Truth For Life

Bob LePine: There are moments when bad news turns our world upside down and brings us to our knees. Prayers aren't always answered the way we hoped. So, how can we continue to trust God? On Truth for Life weekend, Alistair Begg wraps up a study in Habakkuk. We'll learn how the devastated and doubting prophet was able to move from that dark place to a place of praising and rejoicing.

Alistair Begg: And so in coming to chapter three, we notice first of all that the prophet reacts. The prophet reacts. Secondly, the prophet reviews. The prophet reviews. And in verses three to 15, what you have is a wonderful poem. It is a classic uh example, I'm told, of Hebrew poetry. It provides a magnificent and a frightening picture of God's acts in history. It displays his power not only over nature, but also over all of the nations. So, for example, look at verse six. He stood and shook the earth. That is a metaphor. You understand that. It's it's all anthropomorphisms.

It's it's describing God who is spirit in in an anthropomorphic way so that we might have some point of identification. God stood as it were, and he shook the earth. He looked and made the nations tremble. So, when you're tempted to get all bend out of shape about the United Nations or phenomenally excited about the United Nations, when you see them all sitting in their circle there with their microphones and their little signs, all resplendent in their glory. If you're old enough to remember Khrushchev and the shoe banging incident, let me tell you, God just cast a quizzical eye down on Khrushchev.

Never mind your bay of pigs. Never mind your shoe. And all the events of the nations as described here. And as described on a daily basis in our news broadcasts are under the control of the creator of the ends of the earth who doesn't grow weary and whose wisdom is unsearchable. You see what a radically different view of the universe it one has as a Christian. To be a Christian is a mind altering experience. It is not simply the addition of some spiritual dimension to our already fairly good life. It is not the inclusion of a God that exists simply to fill in the inconsequential gaps that we cannot handle by virtue of our own reason.

No, it is to fall down before the display of his splendor and to look at our world even as Habakkuk does here and to realize that he has given to us this great panorama of God's intervention. I'm going to leave you to to to tie the poetry to the history. All you need is a Bible and and and a knowledge of the English language, and you'll be able to see the different places that you can find in judges four and five and in the book of Exodus and so on. And and some of them you won't be able to get.

I'm not sure that I could. But what you have here is just this great mural, as it were, painted all across uh the walls of these scenes of God's activity in the unfolding story of history. Now, when I read, I'm always looking for the one paragraph that summarizes the chapter because I'm lazy. And I 'm always looking for the one sentence that summarizes the paragraph. And I'm always looking for one good phrase that gives me the handle on what's happening here in this section. And I think I have it in verse 13. If somebody said, what is this whole poem about?

What is it? Why does he take from three to 15 to say what he's saying? What is he saying? Well, this is what he's saying. In each of the scenes described in the poem, what is happening is that God was coming out to deliver his people, to save his anointed ones. All right? Now, again, you see this is why it's important that we understand the way the Bible holds together, that the story of the Bible is the story of God's promise to Abraham to make of him a nation that will be so vast that no one would be able to count it.

Into that nation, God plugs believing Gentiles along with believing Jews and makes a community of his own that will eventually be innumerable in the portals of heaven. And in order to achieve that ultimate objective, God throughout all of history protects and preserves his anointed one, his anointed ones. Those ones eventually embodied in Christ himself, who is the very Israel of God. So, when you read the Old Testament and you look at the Exodus and you say, what was happening when Moses said, let my people go, and they came out and the churning of the water swallowed up the chariots.

The answer is here in verse 13. God was coming out to deliver his people. What was happening in the conversion of Ruth, the Moabite girl, when in the encounter with her mother-in-law, she pledges allegiance to the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. God was preserving his anointed one. What is happening when David steps out onto the battlefield before the vastness of Goliath and all the hosts of wickedness arrayed against God's people? God is coming out to deliver his anointed ones. And throughout all of history, including present day history, God continues to act in that way.

