1 00:00:00,960 --> 00:00:03,720 A few days ago, my wife Kristen read me a message that was 2 00:00:03,720 --> 00:00:06,880 posted on a mom's listserv that she belongs to. 3 00:00:07,640 --> 00:00:10,360 The message began. I don't know what to do for 4 00:00:10,360 --> 00:00:15,160 Easter. My kids are 12:10 and 5:00, The 5 00:00:15,160 --> 00:00:18,960 youngest for sure believes. But the jury's out on the 6 00:00:18,960 --> 00:00:22,560 middle. When Kristen first read that, 7 00:00:22,960 --> 00:00:25,880 she had the same thought that I first had when she read it to 8 00:00:25,880 --> 00:00:29,120 me. The youngest for sure believes, 9 00:00:30,200 --> 00:00:34,240 believes in Jesus, believes that he rose from the dead. 10 00:00:35,200 --> 00:00:38,760 But you don't. The message continues. 11 00:00:40,400 --> 00:00:42,960 The real struggle for me is that I do not want to buy them more 12 00:00:42,960 --> 00:00:45,520 stuff. I'm just done with it all. 13 00:00:45,520 --> 00:00:49,880 So much stuff. I know I can't do nothing, but 14 00:00:49,880 --> 00:00:52,040 please help me make something useful. 15 00:00:52,480 --> 00:00:56,560 Oh, OK, So what the five year old definitely believes, and the 16 00:00:56,560 --> 00:01:01,600 10 year old might still believe, is the Easter Bunny, not Jesus. 17 00:01:02,720 --> 00:01:07,280 Now, we don't often question what it really means to believe 18 00:01:07,960 --> 00:01:11,320 in the Easter Bunny. This mom is concerned with this 19 00:01:11,320 --> 00:01:13,880 ongoing faith on the part of one, maybe two of her kids. 20 00:01:13,880 --> 00:01:15,760 What does it really mean to believe in the Easter Bunny? 21 00:01:16,440 --> 00:01:21,200 There is some sort of magical free creature that shows up at 22 00:01:21,200 --> 00:01:24,640 millions of people's houses at the same time on the same day of 23 00:01:24,640 --> 00:01:28,720 the year to distribute plastic eggs in hard to find places that 24 00:01:28,720 --> 00:01:30,800 might be filled with chocolate or other things. 25 00:01:31,800 --> 00:01:35,960 I guess that's what it means to believe in the Easter Bunny. 26 00:01:36,400 --> 00:01:38,320 Now, I don't mean to mock this mom. 27 00:01:38,720 --> 00:01:41,440 Holidays are hard. Parenting is hard. 28 00:01:41,640 --> 00:01:45,040 What's she trying to do? She is trying to teach her kids 29 00:01:45,920 --> 00:01:50,400 a fun myth to create some momentary magic. 30 00:01:50,920 --> 00:01:52,680 That's what she's trying to do on this holiday. 31 00:01:52,840 --> 00:01:59,560 Is that what Easter is? A myth that makes a moment of 32 00:01:59,560 --> 00:02:04,200 magic. The stakes of Easter are a lot 33 00:02:04,200 --> 00:02:09,360 higher than that. The meaning of Easter is a lot 34 00:02:09,360 --> 00:02:13,320 grander than that. It's easy for sort of polite, 35 00:02:13,320 --> 00:02:17,400 sweet, pastel coloured cultural traditions to sort of gloss over 36 00:02:17,680 --> 00:02:23,120 what Easter is about. Easter is about a former corpse 37 00:02:23,960 --> 00:02:26,200 becoming the ruler of the universe and the savior of all 38 00:02:26,200 --> 00:02:32,480 who believe. Easter is about suffering, evil 39 00:02:33,400 --> 00:02:37,880 and death itself all being done away with forever. 40 00:02:39,080 --> 00:02:42,480 That's what I would want my 5 year old, 10 year old 12 year 41 00:02:42,480 --> 00:02:45,480 old to believe if those were my 3 kids. 42 00:02:46,200 --> 00:02:49,120 If you're a guest with us this morning, we're delighted to have 43 00:02:49,120 --> 00:02:50,680 you. As Michael mentioned, you're 44 00:02:50,680 --> 00:02:52,760 warmly welcome to join us at the Pot like afterward. 45 00:02:52,760 --> 00:02:54,160 We are confident there will be enough food. 46 00:02:54,160 --> 00:02:55,520 Don't worry if you didn't bring anything. 47 00:02:55,680 --> 00:02:56,920 Don't worry if you didn't plan on it. 48 00:02:57,000 --> 00:02:59,760 We're happy to have you for lunch with us now. 49 00:02:59,800 --> 00:03:02,480 If you don't normally attend church, you might be a little 50 00:03:02,480 --> 00:03:05,960 bit surprised by the passage that I am about to preach 51 00:03:05,960 --> 00:03:09,160 through. It is not the most Eastery 52 00:03:09,160 --> 00:03:12,880 passage in the Bible that you might think of, but that's 53 00:03:12,880 --> 00:03:15,920 because I'm simply doing what we do each week here, which is 54 00:03:15,920 --> 00:03:18,680 preach straight through a book of the Bible. 55 00:03:19,000 --> 00:03:24,560 This sermon will be #5 of seven in the book of Habakkuk, the Old 56 00:03:24,560 --> 00:03:28,760 Testament prophetic book. As you'll find as we walk 57 00:03:28,760 --> 00:03:33,800 through the passage, the connections between our passage 58 00:03:33,920 --> 00:03:38,440 and Easter are actually surprisingly deep and 59 00:03:38,440 --> 00:03:42,040 surprisingly strong. Our passage for this morning is 60 00:03:42,040 --> 00:03:44,240 Habakkuk, chapter 2, verses 6 to 20. 61 00:03:44,520 --> 00:03:47,080 If you don't have a Bible with you, you can feel free to raise 62 00:03:47,080 --> 00:03:49,240 your hand and I think someone can bring one to you. 63 00:03:49,240 --> 00:03:51,480 Dawson, Austin, somebody, anybody need a Bible. 64 00:03:51,760 --> 00:03:53,600 If you don't have a Bible, you can have one now. 65 00:03:53,600 --> 00:03:55,680 If you don't have a Bible at home like that, you can 66 00:03:55,680 --> 00:03:58,000 conveniently read, You can feel free to put up your hand and 67 00:03:58,000 --> 00:03:59,760 keep that Bible from us as a gift to you. 68 00:03:59,760 --> 00:04:04,000 We'd be delighted for you to take that home to refresh our 69 00:04:04,000 --> 00:04:05,880 memories and catch you up to speed. 70 00:04:05,880 --> 00:04:09,200 If you're new, here's what we've seen in the book of Habakkuk so 71 00:04:09,200 --> 00:04:13,120 far. It's the late 7th century BC, 72 00:04:13,320 --> 00:04:16,279 just over 600 years before Christ. 73 00:04:16,640 --> 00:04:21,440 God's people are rejecting him and his ways. 74 00:04:21,920 --> 00:04:26,600 Their sin and idolatry are causing total social 75 00:04:26,600 --> 00:04:29,920 disintegration. So the prophet Habakkuk cries 76 00:04:29,920 --> 00:04:31,560 out for God to do something about it. 77 00:04:32,080 --> 00:04:35,360 And then God says he will. He'll raise up the Babylonians 78 00:04:35,760 --> 00:04:39,600 an empire to their northeast, to come down and conquer Judah, to 79 00:04:39,600 --> 00:04:42,920 carry out his judgement against his own people. 80 00:04:43,360 --> 00:04:45,120 But that seems even worse to Habakkuk. 81 00:04:45,640 --> 00:04:49,600 How can God use evil people to judge evil people? 82 00:04:50,200 --> 00:04:55,680 So God answers Habakkuk first by exhorting him to trust, by 83 00:04:55,680 --> 00:05:00,280 telling him to wait patiently for him to fulfill his promises. 84 00:05:00,600 --> 00:05:02,680 And when those promises are fulfilled, he will make a 85 00:05:02,680 --> 00:05:05,960 distinction, a just and fitting distinction between those who 86 00:05:05,960 --> 00:05:08,840 trust his promises and those who don't. 87 00:05:10,160 --> 00:05:13,480 These promises will eventually bring life to all who believe 88 00:05:14,400 --> 00:05:16,280 and judgement to all who reject God. 89 00:05:17,240 --> 00:05:20,960 Now we come to our passage, verses 6 to 20 of chapter 2. 90 00:05:21,520 --> 00:05:24,480 In this passage, the judgement God is promising becomes far 91 00:05:24,480 --> 00:05:28,400 more vivid and explicit. This is what God is going to do 92 00:05:28,400 --> 00:05:31,000 to the Babylonians, and he's what it's what God is going to 93 00:05:31,000 --> 00:05:34,000 do to all who reject him and refuse his ways. 94 00:05:34,520 --> 00:05:40,480 Now, it's primarily judgement, but that judgement itself is 95 00:05:40,480 --> 00:05:43,360 grounds for hope. And you'll also hear even 96 00:05:43,360 --> 00:05:47,040 brighter notes of hope at a few points in the passage. 97 00:05:47,040 --> 00:05:51,200 So please follow along as I read Habakkuk 2 verses 6 to 20. 98 00:05:54,560 --> 00:05:57,400 Shall not all these take up their taunt against him, with 99 00:05:57,400 --> 00:06:01,880 scoffing and riddles for him, and say woe to him who heaps up 100 00:06:01,880 --> 00:06:05,400 what is not his own for how long, and loads himself with 101 00:06:05,400 --> 00:06:08,680 pledges? Will not your debtors suddenly 102 00:06:08,680 --> 00:06:11,600 arise, and those awake who will make you tremble? 