Wednesday Evening Lesson

Tonight we're back in Habakkuk. chapter 2

We found 5 woes for sinful man, or The 5 Woes of Judgment.
1. Woe to the Oppressive. (4 - 8)
This addresses those who have no decency in the way they treat those who are under their authority. Its about those who while in office, or while in a position of advantage, treat others with an emboldened harshness and cruelty. This can be applied to just about any situation, like those in governmental offices and those religions which are violent when in power, but "peaceful" when in the minority. Take Islam, or Muslims for example. In this country, and in some other places, they claim to be "tolerant" and "peaceful", however in every country without exception, where they are in power they persecute and kill Christians. This is peaceful and tolerant? I don't think so. Catholics (Roman that is) aren't any better. When the world was theirs they killed and persecuted more Christians than anybody, and refused to allow their own people to read the Bible. Yet now, when the world isn't at their call, they "love" and "respect" everyone. Right. Some groups of Baptists haven't done themselves any favors, along with some other groups of "Christians". Too many groups flaunt and carelessly use and abuse the position of influence once the get it, and the backlash is horrible. Sorry, but anyone who in a position of influence or power, who is unkind, abusive and cruel toward those who cannot safely retaliate, appeal or otherwise find relief, is who this passage is addressed to! Those who misuse power should know that it becomes what the passage describes as "Thick Clay" around your boots. In Van Leer, TN they have red clay. I know because we owned about 124 Acres of it. This stuff was horrible if you didn't farm it right. If you tried to walk through a real muddy field of this stuff you'd better be ready to carry a few pounds. I've had it get so thick it pulled my boots off! Every time you carelessly step on another weaker (be it in authority, number or physical strength) person, you pile it on, and as the passage says, it'll come back to bite you!

2. Woe to the Greedy (9 - 11)
This addresses those who could care less about anyone else in the world, or their needs, only their own survival and advancement. The key to this passage is the idea that one would sacrifice anyone to make sure they survive whatever "evil" or bad time, may come around. They want only for themselves, and care only for themselves, and would not so much as sacrifice a penny to see that someone else was better, or taken care of. They only care to make sure their life is good, and their retirement fund is fat. Its not bad to have a retirement fund, I have one, its bad to feed it at the expense of helping someone who is your neighbor. Heaping things unto yourself in an effort to make sure no calamity comes your way is one thing, what's even worse is doing so at the direct expense of others! This is what drove the Native Americans off their land, greed. White men wanted land that had gold, Indians were in the way, so we moved them. We couldn't do a just thing, and live in peace, no, we had to send them on the trail of tears to statisfy our lusts. May God have mercy. God has a plan, I believe that. God had a plan to use the Chaldeans to judge Israel, He also had a plan to judge the Chaldeans.

3. Woe to the Unjust (12 - 14)
This addresses those who build their business, city, country, whatever, through injustice, and cruelty. Like in many ways the US in which I live. Yes, I confess, this country has abused a few races for its own advancement. Native Americans, and African Americans to name two most obvious. I don't know of a treaty made with a Native American tribe this country ever followed through on. History has shown, and it has proven true, that no country, or race, can subjugate or enslave another for very long before they get fed up with it and do something about it. No one who robs someone else's house to furnish their own is going to live there for very long! I call this the "Microsoft passage". They built their business with some very unjust practices, and I believe they have long since seen their best times pass. Of course, this goes for any Church or religious group as well. Any Church, Baptist or otherwise, which doesn't receive those whom God has cleansed, is due judgment! I've known of, and have known personally those who would not witness to Black men about Jesus. What a sin. What an injustice, to withhold the truth of salvation from a lost soul. To allow them to die without Christ and spend eternity in Hell because you don't like their culture, or their color is injustice of the worst kind! Not only that, but to then persecute, and abuse them for those same reasons is the target of this passage.

4. Woe to the Drunks and Pushers (15 - 17)
This addresses both those who push drugs and Alcohol on to someone else so they can take advantage of them, and those who take them. Why? Because if you stay away from those things, your life will not have the problems brought on by them! Forget for a moment the physical problems brought on by drinking and doing drugs, (I still live with a few), the mental issues alone are worth avoiding it! Mental issues like making very bad decisions, and signing on to very bad deals, or giving away very important or valuable things. Not to mention the stupid things you do that the pusher is going to use against you at some future time. However, What God is really after are those who purposefully try to get their neighbor drunk so that he can take advantage of him in some way, like clean out his house, rape, or take embarrassing pictures for money.

