Kingdom Divided Lesson 28 – Habakkuk

 

Habakkuk was one of the minor prophets.  We don’t know much about him and his life except for what is in his short book.   He prophesied about the Babylonians and the destruction of Jerusalem.  He was not only a prophet, but a poet.  His book is a conversation between him and God.

Habakkuk 1-2 – Habakkuk’s Questions

Habakkuk saw the violence and injustice around him in the nation of Judah.  He wanted to know where God was and why He didn’t set things right.  He saw trouble and sin everywhere which distressed him so much that he cried out to God for answers. (Habakkuk 1:1-4)

God answered telling him not to worry about it and to look at the surrounding nations who will become His instrument of judgment on Judah.  God told him that the judgment would come and it would be terrible and dreadful. He was raising up the Babylonians as an instrument of His judgment. (Habakkuk 1:5-11) 

God’s answer prompted Habakkuk to ask a second question.  How could this be?  Why would God use such a treacherous nation as Babylon who was more evil than Judah.  Then he remembered truths about God in Hab. 1:12-13a – He is everlasting, He is holy, His eyes are too pure to look on evil, He can’t tolerate wrong.  He wanted to know why God tolerated such treachery.  Then Habakkuk waited for God’s answer.

God welcomes our questions.  We can ask Him the same type of questions.  When we see injustice and immorality and violence, it’s only natural that we pray for God to do something about it.  Why does He allow us to see sin in ourselves and in others?  Maybe He allows us to see the sin in ourselves to keep us humble and submissive or to make us value salvation even more.  We’re allowed to see the sin in others perhaps to show us what we might have been ourselves.  Or so we won’t fall into sin and to even to hate sin.  Also to admire the grace of God when He saves sinners. 

Principle:  God welcomes honest questions of His people.

In Habakkuk 2:1 he expects God to answer and he waits patiently.  That is a great example for us.  We should wait and let Him work.

Habakkuk described two different ways people respond to God.   Some are ‘puffed up’ with pride and self-will or they are righteous and live by faith. (Hab. 2:4; rom 1:17; Gal. 3:11; Heb 10:38)  Believers are justified by faith and live awaiting for eternity.  They humbly look to God for salvation.  God calls us to trust Him.  People will live by faith in God or they refuse Him.  Proud people defend their actions and want to rule their own lives. 

You can be proud no matter your status in life.  A rich man is proud of what he has; a poor man can be proud of his honor; a talented man can be proud of what he can do; a man of talents can be proud of his hard work; a religious man can be proud of his religion; an unbeliever can be proud of his unbelief; a learned man can be proud of his intelligence.  Pride is a universal sin.  God hates pride.  It can be dangerous among the people of God. 

Habakkuk used the phrase ‘woe’ five ties upon Babylon to indicate God was really serious and will not decrease His standards when it comes to His holiness.  Woe to aggression, woe to greediness, woe to violence, woe against inhumanity, and woe against idolatry.  To summarize his message – God will always do justice by punishing the wicked and bring deliverance to the righteous. (Hab. 2:6-20)

The truth God declared speaks to Habakkuk’s confusion and to us today.  “But the Lord is in his holy temple; let all the earth be silent before him.” – Habakkuk 2:20.  God is holy and above all.  He is in charge so we should let Him do what He does best.

Habakkuk 3 – Habakkuk’s Prayer

(Habakkuk 3:2) Habakkuk plead to God for revival.  He knew how God once worked and how His people responded and he wanted to see that again.  Revival is the work of God and not of man.  We can also pray for God to revive us.  Check your conduct – does it glorify God; check your conversation – is your speech pure and do you talk about Jesus with others; check your communion – are you living a growing, abiding life with Jesus.

We remember times in our lives when God seemed more real than at other times.  It seemed His power was more evident.  We want God to do what He did then.  It all starts with remembering.  We need to remember what God has done.  That’s what Habakkuk did.  When confused about what’s going on in our lives or in the world, we need to remember.  Go back and remember who you know God to be and what’s He’s done.  Then we need to accept what God is doing and trust Him for what He’s going to do in the future. 

