WEBVTT 00:00:00.200 --> 00:00:05.160 Good morning, everybody. It is always a joy and privilege to be able to preach. 00:00:05.860 --> 00:00:10.820 As Jen said, Sean is out at our Sister Church Crossway preaching for them this morning. 00:00:11.599 --> 00:00:16.920 And some of you may know I've been taking a class on preaching, and I had to preach various sermons 00:00:16.920 --> 00:00:20.420 and turn them in for homework. And Sean thought it would be a good idea to take the last sermon, 00:00:20.500 --> 00:00:26.920 which I've already done, and use it and update it for this week as Sean is out. 00:00:26.920 --> 00:00:32.219 So because of the nature of the class, I had to pick different parts of the Bible to preach from, 00:00:32.660 --> 00:00:36.079 and eventually it came to the prophets. So we're not going to be in Revelation today. 00:00:36.160 --> 00:00:38.700 We're actually going to be in the minor prophet Habakkuk. 00:00:39.160 --> 00:00:43.079 So if you can open your Bibles to the book of Habakkuk, that would be great. 00:00:43.340 --> 00:00:48.640 If you do not have a Bible, please raise your hand, and someone will kindly give you one. 00:00:49.880 --> 00:00:52.180 Habakkuk is one of the minor prophets. It might be a little hard to find. 00:00:52.179 --> 00:00:57.719 He is after Nahum and before Zephaniah, and if that doesn't help you, then you'll probably need your index 00:00:57.719 --> 00:01:00.500 to help you. It's the fifth from the last book in the Old Testament. 00:01:02.159 --> 00:01:05.840 And I specifically chose this passage because I love it. 00:01:06.620 --> 00:01:08.640 However, I wanted to study it more. 00:01:08.640 --> 00:01:16.579 To give some context, Habakkuk was a prophet during the time of ancient Israel, 00:01:16.879 --> 00:01:22.219 and he likely preached around the time from 640 to 615 BC. 00:01:22.420 --> 00:01:28.000 So this is decades before the Babylonian Empire invades and destroys the city of Jerusalem. 00:01:28.500 --> 00:01:31.359 While there are no other records of Habakkuk in the Old Testament, 00:01:31.840 --> 00:01:36.740 we do know that he was likely around that time because of the way he's talking about the Babylonians, 00:01:38.640 --> 00:01:45.439 what makes Habakkuk particularly stand out among the various prophets and the books of the prophets 00:01:45.439 --> 00:01:48.540 is that this is actually a dialogue between God. 00:01:48.640 --> 00:01:53.079 Normally, the prophets are just like a one-way communication between God and his people 00:01:53.079 --> 00:01:57.740 through the prophet, but here Habakkuk is speaking, and God is responding back and forth, 00:01:57.920 --> 00:01:59.799 and that's what makes it particularly special. 00:01:59.799 --> 00:02:07.459 While our passage today is going to be just the last three verses, Habakkuk 3, 16-19, 00:02:07.879 --> 00:02:11.039 I do want to give us some context and talk about the whole book. 00:02:11.099 --> 00:02:18.280 It's only three chapters long, so if you're there, I want you to first look at Habakkuk 1, 2-3. 00:02:18.379 --> 00:02:19.859 This is how the conversation begins. 00:02:20.659 --> 00:02:23.060 Habakkuk 1, 2 says, 00:02:23.060 --> 00:02:53.039 Habakkuk 1, 2 says, 00:02:53.060 --> 00:03:02.020 That's how Habakkuk begins. 00:03:02.520 --> 00:03:04.120 God responds to him, and he says, 00:03:04.500 --> 00:03:06.680 He is doing a work that he would not believe. 00:03:07.099 --> 00:03:07.860 In verse 6, it says, 00:03:07.960 --> 00:03:10.780 He is raising up the Chaldeans, this nation, the Babylonians, 00:03:10.819 --> 00:03:14.180 and they're going to come in, and they're going to destroy and judge the people of Israel. 00:03:14.740 --> 00:03:17.599 However, Habakkuk is somewhat taken aback. 00:03:17.640 --> 00:03:18.259 He can't believe it. 00:03:18.959 --> 00:03:25.939 How are you, God, going to use this terrible, bloodthirsty nation to do something like that? 00:03:25.939 --> 00:03:30.079 In chapter 2, God responds again, and he says, 00:03:31.219 --> 00:03:33.719 I myself will also judge the Chaldeans. 