And that is why it is always vitally important for us to keep our eyes on first of all what the Bible reveals concerning God's activity and then to be sensible in looking at the way in which that is happening throughout our world. You came out to deliver your people, to save your anointed one. If you want to cross reference, go to Psalm 105. You can go, I think, to Psalm 132 as well. Uh the hymn writer summarizes it again. And that's I think one of the reasons I like hymn lyrics so much is because they often summarize a great deal of theology and do it in a poetic form that is someone like myself can remember.

If they did it mathematically, it would be hopeless to me. If they do it lyrically, at least I've got a chance. The hymn begins praise uh to the holiest in the height and in the depth be praised. But that's not the verse. The verse is, oh loving wisdom of our God, when all was sin and shame, a second Adam to the fight and to the rescue came. That you see is all tied into the wonder of God's purposes, the theology that Paul gives us as in Adam all die, so in Christ will all be made alive.

Adam has fouled it up, turned his back on God, and we with him have come crashing down in our rebellion against God and in our sin. How are we then to get back to that place of fellowship with the God against whom we have offended? Can we do it by our good deeds? No. Can we do it by spiritual experiences within us? No. Well, then how is it going to be possible? And the answer is in the loving wisdom of God in the terms of verse 13. The father said to the son, go out my son and be a champion for my people.

Go out my son and redeem my people Israel. Go out and bring them home to me. And out onto the battlefield of life strides like a Colossus, Jesus of Nazareth, taking on the evil that is ranged against him and bringing it to its knees at the cross. And when it all looked like it was completely finished, God was yet protecting his anointed one. And up from the grave he arises and shows himself to people. And the gospel goes out even today to the very ends of the earth. Oh, I get excited about this. There's there is no story like this.

I've studied comparative religions. I don't know all that they say, but I know enough of what they say to know they don't say this. How could it be with such a magnificent story, with such a wonderful provision that the minds of men and women would be turned again and again and again away from the story of amazing grace? There is only one answer, and the answer is again in our Bibles in two Corinthians four that the God of this age has blinded the minds of men and women so that they cannot see the light of the glory of the gospel in the face of Jesus Christ.

They cannot see it, and they cannot even see that they can't see until God in his mercy shows them their blindness so that in acknowledgment of their blindness, they may men like Bartimaeus cry out, Lord, have mercy on me. Well, I want to see. And if you want to see today, if you want to see your world the right way, if you want to see God in all of his provision, if you want to make sense of these bits and pieces, cry out to God from where you are. Acknowledge your blindness. Acknowledge your rebellion. Acknowledge the fact that you like to have a God of your own creation because you don't have to obey him.

He has to do for you. You don't have to do for him. But it doesn't work. It doesn't work before an empty grave. It doesn't work before the the inhabitation of your body by temptations and all kinds of invasions. You are powerless to deal with it. You need a God outside of yourself. And it is that God displayed in this wonderful poem that Habakkuk is reviewing. Finally, the prophet reacts, the prophet reviews, and the prophet rejoices. This is a great finish. The key to a good sermon, said George Burns, is to have a good beginning and a good ending and then try and keep the two of them as close together as you can.

So, here here here Habakkuk does it. He has a he has a good beginning with all the questions and complaints. How long is this going on? Why does this happen? And look at this phenomenal close. I will rejoice in the Lord. I will be joyful in God, my savior. In other words, he takes the fact of God's disclosure in the past, his sovereign control of the affairs of time. He brings the apparent out of controlness of his personal circumstances nationally within the perspective of God's revealing of himself. And then that is what allows him to get perspective.

You see, he doesn't end up rejoicing because the circumstances are fixed. There is no indication of the circumstances being fixed. The circumstances may actually be a little worse. But the prophecy which had opened with doubts and with problems ends with delight and praise. And I want you to notice carefully that the affirmation with which he finishes is not engendered by happy circumstances. It's not engendered by happy circumstances. And until God's people are prepared to get our hearts and our heads underneath this truth, we will continue to present to our unbelieving friends and neighbors a posture which is neither true to life nor true to the Bible.

