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James Jones | The Righteous Shall Live By His Faith

New Life Community Church

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  1. Once again, I want to welcome everyone here this morning.

  2. If you don't know, my name is James, one of the one of the

  3. elders here. This morning I'm going to

  4. endeavour to to give to you a message that entitled The

  5. Righteous Shall Live by his faith.

  6. We're going to be in the book of Habakkuk this morning.

  7. Now the book of a back Habakkuk is actually one of my favorite

  8. books in the Bible, and we'll kind of get into that as we move

  9. along. A little book in the Old

  10. Testament, only three chapters or text this morning is going to

  11. be just 21 verses, all of chapter one.

  12. And in the 1st 4 verses of chapter 2, we're going to bring

  13. out some things from all three chapters, but that's going to be

  14. our primary text. This morning Felt last week that

  15. this message was teed up for me very well by Kyle's message of

  16. faithfulness and trusting in God, because that's once again

  17. what we're going to be dealing with this morning.

  18. Habakkuk, there's not a lot known about him other than from

  19. his book. It's believed that the book of

  20. Habakkuk was, I mean, even that name, Habakkuk.

  21. That's fun to say, man, That's just fun to say.

  22. So Habakkuk was written somewhere between 6:40 and 6:15

  23. BC. It was towards the end of the

  24. Assyrian power that they were under.

  25. Assyria would soon to be weakened in their power and this

  26. was a prophecy that would be fulfilled at least two decades

  27. after the book was written. It may have been three or four

  28. decades after the book was written of how God was going to

  29. raise up the nation of Babylon or the Chaldeans that they were

  30. going to come and overtake Assyria.

  31. Oh, and assert their power. And Assyria would be their power

  32. would be no more. And Habakkuk is a prophet.

  33. So this is a prophetic book. But Habakkuk is also a book of

  34. poetry. Much of it is written and if you

  35. look at the the structure of the book, of the sentences

  36. structured in most of not all but most of the verses are

  37. constructed either in what's referred to as couplets or

  38. triplets. Either 2 verses to each, two

  39. sentences to each verse or three sentences to each verse.

  40. Now every verse doesn't apply to that.

  41. Hebrew poetry is not like poetry that we know of as today.

  42. But so Habakkuk is not only a book of prophecy, it is also a

  43. book of poetry, which kind of once again is another reason why

  44. I like, I like this book. I love the character character

  45. of Habakkuk and what we can learn from him as we approach a

  46. holy God. Amen.

  47. So we find out, like I said, there's not a whole lot known

  48. about Habakkuk other than his book.

  49. It's believed that he even lived among the time of Daniel and

  50. Ezekiel. There is.

  51. There is also a in the Jewish Bible, there is a addition to

  52. the book of Daniel called Bell and the Dragon that says that

  53. Habakkuk was actually used by God to go feed Daniel while

  54. Daniel was in the lion's den. Now that's not in our Bible, so

  55. take it for what you want it, what it's worth.

  56. But it was just a interesting side note that I picked up.

  57. Even the many times I've studied this book, I've never come

  58. across that reference before. But as we study this book this

  59. morning, go over the scriptures, it's a real easy to read

  60. Habakkuk story and think that Habakkuk was doubting God, that

  61. Habakkuk was actually had no faith in some of the language

  62. that he uses. Habakkuk is very has a very

  63. accusatory tone that he uses with God.

  64. He actually accuses God of some things in our in our text this

  65. morning. But don't put Habakkuk into the

  66. category of the unfaithful or the doubtful.

  67. He's actually very faithful and he he we can find out through

  68. the text this morning that he has not lost his faith in God.

  69. The actual fact that he is praying to God shows his

  70. faithfulness that he still believes in God.

  71. In a book called Faith Among the Ruins, the Book of Habakkuk

  72. written by Heath Thomas, he writes this.

