GOD JUDGES EVIL - Habakkuk 2:2-20

All right. If you have a Bible or an

app, meet me in the book of Habachok,

the book of Habach. We're going to

continue in our series by looking at

verse two all the way through verse 20.

That'll take us to the end of the

chapter here in the book of Habachok. As

sister Kate mentioned this morning,

we've been in this series and we've

entitled it faith in the waiting.

Oftentimes waiting can become very

difficult for our lives particularly

because we've grown accustomed to a

culture of convenience. If we want

something, if we desire something, it's

not a big deal for us to attain it right

then and there or to get it in just a

little while. And because of this, we've

become accustomed to having our personal

preferences, our personal desires, and

the personal wants met almost

immediately. And so I think I'm not

going too far on a ledge by saying this

that we have a difficult time truly

waiting on the Lord, living a life that

really exercised patience or I love the

way the scriptures paint this picture,

longsuffering.

But as we've learned over the last

couple of weeks, as we've dived into the

series on how God has had this dialogue

and Habach has had this dialogue with

one another, we've come to understand

that oftent times the greatest type of

faith is formed in the moments of

waiting

because it really calls us to deeper

devotion and it really causes us to take

some self-inventory of our life and to

determine what is it that I'm really

clinging clinging to.

Because if I'm going to be upset, if I'm

going to be frustrated, if I'm going to

be annoyed when my timetable is not met,

that's typically a clear sign that we're

trusting and hoping and leaning into the

wrong things.

And of course, this is not a picture

that's exclusive to um this window that

we see into the life of Israel and the

life of Habach. This is something that

we are exposed to even today.

And so, if you've been with us over the

last couple weeks, you know that we're

in this part of this conversation, this

prayer dialogue that Habach is having

with the Lord. And if you remember the

the scenery, the the context of this

particular letter involves the southern

kingdom, the kingdom of Judah. Remember,

Israel had split into two kingdoms. They

had divided and it was over who would be

the next king. And at this point in the

story that the northern kingdom has been

conquered. The southern kingdom remains

alone. And yet they still continue in

idolatry, rebellion, and disobedience

before the Lord. And Habach recognizes

this

and he sees that as God's people, we're

not living the life that we should live.

And that's not a message that falls on

deaf ears for us. That's a message that

that I hope and if we're honest with

ourselves that we truly understand

because even now in our homes, at work,

and wherever it is that God has us

positioned in this season in our life,

we know that there are things that we

should be doing, that there are paths of

obedience and faithfulness that we

should be following. But for whatever

reason, i.e. sin, we refuse, we neglect

and we continue to rebel against the

holiness of God. Habach recognizes this

and he sees all the sin, all the chaos,

all the evil that exists around him. And

you remember how he cries out to God. He

says, "How long? How long was must must

we endure this? How long must the very

people you call your own rebel against

you? How long must you sit silent as we

cry out to you? As we lift up our pleas

and our prayers before you. How long,

God? And God responds.

God isn't silent. God isn't not working.

God is always speaking. God is always

working. And we've learned that often

times we don't perceive it. We don't

hear it or we don't participate and step

into it oftent times because of the very

sin that we cling to.

And God responds to Habach and he says,

"I hear you

and judgment is coming, Habachok.

There is an unholiness in the life of

the people I call my own. There is a

disobedience and a rebellion. And

remember, our sin is serious.

One of the traps that we fall into is we

make the mistake of judging our sin and

compare it to the person who's sinning

next to us.

Rather, what we should be doing is

looking at our sin and comparing it to

the truth of God's word.

Because we're all scoundrels,

all wicked before the Lord. It does not

matter what sin you've committed. Now

there are various consequences and depth

of consequences because of the sin that

you committed. But when it comes to

being an affront to the holiness of God,

your sin puts you there. And so God

responds. He says, "I am rising up the

nation of Babylon." Some translations

will say the Calaldanss

to come and judge you. And Habach is

confused. His response to God is, "Why

would you raise up a more wicked people

to come and judge us? Why would you

raise up a people that are rebelling

against you and insulting your holiness

and desire to conquer us? Why would you

do that?" And that's where we left last

week.