103 00:06:12,440 --> 00:06:17,080 Then you will be spoiled for them, because you have plundered 104 00:06:17,080 --> 00:06:20,560 many nations. All the remnants of the peoples 105 00:06:21,120 --> 00:06:25,560 shall plunder you for the blood of man and violence to the 106 00:06:25,560 --> 00:06:27,720 earth, to cities and all who dwell in them. 107 00:06:29,200 --> 00:06:33,680 Woe to him who gets evil gain for his house to set his nest on 108 00:06:33,680 --> 00:06:38,080 high, to be safe from the reach of harm. 109 00:06:38,720 --> 00:06:41,560 You have devised shame for your house by cutting off many 110 00:06:41,560 --> 00:06:43,560 peoples, you have forfeited your life. 111 00:06:44,120 --> 00:06:47,360 For the stone will cry out from the wall, and the beam from the 112 00:06:47,360 --> 00:06:51,360 woodwork. Respond Woe to him who builds a 113 00:06:51,360 --> 00:06:54,160 town with blood, and founds a city on iniquity. 114 00:06:55,160 --> 00:06:58,320 Behold, is it not from the Lord of hosts that peoples labour 115 00:06:58,320 --> 00:07:01,600 merely for fire, and nations weary themselves for nothing? 116 00:07:02,840 --> 00:07:08,440 For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory 117 00:07:08,440 --> 00:07:10,920 of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea. 118 00:07:12,360 --> 00:07:14,400 Woe to him who makes his neighbors drink. 119 00:07:15,200 --> 00:07:18,280 You pour out your wrath and make them drunk in order to gaze at 120 00:07:18,280 --> 00:07:21,680 their nakedness. You will have your fill of shame 121 00:07:21,680 --> 00:07:25,040 instead of glory. Drink yourself and show your 122 00:07:25,040 --> 00:07:28,400 uncircumcision. The cup in the Lord's right hand 123 00:07:28,400 --> 00:07:31,040 will come around to you, and utter shame will come upon your 124 00:07:31,040 --> 00:07:34,560 glory. The violence done to Lebanon 125 00:07:34,560 --> 00:07:38,480 will overwhelm you, as will the destruction of the beasts that 126 00:07:38,480 --> 00:07:42,880 terrified them for the blood of man and violence to the earth, 127 00:07:43,400 --> 00:07:46,360 to cities and all who dwell in them. 128 00:07:47,320 --> 00:07:53,680 What profit is an idol when its maker has shaped it, a metal 129 00:07:53,680 --> 00:07:59,720 image, a teacher of lies For its maker trust in his own creation. 130 00:08:00,120 --> 00:08:05,640 When he makes speechless idols, woe to him who says to a wooden 131 00:08:05,640 --> 00:08:10,040 thing awake, to a silent stone arise. 132 00:08:10,520 --> 00:08:14,040 Can this teach? Behold, that is overlaid with 133 00:08:14,040 --> 00:08:16,960 gold and silver, and there is no breath at all in it. 134 00:08:18,560 --> 00:08:22,480 But the Lord is in his holy temple. 135 00:08:24,080 --> 00:08:29,600 Let all the earth keep silence before him. 136 00:08:32,799 --> 00:08:36,720 Obviously, this whole passage announces and focuses on God's 137 00:08:36,720 --> 00:08:39,320 judgement. We often think of God's 138 00:08:39,320 --> 00:08:43,679 judgement as bad news, and in part it is. 139 00:08:44,039 --> 00:08:48,120 It is bad news if you reject God and receive his judgement. 140 00:08:48,680 --> 00:08:56,040 But God's judgement is also unspeakably good news. 141 00:08:57,240 --> 00:09:01,760 God's judgement is not only what sinners fear, it is also what 142 00:09:01,760 --> 00:09:08,040 sufferers hope for and what the oppressed cry out for. 143 00:09:09,560 --> 00:09:16,600 God's judgement involves both retribution and restoration. 144 00:09:17,560 --> 00:09:21,080 In our passage, retribution is the dominant note, but the two 145 00:09:21,400 --> 00:09:24,600 are inseparable. God's judgement will defeat 146 00:09:24,600 --> 00:09:28,320 evil. God's judgement will remove 147 00:09:28,320 --> 00:09:31,800 evil. God's judgement will restore all 148 00:09:31,800 --> 00:09:34,760 the goodness that evil took away and more. 149 00:09:35,680 --> 00:09:37,920 That's the hope that our passage holds out to us. 150 00:09:38,480 --> 00:09:41,040 Our passage answers the question, What will God's 151 00:09:41,040 --> 00:09:45,520 judgement accomplish? The passage pronounces 5 woes 152 00:09:45,520 --> 00:09:47,400 against Babylon, each of which gives an answer. 153 00:09:47,400 --> 00:09:49,120 So the sermon will have five points. 154 00:09:49,400 --> 00:09:54,320 Point #1 Plunder the plunderers. That's what God promises to do 155 00:09:54,320 --> 00:09:58,440 in verses 6 to 8. Plunder the plunderers. 156 00:09:58,880 --> 00:10:01,400 Look again with me at those verses starting in verses 6 and 157 00:10:01,400 --> 00:10:03,640 seven. Shall not all these take up 158 00:10:03,640 --> 00:10:06,280 their taunt against him with scoffing and riddles for him, 159 00:10:06,280 --> 00:10:10,000 and say woe to him who heaps up what is not his own for how 160 00:10:10,000 --> 00:10:12,120 long, and loads himself with pledges? 161 00:10:12,920 --> 00:10:15,800 Will not your debtors suddenly arise, and those awake who will 162 00:10:15,800 --> 00:10:18,560 make you tremble? Then you will be spoiled for 163 00:10:18,560 --> 00:10:21,000 them. Verse 6 begins by referring to 164 00:10:21,000 --> 00:10:23,320 all these. Who are all these? 165 00:10:23,720 --> 00:10:27,240 They're all the nations that the king of Babylon has gathered to 166 00:10:27,240 --> 00:10:31,040 himself, as verse 5 says, through unjust conquests, 167 00:10:31,200 --> 00:10:34,120 through taking lands and territories that don't belong to 168 00:10:34,120 --> 00:10:36,440 him. So our passage predicts a time 169 00:10:36,440 --> 00:10:39,920 when all those who have been oppressed will be liberated. 170 00:10:40,320 --> 00:10:44,200 Not only will they be freed from tyranny, they'll even boast over 171 00:10:44,200 --> 00:10:47,840 and taunt their tyrants. This whole rest of our passage 172 00:10:47,840 --> 00:10:50,680 is the song they'll sing on the day when that happens. 173 00:10:50,800 --> 00:10:54,240 So from the outset, this passage is about the reversal of 174 00:10:54,240 --> 00:10:57,520 injustice. It's about the freeing of those 175 00:10:57,520 --> 00:11:03,120 who have been oppressed. The word woe is both a judgement 176 00:11:03,800 --> 00:11:07,720 and a cry of sorrow. It pronounces God's judgement 177 00:11:07,720 --> 00:11:10,720 and mourns the fate of the one who suffers it. 178 00:11:11,560 --> 00:11:14,480 Now, throughout our passage, these woes describe the evil 179 00:11:14,480 --> 00:11:17,440 actions of the Babylonian Empire vividly and graphically. 180 00:11:17,880 --> 00:11:21,960 And they do so in ways that fit lots of other oppressive powers, 181 00:11:22,640 --> 00:11:28,200 whether political regimes or economic orders, whether social 182 00:11:28,200 --> 00:11:33,640 trends or personal offenses. So these woes are especially 183 00:11:33,640 --> 00:11:36,760 about the Babylonians. They're primarily aimed at the 184 00:11:36,760 --> 00:11:40,600 Babylonians, but they also paint a picture of how all oppressors 185 00:11:40,640 --> 00:11:43,360 work. And they promise a judgement 186 00:11:43,360 --> 00:11:46,720 that will ultimately fall on all oppressors. 187 00:11:48,040 --> 00:11:50,800 Verse 6 begins by describing how the Babylonians have greedily 188 00:11:50,800 --> 00:11:53,800 gobbled up what doesn't belong to them, people, territory, the 189 00:11:53,800 --> 00:11:56,320 resources and wealth of other kingdoms. 190 00:11:56,560 --> 00:11:59,280 For how long? It might seem long now, but 191 00:11:59,280 --> 00:12:03,200 verse 7 says, will not your debtors suddenly arise? 192 00:12:03,520 --> 00:12:05,480 This might refer to literal debtors. 193 00:12:05,480 --> 00:12:08,920 It's possible the Babylonians finance their their conquests by 194 00:12:08,920 --> 00:12:11,960 debt, but it's most likely, I think, that it's a metaphor. 195 00:12:12,280 --> 00:12:14,800 The Babylonians think they've been racking up wealth by 196 00:12:14,800 --> 00:12:17,440 plundering all these kingdoms, building a bigger and bigger and 197 00:12:17,440 --> 00:12:22,040 bigger war chest back home. But as God sees it, their evil 198 00:12:22,040 --> 00:12:24,920 actions have been mounting up debts before Him. 199 00:12:25,720 --> 00:12:32,760 And God one day is going to call those debts due unjust killing, 200 00:12:33,520 --> 00:12:37,600 plunder, taking captives in war, sending them back to the capital 201 00:12:37,600 --> 00:12:43,000 and enslaving them. A day will come when, just as 202 00:12:43,000 --> 00:12:46,600 the Babylonians have taken spoil from many kingdoms, they 203 00:12:46,600 --> 00:12:49,400 themselves will become spoil for others. 