  73. The complaints in Habakkuk chapter one, verses 2 through 4,

  74. assume that God will counteract violence in chaos precisely

  75. because it is His creation that it has become disordered.

  76. If the Prophet did not think that God was a caring Lord over

  77. his creation, it is sensible to suggest that he would have given

  78. up and that Habakkuk would never have voiced his prayer.

  79. But the Prophet Prophet refuses to take this course.

  80. Habakkuk recognizes that God fashioned this world with

  81. justice and knows that the experience of some twisted form

  82. or partiality that passes for justice is incompatible with

  83. God's design and intention for his good world.

  84. So therefore, you know, like I said, we want to look at this in

  85. the scope of Habakkuk's faithfulness this morning.

  86. Not as a man that has let faith, even in his time of frustration,

  87. in the times that he didn't understand why this was going on

  88. and God gave him a vision of the future overtaken by the

  89. Chaldeans, he still didn't fully understand until God completely

  90. showed him all the vision. So let's remember this morning

  91. what it says in the book of Hebrews, chapter 4, verses 14

    Hebrews 4:14–16

  92. through 16. It says this Since then we have

  93. a great High priest who has passed through the heavens,

  94. Jesus, the Son of God. Let us hold fast our confession.

  95. Now why should we hold our confession, since we have a

  96. great High priest whose name is Jesus?

  97. He goes on and says, For we do not have a high priest who is

  98. unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every

  99. respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.

  100. Let us then, with confidence draw near to the throne of

  101. grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time

  102. of need. And that's exactly what we found

  103. out here in the book of a backup.

  104. Now we're getting ready to to read our word, and I'm going to

  105. ask you to stand here momentarily.

  106. And just as a side note, if you were in Sunday school a few

  107. weeks back we studied about after Jeremiah brought the 3rd

  108. wave of the Jews back from Babylon.

  109. Ezra brought the 2nd wave, Jeremiah brought the 3rd wave.

  110. When he and Jeremiah comes back he still finds that there's many

  111. that are still in idolatry against God and he comes back

  112. and they they build this platform.

  113. And Ezra the priest stands on the platform and he reads the

  114. book of the law, and it says that all the all the people of

  115. Israel, men, women, and all the those that could understand, so

  116. all those that were of age that could understand God's word was

  117. there. And he said as he, as he opened

  118. the book of the of the law that the people stood and then went

  119. on cue the people would say, Amen, Amen.

  120. So when we asked you to stand for the reading of God's word is

  121. not just on ceremony, it is actually an act of worship.

  122. This is what the people of Israel was doing when Ezra

  123. opened up the Book of the law to read.

  124. So never assume that we ask you to stand for the reading of

  125. God's word just because it's a piece of ceremony or just

  126. something that we do. It's actually an extension of

  127. our worship. Amen.

  128. So this morning we're going to be reading Habakkuk, chapter

  129. one, beginning with verse one to chapter 2, verse four.

  130. And if you are able, I ask you to stand and when I'm done

  131. reading, I will say this is the word of the Lord and I ask that

  132. you respond, Thanks be to God. Habakkuk, chapter one, verse

  133. one. The Oracle that Habakkuk the

  134. prophet saw. Oh Lord, how long shall I cry

  135. for help? And you will not hear or cry to

  136. you violence and you will not save.

  137. Why do you make me see iniquity, and why do you idly look at

  138. wrong? Destruction and violence are

  139. before me. Strife and contention arise, so

  140. the law is paralyzed, and justice never goes forth, For

  141. the wicked surround the righteous, so justice goes forth

  142. perverted, and the Lord answers. Habakkuk started in verse five.

  143. Look among the nations and see Wander, and be astounded.

  144. For I am doing a work in your days that you would not believe

  145. if told. For behold, I am raising up the

  146. Chaldeans, that bitter and hasty nation, who March through the

  147. breath of the earth to seize dwellings not their own.