In Habakkuk 3:3-15 Habakkuk remembered the acts of God as he remembered God’s power on behalf of His people.  Habakkuk confessed his weaknesses in verse 3:16.  He shook with fear under God’s power as he waited for day of calamity to come.  He realized that he was nothing and God was everything.  In Habakkuk 3:17-18 he praised God unconditionally and declared that no matter what, he will rejoice in the Lord and be joyful in God his Savior.

He said in the last verse, “The  Lord God is my strength.  He makes me like a deer that does not stumble so I can walk on the steep mountains.” – Hab. 3:19.  The point is this – if you trust is in God, He will give you stability in those slippery moments of life.  He will give you the ability to stand when everyone else is falling apart.

Nothing has changed for Judah.  The people have still forgotten God.  Violence still reigned in Jerusalem.  The wicked still oppressed the righteous. The Babylonians were still God’s appointed instrument for judgment.  Hard times were coming and there was nothing anyone could do about it.  But Habakkuk changed on the inside.  He realized God is in control and that he could completely trust God.  God would make all things right in due time.  The wicked will be punished and those who were righteous will be rewarded.  If we remember that our God is in control, then we can relax and stop worrying.

Principles: 

We can rest on God’s sovereignty even when we don’t understand His ways.

God is in control and He will make all things right in due time.

This week’s attribute of God is He is Sovereign.  He controls all things.  No one can stop His plans.  He can be trusted when we can’t understand His ways.

Next time we will continue our study of Kingdom Divided with various Scriptures.  Hope to see you here. – I encourage you to trust in Jesus.

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Kingdom Divided Lesson 27 – Lamentations

 

Lamentations is believed to be written by Jeremiah.  He was grieving about the destruction of Jerusalem.  He is often called ‘the weeping prophet’.  He lived through the desolation.  He realized that the total destruction happened to Jerusalem and the temple because of the judgment of a righteous God.  He understood that the Babylonians were God’s tool for bringing judgment on Jerusalem.  Knowing that God is merciful he appealed for mercy in prayer. 

Each chapter of Lamentations highlights different pronouns.

Chapter 1 – She and her (the ruined city of Jerusalem as a widow who lost everything)

Chapter 2 – He (the justified judgment brought by God)

Chapter 3 – I, me, and my (Jeremiah’s personal grief and hope)

Chapter 4 – They and their (the people’s loss under the Babylonian siege)

Chapter 5 – We and us (the prayer on behalf of the people)

There are expressions of lament throughout the Bible.  Examples are in Job 3:3-26; Psalm 10; Matthew 23:37-39.  The word lamentation means ‘funeral song’.  It’s an expression of grief or sorrow or weeping.  As we live this life on earth we feel loss, pain, and death.  God doesn’t guarantee a smooth path in this life.  He doesn’t exempt us from this world’s grief, but He does provide the strength to persevere through our hurtful moments.

In Lamentations 3:31-39 we learn that God doesn’t leave sinners forever.  They bring Him grief, but He will show compassion and unfailing love when they repent.  All calamities and all good things come from the Most High. 

Jeremiah pleaded with the people and he pleads to us and with God in Lamentations 3:40-66.  He said to examine your ways and test them.  Admit that you have sinned and rebelled.  Turn away from sin and turn back to the Lord.

God knows and understands your pain and He hears your hurting cries.  He has purposes beyond your pain.  You don’t tell Him anything He doesn’t already know, so why should you pray?  Talking to Him about your problems brings you closer to Him.  He wants to hear from you and to connect with your spirit and your soul.  He treasures you and knows beyond what you’re praying for.  He knows your soul really wants is Him.  Praying reminds us of our weaknesses, needs and sin as we ask Him for help.  Prayer brings us into fellowship with Him.  The Bible says to persist in prayer and to pray about everything (Phil. 4:6).  “Pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” - 1 Thess. 5:17.

