't be embarrassing to me.

But even though I don't really know how to say it,

you're probably going to hear me say it a few different ways in every sermon.

I really have truly grown to love this book,

and I hope that that will be the case for you as well.

As you will see, this book of the Bible is actually amazingly relatable to us today.

In fact, at any point in history,

this book would have been completely relevant and relatable.

Have you ever cried out to God about a particular condition that you find yourself in

or a particular condition that you notice to be prevalent in the culture?

Maybe the wickedness of our society,

maybe even the wickedness that can often be found within churches

has caused you at some point in your walk with Christ

to cry out to God asking,

why are you allowing this to happen?

Why aren't you doing something about this?

Why are you bringing this particular thing to my life?

Sometimes our questions of that,

of why and how long,

will lead us to question God's love.

Sometimes it will lead us to question God's existence.

And the truth of the matter is,

there's not a person,

not a believer at least,

that will go through their life without at some point

being confronted with those questions.

As we come to understand the Lord more,

and as we understand the scriptures more,

and we understand his control and his sovereignty,

that really can be perplexing

as to why he would allow sin,

why he would allow destruction,

why he would bring things to pass

and seemingly be absent in judgment

or absent in intervening in times

that we really cry out for his help.

Well, you're not alone in those questions.

Habakkuk asks those same questions

as we'll study over the next few weeks.

And in the case of Habakkuk's book,

God's answers actually led to more perplexity for him.

But ultimately, as we see,

he came to understand that God is always right

and that he must be trusted by us.

Let's just read the first verse of the book, would you?

Habakkuk chapter one and verse number one.

It just simply says,

the burden which Habakkuk the prophet did see.

The burden which Habakkuk the prophet did see.

Now, to understand the context of the book,

I wanna just divide this verse up

into three different categories,

and we're gonna use that to explore

what the Bible says was the context of Judah

during this time.

And the first thing that we look at

is this phrase, the burden,

or the burden in verse number one.

Now, the use of the term burden

in the Old Testament prophetical books is common.

Sometimes it's rendered as oracle,

and the term really refers to a specific revelation from God

that is given through his chosen servant.

Now, these chosen servants are what we refer to as prophets.

And we don't call them prophets

because they had some kind of special power

to protect the future,

but because they were responsible

for delivering the message of God

in regards to a future occurrence.

These people, these servants of God,

were not fortune tellers.

They were preachers.

They were proclaimers of God's message

in regards to the future fulfillment of his covenant.

That would be a positive burden,

a positive prophecy.

Or it was in relation to the demonstration

of God's wrath against sin.

And that would be a negative burden.

Well, here in the case of Habakkuk,

the message is one of judgment against Judah

for their continual idolatry and rebellion towards God.

But our modern understanding of the word burden

is not to be dismissed,

for there truly does exist

a heavy weight of responsibility

in the heart and mind of God's messenger.

This message from God is seen

as a legitimate burden to Habakkuk in two ways.

The first one is this,

that he was burdened by the wickedness of Judah

in the seeming absence of God's judgment.

So when it refers to this prophecy

as the burden of Habakkuk,

we see first that it was because of a burden in his heart

when he stopped and he considered

the sinful condition of the nation.

Now, in the case of Habakkuk,

God chose to introduce his message of judgment

through the real burden of the prophet's heart.

Now, the context of God's words in this book

is set within a specific dialogue

that actually began with Habakkuk crying out to God.

So burdened was Habakkuk about the rampant wickedness of Judah

that he continually cried out to God in prayer because of it.

So this cry of his righteous heart

led to God providing an answer

that Habakkuk was commanded to proclaim to the people.

So since the prophecy itself was initiated

by the prayer of the man,

it is appropriate for the narrative

to be introduced as his burden.

As in other prophecies are set opposite of this

where God comes to a chosen servant

irregardless of his prayer or his condition

and he calls out to them in seeming obscurity

and he just says,

hey, I've got a message, I need you to proclaim it.

In the case of Habakkuk, it didn't happen that way.

God didn't just appear to Habakkuk and say,

hey, I want you to proclaim this message of judgment.