204 00:12:49,640 --> 00:12:51,800 God's judgement will be just and fitting. 205 00:12:52,320 --> 00:12:54,320 There will even be an element of poetic justice. 206 00:12:54,320 --> 00:12:57,880 The judgement will fit with and follow from the crime. 207 00:12:58,960 --> 00:13:00,560 The plunderers will be plundered. 208 00:13:01,400 --> 00:13:04,840 Verse 8 Because you have plundered many nations, all the 209 00:13:04,840 --> 00:13:07,600 remnant of the people shall plunder you for the blood of man 210 00:13:07,600 --> 00:13:10,520 and violence to the earth, to cities, and all who dwell in 211 00:13:10,520 --> 00:13:13,120 them. The remnant of the peoples 212 00:13:13,120 --> 00:13:16,480 refers to survivors in the cities and territories that the 213 00:13:16,480 --> 00:13:19,400 Babylonians conquered. For instance, at the height of 214 00:13:19,400 --> 00:13:22,080 their power, the Babylonians subjugated the Medes and the 215 00:13:22,080 --> 00:13:25,040 Persians, and it would be an alliance of those very powers 216 00:13:25,040 --> 00:13:28,760 that in two generations would rise up and topple Babylon. 217 00:13:30,120 --> 00:13:34,680 Verse 8 gives the reason why the Babylonians will be punished for 218 00:13:34,680 --> 00:13:39,760 the blood of man and violence to the earth, to cities and all who 219 00:13:39,760 --> 00:13:42,520 dwell in them. Babylon will be condemned by God 220 00:13:42,520 --> 00:13:45,480 for their violence against people and their violence 221 00:13:45,480 --> 00:13:48,400 against creation. They will be judged for their 222 00:13:48,400 --> 00:13:50,640 greed, for their theft, for taking what didn't belong to 223 00:13:50,640 --> 00:13:52,280 them. They'll be judged for harming 224 00:13:52,280 --> 00:13:58,000 both people and this earth in their insatiable quest for more. 225 00:13:59,120 --> 00:14:04,440 Now there's a historical horizon here and an eternal horizon in 226 00:14:04,440 --> 00:14:06,680 history. Just a few decades later. 227 00:14:06,840 --> 00:14:10,320 God partially fulfilled this promise by raising up Cyrus the 228 00:14:10,320 --> 00:14:14,200 Persian to seize power over the Babylonians in 539 BC. 229 00:14:14,880 --> 00:14:17,680 But God's judgement extends far beyond that historical event. 230 00:14:18,200 --> 00:14:21,760 It will be fulfilled in fullness when Christ returns and judges 231 00:14:21,760 --> 00:14:25,000 all people. And the consequences for sin 232 00:14:25,480 --> 00:14:28,080 that the Lord Jesus begins to hand out on that day will 233 00:14:28,240 --> 00:14:31,480 persist forever in eternity in hell. 234 00:14:33,280 --> 00:14:36,560 These five woes in our passage are like a five part miniseries. 235 00:14:36,560 --> 00:14:39,240 They're short, provocative episodes of judgement. 236 00:14:39,520 --> 00:14:42,640 They portray both the sins of Babylon and God's judgement in 237 00:14:42,640 --> 00:14:44,640 vivid detail. They're meant as a wake up call. 238 00:14:44,760 --> 00:14:47,280 5 short wake up calls back-to-back to back. 239 00:14:47,440 --> 00:14:49,200 They're meant to teach us 2 main lessons. 240 00:14:49,720 --> 00:14:52,560 Hope in God's judgement and flee from sin. 241 00:14:53,440 --> 00:14:56,680 Patiently wait for God to deal with evil in his time and in his 242 00:14:56,680 --> 00:15:00,360 way, and turn from evil yourself. 243 00:15:00,920 --> 00:15:02,920 It's easy to look at the world and see a whole bunch of evil 244 00:15:02,920 --> 00:15:05,840 out there, a whole bunch of people, bad people doing bad 245 00:15:05,840 --> 00:15:07,720 things. And that perception might be 246 00:15:07,720 --> 00:15:09,800 accurate, that judgement might be true. 247 00:15:10,000 --> 00:15:12,440 But a passage like this is also meant to be a mirror, to hold up 248 00:15:12,440 --> 00:15:16,720 and say you might think it's only bad people out there, but 249 00:15:16,720 --> 00:15:19,640 what about the bad in here? What about the ways in which 250 00:15:19,640 --> 00:15:22,480 you're tempted to reflect and imitate people like the 251 00:15:22,480 --> 00:15:25,560 Babylonians more than you would care to admit? 252 00:15:26,960 --> 00:15:29,680 One of the themes of of this woe, and all the following ones, 253 00:15:29,680 --> 00:15:31,280 is that God's judgement is fitting. 254 00:15:31,640 --> 00:15:33,840 It's exact, it's just, it's complete. 255 00:15:34,360 --> 00:15:36,720 Those who have robbed others will be robbed of everything. 256 00:15:36,720 --> 00:15:40,480 Those who have devastated others will themselves be devastated. 257 00:15:40,760 --> 00:15:44,240 How can that be good news? It's especially good news if 258 00:15:44,240 --> 00:15:47,680 you've ever been on the receiving end of suffering 259 00:15:48,040 --> 00:15:51,720 injustice that didn't get addressed, wasn't properly dealt 260 00:15:51,720 --> 00:15:54,880 with, wasn't handled rightly by the authorities, or even if it 261 00:15:54,880 --> 00:15:58,960 was, the justice that was meted out, you came to realize didn't, 262 00:15:59,160 --> 00:16:02,280 didn't, and couldn't completely fix what was wrong. 263 00:16:03,560 --> 00:16:11,480 All human justice is incomplete. Even when laws are just and 264 00:16:11,480 --> 00:16:17,200 trials are fair, and verdicts are true, and sentences are 265 00:16:17,200 --> 00:16:21,680 fitting and proportional, the execution of human justice 266 00:16:22,360 --> 00:16:26,920 cannot give back everything that an evil person took away. 267 00:16:28,840 --> 00:16:32,360 As we'll see throughout this passage, God's judgement doesn't 268 00:16:32,360 --> 00:16:35,640 only punish evil, it defeats evil. 269 00:16:36,440 --> 00:16:40,080 God's judgement doesn't just repay those who caused harm, it 270 00:16:40,080 --> 00:16:46,280 also removes the harm and restores the one who is harmed 271 00:16:48,000 --> 00:16:54,080 .2 Ruin every false refuge. What will God's judgement 272 00:16:54,080 --> 00:16:58,560 accomplish? It will ruin every false refuge. 273 00:17:00,880 --> 00:17:03,560 That's what the second woe in verses 9 to 11 pronounces and 274 00:17:03,560 --> 00:17:07,920 promises verse 9. Woe to him who gets evil gain 275 00:17:07,920 --> 00:17:10,720 for his house to set his nest on high, to be safe from the reach 276 00:17:10,720 --> 00:17:13,960 of harm. Babylon sought to secure their 277 00:17:13,960 --> 00:17:16,720 power and permanence by exploitation. 278 00:17:17,200 --> 00:17:18,680 They sought to protect themselves. 279 00:17:18,880 --> 00:17:21,960 By robbing others of protection, they sought security for 280 00:17:21,960 --> 00:17:25,359 themselves. By denying security to others. 281 00:17:25,839 --> 00:17:28,760 That's what the image of setting their nest on high implies. 282 00:17:28,760 --> 00:17:32,000 It's like an eagle building a nest, an irie up in a rock face. 283 00:17:32,000 --> 00:17:35,080 They tried to make themselves impregnable, invulnerable. 284 00:17:36,600 --> 00:17:40,760 But of course, that obsessive quest for security shows they 285 00:17:40,760 --> 00:17:43,800 were haunted by fear. Bullies have to be afraid of 286 00:17:43,800 --> 00:17:47,160 everyone because they make everyone their enemy. 287 00:17:47,160 --> 00:17:52,440 An obsessive quest for security shows how insecure you really 288 00:17:52,440 --> 00:17:55,120 are. And verse 10 shows us this quest 289 00:17:55,120 --> 00:17:58,240 was futile. You have devised shame for your 290 00:17:58,240 --> 00:18:00,560 house. By cutting off many peoples, you 291 00:18:00,560 --> 00:18:03,720 have forfeited your life. Now, when it says you've devised 292 00:18:03,760 --> 00:18:06,760 shame, that's of course the opposite of what the Babylonians 293 00:18:06,760 --> 00:18:10,600 were intending. But the point is, their plans 294 00:18:10,680 --> 00:18:14,160 produced the opposite of their desires. 295 00:18:14,320 --> 00:18:18,160 They schemed for glory, but what they were actually planning 296 00:18:18,400 --> 00:18:23,760 turned into shame, and that's because they violently cut off 297 00:18:23,760 --> 00:18:26,920 others. They stole life and thereby 298 00:18:26,920 --> 00:18:30,240 forfeited their life in various ways. 299 00:18:30,240 --> 00:18:33,800 In his providential rule over history and ultimately at the 300 00:18:33,800 --> 00:18:39,160 final judgement God will ruin every false refuge. 