Well, God finally responds here in the

passage we're about to pick up on. And

we recognize that as we dive into this

passage that there is an evil at work in

the world.

And maybe like Habach, we have questions

as to why evil seems to persist.

Why doesn't God bring an end to it?

Those were the very questions I had when

I was 17 years old, a senior in high

school. And like many of you, I can

remember exactly where I was when we

turned on the news and saw those

airplanes hit the World Trade Center.

And I remember in that moment just

vividly asking the question before the

Lord,

why would a good God allow such evil to

happen? And I'm certain you're no

stranger to those questions. As you look

at the world around us, as you see

current events happening, as you see

wars unfolding around the world, our

questions pursue, why would a good God

allow such evil to take place? And it

was that question and a desire for the

answers that moved me to pursue the

truth of God.

And in two weeks, in 14 days, as I set

myself to the intentional and diligent

task to dig for an answer to that

question, the Holy Spirit got a hold of

me. And I'll never forget it. It was a

Wednesday night service

where my pastor had asked this question.

He said, "If you were to die tonight,

would you go into the presence of God

forever or would you go outside the

presence of God forever?"

And in two weeks, I had read enough

scripture to know that the sin in my

life

would separate me from the holiness of

God for all eternity.

And it was that moment that the Holy

Spirit awakened me out of death and sin

and put me on the path to life

everlasting. We all have a story like

that.

We know what sin can do. We know that

the evil that pervades society stirs

people to desire more to justify the

evil in our very lives and to build our

lives in a way that don't fully honor

God. And so the natural question is will

evil ever be dealt with? Does God see

the evil that exists? Does God even care

about the evil that exists? And the

answer is yes. So Habach chapter 2, I'm

going to be reading verses 2 through 5

and then throughout the rest of our time

this morning, we'll dive into the rest

of the text. Here's what Habach writes.

The Lord answered me. Now remember at

the end of our time last week, Habach

said, "I will position myself on the

tower

and I will gaze and I will look and I

will wait for the answer from the Lord."

And do you remember we broke that down?

Verse one

in the original language, this picture

that's being painted is not only is

Habach positioning himself to hear from

the Lord, which is something we should

all be doing intentionally in our life,

but Habach is positioning himself to

also be corrected. Now, that's key

particularly with what we are about to

read. And so, I want to challenge you

with this before we continue any

further. Are you willing to be corrected

by God?

Are you willing to be held accountable?

And the conviction that overwhelms your

soul and your life, would you be willing

to receive it as God's discipline over

you? Not so that he would push you

further away, but so that he would draw

you in to deeper affections

and abiding and connection with him.

And so the Lord answers Habach, "Write

down this vision clearly. Inscribe it on

the tablets so one may easily read it.

For the vision is yet for the appointed

time."

God always brings the appointed time to

pass. It testifies about the end and

does not lie. though it delays, wait for

it since it will certainly come and not

be late. So, let me kind of break this

down real quick for us. Habach is

saying, "How long?" God says, "I'm

bringing judgment on the evil that

persists persists and pervades not just

society, but your heart and your life."

This is shocking to Habac and maybe this

is shocking to us.

We can agree with the fact that God will

judge sin. But but but but here's here's

where we really need to press in. We

need to step into this truth. God's

going to judge your sin.

The sin that you cling to, the the sin

that you refuse to let go,

the sin that stirs pride in you, then

makes you feel better than than who you

truly are. And that's not to shame us.

That's not to guilt us. That's not to be

a cosmic killjoy in our life. What it's

meant to do, and this is what God is

doing in our passage, what it's meant to

do is draw us to the truth of his word

that we are all sinners

that fall short of God's standard. And

if our sin is not dealt with, I need you

to hear this. If our sin is not dealt

with, we will pay for the sin that is

our life, separated from God in

condemnation for all eternity.

One of two people will pay for your sin.

Either Jesus paid for it on the cross of

Calvary or you will pay for it eternally

separated in condemnation for all

eternity.