He actually introduces his message

because of Habakkuk's prayer.

And Habakkuk comes to prayer day by day

for how long, we don't know.

It was probably for a pretty long time.

And he cries out to God,

why are you allowing this to happen?

Why are you allowing this sin to continue?

Why aren't you doing something

about the wickedness of the nation?

And it was because of Habakkuk's burden in his heart

that God responded with a message

that he actually ended up having Habakkuk

proclaim to the people.

Now this reveals to us the very nature of Habakkuk's heart.

He was a holy man.

And we know that he was a holy man

because he recognized the sin.

And it's not only that he recognized the sin,

but that he was burdened by the sin.

It wasn't that he was okay or dismissive

of what was going on.

It bothered him that the nation

had turned their backs on God once again.

It bothered him that they were worshiping false gods.

It irritated him that nothing was happening

in regards to the wicked leadership of the nation.

And the truth is, this is the same burden

that we're supposed to carry.

But many of us don't carry this burden

because we've become so desensitized

to the sin around us

that it no longer bothers us

to see the wickedness in our own lives.

It doesn't bother us to see the wickedness in our homes.

It doesn't bother us to see the wickedness

sometimes in our churches.

It doesn't bother us to see the wickedness in our nation.

We've become desensitized to it.

We've become okay with it.

We see that it's there,

but it doesn't bother us all the time.

This was different for Habakkuk.

It irritated his heart.

He was holy before the Lord.

And so he carried with him this burden

over the condition of the nation.

And because of this burden,

he cried out to the Lord.

And because he cried out to the Lord,

the Lord ended up using him

as his chosen servant

in this pronunciation of judgment.

So we see that it's a burden for that reason.

Secondly,

the nature of judgment

in God's message through Habakkuk

means that the actual delivery

of the prophecy itself

would have been a tremendous burden.

No one minds being the bearer of good news.

We get excited to go and tell people good things.

One of the things that I love about Ashlyn

is she loves,

she wants to be the one

to tell everybody everything.

And if there's something dramatic taking place,

she wants to be the one that tells you.

If there's something super exciting

that's taking place,

especially,

she will run through the house

to beat everybody else

for the opportunity

to let me know what has happened.

Nobody minds being the bearer

of good news or exciting news.

But very few people

have the fortitude

to actually be the messengers

of bad news.

Not only is it a burden

to bring devastating news

to another person,

but the wicked people of Israel

were not known

for receiving God's prophets

with submission and kindness.

They often murdered those

that God sent

to deliver his message.

And Habakkuk would have certainly been aware

of the history of the nation

and how they treated God's chosen,

especially as it related

to announcements of judgment.

So being the bearer

of this news of judgment

would have carried with it

a significant burden

for the prophet.

This wasn't something

he would have been pleased in.

It wouldn't have come easy

for him to actually go to the nation

and maybe even to the leadership

of the nation

and say,

because of your sin,

this is the judgment

that God is going to bring your way.

It's no different

to the task that we have,

the burden even that we have

of sharing the gospel

with people today.

Now the gospel is good news.

The word itself means that.

It means good news.

But the gospel,

while being good news,

actually begins

with very bad news.

Before you can proclaim

the gospel truth of salvation

and the love of God

and the gracious mercy

and forgiveness

that he offers

to those who will believe in him,

you have to begin

with the reality

of our sinful condition.

The fact that none of us are good.

None of us are good enough for God.

All of us in our current condition

stand condemned.

No one likes to be told

that they're wrong

and that there's nothing

they can do about it.

No one likes to be told

that they will be excluded

from a blessing

because of the nature

of their heart.

And so as we go

and we carry the burden

of the gospel,

we carry that with the excitement

of God's love,

but we also carry it

with the burden

of sharing the bad news

with people,

the message of judgment.

Because the good news

of the gospel

actually begins

with just that,

a message of judgment.

And the world will not only

reject the message,

but they often will reject

the messenger.

But we are called

to bear this burden.

Just as Habakkuk was called

to bear the burden

of this prophetic judgment,

we as Christians,

every one of us,

we are called

to carry and bear

the burden

of the gospel.