  148. They are dreaded and fearsome. Their justice and dignity go

  149. forth from themselves. Their horses are swifter than

  150. leopards, more fierce than the evening wolves.

  151. Their horsemen press proudly on their horsemen come from afar.

  152. They fly like an eagle, swift to devour.

  153. They all come for violence, all their faces forward.

  154. They gather captives like sand at kings they scoff, and at

  155. rulers they laugh. They laugh at every fortress,

  156. for they pile up earth and take it.

  157. Then they sweep by like the wind, and go on.

  158. Guilty men whose own might is their God.

  159. Then Habakkuk brings a second complaint to God.

  160. Are you not from everlasting? O Lord, my God, my holy one, we

  161. shall not die, O Lord, you have ordained them as a judgement,

  162. and you, O Rock, have established them for reproof.

  163. You who are of pure eyes than to see evil and cannot look at

  164. wrong, Why do you idly look at traitors and remain silent when

  165. the wicked swallows up the man more righteous than he?

  166. You make mankind like the fish of the sea, like crawling things

  167. that have no ruler. He brings all of them up with

  168. the hook, He drags them out with his net.

  169. He gathers them in his dragnet. So he rejoices and is glad.

  170. Therefore he sacrifices to his net and makes offerings to his

  171. dragnet, for by them he lives in luxury and his food is rich.

  172. Is he the end to keep on emptying his net and mercilessly

  173. killing nations forever? Chapter 2, verse one, I will

  174. take my stand and at my watch post and station myself on the

  175. tower and look out to see what he will say to me and what our

  176. answer concerning my complaint. Once again the Lord answers

  177. Habakkuk, verse two, and the Lord answered me.

  178. Write the vision. Make it plain on tablets, so he

  179. may run. Who reads it?

  180. For still the vision awaits its appointed time.

  181. It hastens to the end. It will not lie.

  182. If it seems slow, wait for it. It will surely come.

  183. It will not delay. Behold, his soul is puffed up.

  184. It is not upright within him, but the righteous shall live by

  185. his faith. This is the word of the Lord.

  186. Let's pray this morning. Father God, I praise you.

  187. I magnify you for your word. I thank you for truth.

  188. I thank you that you are a God of justice.

  189. You are a God of order. And, Father, we may not always

  190. understand, but you are constantly making sense of the

  191. chaos. Let us, Father, not lean upon

  192. our own understanding, but lean upon you.

  193. Help us to receive from your word.

  194. This morning, Father, I ask that you will give me the words to

  195. say that I can relay what you have given to me to those here.

  196. Father, let us be able to understand your word this

  197. morning. Amen.

  198. You may be seated this morning. The big ideal for today's sermon

  199. is this. Even in our frustrations over

  200. our current situations, we can always put our faith in Jesus,

  201. who is actively working in the background of our lives to bring

  202. about good. Even in our frustrations over

  203. our current situations, we can always put our faith in Jesus,

  204. who is actively working in the background of our lives to bring

  205. about good. Who's ever been frustrated over

  206. a situation in your life? The rest of you that didn't

  207. raise your hand? You're lying.

  208. It's easy to be frustrated. It's easy to allow ourselves to.

  209. And the reason why we get so frustrated is because we're

  210. naturally selfish people as humans because of sin.

  211. Our number one response or quit The quick response.

  212. Whenever something happens we don't like or we have to wait

  213. and we don't want to wait. It is because we are selfish

  214. people and our instinct is to preserve our self and that's

  215. because of sin. We are selfish people because of

  216. sin, but we don't have to stay selfish people.

  217. Amen. So what we see here today is

  218. Habakkuk praying to God, and it's actually, I like the phrase

  219. here we go again. There was a cadence in the

  220. military that we would sing a lot.

  221. Here we go again, same old stuff again, just the same day, over

  222. and over. And what we find here in the

  223. book of Habakkuk is exactly that, that we found out that

  224. throughout the Old Testament we found the story of God's people

  225. committing themselves to follow God's law.