And so God continues, "This judgment is

coming. Wait for it. It will certainly

come and not be late." Look, his ego is

inflated. Now, now God begins to paint

this picture

of Babylon, the Calaldanss. And here's

what's important to understand. If you

are familiar with with what the

scripture paints thematically

in regards to holiness and sin, you'll

know that the nation of Babylon, the

Babylonians, the Calaldanss are

typically used as an illustration

to paint sinfulness in the world. Which

is why if you know the book of

revelation,

Babylon is referenced over and over

again. It's John's way as he receives

this revelation on the island of Patmas

from the Lord himself to explain to the

people and by extension to us that sin

is real, but it will one day be dealt

with. Babylon will be conquered.

Though here in Habachok,

it's literal. This is a literal people.

His ego is inflated. He is without

integrity. But but

the righteous will live by faith. How

will the righteous live?

>> By faith. Church, this is how you need

to live. Dads, this is how your family

needs to live. Husbands, this is how

your marriage needs to live. By faith.

Because the world will tell you

everything and anything that is counter

to faith. It'll tell you that you're not

doing a good job. It'll tell you that

it's not worth it to to step into the

destiny God has for you. It'll tell you

you shouldn't try harder because the

devil wants to keep you where you are.

But when we choose to live a life of

faith, it opens up the window to

transformation, to holiness, to

obedience, being a part of who we are.

One more, verse five.

Moreover,

wine betrays.

An arrogant man is never at rest. He

enlarges his appetite like shal and like

death. He is never satisfied. He gathers

all the nations to himself. He collects

all the peoples for himself. And all

God's people said,

>> Lord, bless your word. Holy Spirit, stir

our hearts this morning.

So, we got verses 6 through 20 to unpack

here in just a moment. And we're going

to do that as we dive into what is

commonly referred to as the five woes of

Habach.

Now notice here at the end of verse 5,

God continues to paint this picture. The

Lord in this dialogue, this prayer

dialogue with Habach begins to unpack

what this looks like. Yes, the

Babylonians may have attained territory.

Yes, they may have the power that other

nations desire, the wealth and the

riches that so many people long for, but

at the end of the day, it does not

satisfy. And what that means for you and

I this morning, church, is that the path

that you pursue

will not bring you the satisfaction you

desire unless the end of that path is

always and forever the gospel, the

kingdom, and the Lord.

If you set your life, if you set your

relationships, if you set your marriage

on a path that is not Jesus,

you will always be wanting more. Which

is why the Lord describes this. Wine

betrays an arrogant. A man is never at

rest. He enlarges his appetite, but he

is never satisfied.

He may gather all the nations to

himself. He may collect all the people

for himself, but he is always left

wanting

more.

There is nothing like the feeling of

wanting

and never having it satisfied.

It's like an itch that you can't

scratch.

And God begins to unfold his plan for

his people. He begins to unpack how his

judgment indeed is coming for the

unrighteous.

And so, if you're taking notes, let's

unpack these five woes. Let's unpack

these judgments that God will bring, not

just upon the people of Babylon, but

here's the other challenge for us this

morning. It's easy for us to read the

scriptures and it's easy for us to say

yes and amen to what we perceive is

happening to other people. Yeah, woe to

them for their greed. Yes, woe to them

for their dishonesty. Woe to them for

their idolatry. But it's not woe to

them. It's woe to me.

Because I am in step with this as well.

Which is church why we need Jesus.

Why the gospel is so important in our

life. Because without Christ, without

the gospel message, without his life,

death, resurrection, and ascension and

the hope of his eventual return, Lord,

come Lord.

These woes become a reality for you and

I. So, if you're taking notes, here's

the first thing I want us to see. God

judges the greedy plunderer.

What does that even mean?

We know what it means to be so encased

and enveloped with greed that we will

stop at nothing to attain whatever it is

that we desire. Look at verses 6 through

8.

Woe to him who amasses what is not his.

How much longer? and loads himself with

goods taken in pledge.

Won't your creditors suddenly arise and

those who disturb you wake up? Then you

will become spoil for them. Do you see

this picture here? Your greed is only

going to lead down a path you don't want

to be on because it's going to awaken

the creditors. It's going to awaken

those who want more from you.

Now, of course, this is contextual in

what's happening in the life of God's

people, but but here's what it means for

us. It means that the more greed is

stirred up in our life and the more that

we desire to take and plunder the very

things that we desire through dishonest

gain,

then it stirs the demons and it stirs

the devil to entice us to more. Verse 8,

since you have plundered many nations,

all the peoples who remain will plunder

you. Remember, this is God's declaration

of woe to the Babylonian people.