While it is good news,

it is also a message

of judgment.

And we must be willing

to proclaim

that message.

Now this specific prophecy

is dated

somewhere around

600 BC.

And the historical references

within the book

indicate

that the Assyrian empire

that had taken

the northern kingdom

of Israel captive

was now fading

out of view

as this new

powerful regime

of the Babylonian empire

or the Chaldeans

was becoming

the reigning world power.

Now this regime

had not yet

reached Judah

and that's what

we actually see

as a major part

of this prophecy.

That as a part

of God's judgment

or as God's judgment,

He was actually

going to eventually

allow the Babylonians

to make their way

to Judah

and take them captive.

But let's make

a few notes

about the condition

of Judah

that actually led

to Habakkuk

having this burden.

Now 2 Chronicles

2 Chronicles 35 · chapter mention

chapter 35

tells us that

about the time

that Habakkuk

was writing this

was just a few years

at most

after King Josiah,

what we would refer to

often as the boy king.

it was just

after he had died.

Now King Josiah

was a godly king

and we're going to

come back to that

in just a few minutes

but 2 Chronicles

2 Chronicles 35 · chapter mention

chapter 35

actually tells us

that at the end

of his life

he made an unwise

decision

by going to

fight against

Pharaoh Necho

when he was actually

trying to fight

against the Assyrians.

God had actually

sent a message

through the Egyptians

that Josiah

and Judah

needed to go back home

they didn't need

to be involved

with this

but he didn't listen

and he ended up

dying on the battlefield.

You can read about that

in 2 Chronicles

2 Chronicles 35 · chapter mention

chapter 35

but after

the death

of Josiah

we see that

one of his sons

that became known

as Jehoiakim

led the nation

back

to idolatry

and the sinful

atrocities

that always

accompanied

such pagan worship.

Now there's

two passages

in the Old Testament

historical books

that record

the nature

of Jehoiakim's

11 year reign.

Both accounts

only provide

one substantive

verse

that tells us

anything about

what the nature

of Judah

was during

his kingship

and both times

all the writers

felt was necessary

to communicate

was one simple

sentence

that Jehoiakim

did that

which was evil

in the sight

of the Lord.

2 Chronicles

2 Chronicles 36 · chapter mention

chapter 36

and verse 5

Jehoiakim

was 25 years old

when he began

to reign

he reigned

11 years

in Jerusalem

and he did

that which was evil

in the sight

of the Lord.

2 Kings

2 Kings 23 · chapter mention

chapter 23

and verse 37

and he did

that which was evil

in the sight

of the Lord

according to all

that his fathers

had done.

So wicked

was Jehoiakim's reign

that an entire

11 year span

of history

that ultimately

led to the

captivity of Judah

for 70 years

in Babylon

all that the writers

felt was necessary

to say

was that everything

he did

was evil

in the sight

of the Lord.

There was nothing

righteous

about this king

at all.

He had abandoned

the ways

of his father

Josiah

he had abandoned

the ways

of the godly

kings of Judah

and he had

followed in the

path of the

northern kingdom

of Israel

and he had

re-established

pagan worship

and all of the

atrocities

and moral decay

that came along

with that.

So when Habakkuk

is writing

and he's crying

out to God

in the beginning

of this book

the context

with which he

is writing

is one of

great wickedness

and devastation

an entire nation

seemingly

turning their

back

on the god

that had

chosen them

and saved

them

and provided

for them

time and

time and

time again.

Now it was

nothing but

wickedness

with a wicked

ruler

and Habakkuk

could not

figure out

why god

was allowing

this to

take place.

Jeremiah

Jeremiah 22 · chapter mention

chapter 22

tells us

a little bit

more about

Jehoiakim

and it

pronounces a

specific judgment

that was delivered

to him as well.

You can read

about it on

your own

in Jeremiah

22.

This was a

wicked man

and he had

led the

entire nation

into this

vile wickedness

and God

was about

to pour out

an unbelievable

judgment

on this

nation.