00:03:34.900 --> 00:03:39.199 And that brings us to chapter 3, where Habakkuk, having heard God's final response, 00:03:39.800 --> 00:03:44.400 offers a prayer to the Lord. 00:03:45.300 --> 00:03:48.680 So, if you're willing and able, please stand for the reading and preaching of God's word. 00:03:48.800 --> 00:03:53.099 I'm going to go through all of Habakkuk 3, even though we're doing the last few verses, just for context. 00:03:57.099 --> 00:04:00.900 Habakkuk 3, a prayer of Habakkuk the prophet, according to the Shigionoth. 00:04:00.900 --> 00:04:30.879 He said, 00:04:30.899 --> 00:04:32.479 He looked and shook the mountains. 00:04:32.859 --> 00:04:34.500 Then the everlasting mountains were scattered. 00:04:34.899 --> 00:04:36.419 The everlasting hills sank low. 00:04:37.219 --> 00:04:38.679 His were the everlasting ways. 00:04:39.239 --> 00:04:41.560 I saw the tents of Kushan in affliction. 00:04:41.939 --> 00:04:44.099 The curtains of the land in Midian did tremble. 00:04:44.879 --> 00:04:46.759 Was your wrath against the rivers, O Lord? 00:04:47.159 --> 00:04:49.060 Was your anger against the rivers? 00:04:49.139 --> 00:04:50.279 Or your indignation against the sea? 00:04:50.319 --> 00:04:53.019 When you rode on your horses, on your chariot of salvation, 00:04:53.519 --> 00:04:56.039 you stripped the sheath from your bow, calling for many arrows. 00:04:56.040 --> 00:04:58.920 You split the earth with rivers. 00:04:59.340 --> 00:05:00.939 The mountains saw you and writhed. 00:05:01.200 --> 00:05:02.400 The raging waters swept on. 00:05:02.620 --> 00:05:04.420 The deep gave forth its voice. 00:05:04.780 --> 00:05:06.379 It lifted its hands on high. 00:05:07.400 --> 00:05:09.879 The sun and moon stood still in their place. 00:05:10.420 --> 00:05:12.100 At the light of your arrows as they sped. 00:05:12.280 --> 00:05:13.980 At the flash of your glittering spear. 00:05:14.340 --> 00:05:16.020 You marched through the earth in fury. 00:05:16.460 --> 00:05:17.820 You threshed the nations in anger. 00:05:18.200 --> 00:05:19.820 You went out for the salvation of your people. 00:05:19.900 --> 00:05:21.160 For the salvation of your anointed. 00:05:21.160 --> 00:05:25.939 You crushed the head of the house of the wicked, laying him bare from thigh to neck. 00:05:26.820 --> 00:05:27.220 Selah. 00:05:27.780 --> 00:05:30.740 You pierced with his own arrows the heads of his warriors, 00:05:30.900 --> 00:05:35.000 who came like a whirlwind to scatter me, rejoicing as if to devour the poor in secret. 00:05:35.480 --> 00:05:38.940 You trampled the sea with your horses, the surging of mighty waters. 00:05:40.800 --> 00:05:41.379 Verse 16. 00:05:43.440 --> 00:05:45.840 I hear, and my body trembles. 00:05:46.760 --> 00:05:48.520 My lips quiver at the sound. 00:05:48.519 --> 00:05:52.579 God, rottenness enters into my bones and my legs tremble beneath me. 00:05:53.879 --> 00:05:58.959 Yet, I will quietly wait for the day of trouble to come upon those who invade us. 00:06:00.240 --> 00:06:03.680 Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines, 00:06:04.180 --> 00:06:07.399 the produce of the olive fail, and the fields yield no food, 00:06:07.459 --> 00:06:10.479 the flock be cut off from the fold, and there will be no herd in the stalls. 00:06:11.439 --> 00:06:13.459 Yet, I will rejoice in the Lord. 00:06:14.159 --> 00:06:16.079 I will take joy in the God of my salvation. 00:06:16.519 --> 00:06:18.240 God, the Lord, is my strength. 00:06:18.519 --> 00:06:20.060 He makes my feet like the deer's. 00:06:20.479 --> 00:06:22.459 He makes me tread on my high places. 00:06:23.139 --> 00:06:25.819 To the choir master, with string instruments. 00:06:26.779 --> 00:06:28.500 This is God's holy and authoritative word. 00:06:28.759 --> 00:06:29.359 You may be seated. 00:06:29.360 --> 00:06:40.040 Many of you in high school might have read the book Night by a man named Elie Wiesel. 00:06:40.580 --> 00:06:41.800 He was a survivor of the Holocaust. 00:06:43.500 --> 00:06:52.080 He was one of the 5% of the 1.3 million people who went through Auschwitz and survived. 00:06:52.079 --> 00:07:00.419 Of his many experiences there, one particular one stuck out with him. 00:07:01.919 --> 00:07:06.000 It was a strange trial. 