301 00:18:40,080 --> 00:18:42,720 Verse 11 tells us that their own possessions will testify against 302 00:18:42,720 --> 00:18:45,440 them for the stone will crowd from the wall and the beam from 303 00:18:45,440 --> 00:18:48,600 the woodwork respond. The image here is of lavish 304 00:18:48,600 --> 00:18:51,280 royal palaces or temples that they would have built. 305 00:18:51,800 --> 00:18:55,680 They would have built with plundered materials or materials 306 00:18:55,680 --> 00:18:57,720 they got by spending other people's money. 307 00:18:57,720 --> 00:19:00,400 So they build these nice buildings and then the stones 308 00:19:00,400 --> 00:19:04,000 and the woodwork cries out against them, testifying to 309 00:19:04,000 --> 00:19:08,960 their I'll gotten gain. Sinful gain can give you a 310 00:19:08,960 --> 00:19:15,440 delusional sense of security. But living in sin is never safe. 311 00:19:16,840 --> 00:19:19,000 No security system can keep out death. 312 00:19:20,280 --> 00:19:23,760 No security system can protect you from God's judgement. 313 00:19:24,400 --> 00:19:28,600 Greed is deceptive. Seeking to secure yourself at 314 00:19:28,600 --> 00:19:33,640 cost to others is an illusion. You might not knowingly collude 315 00:19:33,760 --> 00:19:36,640 with an oppressive political power to try to profit from 316 00:19:36,640 --> 00:19:38,920 exploitation. I realized that that as a 317 00:19:38,960 --> 00:19:41,880 literal description of your actions might fit very few of us 318 00:19:41,880 --> 00:19:43,680 in this room. Might fit none of us in this 319 00:19:43,680 --> 00:19:48,320 room. But do you ever press your 320 00:19:48,320 --> 00:19:51,400 advantage at someone else's expense? 321 00:19:52,520 --> 00:19:56,480 Do you ever seek gain for yourself in a way that will 322 00:19:56,480 --> 00:19:59,520 leave someone else worse off than they should be? 323 00:20:00,320 --> 00:20:02,360 And worse off than they deserve to be. 324 00:20:04,000 --> 00:20:06,600 The Babylonians not only worshipped false gods of wood 325 00:20:06,600 --> 00:20:09,960 and stone, as we'll see at the end of the passage, they also 326 00:20:09,960 --> 00:20:13,640 worship their desires, their drives, their appetites. 327 00:20:14,480 --> 00:20:18,520 Physical idols are not the only kind of false gods. 328 00:20:19,320 --> 00:20:25,520 Any created thing that you look to for ultimate fulfilment or 329 00:20:25,520 --> 00:20:29,680 security is an idol. It's a false God whenever you 330 00:20:29,680 --> 00:20:34,120 look to it for total fulfilment, total protection. 331 00:20:34,360 --> 00:20:38,000 If only I have this thing, I will be happy and safe. 332 00:20:38,240 --> 00:20:39,800 You're making it a God in your heart. 333 00:20:40,600 --> 00:20:44,440 Now these verses show us that you can even devote yourself to 334 00:20:44,440 --> 00:20:47,960 one idol in the service of another idol. 335 00:20:48,160 --> 00:20:50,560 Here's what I mean. These verses show us that the 336 00:20:50,560 --> 00:20:53,400 Babylonians were idolatrously greedy. 337 00:20:53,400 --> 00:20:57,040 Their greed was an idol. The Apostle Paul says in 338 00:20:57,040 --> 00:21:01,120 Colossians 35 that covetousness is idolatry. 339 00:21:02,120 --> 00:21:05,520 But Babylon's greed also served another idol, a deeper idol. 340 00:21:05,960 --> 00:21:10,000 They pursued greed to attain security. 341 00:21:10,920 --> 00:21:14,680 Their surface idol was greed, money, wealth, possessions. 342 00:21:15,280 --> 00:21:19,920 Their deep idol was security. I'm borrowing this distinction 343 00:21:19,920 --> 00:21:23,720 between surface idols and deep idols from Tim Keller's book 344 00:21:23,720 --> 00:21:26,520 Counterfeit Gods. It's one of the deepest insights 345 00:21:26,520 --> 00:21:28,760 in the whole book. Keller writes on this so 346 00:21:28,760 --> 00:21:31,320 insightfully, I'm going to read a quote that's long but worth 347 00:21:31,320 --> 00:21:33,840 it. Surface idols, deep idols. 348 00:21:34,560 --> 00:21:36,880 Keller says counterfeit gods come in structures. 349 00:21:37,560 --> 00:21:41,280 Sin in our hearts effects our basic motivational drives. 350 00:21:41,640 --> 00:21:47,600 Each deep idol power, approval, comfort or control generates a 351 00:21:47,600 --> 00:21:49,360 different set of fears and hopes. 352 00:21:49,760 --> 00:21:54,560 Surface idols are things like money, spouse, children through 353 00:21:54,560 --> 00:21:57,720 which our deep idols seek fulfilment. 354 00:21:58,280 --> 00:22:02,440 We're often superficial in the analysis of our idol structures. 355 00:22:02,720 --> 00:22:06,600 For example, money can be a surface idol that serves to 356 00:22:06,600 --> 00:22:09,640 satisfy more foundational influences. 357 00:22:09,920 --> 00:22:13,640 Some people want lots of money as a way to control their world 358 00:22:13,640 --> 00:22:15,560 and life. And such people usually don't 359 00:22:15,560 --> 00:22:18,880 spend much money. They live very modestly. 360 00:22:19,360 --> 00:22:21,960 They keep it all safely saved and invested so that they can 361 00:22:21,960 --> 00:22:23,760 feel completely safe in the world. 362 00:22:24,840 --> 00:22:28,560 Others want money for access to social circles and to make 363 00:22:28,560 --> 00:22:30,200 themselves beautiful and attractive. 364 00:22:30,600 --> 00:22:33,000 These people do spend their money on themselves in lavish 365 00:22:33,000 --> 00:22:35,480 ways. Other people want money because 366 00:22:35,480 --> 00:22:37,320 it gives them so much power over others. 367 00:22:37,440 --> 00:22:43,200 In every case, money functions as an idol, and yet because of 368 00:22:43,200 --> 00:22:46,760 various deep idols, it results in very different patterns of 369 00:22:47,200 --> 00:22:51,080 behavior. Over the coming week, do a 370 00:22:51,080 --> 00:22:54,640 little self examination. Prayerfully consider the desires 371 00:22:54,640 --> 00:22:56,000 of your heart in light of scripture. 372 00:22:56,920 --> 00:23:01,080 What are the evident surface idols that dominate your heart 373 00:23:01,080 --> 00:23:04,760 and mind? And what are the deep idols 374 00:23:05,120 --> 00:23:08,760 seeking fulfilment through those surface idols? 375 00:23:09,040 --> 00:23:13,240 If it's money you're longing for and craving, what is it you want 376 00:23:13,240 --> 00:23:17,640 money to get for you? It's easy to idolize money 377 00:23:17,640 --> 00:23:20,120 because in our society money can get you almost anything. 378 00:23:20,600 --> 00:23:23,000 So the question to ask yourself is not just whether you want 379 00:23:23,000 --> 00:23:27,240 money too much, but why? What are you looking money for 380 00:23:27,240 --> 00:23:31,280 money to get for you? Money is a modern all-purpose 381 00:23:31,640 --> 00:23:34,840 God substitute. It can get you anything. 382 00:23:34,840 --> 00:23:36,240 It can protect you from anything. 383 00:23:36,240 --> 00:23:38,720 It can fulfil anything, It can do anything for you. 384 00:23:39,680 --> 00:23:42,840 So be careful not to let money replace God in your heart. 385 00:23:44,480 --> 00:23:47,640 If you're not a believer in Jesus, where are you prone to 386 00:23:47,640 --> 00:23:51,000 look for ultimate fulfilment or security? 387 00:23:51,000 --> 00:23:55,280 That's not God. And how is that working out for 388 00:23:55,280 --> 00:23:59,400 you? Through his just judgement, God 389 00:23:59,400 --> 00:24:03,880 will ruin every false refuge. Now, the desire for security is 390 00:24:03,880 --> 00:24:07,320 not a bad thing. We all need it, though we like 391 00:24:07,320 --> 00:24:10,000 to think otherwise. All of us human beings are weak. 392 00:24:10,440 --> 00:24:14,040 We're frail, we're fragile, we're vulnerable. 393 00:24:14,320 --> 00:24:18,080 We need security. But you cannot find reliable 394 00:24:18,080 --> 00:24:21,280 security by entrusting yourself completely to any creature. 395 00:24:22,360 --> 00:24:25,440 Where can you find that kind of perfect security? 396 00:24:26,520 --> 00:24:30,400 It's in God alone, as David prayed in Psalm 61. 397 00:24:30,400 --> 00:24:35,800 Verses 2 and 3 lead me to the rock that is higher than I, for 398 00:24:35,800 --> 00:24:40,320 you have been my refuge, a strong tower against the enemy. 