But before

Habakkuk

understood

the judgment

that was to

come

he cries

out to the

Lord

so why

why are you

allowing this

to happen?

Why are you

allowing this

to go seemingly

unjudged

and unhindered?

And so we

see the

burden here.

The second

thing that we

notice in

this verse

that's going

to help us

understand a

little bit of

the context

of this book

is this

second phrase

and that is

the burden

which Habakkuk

the prophet

Habakkuk

the prophet

the truth

is that we

really have

no idea

who this

man is.

We don't know

anything about

him except

for what we

can deduce

from our

study of

the book

itself.

We have

no idea

who Habakkuk

is.

No other

portions of

scripture mention

him.

We can only

deduce his

identity based

on what is

revealed to

us in

his book.

But this

is not

uncommon

with the

minor prophets

neither is

it incidental.

Owen

Robertson

said this

like Elijah

as well as

John the

Baptist

Habakkuk

appeared as

a voice

and nothing

more.

He must

be heard

because he

was the

bearer of

God's

message

not because

of what

he was

in himself.

And I find

that to be

very helpful.

Our tendency

is to focus

on an

individual

for their

personality

and accomplishments

rather than

the substance

of what they

say and the

character that

they portray

in their

actions.

Even as

Christians

we can be

guilty of

sacrificing

sound theology

for the

charismatic

personality of

a particular

leader.

We can also

be guilty of

choosing to

covenant with

a church

not on the

basis of the

message that

they preach

but on the

basis of the

programs that

they offer.

We can very

much be shallow

people in

general but even

Christians can

fall guilty to

this.

And so God

doesn't reveal

to us much

about Habakkuk

seemingly so

that we don't

become so

immersed in the

person of the

prophet that we

miss the message

that he was

tasked with

delivering.

God has never

been interested

in the praise

of men.

We do not

heed the

message of

Habakkuk's

burden because

of the credentials

that he bears

but because it

is the message

of the almighty

God.

Again,

we don't

listen to the

words of this

book because of

the credentials

of Habakkuk

but because it

is the message

of God.

And the same

should be the

case with our

church.

Not that you

would be

particularly

enamored with

me in any

way but you

are never to

listen to the

message because

of me.

You are to

listen to the

message because

it is the

word of God.

And if there

comes a time

that I cease to

preach the word

of God and

rely more on

personality and

rely more on

preaching of my

own preferences

and my own

opinions, that's

the moment that

as a church, it

is your

responsibility to

confront me, not

capitulate to the

personality or to

the offerings or

accomplishments that

may come along the

way.

We must not

listen to the

man.

We must listen to

the message that

comes from God.

Well, if the

culture of Judah

during the life of

Habakkuk was so

pervasively wicked,

how is it that he

had developed such

a hatred for sin

and burden for the

nation?

What was it that

kept Habakkuk from

following the same

wicked patterns as

the rest of the

nation?

Now, obviously, a

big part of that

answer is that it

was the work of

God in his life,

but I believe that

the means of God's

work in Habakkuk is

seen in his

upbringing.

Now, while we

don't know his age

at the time of the

writing, we can

determine through our

study of the book

that he was probably

an adult, maybe

even a mature

adult at the time

that he wrote.

Now, because the

reign of Jehoiakim

was so short, it

was only 11 years,

we can deduce that

Habakkuk was raised

predominantly during

the reign of the

godly king, Josiah.

Now, I've already

mentioned the events

surrounding the death

of Josiah, but in

this moment, it's

helpful for us to

understand the nature

of his reign as it

relates to the heart

of Habakkuk.

Now, if there's

nothing else that you

get in this more

informational study

setting up the book

as we study it

together over the

next few weeks, I

want you to pay

attention to this

part.

This part matters

so much, not only

to our understanding

of Habakkuk as an

individual, but how

we can develop this

same burden for

sinfulness in our

own lives.

Now, often referred to

as the boy king,

Josiah ascended to

the throne when he

was only eight years

old.

And by the time he

was 16, he was

leading a nationwide

reform that involved

the utter destruction

of Judah's pagan

worship and idols.