00:07:06.800 --> 00:07:07.199 He says, 00:07:07.199 --> 00:07:10.319 In the kingdom of night, I witnessed a strange trial. 00:07:10.979 --> 00:07:19.699 Three rabbis, all erudite and pious men, decided one winter evening to indict God for allowing his children to be massacred. 00:07:19.699 --> 00:07:21.819 I remember I was there. 00:07:22.399 --> 00:07:23.500 I felt like crying. 00:07:24.759 --> 00:07:25.500 But nobody cried. 00:07:26.839 --> 00:07:29.259 This is an introduction to the play The Trial of God. 00:07:31.360 --> 00:07:34.860 That night, evidence was gathered and witnesses were cross-examined. 00:07:35.879 --> 00:07:36.839 And God was put on trial. 00:07:36.839 --> 00:07:42.279 Now, the idea of God on trial might be strange to some. 00:07:42.799 --> 00:07:46.139 I know we've had, just by coincidence, some fairly high-profile trials in the news. 00:07:47.399 --> 00:07:52.519 So it's very easy to imagine politicians or tech CEOs or celebrities on trial. 00:07:54.439 --> 00:07:57.000 But it's not too strange to think about God on trial. 00:07:57.919 --> 00:08:01.839 If you have thought about the sufferings of the world. 00:08:02.779 --> 00:08:05.539 Or if you yourself have faced deep trials. 00:08:05.540 --> 00:08:10.060 You have been probably tempted to take up the gavel and persecute God. 00:08:10.400 --> 00:08:11.379 To prosecute God. 00:08:12.640 --> 00:08:14.000 To say, God, where are you? 00:08:14.580 --> 00:08:15.500 Where are you doing? 00:08:16.200 --> 00:08:18.640 Why do you idly stand by? 00:08:22.900 --> 00:08:24.600 This is Habakkuk's question. 00:08:26.020 --> 00:08:26.800 And God knows. 00:08:27.400 --> 00:08:28.620 This is the world he created. 00:08:31.240 --> 00:08:33.159 He knows that we are tempted in this way. 00:08:33.159 --> 00:08:35.460 To accuse him and doubt him. 00:08:36.539 --> 00:08:38.879 So we have this book of Habakkuk today. 00:08:38.879 --> 00:08:46.059 If we are to be Christians who live by faith, we must be able to answer these accusations. 00:08:46.759 --> 00:08:48.220 Answer these doubts when they arise. 00:08:49.460 --> 00:08:50.580 And therefore, we have this book. 00:08:50.700 --> 00:08:52.919 So I want us today to learn from Habakkuk. 00:08:53.279 --> 00:08:57.240 What it means to, instead of listening to the accusations and letting the doubts sink in. 00:08:57.799 --> 00:08:59.179 Instead to live a life of faith. 00:08:59.919 --> 00:09:02.439 And a life of faith that rejoices first in the Lord. 00:09:02.440 --> 00:09:03.440 By waiting quietly. 00:09:03.440 --> 00:09:05.160 By waiting quietly. 00:09:05.500 --> 00:09:06.980 Because he brings trouble on his enemies. 00:09:07.780 --> 00:09:08.900 And rejoicing triumphantly. 00:09:09.620 --> 00:09:12.340 Because he will rescue you from the day of trouble. 00:09:12.340 --> 00:09:16.280 So the first lesson from Habakkuk today. 00:09:16.800 --> 00:09:18.040 That we get from verse 16. 00:09:18.160 --> 00:09:19.420 Is that we should wait quietly. 00:09:20.180 --> 00:09:20.620 In faith. 00:09:21.139 --> 00:09:23.680 For trouble will come upon his enemies. 00:09:25.259 --> 00:09:27.780 Look back into chapter 3 verse 16. 00:09:28.399 --> 00:09:31.180 Habakkuk is describing his body trembling. 00:09:31.360 --> 00:09:33.000 Rottenness entering into his bones. 00:09:33.000 --> 00:09:38.320 He can't stand in the face of the frightening news that he has gotten. 00:09:40.399 --> 00:09:44.679 This prophecy of doom that the Lord has given Habakkuk would be fulfilled. 00:09:44.940 --> 00:09:46.159 The Babylonians would come. 00:09:46.500 --> 00:09:47.940 And their war would be terrifying. 00:09:49.000 --> 00:09:49.840 It would be disastrous. 00:09:50.259 --> 00:09:53.340 The book of Lamentations describes the siege of Jerusalem. 00:09:53.779 --> 00:09:56.460 If you were, back in those days, if you wanted to destroy a city. 00:09:56.600 --> 00:09:57.620 You would encamp around it. 00:09:57.679 --> 00:09:58.360 Cut off its food. 00:09:58.500 --> 00:09:59.200 Starve the people. 00:09:59.200 --> 00:10:03.280 And when they were weak, you would enter the city and defeat them. 00:10:06.640 --> 00:10:09.780 The famine from the siege was so terrible. 