  226. But then God's people would turn their back on him.

  227. They would serve other gods. They would commit spiritual

  228. idolatry against God. God would bring judgment upon

  229. his people. They would cry out for help.

  230. God would come and deliver His people.

  231. His people would then commit themselves to follow His laws

  232. and follow His commandments. And then after a while, they

  233. would turn their back on God. God would bring judgment, and

  234. there, and the cycle would go on and on and on.

  235. We found out throughout the Old Testament.

  236. And here once again we see the we see God's people in this

  237. situation. They were under the Assyrian

  238. authority because of their sinfulness, because they had

  239. turned their back on God. So once again, God was using one

  240. of his chosen ones, Habakkuk, to show a a prophecy that was going

  241. to happen. Like I said earlier, it was

  242. since. At least two decades from the

  243. time God spoke to a backer and gave him the vision of the

  244. Chaldeans coming, and they would.

  245. God was raising them up to punish Assyria.

  246. But in the process, Assyria would be punished because they

  247. had oppressed the Jewish people. But in the process, the

  248. Chaldeans would wipe out their Syrians.

  249. But they would still be over God's people.

  250. So God's people would still be under other people's authority.

  251. So through this all, Habakkuk just didn't understand.

  252. In Psalm chapter 13, David declares, Oh Lord, how long, oh

    Psalms 13 chapter mention

  253. Lord, will you forget me? Forever.

  254. How long will you hide your face from me?

  255. Goes on and says how long shall my enemy be exalted over me?

  256. There are absolutely times in our life that we we are

  257. frustrated. We don't know why things are

  258. happening. We don't know why we're in this

  259. situation now here they were in this situation because of sin.

  260. But just because we're going through a situation doesn't mean

  261. it's sin. Lots of times.

  262. It just means it's life. Amen.

  263. And we have a smaller crowd this morning and I have a lot to say,

  264. but the more feedback I get, the quicker I can go.

  265. So if I don't get a lot of feedback, we may be here a

  266. little longer. I'm just saying, so this morning

  267. I want to direct your attention back to the book of Habakkuk,

  268. Habakkuk. Now Habakkuk pleads for God's

  269. intervention from the Assyrian captivity, and we found out in

  270. chapter one, verse two, that he cries out.

  271. How long shall I cry for help? And you will not hear, he says,

  272. hear or cry out to you violence. And you will not say this word.

  273. Violence means injustice, It means harsh treatment.

  274. It references rude, wicked men. And this word he says, How long

  275. will you not save this word? Save means to be liberated from

  276. external evils. External evils.

  277. So he's asking how long will you allow these rude, wicked, unjust

  278. men to be over us and afflict us from their evils?

  279. How long will you not save us from from these people?

  280. Verse three tells them you make me see iniquity, which is

  281. trouble or sorrow or idolatry or wickedness.

  282. It says destruction and violence are before me.

  283. Strife and contention arise. So your reference is that there

  284. are disputes. We find out later on that there

  285. is public hostilities. It's just people are at one

  286. another. Kind of sounds for me or doesn't

  287. it? Kind of sounds like the world we

  288. live in. You were am in the home groups

  289. that studied the. Yep.

  290. That's it. I I I forgot the book of the

  291. Bible now the book that Solomon wrote Ecclesiastes.

  292. Thank you. If you, if you were in the Home

  293. group that was studied on the book of Ecclesiastes, you know

  294. that that there's nothing to do under the sun, that history does

  295. repeat itself. That's just not something that

  296. someone made-up. History does repeat itself.

  297. And we're seeing this here, we're seeing it in our lifetime.

  298. So our backup actually accuses God of willfully ignoring what's

  299. going on in the nation. He accuses God.