And 2 Chronicles 34

explains how this

reform was being led

by Josiah in the

early years of his

reign.

In fact, I want you

to turn there in your

Bibles.

Would you do that?

Flip over to 2

Chronicles 34.

I want you to see

this.

I'm not going to put

it on the screen

this time.

I actually want you

to see this in your

Bibles.

So 2 Chronicles 34.

And then just stay

there for a little bit

because we're going to

stay in that area of

the Scriptures.

2 Chronicles 34,

2 Chronicles 34:3–7

verses 3-7 record for

us the nature of this

reform in the early

years of Josiah's

reign.

Look at verse number

3.

For in the eighth year

of his reign, while

he was yet young, he

was only 16,

Josiah began to seek

after the God of

David, his father.

And in the twelfth year,

he began to purge

Judah and Jerusalem

from the high places

and the groves and the

carved images and the

molten images.

And they break down the

altars of Balaam in his

presence, and the images

that were on the high

above them, he cut down.

And the groves and the

carved images and the

molten images, he break in

pieces and made dust of

them and threw them upon

the graves of them that had

sacrificed unto them.

And he burnt the bones of

the priest upon the

altars and cleansed Judah

and Jerusalem.

And so did he in the

cities of Manasseh and

Ephraim and Simeon, even

unto Naphtali, which

their maddox round about.

And when he had broken

down the altars and the

groves and had beaten the

graven images into powder

and cut down all the idols

throughout all the land of

Israel, he returned to

Jerusalem.

Jerusalem.

Now, between the ages of

16 and 20, Josiah brought

this incredible reform.

But at this point, it's only

reform.

He's going through the

nation, he's going through

Judah, and he's breaking

down the idols, he's trying

to turn the hearts of the

nation back to the God of

David.

He's really just bringing

more of a religious reform,

and he's bringing a

governmental reform and a

civil reform.

It is all with the right

motivation.

He's following after the

God of David, but it's

really nothing more than

reform at this point.

Now, something significant

happens in the 18th year

of Josiah's reign.

When he's about 26 years

old now, he had initiated

the building project to fix

the temple of God that had

fallen into disrepair.

And in the process of this

renovation, when he's 26 years

old, someone finds hidden in

the temple a copy of the

scriptures of the Bible that

had been forsaken for so long

in Judah.

Now, it's unbelievable to think

that, that for years and years,

and even throughout this

reform, Josiah had not yet dug

himself into the scriptures.

He was basing everything up to

that point, as far as we can

gather, off of the tradition

that had been passed down, at

least from the godly kings and

what he knew of David and what

he knew of David's reign.

But for the first time, when

he's 26 years old, they find

the book, they find the

scriptures.

And after reading the Bible,

Josiah led a second wave of

revival that swept across the

land.

For the first few years, it was

just reform.

It was good reform, but it was

reform.

Now that he has been confronted

with the truth of the

scripture, he is leading this

wave in this season of

revival in the land.

And 2 Kings chapter 23 helps

2 Kings 23 · chapter mention

us grasp the significance of

this revival.

I want you to turn there now.

Just flip a few pages back from

where you are in 2 Chronicles

34, and I want you to look

with me at 2 Kings chapter 23.

2 Kings 23 · chapter mention

And the first thing we see here

is Josiah reading the

scriptures, not just to

himself, but he's reading it to

the nation.

Look with me at verse number

1.

And the king sent, and they

gathered unto him all the

elders of Judah and of

Jerusalem.

And the king went up into the

house of the Lord, and all the

men of Judah, and all the

inhabitants of Jerusalem with

him, and the priests and the

prophets, and all the people,

both small and great.

He's gathered everybody

together to preach the word,

is what he's doing.

Now look at the next phrase.

And he read in their ears all

the words of the book of the

covenant, which was found in the

house of the Lord.

Church, this is so important.

This is so significant.

Though the reforms up to that

point were fantastic, and they

were laying the groundwork for

this revival.

They were nothing but reform.

But at the moment that we

confront ourselves with the

truth of the scripture, simple

reform becomes revival.

And true revival that is

spirit-led makes a massive

difference in our lives and in

our homes and in our nation.