This is God declaration of woe to you

who remain in your sin absent of faith

in Jesus Christ.

So let's not sit here

separate and an outside character from

what God is declaring. Yes, written by

Habach to a people during a time. But

there's so much that we can glean, so

much that we can grow from

because of human bloodshed and violence

against lands, cities, and all who live

in them. This is where sin often begins.

You know this, I won't spend a lot of

time here. Sin often begins with greed.

This desire for more. And maybe in your

context it looks like this. More money,

more control, more comfort. And let me

just clarify something. The desire isn't

the problem.

It's not wrong to have goals, dreams,

and ambitions. We've talked about this

before. It's not wrong to desire

something better for your life or

something better for your family. It's

not wrong to have those desires. It's

what you're willing to do and who you're

willing to hurt to get it. Are you

willing to sacrifice a deep devotion to

the Lord in order to attain that which

is only temporary anyway?

And so many times we risk eternity

for that which is fading and will not

last.

And what does God say? God is saying the

Babylonians plunder nations. They take

what's not theirs by force. I see it and

it will come back on them. Now, let me

just clarify this rather quickly. This

is not talking about karma. Maybe you

sit there and you hear that God says

it's going to come back around. This is

not talking about karma. Karma is

actually an unbiblical concept. Let me

throw that out one more time. Karma is

actually an unbiblical concept. Well,

what do you mean, Roland? Karma says the

universe will work things out.

But the Bible says a holy personal God

will judge sin. He will repay sin with

justice. Karma is impersonal. It's

automatic almost like a law of nature.

But what we see happening here is that

God is deeply personal. That God's not a

force. He's a person who is also a

judge. And he sees what the Babylonians

are doing. He sees what sin is driving

people to do. And according with his

righteousness, he is saying judgment

will come. So what does this look like

for us? This is where it hits close to

home. You don't have to plunder nations

the way the Babylonians did for this to

be a reality of your life. Anytime you

take what's not yours,

you are living a life of dishonesty, a

life of greed, a life of selfish

ambition, and a life of manipulation.

And God says, "I see it, and it will be

judged."

But here's the thing.

What Babylon takes by force,

Jesus freely gives.

Babylon tried to acquire all the power.

They tried to grasp all the glory. Jesus

freely laid it down for you and I.

Here's the second thing that we see. God

judges the selfish schemer. You ever

caught yourself scheming before? If you

have kids, you know scheming is a

reality. Mom, dad, if you'll do this, I

will. Fill in the blank. God judges the

selfish schemer. Let's go to verse 9.

Woe to him who dishonestly makes wealth

for his house to place his nest on high

to escape the grasp of disaster.

You have planned shame for your house by

wiping out many peoples and sinning

against your own self. In other words,

your very sin is going to be your own

downfall.

For the stones will cry out from the

wall and the rafters will answer them

from the woodwork.

I want you to notice how the focus

begins to shift.

What started as sin in the individual's

heart

now overflows

to affect the people around them.

So the question that the self-inventory

we need to take is how is your sin

affecting the people around you?

Mom, dad, how was your sin affecting

your family?

Husbands, how is your sin affecting your

marriage? Sin does not stay hidden. This

is God's point here. It will be judged.

And the Babylonians, they weren't just

taking. They were constructing their

empire. They were fortifying themselves.

They were building their walls,

figuratively speaking. They were

building up their nation, trying to rise

above accountability. They were trying

to build a name for themselves. Think

Genesis 11

when the nations gathered to try and

build a name for themselves in the story

of Babel.

Let us built this tower where we can

worship ourselves, where we can reach

into the heavens and where people will

look at us and say, "My, what great

people you are." It's all an attempt to

steal from God his glory and to claim it

as our own. This is what the selfish

schemer does. And maybe for us, it looks

like building a life of success.

Again, not wrong,

so long as it's a motivation rooted in

the kingdom, rooted in the gospel. But

but here's the thing. You can have the

house, you can have the dream, you can

have the name, you can have the

platform, and still, hear me, still have

a foundation that will crumble

because all those things are temporary.

