“Bad Things and Our Faith”

Background: Habakkuk was a prophet under (good) King Josiah, 640-609bc. When King Josiah dies, the following king was not so good (Babylonia rises!). Interesting to me: Habakkuk 2:4 was what the Apostle Paul used in Romans 1:17 to introduce the justification by faith alone principle. Martin Luther’s interpretation of this verse totally reoriented his thinking and was a contributor to which the Protestant Reformation was based on. Hallelujah!

Citations, citations: This study’s title and the series outlines were originally preached from by Edwin Shepperson at Grace Church in September/October 2013. These Bible studies in this series are from my own notes (by the Spirit’s direction) upon hearing when the sermons were preached.

Habakkuk 2:4-20 New American Standard Bible (1995)

4 “Behold, as for the proud one, his soul is not right within him; but the righteous will live by his faith.
5 Furthermore, wine betrays the haughty man, so that he does not stay at home. He enlarges his appetite like Sheol, and he is like death, never satisfied. He also gathers to himself all nations and collects to himself all peoples.

6 Will not all of these take up a taunt-song against him, Even mockery and insinuations against him and say, ‘Woe to him who increases what is not his— For how long— and makes himself rich with loans?’
7 Will not your creditors rise up suddenly, and those who collect from you awaken? Indeed, you will become plunder for them.
8 Because you have looted many nations, all the remainder of the peoples will loot you— because of human bloodshed and violence done to the land, to the town and all its inhabitants.

9 Woe to him who gets evil gain for his house to put his nest on high, to be delivered from th0e hand of calamity!
10 You have devised a shameful thing for your house by cutting off many peoples; So you are sinning against yourself.
11 Surely the stone will cry out from the wall, and the rafter will answer it from the framework.

12 Woe to him who builds a city with bloodshed and founds a town with violence!
13 Is it not indeed from the Lord of hosts that peoples toil for fire, and nations grow weary for nothing?
14 For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.

15 Woe to you who make your neighbors drink, who mix in your venom even to make them drunk so as to look on their nakedness!
16 You will be filled with disgrace rather than honor. Now you yourself drink and expose your own nakedness. The cup in the Lord’s right hand will come around to you, and utter disgrace will come upon your glory.
17 For the violence done to Lebanon will overwhelm you, and the devastation of its beasts by which you terrified them, because of human bloodshed and violence done to the land, to the town and all its inhabitants.

18 What profit is the idol when its maker has carved it, or an image, a teacher of falsehood? For its maker trusts in his own handiwork when he fashions speechless idols.
19 Woe to him who says to a piece of wood, ‘Awake!’ To a mute stone, ‘Arise!’ And that is your teacher? Behold, it is overlaid with gold and silver, and there is no breath at all inside it.
20 But the Lord is in His holy temple let all the earth be silent before Him.”

1. Bad things and faith in myself. vs. 4-20

The Babylonians did this: Did so to both Isreal and Judah.

–Get what I can get vs. 5-8

Woe = Sorrow. Serving just self ≠ happiness, ever.

—Get it how I can vs. 9-14

In this passage Habakkuk is calling out the Babylonians who conquered/enslaved Isreal/Judah (massively wrong). Sure, we’re not that evil, yet we can be not “most excellent” in the flesh/on our own agenda according to the lusts (1 John 2:15-16). Days that don’t start with HIM (in His Word/Prayer) aren’t as good as those days that do.

–Get it to feel good vs. 15-17

If you are determined to not be obedient = death. Consider the Law of Diminishing Return.

–Get it and Love it vs. 18-20

How many things in my life are idols? What stands in the way of God’s blessing on my life? Anything that takes priority over Him is an idol.

2. Bad things and faith in the Lord.

–Who I am Romans 1:16-17

I am not ashamed. Our Identity, our righteousness is on HIM (Romans 3:22-23)

–How I feel Galatians 3:10-11

The statement here is that man is justified by the faith of Jesus Christ, i.e. the faith which Christ generates in the human heart (Romans 4:2). James 2:21-24 can confuse when compared to this, but it’s works that come from faith, as a result of faith.

–What I do Hebrews 10:35-38

It’s a moment by moment display of God’s redemption work and our response (Rom 12:1-2)