And here's what Josiah did.

And the king stood by a pillar

and made a covenant before the

Lord to walk after the Lord and

to keep his commandments and his

testimonies and his statutes.

Now listen, it turns from the

singular to the plural.

With all their heart and all their

soul.

This is the nation he's leading

now.

To perform the words of this

covenant that were written in

this book and all the people

stood to the covenant.

This revival begins with a

commitment to the scriptures.

Revival in your life and in your

home and in your church and in our

nation is not going to come through

the election.

It's going to come through our

commitment to the scriptures.

Reform will do nothing.

It will do nothing for us.

You can try to shape everything up

the way you want to and the

nation can try to cut away some of

the fat of the wickedness and do

what they're going to do.

But without a commitment to the

scriptures, revival will not come.

Josiah started with the

scriptures.

Now the second thing that we

notice in this same chapter,

2 Kings 23, is Josiah dealing

with sin.

And he's dealing with it in a

different way and in an additional

way than what he had done before.

Look with me at verse 4.

And he brought forth out of the

temple of the Lord all the vessels

that were made for Baal, the false

god, and for the grove and for all

the host of heaven.

And he burned them without Jerusalem.

Verse 5.

And he put down the idolatrous

priest.

Verse 6.

And he brought out the grove from

the house of the Lord and burned

it.

Verse 7.

And he break down the house of the

sodomites.

Those were male prostitutes that

were involved in the forms of pagan

worship that accompanied the sin of

the nation.

Verse 8.

And defiled the high places where the

priest had burned incense.

Verse 10.

And he defiled Topheth, which is in

the valley of the children of Hinnom,

that no man might make his son or his

daughter to pass through the fire to

Moloch.

I don't know if you understand what

this worship of Moloch was.

This was an idol that they would have

built and they would have fashioned out

probably some type of metal.

And it had its hands out like this

right here.

Passing through the fire is when they

would take their children and they

would sacrifice them to this idol called

Moloch.

And this Moloch, they would take his

hands and they would heat them up to an

extreme degree and they would take their

children, their babies, and they would

lay them on this heated up idol and they

would sacrifice their children literally

to death on this idol in this pagan

worship.

This wasn't the pagan people of the

nation.

This was the children of Israel.

This was Judah.

This was the godly section, supposedly

godly section of the nation.

And they were literally taking their

children and sacrificing them to Moloch.

And it's really no different than what's

happening to us today in our nation.

People aren't sacrificing their children

to Moloch.

They're sacrificing their children to the

god of self.

And they're not going to a pagan place of

worship and setting their children up on

an idol that's been heated up to a very

high degree.

They're going to the doctor's office and

they're taking a pill or they're having

a doctor literally go into their womb and

destroy and sacrifice their babies to the

god of themselves.

This wickedness in Judah is just as vile as

the wickedness that we see today.

And Josiah, because of the scriptures, not

only goes about this with reform, but he goes

through the nation and he begins to deal with the

specific sins of the nation.

Verse 12, and the altars that were on the top of the

upper chamber of Ahaz, the king beat down.

Verse 13, and the high places, listen, which Solomon,

the king of Israel had built, did the king defile.

This had been around for hundreds of years, even

before the divided kingdom.

Solomon had even led the nation in idolatry.

And it didn't matter to Josiah how historical these idols

and places of worship were.

It didn't matter to Josiah that it was the great king

Solomon that had instituted him or placed him there.

It didn't matter to Josiah how culturally acceptable, how

historically desensitized the nation had become to them.

He was getting rid of every single bit of sin that he could

find in the nation.

Verse 14, and he break in pieces the images and cut down the

groves.

Listen, genuine revival in the heart of a person and in a home

and in a church and in a nation does not come through reform.

It comes first through the commitment to the scriptures.

And out of the commitment to the scriptures comes a repentant

heart that is bent on clearing out every bit of sin in our

lives, no matter how historical that sin is, no matter how

accepted that sin is among everybody else.

It's a commitment to dealing with sin.

And then he leads in worship.

Look at verse 21.