5. Woe to the Idolaters (18 - 20)
This addresses anyone who tries to "Put God in a box". At first glance you'd have to agree with God here, its not very smart to create something, and then subject your self to the thing, and claim what you know is dead ('cause you made it) is actually alive. However, the truth is this is the kind of "god" most people really want. They want a god they can "create" in their own image. They don't want the real God, because He will not be subject to what YOU think, or want. They want a god they can live with, so they create one that will bend to their whims of what is right and wrong! Its much easier to create a god than it is to worship the real one. The Real, True, Living God will not be bound by what you think. Your thoughts, as are mine, are so much lower than His. God despises this as much as any, because this directly attacks His Lordship over your life. This directly attacks His glory. You see anything you create is going to be less than you. If that's so, and as Romans 3:23 says we've all fallen short of the glory of God, then what we create is going to be EVEN LOWER! No, its high time we quite trying to make God, and God's Word conform to our wants and whims, and started allowing God's Word, and God to transform us to His Will!

In all these things God says He will be glorified, and He will judge. So, Habakkuk, God says, "You can relax, I'm going to honor my Name, and I'm going to do what it takes to make sure everyone on the earth knows that I am God!" When Jesus died on the Cross He demonstrated His hatred of Sin, His love for sinners, His mercy, and His judgment. God showed in Christ just how wicked sin is. But, there is a way, a way through Christ the risen Lord, to forgiveness and mercy! Go to Him before your sins find you out!

Wednesday Evening Lesson

Tonight's Message at Missionary Ridge Baptist Church was a continuation of our New Testament Lessons in Old Testament Prophets series.

I'm in Habakkuk. (its in there, keep looking).
From verse 12 of chapter 1 to verse 1 of chapter 2 (1:12 - 2:1) you have Habakkuk's second question. I call it the Prophet's Worry.
Its about a man who knows certain things, or believes certain things, about God. He also knows certain things about what God is doing, however he has a hard time reconciling the two things together. God is Everlasting, so Israel will not be completely destroyed, and God is in Full control, and has appointed the Chaldeans as instruments of Judgment and Chastisement for Israel. (This is the part Habakkuk can't figure out By the Way.) God is also Holy, so much so in fact, that He can't bless wicked people. That's what Habakkuk means by "look upon iniquity". According to Habakkuk God is too holy to answer a lost man's prayer. The only problem with that picture is that God has, in the Bible, answered lost men's prayers. Remember the King of Assyria that was healed of Leprosy? What about Cornelius in Acts, who while still lost, got a visit from an Angel that said God was impressed! No, God does hear, however, the truth is that He is not obligated to respond. There is no promise that God will hear the prayers of those who are not His, but there is precedence that shows He could. Not only that, but, God appears to be blessing the Chaldeans, and encouraging their sinful pride and false idol worship!
So, what's in this for us?
1. IN all your ways acknowledge Him. When you're faced with facts that appear contradictory, first fall back on what God's Word says is true about God, and Acknowledge that. There are times when you cannot see either the Hand or the Face of God, however He's still there. Habakkuk acknowledges God's plan in verse 12 by saying that he knows the facts, God has ordained them. Habakkuk may not understand how God could do that, but this doesn't stop Habakkuk from knowing its by God's hand! Too many think that if they can't understand it, then they can't believe it. Well, I've got news for ya' God's thoughts are higher than your thoughts, and God's ways higher than your ways, you'll NEVER, no NEVER, understand it all! That's a part of what it means to walk by faith, sometimes you don't get it, and don't see it, but that doesn't stop you from knowing its true anyway.
2. IN all your troubles go to Him. If you listen to Habakkuk you'll see that he takes his thoughts and concerns to God without reservation, but he does so humbly. Habakkuk acknowledges God, then confesses his own ignorance in the situation. However, either way don't bottle it up. If you are God's child He WANTS you to come to Him, even if you are a little upset. God can correct a wrong attitude, if its brought before Him, and confessed. God resists the proud, but gives grace unto the Humble.
3. IN all your ramblings learn to wait and watch. Habakkuk says in essence, "I'll climb up on my tower, and keep an eye out in case God answers me, and I'll work out how I will answer when God rebukes me." By so doing he demonstrates a very New Testament command by Jesus, "Watch and Pray". He confesses that he's wrong, which is much better than most people in our day. Too many people come before God thinking they are owed something, or they have a right to have their questions answered. You have no rights before God, only privileges, use them wisely or lose them fast.

This isn't all we went over but the jist of it anyway.