Our friends are not drawn by the idea that the what it goes something like this. I have a dreadful problem. I went to God. I don't have any more problems. Therefore, we're having a picnic. I will rejoice. We will rejoice. And we would like you to come over and see what it is like to rejoice. Well, you're flat out not telling the truth. Eventually, the picnic is in heaven. No doubt about that. That will be untrammeled joy. That will be unmitigated praise and wonder. But right now, all hell that's loose against us, fighting's outside of us, fears within us, doubts, disappointments, cancers, broken relationships, children that drive us crazy.

And I'm only running through the first little section. And everybody goes, that's right. That 's right. No, he's telling the truth. That's right. I know that's right. Okay. So, how do you get to I will rejoice? That's the $64,000 question. And the answer is right here. He doesn't say I will rejoice. He says I will rejoice in the Lord. I will be joyful. Notice in God my savior. Who is God my savior? He's the sovereign Lord. The sovereign Lord. Not not not a wooden thing that I have at the end of my bed. No, no, no.

I'm coming to the sovereign Lord who made himself known in the Bible, who revealed himself in the acts of history. Sovereign Lord, I have cancer. Sovereign Lord, my uncle is in a wheelchair. Sovereign Lord, my kids are killing me. Sovereign Lord, this is the Christian experience. Through many dangers, toils, snares, I have already come. Tell your friends that that's believable. Tell your work colleagues that they'll identify with that. Tell them when it all hits the fan and you feel like running for it, the answer is not in the transformation of circumstance, but the answer is in the revelation of God in and of himself in his word, the Bible.

I have nothing else to hold on to except that he promised, except that he made himself known to me in this way. And a brief prophecy such as this points us always forward. The prophets are always pointing forward. In the middle of his disappointment, in the absence of everything that would be regarded as God's blessing, especially from the mind of Judaism. This is what he's saying, isn't he? This is an agricultural economy, though the fig tree doesn't bud, no grapes on the vines, all of crop fails, fields produce no food, no sheep in the pen, no cattle in the stalls.

What is that? That is absolute the destruction of society. That that that is just everything is gone to pot. Everything is shot. And listen to us. Can you believe the price of gas? I am unbelievable. It's it's terrible. This is America, you know. I mean, this is ridiculous. Well, yeah, maybe, maybe not. I don't know. You pay more for water than you pay for gas. You're still walking around with all those bottles hanging off you. I I don't know what your deal is. But to contextualize it, I mean, what the what he's really saying is though the stock market collapses, though my property loses 75% of his value, though the price of gas goes to eight bucks a gallon, though we have a food shortage and we have to line up outside Heinens, still I will rejoice in the Lord.

I will be joyful in God, my savior. The sovereign Lord gives me strength and air Nikes. Look at that 19. Nikes. I should man, I should somebody send this tape to Oregon. I might get a free pair for this. But listen, the sovereign Lord is my strength. He makes my feet like the feet of a deer. The average young person is going, I don't want my feet to look like the feet of a deer. As that that I don't I don't like it's a metaphor for goodness sake. He your I'm walking on air, he says.

I'm walking on air. I got the springs in my heels. Why? You see, we've got loved ones in this congregation right now that are facing horrible battles with illness. The sovereign Lord even in the midst of all of that pain, in the face of the threshold of death is able to assure his children that he has come out onto the battlefield to secure them for himself and having taken them into himself, he will not let them go. If we had time, we would go to Romans eight, but we don't. So, relax. And if you go to Romans eight and allow as it were, Paul in that magnificent chapter that begins, there is therefore now no condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus.