And the king commanded all the people saying, keep the Passover

unto the Lord your God, as it is written in the book of this

covenant.

Surely there was not held such a Passover from the days of the

judges that judged Israel, nor in all the days of the kings of

Israel, nor the kings of Judah, but in the 18th year of the

king Josiah, wherein the Passover was held to the Lord in

Jerusalem.

He led them in worship.

This is a part of the revival.

But this wasn't a fake worship.

This wasn't an entertainment driven worship.

It was a worship that was so profound and genuine that the

writer tells us that not even in the days of King David was the

Passover celebrated in this way.

And with this type of revival in the hearts of the people.

Now, I say all of that to say that this was the context in which

Habakkuk was raised.

He grew up in this dynamic.

He grew up amongst this kind of revival among God's people.

And it's a reminder to us that true revival is not a scheduled series of

meetings replete with emotionally stirring music and microwave sermons that

have proven to hype up a crowd.

Here's what true revival is.

True revival only comes when God's people first dig into the depths of the

scriptures and come out of their study, taking the action necessary to break down the idols

of their hearts.

Not just the most recent vices that have plagued their lives, but even the historical vices to

which they have grown accustomed to after years and years of spiritual neglect.

True revival involves the genuine worship of our holy God born out of a heart of repentance

and recognition of God's abundant mercy toward us.

Why did Habakkuk carry a burden in his heart and beg for God to judge the sin of the nation?

Why wasn't he desensitized to the wickedness that surrounded him?

Because he had learned long before the scriptures and had committed himself to following the holy

God that does not tolerate the sinfulness of man for very long.

And how will we see the sin of the nation and even the sin of our church with the same sense of

burden as Habakkuk?

It will only come once we seriously and genuinely commit ourselves to the scriptures,

the breaking down of the idols in our hearts and the true worship of our gracious father.

That's the point of pointing back to King Josiah's reign.

Some of us may be wondering, I've never really cried out to God with that kind of burden like Habakkuk did.

And the reason you've never cried out to God in that way is because you've allowed yourselves to neglect the scriptures

and you've become desensitized to the sin of the nation and even to the sin of your own home and to the sin of your own life.

You've allowed the acceptable sins that even sometimes the church will disregard.

You've allowed that to become prevalent in your life.

And the reason you don't carry this burden is because you are not committed to the holiness of God

and understanding his judgment against sin in the way that Habakkuk was acknowledging his holiness and his judgment.

Part of Habakkuk's heart in crying out to God was wondering why God wasn't bringing judgment already.

He was burdened by the sin and he anticipated that God was going to bring another revival through judgment.

And to be honest, we've got one more section of this to discover before we close it out for today.

But I think this is probably a good time wherever you're at to pause the video

and have a time of response to the Lord there.

Is the Bible a dusty old book hidden somewhere in your house?

If you do read it, is it your goal to simply gain knowledge or to actually know and obey God?

Are you reading the scriptures just to try to figure it all out?

Or are you coming with a desire to know the God of the Bible?

That'll make a difference.

Do you read the Bible?

Or is it hidden back in the temple somewhere?

Are you willing to enter an all-out assault against the sin of your life and the sin of your home

and the sin of the church and the sin of the nation?

Do you have a burden over sinfulness?

Or are you desensitized to the acceptable sins of your life?

And as you pause this video in just a moment, it probably would be wise if you're there with your family

to maybe go around and just let's do some serious evaluation of our home.

Are we becoming desensitized to some sinful behavior?

Or at least some behavior that's leading us to sinful practices that maybe we've ignored for a while?

Are we committed to the scriptures as a family?

Are we burdened about the sinfulness not just around us but the sinfulness that's in us?

Is your worship born out of a heart of repentance that genuinely delights in the God of mercy and grace?

I want to encourage you to pause the video now as we'll be doing in my home

and pray and beg God to give you this burden.

To help you be willing to cleanse the sin of your life in the way that Josiah cleansed the sin of the nation.

And that you would commit yourself to the scriptures and to the genuine worship of our God.

Thank you for listening to this sermon made available by Lakeside Bible Church.

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