399 00:24:41,640 --> 00:24:43,720 And don't look for perfect security in this life. 400 00:24:44,440 --> 00:24:47,880 Instead, patiently wait for the perfect security that's coming 401 00:24:47,880 --> 00:24:51,520 in the new creation. As Agustin put it, none of us 402 00:24:51,520 --> 00:24:57,200 are secure or even can be secure until we arrive at our homeland, 403 00:24:58,320 --> 00:25:04,240 where no friend will leave us, nor enemy gain access. 404 00:25:07,160 --> 00:25:13,480 Point #3 Replace futility with glory. 405 00:25:14,000 --> 00:25:15,560 What will God's judgement accomplish? 406 00:25:16,080 --> 00:25:20,920 Verses 12 to 14? It will replace futility with 407 00:25:20,920 --> 00:25:23,960 glory. Verses 12 and 13. 408 00:25:25,040 --> 00:25:28,520 Woe to him who builds a town with blood and founds a city on 409 00:25:28,520 --> 00:25:31,400 iniquity. Behold, is it not from the Lord 410 00:25:31,400 --> 00:25:36,000 of hosts that people's labour merely for fire, and nations 411 00:25:36,000 --> 00:25:40,160 weary themselves for nothing? Building a town with blood, 412 00:25:40,160 --> 00:25:43,200 founding a city on iniquity, that that could refer to violent 413 00:25:43,200 --> 00:25:46,520 conquest or conscripted labour, or both? 414 00:25:46,880 --> 00:25:51,000 Like all imperial capitals, Babylon was built on the backs 415 00:25:51,000 --> 00:25:55,240 of the oppressed, prisoners of war and slaves. 416 00:25:56,120 --> 00:26:02,240 This is the way all proud human powers go about building their 417 00:26:02,240 --> 00:26:07,680 kingdoms, Building through oppression, building for self, 418 00:26:08,080 --> 00:26:13,720 building through exploitation, exploitation in service of self 419 00:26:13,720 --> 00:26:16,960 glorification. In the thesis statement from his 420 00:26:16,960 --> 00:26:19,960 great work, The City of God, Augustine penetrated down to the 421 00:26:19,960 --> 00:26:22,560 spiritual roots of every human effort to make a name for 422 00:26:22,560 --> 00:26:24,360 ourselves. He contrasts what he calls the 423 00:26:24,360 --> 00:26:26,640 City of God with the city of man. 424 00:26:28,400 --> 00:26:32,880 Accordingly 2 cities have been formed by two loves, the earthly 425 00:26:32,880 --> 00:26:37,480 by the love of self even to the contempt of God, the heavenly by 426 00:26:37,480 --> 00:26:39,640 the love of God even to the contempt of self. 427 00:26:40,760 --> 00:26:45,360 The former, in a word, glories in itself, the latter in the 428 00:26:45,360 --> 00:26:49,280 Lord. For the one seeks glory from 429 00:26:49,280 --> 00:26:54,920 men, but the greatest glory of the other is God, the witness of 430 00:26:54,920 --> 00:26:58,840 conscience. The one lifts up its head in its 431 00:26:58,840 --> 00:27:03,880 own glory, the other says to its God, Thou art my glory and the 432 00:27:03,880 --> 00:27:08,760 lifter up of mine head. The outcome of the city of man's 433 00:27:08,760 --> 00:27:13,400 building project is vanity, futility, emptiness, nothing. 434 00:27:14,000 --> 00:27:17,360 That's what verse 13 proclaims. Behold, is it not from the Lord 435 00:27:17,360 --> 00:27:21,240 of Hosts that peoples labor merely for fire, and nations 436 00:27:21,240 --> 00:27:24,440 weary themselves for nothing? The empire builds monuments to 437 00:27:24,440 --> 00:27:26,720 itself, but fire will burn them down. 438 00:27:27,080 --> 00:27:29,240 Whole nations will spend themselves for their own glory, 439 00:27:29,240 --> 00:27:34,000 but it will all come to nothing. Whatever empire is in charge at 440 00:27:34,000 --> 00:27:36,600 any given time. Let the tape run. 441 00:27:37,720 --> 00:27:41,560 Let a few more decades roll. Those territories will revolt. 442 00:27:42,600 --> 00:27:47,080 That wall will fall. That dominant global superpower 443 00:27:47,080 --> 00:27:51,240 will be demoted to one among many, or even less than that. 444 00:27:52,960 --> 00:27:56,120 But how can we be certain? What if there's an earthly power 445 00:27:56,120 --> 00:27:58,360 that bugs the trend and lasts as long as it wants? 446 00:27:58,800 --> 00:28:00,360 How can we know they'll all fall? 447 00:28:00,920 --> 00:28:05,360 Because God's building project will be the only one to succeed 448 00:28:05,360 --> 00:28:09,520 perfectly and permanently. That's what verse 14 shows us. 449 00:28:10,200 --> 00:28:15,280 For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory 450 00:28:15,280 --> 00:28:20,280 of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. 5 Woes. 451 00:28:20,760 --> 00:28:23,160 This is the middle one, and here's the reason. 452 00:28:23,520 --> 00:28:26,840 In terms of typical ways Old Testament books are structured, 453 00:28:27,000 --> 00:28:29,160 what comes in the middle is often the most important. 454 00:28:29,160 --> 00:28:32,360 It's often the key. Here it is, verse 14, key to the 455 00:28:32,360 --> 00:28:34,960 whole passage. For the earth will be filled 456 00:28:34,960 --> 00:28:37,880 with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover 457 00:28:37,880 --> 00:28:39,320 the sea. I've always been a little bit 458 00:28:39,320 --> 00:28:42,440 confused by that phrase. As the waters cover the sea, 459 00:28:42,680 --> 00:28:45,080 isn't the sea water by definition? 460 00:28:45,080 --> 00:28:48,040 How is water covering water? This week I read my friend Steve 461 00:28:48,040 --> 00:28:49,280 Duby's commentary on the back again. 462 00:28:49,280 --> 00:28:51,600 It cleared it up for me. He explained that in this 463 00:28:51,600 --> 00:28:56,400 phrase, the word sea refers to the sea bed, the sea floor. 464 00:28:56,520 --> 00:28:59,000 So of course the waters cover the whole thing. 465 00:28:59,240 --> 00:29:03,040 You know, as far as it extends into an incalculable depth. 466 00:29:03,320 --> 00:29:06,720 Any Norman normal human person without scientific measuring 467 00:29:06,720 --> 00:29:09,400 instruments, you just don't even know how deep it is. 468 00:29:09,600 --> 00:29:11,320 You can't even say how wide it is. 469 00:29:11,320 --> 00:29:16,120 It is covered that completely. That is what the knowledge of 470 00:29:16,120 --> 00:29:19,960 God's glory will be like over all the earth when God fulfills 471 00:29:19,960 --> 00:29:24,000 this promise. My wife Kristen loves to sit on 472 00:29:24,000 --> 00:29:25,360 the beach and stare at the ocean. 473 00:29:25,760 --> 00:29:28,400 She has said to me many times that it is the only place you 474 00:29:28,400 --> 00:29:30,720 can go and just stare off into the distance and no one will 475 00:29:30,720 --> 00:29:34,480 think you're crazy. We both grew up near the Pacific 476 00:29:34,840 --> 00:29:37,480 and I grew up surfing often in the Pacific, so I spent a lot of 477 00:29:37,480 --> 00:29:41,000 time near the ocean, on the ocean, in the ocean. 478 00:29:41,640 --> 00:29:45,600 There's many times and I've just looked out to the horizon and 479 00:29:45,600 --> 00:29:51,000 thought there's nothing but water between me and Japan. 480 00:29:52,040 --> 00:29:58,760 It's incredible how the vastness dwarfs you, how it puts you in 481 00:29:58,760 --> 00:30:02,440 your place as a teeny tiny little speck of a human being. 482 00:30:03,880 --> 00:30:06,840 When you're in the Pacific Ocean, you're staring out 483 00:30:06,840 --> 00:30:11,200 towards Japan. There is nothing but water for 484 00:30:11,200 --> 00:30:14,440 thousands of miles out. When you're in the middle of the 485 00:30:14,440 --> 00:30:17,880 ocean, there is nothing but water for thousands of feet 486 00:30:17,880 --> 00:30:21,960 down. That's what God's glory over all 487 00:30:21,960 --> 00:30:24,200 the earth will be like in the new creation. 488 00:30:24,800 --> 00:30:27,120 Nothing but glory all the way out. 489 00:30:28,720 --> 00:30:31,080 Nothing but glory all the way down. 490 00:30:32,240 --> 00:30:36,440 Notice that what covers the whole earth is the knowledge of 491 00:30:36,440 --> 00:30:40,600 the glory of the Lord, meaning people rightly receiving that 492 00:30:40,600 --> 00:30:44,640 glory, people rightly responding to it, rightly delighting in it 493 00:30:44,640 --> 00:30:48,120 and savouring it. This passage promises that God's 494 00:30:48,120 --> 00:30:52,400 glory will not only be pervasively present, it will 495 00:30:52,400 --> 00:30:58,320 also be perfectly perceived. When will this promise be 496 00:30:58,320 --> 00:31:01,720 fulfilled? It will ultimately come to pass 497 00:31:01,720 --> 00:31:04,200 when Christ returns and remakes heaven and earth. 