  300. He's he's very accusatory in his communication into dialogue with

  301. God and this is one of the reasons why I love the book of

  302. Habakkuk. Habakkuk teaches that we can be

  303. honest with God. We have a high priest that

  304. understands us. He understands everything that

  305. we go through. For he's tested just as we He is

  306. tested in every aspect as we are, yet without seeing.

  307. So we can be honest with God. Never think that you can't be

  308. honest when you're when you're praying to God.

  309. Never think you can't be honest. God welcomes that.

  310. That's why he says come boldly before the throne of grace.

  311. He was very honest. He was very raw emotionally in

  312. his dialogue with God. And in Habakkuk's opinion, there

  313. are four things that are happening be because in

  314. Habakkuk's opinion, because God is is allowing these things to

  315. go on. The first worst one is, is that

  316. the Law of Moses is paralyzed. That's the first thing he says.

  317. You're not answering my prayers. And because you're not answering

  318. my prayers, these four things are happening in my this is in

  319. Habakkuk's mind, Habakkuk's backup's opinion.

  320. The Law of Moses is paralyzed. And this word paralyzed means to

  321. be cold or to be ineffective or to be numb.

  322. He tells basically he's telling God your people have turned away

  323. from the law, and because the law is paralyzed, the heat of

  324. your judgment, the people no longer feel.

  325. And because they no longer feel the hot, the heat of your

  326. judgment, they are numb to the extended effectiveness of your

  327. law. And Habakkuk accuses God of

  328. allowing this to happen. The second thing that he accuses

  329. God is that justice never goes forth.

  330. Justice never goes forth. Once again, it goes back.

  331. You're not answering my prayers. And the law is paralyzed.

  332. And because the law is paralyzed, justice never goes

  333. forth. #3 tells them that the wicked surround the righteous.

  334. This is in verse. In verse four he says so the law

  335. is paralyzed and justice never goes forth.

  336. For the wicked surround the righteous.

  337. And this word surround gives the meaning of as an enemy surrounds

  338. its foe. So he's declaring God and and

  339. once again backups opinion. The law is paralyzed, never goes

  340. forth. They're white, right?

  341. They're wicked or is outnumbered by the righteous.

  342. And #4, the fourth thing, in a back of his opinion, is because

  343. the wickedness of more than the righteous, that what justice the

  344. others go forth, that goes from, goes forth perverted.

  345. Justice goes forth. Perverted And this word

  346. perverted means crazy. You're confused or to be bent

  347. out of shape. It also means to be.

  348. Crooked or crooked justice? Which also sounds.

  349. Like the world we live in today. So in a back to.

  350. Mind, this is God. You're not answering my prayers.

  351. And because you're not. Answering my prayers.

  352. These are the things that are happening.

  353. In a backpack like I. Said he was very honest with

  354. God. He was very raw emotionally with

  355. God. And it teaches.

  356. Us, that we can be honest with God.

  357. We can come to God with emotion. We can come to God with our with

  358. our doubts and our our worries, our fears.

  359. And we can trust that. God hears us.

  360. Now the. Lord answers habakkuk here in

  361. verse five of chapter one. And he tells them look.

  362. Among the nation, and see Wander and be astounded.

  363. For I am doing a work in your days that you would not believe

  364. if I told you so. The Lord answers and the first

  365. thing he tells them is that I am doing a work.

  366. See Habakkuk. Hebakkuk didn't didn't see this.

  367. He didn't know what was, what was, what God had planned.

  368. God wasn't. In heaven scratching his head,

  369. saying, Oh my, the Syrians are over my people, what am I going

  370. to do? God knew what he had in plan and

  371. he was fixing to tell Habakkuk, because God was already working

  372. out all the details of Israel's situation that once again bring

  373. him, bring them close to him. And I want you.

  374. To look at verse 6 here in chapter one, remember this is

  375. this was written at least two decades before this prophecy was

  376. fulfilled. But look at verse six

  377. specifically, and I want you to see how God uses the present

  378. tense in his response to a backer.