If you allow Paul as it were to backfill for us or to or to paint another few scenes into this great mural of Habakkuk, then you will be tremendously encouraged because it's there remember he says, if God be for us, who can be against us? See, he doesn't say who can be against us because the answer to that is well, a lot of people and a lot of stuff. But what he says is get some perspective. If the sovereign Lord of the universe is for you, has redeemed you, then you know Khrushchev banging his shoe, hey, come on.

Or your wife banging her shoe or somebody banging their shoe. Hey. And then he says, who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? You see, what he means by that is not that people won't come and accuse us. The devil accuses us, our consciences accuse us, people accuse us. But but at the cross, the case is closed. You you can't file with any higher court than this. God has brought the judgment of eternity into time in the death of his son and all who are in Christ who have been justified and set apart.

There's no condemnation to them. So, let anybody come and accuse in any way they want. Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Well, stress might, opposition might, danger, violence and so on. We're we're given over to death all day long, he says. And for your sake, but ultimately that can't do us. You can get separated from your wife. You can get separated from your kids. You can get separated from your house. You can get separated from your body. But you can get separated from the love of God. Cancer can't get your soul. Listen to how Richard Sibbes puts it.

God takes care of poor, weak Christians that are struggling with temptations and corruptions. Christ carries them in his arms. All Christ sheep are diseased. And therefore, he takes tender care of them. All Christ sheep are diseased. And therefore, he takes tender care of them. What a tragedy it is when our friends and neighbors who are wondering about life and death and the things of the spirit. When when they've got this idea that somehow or another God is taking care of us by our profession because we are the undiseased ones. We're the diseased ones. Every day we need fresh forgiveness.

Every day.

Bob LePine: We are learning to rejoice in all circumstances on Truth for Life weekend with Alistair Begg. Today's message wraps up our study in Habakkuk. If you missed any of the messages in this series or would like to re-listen or share the study with a friend, you can find the complete series on our website at truthforlife.org. The message in Habakkuk helps us understand how our faith gives us a totally different view of the universe and God's involvement in the unfolding story of history. And today at Truth for Life, we are offering a free e-book that will help you put what you believe into action just as Habakkuk did.

It's Alistair's book, The Christian Manifesto, Jesus Life Changing Words from the Sermon on the Plain. How do we enjoy life at its very best? That's the question Alistair asks as he opens this study of Luke chapter six. You'll explore the characteristics of faithful Christian living and find out what real Christian love looks like in practice, why forgiveness is so important in our walk, and why it's better to be hated for Christ's sake than to be loved by the world. The e-book comes with a companion study guide and you can download both for free today at truthforlife.org/manifesto.

The Christian Manifesto is a great book to use for your next small group Bible study. Together you can discover life that truly satisfies and really makes a difference. Share the link with everyone in your group so they can take advantage of this offer while the e-book and study guide are free to download. Again, the link is at truthforlife.org/manifesto. Now, here's Alistair to close with prayer.

Alistair Begg: Father, we thank you that the Bible is such that we can never plumb its depths, that it is actually the book that understands us more than we even understand it. We thank you that you in it you have disclosed yourself precisely as you chose to say exactly what you want. So, come to our complaining hearts and lives. Come to our superficial views of history. And set us right, Lord, we pray. Now, simply that we may be settled as it were in our own equilibrium, but in order that we might be what you have desired for us to be shining as lights in a dark place, bearing news of the fact that Christ is the one who comes to those who are diseased and provides the very answer in his own sacrifice.

And come to our untidy lives today, Lord. We pray and help us whether our circumstances alter for the better or not to be able to affirm that Lord, you are sovereign over everything you've made. And then help us to live in light of that for Jesus' sake. Amen.

Bob LePine: I'm Bob LePine. Thanks for joining us to study God's word this weekend. Next weekend, we'll look at the Apostle Paul's ministry. How did he persevere in praying and preaching so fervently even when he faced daunting obstacles and severe trials, including death threats, shipwrecks, imprisonment? Listen next weekend to learn about the key to Paul's persistence. The Bible teaching of Alistair Begg is furnished by Truth for Life where the learning is for living.