498 00:31:04,680 --> 00:31:09,520 When Christ returns and brings heaven to earth, this promise 499 00:31:09,520 --> 00:31:11,760 will be fully realized in the new creation. 500 00:31:12,080 --> 00:31:15,240 On that day, God's glory will be perfectly seen and will 501 00:31:15,240 --> 00:31:18,680 perfectly satisfy all of His perfected people. 502 00:31:19,040 --> 00:31:26,200 So this passage promises a total reversal from futility to glory, 503 00:31:26,840 --> 00:31:31,520 from earthly kingdom's self seeking to all of God's people 504 00:31:31,520 --> 00:31:36,640 seeing and savouring Him, from proud striving to the glad 505 00:31:36,640 --> 00:31:41,080 reception of God's total gift of his all satisfying glory. 506 00:31:41,280 --> 00:31:44,520 God's judgement will bring bring about a complete and perfect 507 00:31:44,640 --> 00:31:49,520 transformation of all the conditions of life on earth. 508 00:31:49,840 --> 00:31:53,480 So that's when. But the question is how? 509 00:31:54,240 --> 00:31:59,600 How is that reversal achieved? Here is where we land squarely 510 00:31:59,960 --> 00:32:07,240 on Easter. This reversal is accomplished by 511 00:32:07,240 --> 00:32:10,520 the reversal that Christ experienced. 512 00:32:11,280 --> 00:32:17,840 God's judgement includes both retribution and restoration, 513 00:32:18,640 --> 00:32:23,280 both paying for sin and perfecting his creation. 514 00:32:23,840 --> 00:32:28,200 On Good Friday, Jesus endured the retribution. 515 00:32:29,680 --> 00:32:35,600 On Easter Sunday, Jesus began the restoration. 516 00:32:36,800 --> 00:32:43,600 Jesus received this restoration first in his own body because he 517 00:32:43,600 --> 00:32:46,560 paid for sins and then conquered the grave. 518 00:32:46,560 --> 00:32:49,960 That's what he came to do. He came to deal with sin fully, 519 00:32:50,120 --> 00:32:53,640 comprehensively, totally. Just like God's judgement 520 00:32:53,640 --> 00:32:56,560 throughout this passage brings about a total transformation, 521 00:32:56,720 --> 00:32:59,960 total justice, total change, total perfection for those who 522 00:32:59,960 --> 00:33:01,680 believe in him. Total satisfaction. 523 00:33:01,960 --> 00:33:04,760 That's what Jesus was accomplishing in his death and 524 00:33:04,760 --> 00:33:08,000 resurrection. Our problem of sin is so great, 525 00:33:08,320 --> 00:33:10,400 only Jesus death could pay for it. 526 00:33:10,720 --> 00:33:14,520 Our sin is so serious it took the death of the Son of God to 527 00:33:14,520 --> 00:33:18,600 suffer God's wrath for it. Our sin is so serious, the only 528 00:33:18,600 --> 00:33:21,920 way we could be made right with God is by God Himself 529 00:33:21,920 --> 00:33:25,440 substituting, taking our place and bearing the punishment we 530 00:33:25,440 --> 00:33:28,040 deserved. And God's grace and power are so 531 00:33:28,040 --> 00:33:31,520 great that he effortlessly triumphed over death, our 532 00:33:31,520 --> 00:33:33,800 greatest enemy. That's what the resurrection is 533 00:33:33,800 --> 00:33:36,200 about. It's about Jesus getting a life 534 00:33:36,200 --> 00:33:40,160 in Himself that He can give to you and that He will give to you 535 00:33:40,920 --> 00:33:43,680 if you turn from sin and trust in him. 536 00:33:43,680 --> 00:33:46,720 That's what Easter is all about. That's why Christians have 537 00:33:46,720 --> 00:33:51,200 gathered on Sunday every Sunday for 2000 years. 538 00:33:51,600 --> 00:33:54,120 That's why in the face of a stubbornly traditional 539 00:33:54,120 --> 00:33:55,920 conservative practice, that's hard to change. 540 00:33:55,920 --> 00:33:57,920 Any kind of traditional religious practice takes sort of 541 00:33:57,920 --> 00:33:59,760 a crowbar to pry it open and shift it. 542 00:33:59,880 --> 00:34:02,600 Well, ancient Jews gathered for worship on Saturday. 543 00:34:03,480 --> 00:34:06,640 The earliest Christians, all of whom were Jewish, start a 544 00:34:06,640 --> 00:34:10,840 meeting on Sunday. For Christians, every Sunday is 545 00:34:10,840 --> 00:34:14,159 Easter Sunday. Every time we gather on the 546 00:34:14,159 --> 00:34:17,840 Lord's Day, we are celebrating His resurrection. 547 00:34:18,280 --> 00:34:23,239 The Christian life starts by receiving Jesus resurrection, 548 00:34:23,239 --> 00:34:26,719 and it continues by the power of Christ's resurrection working 549 00:34:26,719 --> 00:34:28,719 itself out in you. If you want to know more about 550 00:34:28,719 --> 00:34:31,280 that, if you're not a believer in Jesus, talk with a friend who 551 00:34:31,280 --> 00:34:33,000 brought you. Talk with me or Michael at the 552 00:34:33,000 --> 00:34:34,880 door. Talk with somebody over the 553 00:34:34,880 --> 00:34:36,840 potluck lunch after. There's nothing more we would 554 00:34:36,840 --> 00:34:39,600 like than to talk with you about what it means to receive the 555 00:34:39,600 --> 00:34:43,280 power of Christ's resurrection into your own life. 556 00:34:44,719 --> 00:34:49,159 God's glory will perfectly fill the new creation when Christ 557 00:34:49,159 --> 00:34:52,239 returns. But the knowledge of this glory 558 00:34:52,239 --> 00:34:54,520 is already spreading out over the face of the earth as people 559 00:34:54,520 --> 00:34:58,280 from every tribe, tongue, and nation come to believe in Jesus. 560 00:34:58,640 --> 00:35:01,000 As we fulfill Christ's Great Commission by sharing the 561 00:35:01,000 --> 00:35:03,880 gospel, by going out as missionaries, by supporting 562 00:35:03,880 --> 00:35:07,720 faithful gospel partners, we spread the knowledge of God's 563 00:35:07,720 --> 00:35:10,680 glory into new corners of the earth. 564 00:35:11,040 --> 00:35:13,040 Here's how Paul put it in language that echoes our 565 00:35:13,040 --> 00:35:16,000 passage. Second Corinthians 4/6 For God, 566 00:35:16,000 --> 00:35:19,240 who said let light shine out of darkness, has shown in our 567 00:35:19,240 --> 00:35:24,200 hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in 568 00:35:24,200 --> 00:35:27,360 the face of Jesus Christ. This promise of God's 569 00:35:27,360 --> 00:35:30,120 retribution and restoration teaches us to hope. 570 00:35:30,880 --> 00:35:33,360 It teaches us to cling to God's promise when God's promise is 571 00:35:33,360 --> 00:35:35,800 all you have. It teaches us to cling to God's 572 00:35:35,800 --> 00:35:38,000 Word when God's word is all you have. 573 00:35:38,360 --> 00:35:41,640 If you're a believer in Jesus, consider all that this promise 574 00:35:41,640 --> 00:35:47,080 holds out to you. To hope in hope in the day when 575 00:35:47,080 --> 00:35:51,040 you will have a perfect experience of God, perfect 576 00:35:51,040 --> 00:35:53,760 fellowship with Him, perfect intimacy with him. 577 00:35:55,120 --> 00:35:58,640 Hope in the day when you'll have perfect knowledge of God. 578 00:35:59,160 --> 00:36:02,760 No more doubts, no more darkness, no more unanswerable 579 00:36:02,760 --> 00:36:05,840 questions, no more fighting for faith and fighting off the 580 00:36:05,840 --> 00:36:09,080 voices in your head that try to undermine everything God says. 581 00:36:09,240 --> 00:36:13,960 No more inward battle with Satan's lies. 582 00:36:15,480 --> 00:36:20,920 Hope In the day when every trace of sin is wiped off the face of 583 00:36:20,920 --> 00:36:24,520 the earth. Every last speck of sin will be 584 00:36:24,520 --> 00:36:29,200 scoured off of God's good earth by the flood of God's glory. 585 00:36:29,720 --> 00:36:31,720 All injustice will be perfectly dealt with. 586 00:36:32,080 --> 00:36:35,240 Justice will be perfectly restored forever, both without 587 00:36:36,400 --> 00:36:41,280 and within. Hope in the day when all harm 588 00:36:41,840 --> 00:36:46,480 will be more than healed. Hope in the day when all loss 589 00:36:47,000 --> 00:36:52,120 will be more than restored. Hope in the day when suffering 590 00:36:53,480 --> 00:36:59,600 will give way to glory. Easter is about this restoration 591 00:36:59,600 --> 00:37:06,640 happening to Jesus first in his body, in his own human nature. 