What's eternal is a foundation built on

the truth of God's word.

And as long as we're building our lives

on things that are rooted in greed,

well, it will do is lead us to be a

scheming

people.

But here's here's the biblical truth.

where Babylon built on sin, where where

you and I in in some moments in our life

might attempt to build on sin, Jesus

comes in and he lays the true foundation

and he calls us into his kingdom. Here's

a third thing that we see. God judges

the violent oppressor.

Now, now here's where I really want us

to press in. Right? We have two more and

then we're done. Here's where I really

want us to press in. You might hear

something like that. You might hear the

phrase violent oppressor. And you might

think, "Well, I'm not violent.

I don't lash out physically at people. I

may get angry and my words might be

hurtful, but above all, I'm not

violent." Let me just say this. If you

sin, you're violent.

Because your sin is a violent assault on

the holiness of God.

And every time that you sin,

you are with your thoughts, with your

actions,

oppressing the truth of the gospel in

your life. This is what sin does. Which

is why Paul will use language like this,

that when we are set free from sin, when

we are resurrected out of the darkness

in our sin, it is like a veil that is

being removed. Because as long as that

veil is there, what does it do? It

blinds us from the reality of God's

truth.

And so what does God do? God comes in

and he judges the violent oppressor. Go

with me to verse 12.

Woe to him who builds a city with

bloodshed and founds a town with

injustice.

It is not from the Lord of armies that

the peoples labor only to fuel the fire

and countries exhaust themselves for

nothing. for the earth will be filled

with the knowledge of the Lord's glory

as waters cover the sea.

So sin continues to move outward. Now if

if you've been uh um running ahead of us

and you've already read the book of

Habach, you know that each of these woes

is is sin that builds on another. It's

what we call the snowball effect. It's

like the old Looney Tune cartoons when

Wy Coyote, he would grab a snowball and

he would put it at the top of the hill

and roll it down only for that snowball

to get bigger and the Roadrunner would

always outsmart him and Wally Coyote

would always just be fall into the trap

of his own device. I mean, it's a great

picture theologically of sin if you

really look at it.

But Habach shows us, God in this

dialogue with Habach shows us that this

is what sin does. It moves outward and

it grows and it grows and it grows. It's

no longer something personal. It becomes

cultural, becomes systemic. It becomes

engaging with others around us. And

here's here's the fault. Because of

this, entire systems, entire structures,

environments are shaped by sin. Look at

what's happening in the world around us.

Look what's happening in local

governments, state governments, national

governments. Look what's happening

internationally between countries. There

is a breakdown of unity and there is

division all because of what? All

because of a system that has been put in

place as a result of sin in our lives.

And this this is where this is where we

can really really do do something that

brings transformation, men, is when we

begin to ask ourselves, what systems and

structures am I creating in the four

walls of my home

as I lead my family? Because here's the

reality. I've said this before, but

here's the reality. We are in the

situation that we are in today because

of a lack of faithful men.

that that that that's not

a jab at women. There's so many faithful

women who pick up the slack where men

are failing.

A and please don't view that through a

western lens.

We view that today through a western

lens and auto automatically we have

words like the patriarchy,

masochism

and then words like feminism begin to

creep in. Modern-day feminism is not a

desire

for men to lead. It's a desire to

endanger men and to shut them down.

Let's just make that absolutely clear.

We are called to be a people who lead,

who journey, and who put others and

invite others on a path of holiness. And

where that begins, men is in our own

home.

And so God judges the violent oppressor.

That means that no kingdom, no kingdom

built on sin will ever endure. This is

why the devil and his demons know that

their time is limited.

And because their time is limited, they

are going to destroy everyone else's fun

because they want others to go down with

them. And so we're Babylon. where where

sin would shed blood and oppress to

build the kingdom. Jesus comes in and he

sheds his own blood

to redeem the people for his kingdom.

Here's the fourth thing that we see. God

judges the shameful exploer.

What this means is is it now it's no

longer just about ripple effects of sin.

It's now about dehumanizing people.

This is why things like pornography

are so prevalent. This is why things

like abortion are so acceptable because

it dehumanizes

people.