  379. This isn't this, this isn't a I'm.

  380. I'm going to look at the present tense here, he says, for behold,

  381. I am raising up. The child ends.

  382. I am as present tense, not that I will.

  383. I am saying God's mind. This is our He.

  384. This is already in place. That bitter and hasten hasty

  385. nation, he says, says that they are dreaded and fearsome.

  386. They are once again present tense.

  387. Their horses are, he tells them in verse 7.

  388. Excuse me, verse 8. Their horses are swifter than

  389. leopards, more fierce than the evening evening wolves.

  390. Their horsemen press on me, tells them there are more

  391. fierce. Than the evening.

  392. Wolves. These are all present tense

  393. language that God is using with with Habakkuk.

  394. So. Even though Habakkuk didn't

  395. understand what was going on, God already had a plan.

  396. God already had a plan in place, and in God's mind it was already

  397. happening because the plan is happening.

  398. The thing was, Habakkuk didn't see it.

  399. And we don't see it. We don't always see it.

  400. Because God doesn't. Always reveal every step, but

  401. what we have to do, we're charged to do as individuals, as

  402. believers. Is to trust.

  403. God for the next step. I've said this before that God

  404. is a connect the dot God. However many how?

  405. How how many? Remember those those pages?

  406. And you got in grade school that had nothing but dots on it,

  407. either ABCD or 12345, and you would start at a, or you start

  408. at one and you'd go to the next dot and go to the next dot and

  409. go to the next dot. Or sooner, sooner or later, once

  410. you got enough dots, lines to the dots, you understood, wow,

  411. there's an elephant on my paper. Well, there's a line on my

  412. paper, but when you first got your paper, all you saw was

  413. dots. Well, see, that's us.

  414. All we can see is dots. But the more that we allow and

  415. trust God to go from one dot to the next dot to the next dot to

  416. the next dot, we we we become. We begin to understand the full

  417. picture that what God is is bringing about to pass.

  418. But we have to trust God to take us from one dot to the next dot

  419. to the next dot. And this is what he was telling

  420. Habakkuk here in in this prophetic book.

  421. The rest of God's response to him goes on, and Speaking of the

  422. child, he ends once again in the present tense.

  423. And let's pick let's pick chapter one back up in verse 12.

  424. Now back at still. Didn't fully understand what was

  425. going on and he he tells him in verse 12 he's speaking to God.

  426. He says are you not from everlasting?

  427. Oh Lord my God. This is not the verbiage being

  428. used of someone that is doubting or not believing and not having

  429. faith in here in God. This is someone that's he's

  430. using verbiage that shows he does believe in God.

  431. Are you not from everlasting? Oh Lord, my God, my holy one, we

  432. should not die. See, He's, he's he hears about

  433. the Chaldeans coming and wiping out people and he's like, wait,

  434. wait a minute. You're not that's not going to

  435. happen. We're your people.

  436. He says, oh Lord, you have ordained them as a judgment and

  437. you are rock have established them for reproof you who are

  438. pure eyes than to see evil and cannot look at wrong.

  439. And once again he uses this word.

  440. Why do you oddly look at traitors and remain silent when

  441. the wicked swallow up the man more wicked than he?

  442. He didn't understand Assyria was wicked and.

  443. You're going to, You're going to.

  444. Bring up a nation more wicked than them to take over them, but

  445. we're still going to be in bondage.

  446. He didn't understand it. Once again, he tells God that

  447. he's oddly looking by. How many he's ever felt?

  448. Like your prayers never go past the ceiling.

  449. Amen. There were times in our.

  450. Life that we may not feel godly, we not may not feel.

  451. Like we are. God's chosen people.

  452. There's times we may not. Feel like God is hearing our

  453. prayers. But I want to encourage.

  454. You this morning that God is absolutely hearing your prayers

  455. and God is absolutely working in the background of your lives to

  456. bring about good Amen. Now let's let's jump on into

  457. chapter 2. Verse one Tobacco declares the

  458. God that I will take my stand at my watch post and station myself

  459. from the tower and look out to see what he will say to me and I

  460. will answer concerning my complaint.