592 00:37:07,160 --> 00:37:10,720 Jesus is the first born from the dead. 593 00:37:11,440 --> 00:37:15,200 Everyone who believes in him will follow in that birth from 594 00:37:15,200 --> 00:37:20,040 out of death. Easter is about the promise that 595 00:37:20,040 --> 00:37:24,480 since this happened to Jesus first, one day it will happen to 596 00:37:24,480 --> 00:37:27,240 everyone who believes in him. Jesus resurrection is the end of 597 00:37:27,240 --> 00:37:29,680 evil. It's the end of death, it's the 598 00:37:29,680 --> 00:37:34,680 end of sin, it's the end of suffering, all brought forward 599 00:37:35,200 --> 00:37:39,120 into the present. God's judgement will replace 600 00:37:39,120 --> 00:37:44,200 futility with glory, and in the resurrection of Jesus it already 601 00:37:44,200 --> 00:37:51,080 has. Point #4 Shame the shameful. 602 00:37:51,840 --> 00:37:54,000 Two more woes. 2 more points. Stay with me now. 603 00:37:54,080 --> 00:37:58,720 Point #4 Shame the shameful. That's what God's judgement will 604 00:37:58,720 --> 00:38:02,320 accomplish according to verses 15 to 17. 605 00:38:05,120 --> 00:38:07,080 We'll consider verses 15 and 16 first. 606 00:38:08,440 --> 00:38:11,200 Woe to him who makes his neighbors drink. 607 00:38:12,120 --> 00:38:14,600 You pour out your wrath and make them drunk in order to gaze at 608 00:38:14,600 --> 00:38:17,440 their nakedness. You'll have your fill of shame 609 00:38:17,440 --> 00:38:20,480 instead of glory. Drink yourself and show your 610 00:38:20,480 --> 00:38:23,480 uncircumcision. The cup in the Lord's right hand 611 00:38:23,480 --> 00:38:26,000 will come around to you, and utter shame will come upon your 612 00:38:26,000 --> 00:38:28,760 glory. The image here is of enticing 613 00:38:28,760 --> 00:38:33,040 others to get drunk in order to incite them to immoral acts. 614 00:38:33,480 --> 00:38:37,680 It's possible this condemns debauchery by the Babylonians, 615 00:38:38,120 --> 00:38:41,160 but I think it's far more likely a metaphor for their whole 616 00:38:41,160 --> 00:38:44,520 imperial program. In order to succeed politically, 617 00:38:44,760 --> 00:38:46,920 the Babylonians would have had to make allegiances with all 618 00:38:46,920 --> 00:38:49,440 kinds of other kings and rulers and powers. 619 00:38:49,880 --> 00:38:53,640 They would have had to entice them to partner with them in 620 00:38:53,640 --> 00:38:57,920 their exploitation. They promised glory, but the 621 00:38:57,920 --> 00:39:01,200 reality was the shame of the morning after. 622 00:39:02,760 --> 00:39:07,160 People who get drunk boast of things they should be ashamed 623 00:39:07,160 --> 00:39:09,200 of. They try to lower other people's 624 00:39:09,200 --> 00:39:13,520 resistance and reduce their inhibitions by pushing them to 625 00:39:13,520 --> 00:39:16,640 drink more and more with them. Come on, have another one. 626 00:39:17,040 --> 00:39:18,840 What's your problem? What's the big deal? 627 00:39:20,160 --> 00:39:24,360 They lead people into sin. They glory in what should be 628 00:39:24,360 --> 00:39:27,600 their shame. That's true of Babylon's use of 629 00:39:27,600 --> 00:39:30,440 its power. It's also literally true of 630 00:39:30,440 --> 00:39:33,680 everyone who uses their influence with others to lead 631 00:39:33,680 --> 00:39:37,240 them into any kind of sin. Whether you like it or not, 632 00:39:37,560 --> 00:39:40,760 we're all examples for others. We're all models for others. 633 00:39:40,760 --> 00:39:45,840 We all rub off on others. Do you influence people to live 634 00:39:45,840 --> 00:39:49,680 for God's glory or to rejoice in what's shameful? 635 00:39:50,400 --> 00:39:54,520 How do your sins rub off on others? 636 00:39:55,800 --> 00:39:59,080 In verse 16, God warns that just as the Babylonians have passed 637 00:39:59,080 --> 00:40:02,960 around a cup of drunkenness, so he will pass around to them a 638 00:40:02,960 --> 00:40:06,720 cup of wrath. They'll be justly exposed, 639 00:40:07,000 --> 00:40:11,040 utterly degraded, eternally ashamed. 640 00:40:12,080 --> 00:40:14,920 Verse 17 adds another layer to this condemnation. 641 00:40:15,600 --> 00:40:19,360 The violence done to Lebanon will overwhelm you, as will the 642 00:40:19,360 --> 00:40:22,520 destruction of the beasts that terrified them for the blood of 643 00:40:22,520 --> 00:40:25,640 man and violence to the earth, to cities and all who dwell in 644 00:40:25,640 --> 00:40:27,600 them. Here I think we shift from the 645 00:40:27,600 --> 00:40:29,480 metaphorical back to the literal. 646 00:40:30,200 --> 00:40:33,720 Lebanon was a territory in the northernmost part of Israel that 647 00:40:33,720 --> 00:40:36,880 was famous for its cedar trees. They were huge, they were 648 00:40:36,880 --> 00:40:40,280 beautiful, they were renowned like redwoods and sequoias in 649 00:40:40,280 --> 00:40:43,040 California. What did Babylon do to those 650 00:40:43,040 --> 00:40:45,720 trees? Violence. 651 00:40:46,400 --> 00:40:48,760 Babylon would have passed through Lebanon on their way to 652 00:40:48,760 --> 00:40:51,720 conquer Judah. We know from Isaiah chapter 14 653 00:40:51,720 --> 00:40:54,960 verses 7 and eight that they cut down huge swaths of those trees 654 00:40:54,960 --> 00:40:56,720 to use them for their war machine. 655 00:40:56,920 --> 00:41:01,600 They clear cut a heritage Redwood and Sequoia forest. 656 00:41:01,600 --> 00:41:04,640 That's the equivalent here. Why? 657 00:41:06,160 --> 00:41:10,240 To use it to get more power. The text also says that the 658 00:41:10,240 --> 00:41:14,160 destruction of the beasts will overwhelm them, meaning they 659 00:41:14,160 --> 00:41:17,000 will also suffer judgement for the animal lives they have 660 00:41:17,000 --> 00:41:19,360 wrongly taken. By destroying their entire 661 00:41:19,360 --> 00:41:22,880 habitat, they decimated all the animal life in that place. 662 00:41:23,400 --> 00:41:26,840 Now the primary focus of this whole passage is on avenging 663 00:41:26,840 --> 00:41:30,640 violence done to people. But God also cares about 664 00:41:30,640 --> 00:41:34,360 violence done to His creation. That's why this verse repeats 665 00:41:34,360 --> 00:41:38,720 that phrase from verse 8 for the blood of man and violence to the 666 00:41:39,200 --> 00:41:42,080 earth, to cities and all who dwell in them. 667 00:41:42,600 --> 00:41:45,640 This passage offers a challenge regarding our basic stance 668 00:41:45,640 --> 00:41:50,080 toward the created world. Do we take from creation what we 669 00:41:50,080 --> 00:41:54,240 want or think we need with no thought for the long term 670 00:41:54,240 --> 00:41:57,560 consequences? What's the alternative to that 671 00:41:57,560 --> 00:42:01,920 kind of violence? The economist and philosopher EF 672 00:42:01,920 --> 00:42:05,640 Schumacher 50 years ago said the alternative to violence is 673 00:42:05,640 --> 00:42:08,200 treating creation with reverence. 674 00:42:09,080 --> 00:42:11,560 Another way. He put it a harmonious 675 00:42:11,560 --> 00:42:17,240 cooperation with nature rather than a warfare against nature. 676 00:42:17,960 --> 00:42:22,960 As Wendell Berry has said, any violence that intrudes between 677 00:42:22,960 --> 00:42:30,240 the land and the people extends its damage both ways. 5th and 678 00:42:30,240 --> 00:42:36,480 final point, expose idols. What will God's judgement 679 00:42:36,480 --> 00:42:40,800 accomplish? It will expose idols. 680 00:42:40,800 --> 00:42:42,600 That's what verses 18 to 20 show us. 681 00:42:46,840 --> 00:42:51,680 Look at verses 18 and 19. What profit is an idol when it's 682 00:42:51,680 --> 00:42:54,920 maker has shaped it? A metal image? 683 00:42:55,720 --> 00:42:58,960 A teacher of lies. For its maker trust in his own 684 00:42:58,960 --> 00:43:01,480 creation. When he makes speechless idols, 685 00:43:02,400 --> 00:43:06,440 woe to him who says to a wooden thing awake, to a silent stone, 686 00:43:06,440 --> 00:43:12,080 Arise, can this teach? Behold, it is overlaid with gold 687 00:43:12,080 --> 00:43:16,320 and silver, and there is no breath at all in it. 688 00:43:17,120 --> 00:43:20,120 Now the key to this critique of idolatry is there in the second 689 00:43:20,120 --> 00:43:25,600 part of verse 18. For its maker trusts in his own 690 00:43:26,040 --> 00:43:29,240 creation. The only true refuge and 691 00:43:29,240 --> 00:43:31,480 security and satisfaction is God. 692 00:43:31,720 --> 00:43:36,200 He's the Creator, and we're the creatures we need to seek all of 693 00:43:36,200 --> 00:43:40,400 our good in Him. Idols aren't just creatures in 694 00:43:40,400 --> 00:43:43,000 one point of view, they're creatures of creatures. 