Even in terrible judgment, God is a God of hope (Lamentations 3:24-25).  No matter how far we’ve gone from Him, we have the hope that we can return to Him and find Him compassionate and forgiving (1 John 1:9).  He is a loving and faithful God (Lamentations 3:23).  God is the God of many chances – He is also the God of the last chance!

Jeremiah 4:1-10 tells how the people were traumatized by the city’s destruction.  The people were once as valuable as fine gold.  But now the best and brightest were taken and only the poorest and least able were left behind.  They were regarded as cheap clay pots.  Those who ate delicacies were now desolate in the streets.  Their princes were brighter than snow and like sapphires in their appearance.  Now their appearance was blacker than soot.  Their agony was worse than what fell upon Sodom.  Their hunger was so bad that the compassionate women cooked their own children.

Lamentations 4 can be summarized by saying that things are not good in Jerusalem.  The temple was in total ruins, tragedy had degraded the people, people were dying of thirst and no food, and those who died were better off.

Phrases from Lamentations 4:11-22 of God ‘s response to the sins of the people:  “The Lord has given full vent to his wrath; He has poured out his fierce anger.  He kindled a fire in Zion that consumed her foundations…. The Lord himself has scattered them; he no longer watches over them.  The priests are shown no honor, the elders no favor…. The Lord’s anointed, our very life breath, was caught in their traps…. he will punish your sin and expose your wickedness.”

When we consider God’s judgment, we may be troubled especially if we are not a follower of Jesus.  You should be very troubled if you are not saved, because you will experience the full hand of His judgment.  Knowing this as Christians should help us because it keeps us accountable and can prevent us from sinning.  Remember, God is always just and fair.

Lamentations 5 is a prayer for God’s mercy.  Jeremiah remembered the people’s suffering and their weariness.  He believed that the relationship between God and Judah still existed.   He looked forward to the future possibility for forgiveness, not the past.  In Jeremiah 5:19-21 he recognized God’s sovereignty and asked that God restore them to Himself.

He ends the book without positive hope for the future.  He feared that God had utterly rejected them and His anger would remain forever.  But we know from other Scriptures that God had not and did not utterly reject His people and His anger did not last forever.

There are many lessons in Lamentations:

It helps us learn to cry out to God when we are hurting.  When we do that, we find a sense of peace in a world full of suffering.

It also reminds us that it is impossible for God’s people to sink so far into sin that they should lose hope in His mercy and forgiveness. 

It gives us comfort when experiencing extreme times of sorrow and grief and suffering as we reflect on the character of God. 

It helps us understand the working of God’s heavy hand of discipline because of sin.

It helps us appreciate His abundant lovingkindness, compassion and faithfulness – no matter how bleak our circumstances might look.

It helps us confront how seriously God takes sin and the consequences of His anger.

It reminds us of God’s Sovereignty over all nations and His future promises.

Principles:   

Actions have consequences and sin needs correction.

Even in terrible judgment, God is a God of hope.

Key verses in Lamentations:

Lamentations 3:22-23 – “Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail.  They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.”

Lamentations 3:24 – “The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.”

Lamentations  3:25 – “The Lord is good to those whose hope is in Him, to the one who seeks him.’

Lamentations 5:19-20 – “You, O Lord, reign forever; your throne endures from generation to generation.  Why do you always forget us?  Why do you forsake us so long?  Restore us to yourself, O Lord, that we may return; renew our days as of old unless you have utterly rejected us and are angry with us beyond measure.”

This week’s attribute of God is He is Accessible.  He was accessible from the beginning with Adam and Eve.  He made covenants with the patriarchs and promised a relationship with them.  He made Himself near to people in the tabernacle and then through Jesus.  Now He is available to us through the Holy Spirit and through prayer.

Next time we will continue our study of Kingdom Divided in the book of Habakkuk.  Hope to see you here. – I encourage you to trust in Jesus.

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