  461. So Abaca says I'm going to stand, I'm going to listen, and

  462. what does he say here? He says I will answer concerning

  463. my complaint. So he's already waiting for God

  464. to come with come with the next thing, and he's already planning

  465. what he's going to complain to God about next.

  466. I know. No one is.

  467. Here has ever done that? You ever listen to?

  468. Someone or hear or be in a conversation, all you're

  469. thinking about is what you're going to say next.

  470. OK, nevermind, OK. This is what a backup.

  471. Was doing he he said, OK, I'm going to stand here and I'm

  472. going to listen to what God says and then I'm going to come back

  473. with my next comeback. And God.

  474. Tells he begins to speak once again to Habakkuk in verse two

  475. through four. He tells them to write the

  476. vision. Tells them that the vision.

  477. Awaits its appointed time, says it hastens God's vision.

  478. Hastens to the end. It will not lie, he tells them.

  479. If it seems slow, wait for it. Because it's going to happen.

  480. There are times we pray and we seek God about something, and it

  481. seems like it's just like. 20 minutes by.

  482. Goes by and whatever we prayed God for, what happens or the

  483. next day or the next week. Then there's times we pray and

  484. we pray and we pray and we never see results about whatever we're

  485. praying about. Never get.

  486. Discouraged. Even though it's.

  487. Harder to say than do I realize that never get discouraged when

  488. it seems like you pray and God never answers that prayer.

  489. Because we. Have to trust in the sovereignty

  490. of God. We don't always understand why

  491. we're going through the things we're going, or why we might

  492. have a certain hardship, or why it seems like the same thing

  493. happens over and over. Why do I struggle?

  494. With this over and over, why can't I defeat this?

  495. We have to trust. The process.

  496. Amen. We have to trust that God has

  497. taken us from one dot to the next dot to the next dot.

  498. For God is higher. His ways are higher than ours.

  499. We have to lean. Upon his understanding not our

  500. own. Amen.

  501. Once again, he tells. Them it will surely come, It

  502. would not delay, and it will come at God's appointed time,

  503. Paul. Wrote.

  504. That at their appointed time God sent his Son Jesus.

  505. And that's how God. Works in his appointed time, not

  506. ours. When you look down in.

  507. Chapter 2, verse four, it says Behold, his soul is puffed up.

  508. It is not upright within him whose soul is puffed up.

  509. He's still Speaking of the Chaldeans, but it says.

  510. Remember when you. See the Word.

  511. But it's so little to have so, so much of an impact when you

  512. see the Word but in Scripture and it's pertaining to mankind

  513. almost every single time. It's in a negative context.

  514. But whenever you see the Word but and it refers to God, it's

  515. 100% always in the positive context.

  516. And we see that once again here, he says.

  517. But. The righteous shall.

  518. Live by his faith, he's telling Habakkuk.

  519. Through me, through faith in me, you can live that free.

  520. And that's what I'm declaring to you this morning, man.

  521. We have to trust that. God is.

  522. Always. Always.

  523. Working. To make good out of our current

  524. situations. Book of Romans.

    Romans 8:28

  525. Chapter 8 Verse 28 says, and we know that that for those who

  526. love God, all things work together for good.

  527. Doesn't say all things are good, doesn't say all of our lives

  528. experiences are good. It says all.

  529. He's working together for good for those who are called

  530. according to his purpose. So God can take the good times

  531. and the bad times and the terrible times in our lives.

  532. And ultimately. Make them for good.

  533. But we have to trust. That we have to trust the

  534. process. For it is in.

  535. God's appointed time. See, God already had a.

  536. Plan. For.

  537. Habakkuk, The nation, his people.

  538. God already has a plan for you and me.

  539. He had all that. Planned out before God ever said

  540. let there be light. And his.