It says they're not human. They don't

have worth. They don't have value. They

don't have purpose. And so because of

that, I will engage in these behaviors

because I don't see that other person as

human.

Now, let me hit the pause button here

because God is a God of redemption.

And I've been in ministry in 20 plus

years to hear stories of people who have

dealt with both

and who have endured the pain of both,

but who have been introduced to the

gospel of Jesus Christ and who've come

to the understanding that they are not

the sin that they once engaged in, but

they are now new

because of Jesus Christ. This is a great

moment for us to dive deeper into the

understanding that there is no sin that

makes you too far gone from the grace of

God.

But God declares here those who would

exploit other human beings for personal

sinful gain.

Judgment is coming. Let me read verse

15.

Woe to him who gives his neighbors

drink,

pouring out your wrath and even making

them drunk in order to look at their

nakedness.

Now, now let's take a 30,000 foot view

here of what what Habach is writing

down.

We see it. This is you and I exploiting

people, taking advantage of them, not

taking into account how this might

endanger them, how this might hurt them,

how this might make their family hurt.

This is looking at people as nothing

more but property for selfish gain. This

is what 17th and 18th century slavery in

America was rooted in.

Was looking at people as property less

than human for selfish gain. And I want

to be absolutely clear with this.

Everyone bears the image of God.

The enemy that just kind of stirs you,

that co-orker down the hallway that you

try to avoid, they bear the image of

God.

What that means is they're not beyond

salvation.

And you might be the very person that

God is raising up

to proclaim the gospel to them and

invite them in. Don't be used by the en

enemy to exploit people.

Because where sin would rob people of

dignity,

Jesus restores it. Here's the last one.

God judges the foolish idoltor. God

judges the foolish idoltor. Go with me

to verse 18.

What use

is a carved idol after its craftsman

carves it? It's only a cast image, a

teacher of lies. For the one who crafts

it shakes trusts in it and makes

worthless idols that cannot speak. Watch

that. Worthless idols that cannot speak.

Now, this is contextual

to ancient Israel where they actually

had statues that were made of stone and

made of wood that they bowed down to. We

don't do that in Western culture. But

what do we do? We bow down to wealth. We

bow down to affluence. We bow down to

our job. We bow down to our schedules.

We bow down to everything and anything

that we hope would grant us a

satisfaction that is absent of genuine

faith in Jesus Christ. This is what we

do. And the Lord is telling Habach, they

leave you empty. They leave you empty.

Verse 19, woe to him who says to wood,

"Wake up." Or to mute stone, come alive.

Can it teach? Let me contextualize it.

Woe to him who looks at the bank account

and say, "I love you so much."

Woe to him who looks at their family and

says, "You give me more satisfaction

than my Lord."

What is it that we are bowing down to in

giving ourselves over to?

Look, it may be plated with gold and

silver, yet there is no breath in it at

all.

Do not seek that which can never make

you alive.

Because if all we ever do is seek dead

things, then we ourselves will become

dead.

Here's what I love. I'll close with

this.

where sin, where Babylon

would lead us on a path to worship what

is lifeless. Watch this.

Jesus comes in to give us new life.

That's the gospel.

Which is why verse 20, why chapter 2

ends on such a marvelous note.

But the Lord is in his holy temple.

Let the whole earth be silent in his

presence.

I don't know where you might be today. I

don't know if one of the five woes has

struck a chord in the reality that is

your life.

But if so, my hope and my prayer is that

right here, right now, you would call

upon the name of the Lord. That you

would repent of the sin that you are

committing. that you would turn to him

in faith. And notice the juaposition.

Did did you notice the contrast here

between everything we just read and what

Habach writes in verse 20? But the Lord

is in his holy temple. Isn't it

interesting how Habachok in the very

beginning said, Lord, how long where are

you? And right here, he knows that the

Lord's always been there. He's in his

holy temple. Let the whole earth be

silent in his presence. Let me pray for

us. Lord, we thank you for today. We

thank you for your word and we pray,

God, that you would be glorified in

everything and through everything. In

Christ's name we pray. All God's people

said,

>> "Amen." Hey, we're going to close out

our service. We're going to celebrate

the Lord's supper.