00:10:10.300 --> 00:10:12.620 That Lamentations 2, 11 through 12 says. 00:10:13.259 --> 00:10:15.040 That infants were fainting in the streets. 00:10:15.920 --> 00:10:17.759 Dying in their mothers' bosoms. 00:10:19.280 --> 00:10:20.160 The young and old. 00:10:20.320 --> 00:10:20.900 Woman and men. 00:10:21.460 --> 00:10:22.720 Were laying dead. 00:10:23.060 --> 00:10:24.240 Killed by the sword in the streets. 00:10:27.840 --> 00:10:28.320 Woman. 00:10:29.200 --> 00:10:30.460 Even boiled their own children. 00:10:31.360 --> 00:10:32.240 Ate them to survive. 00:10:33.360 --> 00:10:33.759 Princes. 00:10:35.080 --> 00:10:37.420 And the royalty were hung in the streets. 00:10:40.280 --> 00:10:41.320 Turns your legs into jelly. 00:10:41.580 --> 00:10:42.360 Just thinking about it. 00:10:43.660 --> 00:10:45.580 But it doesn't just make you weak in the legs. 00:10:46.500 --> 00:10:47.360 Something else comes up. 00:10:47.440 --> 00:10:48.680 Something else arises in your heart. 00:10:48.980 --> 00:10:49.840 That voice that says, 00:10:49.840 --> 00:10:51.580 God, what are you doing? 00:10:52.259 --> 00:10:54.240 How could you idly stand by? 00:10:54.240 --> 00:10:54.279 Why? 00:10:57.720 --> 00:11:04.539 However, Habakkuk, knowing what war is like, knowing what war is like, knowing that these things would come, 00:11:05.840 --> 00:11:13.480 he can say, I will quietly wait for the day of trouble to come up on people who await us, invade us. 00:11:13.480 --> 00:11:23.600 What we see here is that quietly waiting first involves putting down the gavel. 00:11:25.360 --> 00:11:26.779 Chapter 3, we read it all. 00:11:26.840 --> 00:11:29.139 It sounds nothing like the beginning of chapter 1. 00:11:29.279 --> 00:11:30.659 Gone is the accusatory voice. 00:11:31.039 --> 00:11:34.100 Gone is the voice ascribing to God iniquity. 00:11:36.200 --> 00:11:37.180 Perversion of justice. 00:11:37.179 --> 00:11:44.199 So, when evil comes our ways, when people wrong us, yes, it's right to raise our voice, 00:11:44.500 --> 00:11:49.199 to use whatever legal means it is, or within our grasp. 00:11:49.319 --> 00:11:52.019 But when we are tempted to prosecute God, 00:11:52.759 --> 00:11:56.120 we should quietly wait and put down the gavel. 00:11:57.279 --> 00:12:03.919 And Habakkuk can do that because his quiet waiting faith is a waiting faith in God's justice. 00:12:04.459 --> 00:12:06.299 He believes that God will repay that. 00:12:06.299 --> 00:12:10.699 Whatever this day of trouble that comes upon these invaders will make things right. 00:12:14.879 --> 00:12:18.639 Specifically, God tells the Babylonians in chapter 2, verse 17, 00:12:18.740 --> 00:12:20.899 the violence done to Lebanon will overwhelm you. 00:12:21.399 --> 00:12:23.579 So, they would come in, and they would destroy Lebanon, 00:12:24.159 --> 00:12:25.759 but that violence would return under their head. 00:12:27.039 --> 00:12:29.620 Habakkuk has an expectation that accounts will be settled. 00:12:31.000 --> 00:12:36.179 Now, the thing is, this kind of quiet waiting faith first has to be a waiting faith, 00:12:36.179 --> 00:12:38.399 because things happen in God's time. 00:12:39.039 --> 00:12:40.779 God's timing is not ours. 00:12:41.919 --> 00:12:44.699 It would take 50 years after the fall of Babylon, 00:12:44.819 --> 00:12:46.899 so probably a century after this prophecy, 00:12:47.519 --> 00:12:50.659 for the Babylonians themselves to be defeated by Persia, 00:12:50.899 --> 00:12:54.079 which is another bloodthirsty and war-hungry nation. 00:12:54.080 --> 00:12:58.740 Unfortunately, we live in a society that is not so patient. 00:12:59.540 --> 00:13:02.540 If I see that my prime order is coming in three days and not one, 00:13:03.100 --> 00:13:05.379 I get to complain. 00:13:05.840 --> 00:13:09.820 If my flight is delayed five or six hours, that's the worst thing ever, right? 00:13:10.639 --> 00:13:11.560 Used to be regular. 00:13:11.559 --> 00:13:15.779 Can you wait a century for God's justice? 00:13:19.099 --> 00:13:21.219 This quiet waiting faith also must be quiet, 00:13:21.379 --> 00:13:25.739 because God's judgment is terrifying. 