  541. Plan will never be thwarted. Amen.

  542. And that plan is for us to become more and more like him

  543. every day. And we do so by allowing God to

  544. take us from one dot to the next dot to the next dot.

  545. James Chapter One, verse 25 says this, but the one who looks into

  546. the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being

  547. no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in

  548. his doing. 2nd Corinthians 317 through 18 declares, now the

  549. Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there

  550. is freedom. And we all, with unveiled face,

  551. beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the

  552. same image from 1° of glory to another, for this comes from the

  553. Lord, who is the Spirit. Once again, it is a step by step

  554. process. Jesus.

  555. Understands our distresses and our frustrations.

  556. Once again. Hebrews chapter 4, verse 14

    Hebrews 4:14–16

  557. through 16. Since then we have a great High

  558. priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of

  559. God. Let us hold fast to our

  560. confession. For we do not have a high priest

  561. who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in

  562. every respect has been tempted as we are yet without sin.

  563. Let us stand with confidence, confidence, draw near to the

  564. throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace in

  565. help. In time of need.

  566. Jesus, always working in the background.

  567. He's always. Working in the background.

  568. He's working in the background. To bring us to salvation.

  569. And then the more and more we look into His Word, the more and

  570. more we persevere to bring us through the sanctification

  571. process of the Holy Spirit to make us more and more like Him.

  572. That is what God is. Doing for us?

  573. Habakkuk. If you continue in in chapter 3

  574. verse 16, Habakkuk says that when he first heard the vision,

  575. when he first saw the Vision, that rottenness entered his

  576. bones because of what was going to transpire.

  577. Once the Chaldeans came and devastated the land.

  578. Rottenness entered by bones yet? I will quietly.

  579. Wait. For the day of.

  580. Trouble Why? Because of backup wasn't a

  581. unbelieving. Doubting prophet.

  582. He was a prophet that absolutely believed in the God of the

  583. universe. He put his faith and trust in

  584. that God, and we can too. Amen.

  585. Chapter 3, verse. 19 of a back It says that you make my feet

  586. like the deers so I can go upon my high places.

  587. This is a reference. To them being able to go up on

  588. the cliffs, the narrow cliffs and and be able to walk and have

  589. their balance and not fall on these high cliffs with just

  590. barely something to stand on and God can do the same for us.

  591. Amen. Where we have to stress the

  592. process, Let's pray. This morning, Father, I ask that

  593. you forgive us for our times of doubts.

  594. I ask that you help us when we're.

  595. Frustrated. Help us when we don't

  596. understand, to always, always believe in you.

  597. Father, help us. To understand and always

  598. remember that you do have an appointed time for everything to

  599. happen in our lives. And God?

  600. I ask. That when we go through life.

  601. Father help us to. Trust that process.

  602. Help us to put our. Faith and our trust in you.

  603. I ask. That help us to remember that we

  604. can boldly come before you. That we do.

  605. Not have to fear. Romans chapter 8, verse 15 says

    Romans 8:15

  606. we've been given us a spirit of fear but spirit of power.

  607. Sorry, it says we have not. Been given a spirit of fear

  608. again. That word again.

  609. Father is so important, we don't have to fear you.

  610. Adam and Eve feared. You, God.

  611. Because they had. Transgressed you, but.

  612. Father you have made. A way for us to once again be

  613. close to you. Father I just.

  614. Ask Help us to come before you boldly.

  615. Help us to understand. That we can come before you.

  616. And be honest. With our pain, we can be honest.

  617. With our feelings because you. Understand our frustrations and

  618. our feelings because you experienced everything that we

  619. have or ever will. Yet without.

  620. Sin. Thank you God that.

  621. You are our High Priest. That we can come and we can.

  622. Simply just be in your presence. Help us to trust.

  623. The process this morning. Hallelujah.

  624. Hallelujah.