695 00:43:43,840 --> 00:43:46,560 That's true for physical idols, like many people in various 696 00:43:46,560 --> 00:43:49,720 religions still worship today. But it's also true for idols of 697 00:43:49,720 --> 00:43:52,960 the heart. Sex, money, power, status, 698 00:43:53,560 --> 00:43:56,640 achievement, recognition, relationships. 699 00:43:57,080 --> 00:43:59,960 When you make any of those things ultimate, they turn on 700 00:43:59,960 --> 00:44:02,320 you. They become futile. 701 00:44:03,600 --> 00:44:07,040 And on the one hand, verse 19 asks this rhetorical question, 702 00:44:07,040 --> 00:44:09,920 can this teach? Implying they can't teach at 703 00:44:09,920 --> 00:44:12,520 all. Idols are deaf, they can't talk. 704 00:44:13,200 --> 00:44:16,080 But on the other hand, by their very existence, verse 18 says 705 00:44:16,080 --> 00:44:19,560 they teach lies. They lie about God, they lie 706 00:44:19,560 --> 00:44:22,360 about humanity. They lie about what we need. 707 00:44:22,880 --> 00:44:24,880 They lie about what we will receive. 708 00:44:25,920 --> 00:44:30,640 Not only do idols teach lies, they demand lies. 709 00:44:31,320 --> 00:44:35,840 If you devote yourself to an idol, sooner or later you will 710 00:44:35,840 --> 00:44:41,440 have to lie for it. How many times have you heard a 711 00:44:41,440 --> 00:44:45,440 politician say something that you know is a lie, that they 712 00:44:45,440 --> 00:44:49,760 know is a lie, and that you're pretty sure they know you know 713 00:44:49,760 --> 00:44:53,000 is a lie? What's underneath all that lying 714 00:44:54,120 --> 00:44:58,480 idolatry? In our passage, God exposes 715 00:44:58,480 --> 00:45:02,760 idols not only by teaching their folly, but by contrasting them 716 00:45:02,760 --> 00:45:07,480 with Himself and by the implied promise of what He'll do to 717 00:45:07,480 --> 00:45:09,560 them. Verse 20 is another kind of 718 00:45:09,960 --> 00:45:13,240 mountain peak viewpoint in our passage here at the very end. 719 00:45:14,480 --> 00:45:17,200 But the Lord is in his holy temple. 720 00:45:18,360 --> 00:45:21,000 Let all the earth keep silence before him. 721 00:45:22,280 --> 00:45:25,600 To say the Lord is in his temple might mean that he's manifesting 722 00:45:25,600 --> 00:45:27,600 his presence at his temple in Jerusalem. 723 00:45:27,960 --> 00:45:31,720 He's not constrained by it or contained by it, but he makes 724 00:45:31,720 --> 00:45:33,800 himself specially present there to be with his people. 725 00:45:34,440 --> 00:45:38,240 It also might refer to heaven, which Exodus 25 teaches. 726 00:45:38,240 --> 00:45:40,480 The earthly temple is a model of the heavenly one. 727 00:45:40,920 --> 00:45:43,080 There's a temple in heaven where God reigns over all. 728 00:45:43,080 --> 00:45:46,600 Either way, the point here is the temple is God's command 729 00:45:46,600 --> 00:45:49,440 center. The temple is the seat of God's 730 00:45:49,440 --> 00:45:51,880 government. The temple is the place from 731 00:45:51,880 --> 00:46:00,480 which God rules over all things. Idols are lifeless, but the Lord 732 00:46:00,480 --> 00:46:03,800 is infinitely full of life. Idols are mute, but the Lord 733 00:46:03,800 --> 00:46:08,160 speaks plainly and powerfully. Idols can't teach, but the Lord 734 00:46:08,160 --> 00:46:10,600 can teach both outwardly and inwardly. 735 00:46:11,280 --> 00:46:14,480 Idols need to be called awake, and then they still don't get 736 00:46:14,480 --> 00:46:17,160 up. But the Lord can call sinners 737 00:46:17,160 --> 00:46:21,760 from death to life. Why does Habakkuk call all the 738 00:46:21,760 --> 00:46:26,080 world to silence? Not just Judah, not just the 739 00:46:26,080 --> 00:46:29,680 Babylonians, but everyone hearing this verse today here in 740 00:46:29,680 --> 00:46:32,840 this room, and all the other 7 billion people on this planet. 741 00:46:32,840 --> 00:46:38,520 Why does he call for silence? It's to show reverence before 742 00:46:38,520 --> 00:46:42,720 God's reign. It's to express fear before His 743 00:46:42,720 --> 00:46:49,280 Holiness, to indicate our submission under His supremacy. 744 00:46:50,400 --> 00:46:54,560 Throughout the book, Habakkuk has wrestled with God, but now 745 00:46:54,560 --> 00:46:58,400 it's time for reverence. Habakkuk has spoken bluntly to 746 00:46:58,400 --> 00:47:02,320 God, but now it's time for silence. 747 00:47:03,080 --> 00:47:07,000 Both are part of a lively, living relationship with God. 748 00:47:07,480 --> 00:47:11,600 But once you've asked all your questions and you've heard God's 749 00:47:11,600 --> 00:47:16,600 answers, there comes a time when silence, submission, is the only 750 00:47:16,600 --> 00:47:20,640 fitting response. Brothers and sisters, this verse 751 00:47:20,640 --> 00:47:23,880 and the truth behind it is one of the reasons why we bracket 752 00:47:23,880 --> 00:47:25,720 our Sunday morning services with silence. 753 00:47:25,920 --> 00:47:29,720 Just before we begin, just after we conclude, we take a moment of 754 00:47:29,720 --> 00:47:32,600 silence. It's to cultivate reverence 755 00:47:32,600 --> 00:47:38,320 before God, to help us slow down and consider the gravity of 756 00:47:38,320 --> 00:47:42,200 meeting with God, to help us slow down and examine ourselves 757 00:47:42,800 --> 00:47:45,480 so we don't just blunder into God's presence together. 758 00:47:46,200 --> 00:47:50,920 We take a minute to cultivate reverence before approaching God 759 00:47:50,920 --> 00:47:55,280 together and after hearing from God together. 760 00:47:56,720 --> 00:47:59,440 More broadly, this call for reverence is why we aim to have 761 00:47:59,440 --> 00:48:02,280 several elements of our service cultivate our corporate 762 00:48:02,560 --> 00:48:05,680 reverence for God. We read Scripture passages that 763 00:48:05,680 --> 00:48:08,280 convict us of sin, including the 10 commandments. 764 00:48:08,720 --> 00:48:10,880 We confess our sins before God in prayer. 765 00:48:11,040 --> 00:48:15,600 We sing songs that celebrate His Majesty in glory and we preach 766 00:48:15,600 --> 00:48:19,360 the whole books of the Bible. We sit before God in silence, 767 00:48:19,440 --> 00:48:23,640 hearing whatever He has to say. We embrace all that He has to 768 00:48:23,640 --> 00:48:28,720 say, even if what He has to say is 15 verses of judgement on 769 00:48:29,040 --> 00:48:35,600 Easter. Silent listening expresses holy 770 00:48:36,160 --> 00:48:41,760 reverence. Verse 20 ends on a note of 771 00:48:41,760 --> 00:48:47,760 stored up power. The Lord is in His holy temple. 772 00:48:48,680 --> 00:48:52,480 He sees all things. He reigns over all things. 773 00:48:52,920 --> 00:48:56,960 He observes all things. He will evaluate all things. 774 00:48:57,880 --> 00:49:03,480 For now, He does that in a way that's hidden, that lets sinners 775 00:49:03,480 --> 00:49:06,960 keep on sinning, that lets empires keep on rising and 776 00:49:06,960 --> 00:49:11,000 falling, that tests His people's faith by letting them continue 777 00:49:11,000 --> 00:49:14,280 to suffer and struggle and call out to Him. 778 00:49:14,640 --> 00:49:17,200 We wonder where he is. He's in His holy temple. 779 00:49:17,280 --> 00:49:19,560 What is he doing? He is reigning over all things, 780 00:49:19,560 --> 00:49:25,080 but we don't see it yet. One day we will. 781 00:49:26,320 --> 00:49:33,040 One day that pent up power will perfect and purify all of His 782 00:49:33,040 --> 00:49:38,440 people and all of creation. How do we know? 783 00:49:40,240 --> 00:49:44,320 Because I know that my Redeemer lives. 784 00:49:45,240 --> 00:49:48,120 He lives triumphant from the grave. 785 00:49:49,200 --> 00:49:54,760 He lives eternally to save. Let's pray. 786 00:49:59,800 --> 00:50:03,920 Heavenly Father, we praise you for the promise that the earth 787 00:50:03,920 --> 00:50:06,120 will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the 788 00:50:06,120 --> 00:50:09,760 Lord as the waters cover the sea, and we thank you for 789 00:50:09,760 --> 00:50:11,640 beginning the fulfillment of that promise through the 790 00:50:11,640 --> 00:50:14,000 resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ from the dead. 791 00:50:15,640 --> 00:50:19,560 We pray that we would trust in You, pray that we would submit 792 00:50:19,560 --> 00:50:22,960 to you, pray that we'd be reverent before you. 793 00:50:24,720 --> 00:50:29,240 We pray that we would wait for You in Jesus name, Amen.