00:13:27.519 --> 00:13:29.899 There is something worse than death by the sword, 00:13:30.019 --> 00:13:31.159 death by an invading empire. 00:13:31.459 --> 00:13:33.899 It is judgment in the hands of an almighty God. 00:13:34.899 --> 00:13:38.159 Habakkuk starts his prayer in chapter 3 00:13:38.159 --> 00:13:41.539 by speaking of the report of the Lord's work. 00:13:43.059 --> 00:13:44.279 O Lord, I have heard the report of you, 00:13:44.459 --> 00:13:46.860 and your work, O Lord, do I fear. 00:13:47.899 --> 00:13:50.959 That is the real source of his fear. 00:13:52.179 --> 00:13:55.500 Throughout chapter 3, there are allusions to God's work in creation, 00:13:55.719 --> 00:13:57.439 and in judging various nations, 00:13:57.699 --> 00:14:00.740 you can see references to various battles, 00:14:00.799 --> 00:14:02.659 such as in Joshua 10, 00:14:02.720 --> 00:14:04.339 where he stops the sun and moon in their place, 00:14:04.340 --> 00:14:08.620 and that corresponds to verse 3, 11 here. 00:14:10.360 --> 00:14:11.660 God shows his power, 00:14:12.080 --> 00:14:15.340 and Habakkuk has faith that because God has already shown his power, 00:14:15.340 --> 00:14:19.259 he will be able to enact that power in justice. 00:14:21.060 --> 00:14:25.420 You see, faith is not believing something 00:14:25.420 --> 00:14:28.340 in spite of everything that says otherwise. 00:14:28.560 --> 00:14:32.220 That is a Dawkins atheist definition of faith. 00:14:32.220 --> 00:14:34.320 That is just not what the Bible says. 00:14:34.379 --> 00:14:35.840 It's a sad description. 00:14:36.399 --> 00:14:39.080 Faith is, it's kind of like a chameleon. 00:14:39.139 --> 00:14:40.279 You know how chameleons have two eyes, 00:14:40.500 --> 00:14:41.399 and they can move independently? 00:14:41.620 --> 00:14:44.660 Well, faith has one eye looking at the past. 00:14:44.800 --> 00:14:45.879 It is looking at God's work, 00:14:46.040 --> 00:14:49.600 and trusting that whatever it's looking to in the future 00:14:49.600 --> 00:14:50.879 will come to pass. 00:14:51.300 --> 00:14:52.460 God knows that, 00:14:53.660 --> 00:14:54.680 or we know, 00:14:55.000 --> 00:14:57.340 that whatever will happen in the future 00:14:57.340 --> 00:15:00.340 can happen because of what has already happened. 00:15:00.340 --> 00:15:01.899 That is a true picture of faith. 00:15:02.220 --> 00:15:02.800 You see, 00:15:03.379 --> 00:15:06.700 when people wrong you, 00:15:07.600 --> 00:15:11.480 and we people bring trouble to you, 00:15:12.279 --> 00:15:15.420 you can also respond with that same faith. 00:15:15.519 --> 00:15:15.720 You see, 00:15:16.200 --> 00:15:16.440 we, 00:15:17.519 --> 00:15:18.420 every single person, 00:15:18.740 --> 00:15:19.899 from the kingdom of Israel, 00:15:20.620 --> 00:15:21.240 Babylonians, 00:15:21.720 --> 00:15:22.320 us here, 00:15:22.860 --> 00:15:24.279 we are all made in the image of God. 00:15:24.920 --> 00:15:26.779 God is infinitely worthy, 00:15:26.980 --> 00:15:27.840 infinitely beautiful, 00:15:28.019 --> 00:15:29.259 infinitely good and righteous. 00:15:29.259 --> 00:15:29.840 However, 00:15:29.899 --> 00:15:31.360 he has put his image into us, 00:15:31.379 --> 00:15:34.159 so we bear a slice of that infinite beauty, 00:15:34.279 --> 00:15:35.960 and God will defend it. 00:15:37.220 --> 00:15:40.519 And he will defend it with his zealous wrath. 00:15:41.279 --> 00:15:42.500 So when people sin against you, 00:15:42.860 --> 00:15:46.019 know that whatever petty vengeance you have 00:15:46.019 --> 00:15:47.419 is nothing but petty. 00:15:47.419 --> 00:15:49.699 If we even knew for a bit 00:15:49.699 --> 00:15:51.360 what his judgment would actually look like 00:15:51.360 --> 00:15:51.939 in the final day, 00:15:52.259 --> 00:15:53.339 we would also be quiet. 00:15:55.479 --> 00:15:56.559 We get a picture of that today 00:15:56.559 --> 00:15:59.259 with people who witness executions. 00:16:01.759 --> 00:16:02.479 Ted Bundy 00:16:02.479 --> 00:16:05.879 recently had a show or two 00:16:05.879 --> 00:16:06.839 produced about him. 00:16:06.899 --> 00:16:08.199 He was a serial killer 00:16:08.199 --> 00:16:10.159 who operated 00:16:10.159 --> 00:16:12.360 in 40 years or so. 00:16:12.360 --> 00:16:15.500 He was sentenced to death 00:16:15.500 --> 00:16:16.000 by electric chair 00:16:16.000 --> 00:16:16.480 for the murder 00:16:16.480 --> 00:16:17.180 and sexual abuse 00:16:17.180 --> 00:16:18.220 of over 36 women, 00:16:18.620 --> 00:16:19.480 though he claims to have 00:16:19.480 --> 00:16:21.500 murdered even more. 00:16:21.800 --> 00:16:22.360 Throughout his trial, 00:16:22.440 --> 00:16:22.879 he displayed 00:16:22.879 --> 00:16:24.340 unbelievable arrogance, 00:16:24.600 --> 00:16:25.740 smiling and laughing 00:16:25.740 --> 00:16:26.600 as he confessed 00:16:26.600 --> 00:16:27.820 to the murder of these women. 00:16:28.060 --> 00:16:28.879 He turned down 00:16:28.879 --> 00:16:29.539 a public defendant 00:16:29.539 --> 00:16:30.980 and decided to defend himself 00:16:30.980 --> 00:16:31.300 in court 00:16:31.300 --> 00:16:31.759 and, of course, 00:16:32.000 --> 00:16:32.480 lost. 00:16:33.379 --> 00:16:34.620 After a lengthy appeals process, 00:16:34.700 --> 00:16:35.480 which he himself 00:16:35.480 --> 00:16:37.360 used every method 00:16:37.360 --> 00:16:37.940 to complicate, 00:16:38.480 --> 00:16:39.019 he was finally 00:16:39.019 --> 00:16:40.340 sentenced to death 00:16:40.340 --> 00:16:41.440 on January 24, 00:16:41.440 --> 00:16:42.520 1989. 00:16:42.760 --> 00:16:43.100 He was led 00:16:43.100 --> 00:16:43.840 to the electric chair. 00:16:44.240 --> 00:16:44.800 On that day, 00:16:44.880 --> 00:16:46.320 the self-assured Bundy, 00:16:47.020 --> 00:16:47.780 normally cocky 00:16:47.780 --> 00:16:49.320 and ready to speak, 00:16:49.380 --> 00:16:49.900 was ashen. 00:16:50.640 --> 00:16:51.660 He didn't even eat 00:16:51.660 --> 00:16:52.600 any of the food 00:16:52.600 --> 00:16:53.920 in his last meal. 00:16:55.780 --> 00:16:56.560 In front of him 00:16:56.560 --> 00:16:57.840 were 42 witnesses, 00:16:59.840 --> 00:17:00.600 many of them relatives 00:17:00.600 --> 00:17:01.500 of his victims. 00:17:02.600 --> 00:17:03.740 He was tied to a chair. 00:17:04.980 --> 00:17:05.460 The latch, 00:17:05.920 --> 00:17:06.580 the lever was flipped. 00:17:06.680 --> 00:17:07.480 2,000 volts 00:17:07.480 --> 00:17:08.100 went through his body. 00:17:08.480 --> 00:17:10.580 His body stiffened, 00:17:10.579 --> 00:17:11.740 went limp, 00:17:12.399 --> 00:17:13.639 and he was dead. 00:17:16.839 --> 00:17:17.679 As the witnesses 00:17:17.679 --> 00:17:19.799 filed outside 00:17:19.799 --> 00:17:20.740 of the compound, 00:17:21.419 --> 00:17:22.059 they were shocked. 00:17:22.679 --> 00:17:23.220 The LA Times 00:17:23.220 --> 00:17:24.099 says they were shocked 00:17:24.099 --> 00:17:25.079 because apparently 00:17:25.079 --> 00:17:25.500 outside, 00:17:25.619 --> 00:17:26.199 hundreds of people 00:17:26.199 --> 00:17:27.159 had lined the streets 00:17:27.159 --> 00:17:28.859 and they were playing music 00:17:28.859 --> 00:17:29.559 and celebrating 00:17:29.559 --> 00:17:31.639 the death of Ted Bundy. 00:17:32.159 --> 00:17:32.639 Outside, 00:17:32.899 --> 00:17:34.019 they had signs 00:17:34.019 --> 00:17:34.259 like, 00:17:34.559 --> 00:17:35.299 Happy Friday! 00:17:35.299 --> 00:17:37.419 because, 00:17:37.720 --> 00:17:39.180 to them, 00:17:39.700 --> 00:17:40.159 it was something 00:17:40.159 --> 00:17:40.720 worth celebrating. 00:17:41.200 --> 00:17:43.259 But to the eyewitnesses 00:17:43.259 --> 00:17:43.980 of the execution, 00:17:44.559 --> 00:17:45.220 who the LA Times 00:17:45.220 --> 00:17:46.119 called the somber bunch, 00:17:46.759 --> 00:17:47.579 they couldn't imagine 00:17:47.579 --> 00:17:48.200 other reaction 00:17:48.200 --> 00:17:50.000 than grim silence. 00:17:52.379 --> 00:17:53.039 If you knew 00:17:53.039 --> 00:17:53.859 what God has in store 00:17:53.859 --> 00:17:54.700 for those who do evil 00:17:54.700 --> 00:17:55.099 to you, 00:17:55.559 --> 00:17:57.879 I think it would be 00:17:57.879 --> 00:17:58.779 silence. 00:17:59.819 --> 00:18:00.680 Hebrews 10, 00:18:00.740 --> 00:18:01.359 31 says, 00:18:01.359 --> 00:18:02.819 it is a fearful thing 00:18:02.819 --> 00:18:04.119 to fall into the hands 00:18:04.119 --> 00:18:04.979 of the living God. 00:18:05.459 --> 00:18:07.179 The Lord will repay. 00:18:07.339 --> 00:18:08.479 Vengeance is his. 00:18:10.139 --> 00:18:11.759 So when someone wrongs you 00:18:11.759 --> 00:18:12.740 in any way, 00:18:12.859 --> 00:18:14.319 know that God will repay. 00:18:14.679 --> 00:18:15.379 It can be something 00:18:15.379 --> 00:18:16.219 even as small 00:18:16.219 --> 00:18:16.859 as an insult. 00:18:17.279 --> 00:18:17.879 Jesus says 00:18:17.879 --> 00:18:18.639 that if anyone 00:18:18.639 --> 00:18:19.659 is angry with his brother, 00:18:19.759 --> 00:18:20.659 he is liable to judgment. 00:18:21.000 --> 00:18:21.679 If anyone says, 00:18:21.839 --> 00:18:22.419 you fool, 00:18:23.679 --> 00:18:24.500 they will be liable 00:18:24.500 --> 00:18:25.719 to the fires of hell. 00:18:26.859 --> 00:18:27.819 Now that judgment 00:18:27.819 --> 00:18:28.979 may not come in this life, 00:18:28.980 --> 00:18:31.000 but it will come one day. 00:18:31.079 --> 00:18:31.900 Hebrews 9, 27, 00:18:32.079 --> 00:18:33.400 it says it is important 00:18:33.400 --> 00:18:34.680 for man to die once 00:18:34.680 --> 00:18:35.400 and after that 00:18:35.400 --> 00:18:36.120 comes judgment. 00:18:36.460 --> 00:18:37.660 There will be a day 00:18:37.660 --> 00:18:38.480 when we are brought 00:18:38.480 --> 00:18:39.680 not into a human court 00:18:39.680 --> 00:18:40.599 but God's court 00:18:40.599 --> 00:18:42.839 and books will be opened 00:18:42.839 --> 00:18:43.319 and judgment 00:18:43.319 --> 00:18:44.339 will be passed 00:18:44.339 --> 00:18:45.380 for every evil deed 00:18:45.380 --> 00:18:45.779 and thought 00:18:45.779 --> 00:18:46.599 and I tell you 00:18:46.599 --> 00:18:47.460 there will be silence 00:18:47.460 --> 00:18:48.299 in heaven. 00:18:49.700 --> 00:18:50.339 And we know 00:18:50.339 --> 00:18:50.900 he can do that 00:18:50.900 --> 00:18:51.779 because he created 00:18:51.779 --> 00:18:52.120 the world. 00:18:52.259 --> 00:18:53.180 Every tree, 00:18:53.380 --> 00:18:53.839 every atom, 00:18:53.920 --> 00:18:54.420 every plant, 00:18:54.519 --> 00:18:55.140 every galaxy 00:18:55.140 --> 00:18:55.759 and universe 00:18:55.759 --> 00:18:57.059 was made by him. 00:18:57.059 --> 00:18:57.380 He can, 00:18:57.759 --> 00:18:58.299 he has the power 00:18:58.299 --> 00:18:58.740 to judge. 00:18:58.980 --> 00:19:02.400 So if someone wrongs you 00:19:02.400 --> 00:19:04.500 and they're not 00:19:04.500 --> 00:19:05.000 in the church, 00:19:05.759 --> 00:19:06.799 it's your first reaction 00:19:06.799 --> 00:19:08.099 to feel deep, 00:19:08.360 --> 00:19:10.339 deep sorrow for them. 00:19:11.480 --> 00:19:11.720 You know, 00:19:11.740 --> 00:19:12.319 it seems outdated 00:19:12.319 --> 00:19:13.599 but there is a prayer 00:19:13.599 --> 00:19:13.940 that says, 00:19:14.079 --> 00:19:15.059 may the Lord have mercy 00:19:15.059 --> 00:19:15.740 on your soul. 00:19:16.319 --> 00:19:17.519 And it's actually often 00:19:17.519 --> 00:19:19.400 spoken 00:19:19.400 --> 00:19:22.900 in death sentences 00:19:22.900 --> 00:19:23.680 when judges 00:19:23.680 --> 00:19:24.460 hand down death sentences, 00:19:24.559 --> 00:19:25.120 they often end them 00:19:25.120 --> 00:19:25.460 by saying, 00:19:25.460 --> 00:19:26.400 may the Lord have mercy 00:19:26.400 --> 00:19:26.839 on your soul. 00:19:26.839 --> 00:19:30.699 people need that mercy. 00:19:32.720 --> 00:19:33.480 Now if it's someone 00:19:33.480 --> 00:19:34.259 in the church, 00:19:34.699 --> 00:19:36.139 it's a different situation. 00:19:36.220 --> 00:19:36.939 Someone sins against you 00:19:36.939 --> 00:19:37.519 and they're in the church, 00:19:37.879 --> 00:19:38.000 you know, 00:19:38.039 --> 00:19:38.980 there is no condemnation 00:19:38.980 --> 00:19:39.839 for those who are in Christ. 00:19:39.939 --> 00:19:40.119 However, 00:19:40.220 --> 00:19:40.959 God does discipline 00:19:40.959 --> 00:19:42.220 and his disciplines 00:19:42.220 --> 00:19:43.399 are painful. 00:19:44.039 --> 00:19:45.059 So instead of 00:19:45.059 --> 00:19:45.980 the imagery 00:19:45.980 --> 00:19:46.659 of a courthouse, 00:19:46.759 --> 00:19:47.439 instead we have imagery 00:19:47.439 --> 00:19:48.559 of perhaps two kids 00:19:48.559 --> 00:19:48.919 fighting. 00:19:49.459 --> 00:19:50.119 And one of them says, 00:19:50.220 --> 00:19:50.839 if you don't make up, 00:19:50.839 --> 00:19:51.599 daddy's gonna come. 00:19:52.259 --> 00:19:52.419 So, 00:19:53.179 --> 00:19:54.939 in that situation, 00:19:55.480 --> 00:19:56.019 there's still 00:19:56.019 --> 00:19:57.019 a response of faith 00:19:57.019 --> 00:19:57.919 to trust that God 00:19:57.919 --> 00:19:58.839 as a heavenly father 00:19:58.839 --> 00:19:59.639 will come. 00:20:00.980 --> 00:20:02.279 So that's our first lesson 00:20:02.279 --> 00:20:03.299 from verse 16 00:20:03.299 --> 00:20:04.199 so that we, 00:20:04.500 --> 00:20:04.919 like Habakkuk, 00:20:04.980 --> 00:20:05.740 can respond in faith 00:20:05.740 --> 00:20:07.279 by waiting quietly 00:20:07.279 --> 00:20:08.199 for the day of trouble 00:20:08.199 --> 00:20:09.879 whenever evil comes 00:20:09.879 --> 00:20:10.659 our way. 00:20:12.859 --> 00:20:13.759 The second lesson 00:20:13.759 --> 00:20:14.299 we can learn 00:20:14.299 --> 00:20:15.099 about living a life 00:20:15.099 --> 00:20:15.359 of faith 00:20:15.359 --> 00:20:16.579 is that it rejoices 00:20:16.579 --> 00:20:17.219 triumphantly 00:20:17.219 --> 00:20:18.839 in verses 17 through 19. 00:20:18.839 --> 00:20:21.039 for he will rescue us 00:20:21.039 --> 00:20:22.359 from that day of trouble. 00:20:24.119 --> 00:20:25.019 Verse 17 00:20:25.019 --> 00:20:27.459 is a beautiful, 00:20:28.139 --> 00:20:28.659 poetic, 00:20:28.839 --> 00:20:30.099 and haunting description 00:20:30.099 --> 00:20:31.000 of devastation 00:20:31.000 --> 00:20:31.659 and loss. 00:20:32.259 --> 00:20:33.099 Each of these things, 00:20:33.459 --> 00:20:34.539 the fig trees, 00:20:34.759 --> 00:20:35.539 the vines, 00:20:35.639 --> 00:20:35.919 the grapes, 00:20:36.039 --> 00:20:36.399 the olives, 00:20:36.839 --> 00:20:37.339 and the fields, 00:20:37.419 --> 00:20:38.179 they're all hallmarks 00:20:38.179 --> 00:20:39.019 of a flourishing 00:20:39.019 --> 00:20:40.319 agricultural society. 00:20:41.159 --> 00:20:41.579 Same thing 00:20:41.579 --> 00:20:42.539 with the flock, 00:20:42.639 --> 00:20:42.980 the sheep, 00:20:43.079 --> 00:20:43.299 and the herd 00:20:43.299 --> 00:20:43.619 in the stalls 00:20:43.619 --> 00:20:44.319 like the oxen. 00:20:44.720 --> 00:20:45.839 If you had these things 00:20:45.839 --> 00:20:46.579 in abundance, 00:20:46.699 --> 00:20:47.379 you were doing well. 00:20:47.380 --> 00:20:48.920 But if you had them, 00:20:49.640 --> 00:20:50.440 you were lost. 00:20:51.560 --> 00:20:52.420 Imagine how devastating 00:20:52.420 --> 00:20:52.800 it would be 00:20:52.800 --> 00:20:53.980 to not have a harvest 00:20:53.980 --> 00:20:56.660 of any grape. 00:20:56.860 --> 00:20:57.960 You don't even have seeds 00:20:57.960 --> 00:20:58.820 to plant 00:20:58.820 --> 00:21:01.420 for next year's crop. 00:21:01.980 --> 00:21:02.520 It would be like 00:21:02.520 --> 00:21:02.980 being fired 00:21:02.980 --> 00:21:03.580 from your job. 00:21:04.600 --> 00:21:05.120 Your bank account 00:21:05.120 --> 00:21:05.480 being empty. 00:21:05.560 --> 00:21:06.240 You can't even afford 00:21:06.240 --> 00:21:06.840 the internet 00:21:06.840 --> 00:21:07.580 to look up 00:21:07.580 --> 00:21:09.100 other job interviews. 00:21:09.580 --> 00:21:10.340 You can't afford 00:21:10.340 --> 00:21:11.300 the transportation fees 00:21:11.300 --> 00:21:12.240 to get your next interview. 00:21:14.060 --> 00:21:14.580 Now, the loss 00:21:14.580 --> 00:21:14.940 of these things 00:21:14.940 --> 00:21:15.600 could have been literally 00:21:15.600 --> 00:21:17.060 because invading forces 00:21:17.059 --> 00:21:18.079 as Joel describes, 00:21:18.579 --> 00:21:20.000 waste the vine 00:21:20.000 --> 00:21:21.639 and the fig tree. 00:21:22.319 --> 00:21:23.099 It could also just be 00:21:23.099 --> 00:21:24.279 a symbolic description 00:21:24.279 --> 00:21:25.579 of Israel's particular judgment 00:21:25.579 --> 00:21:26.899 because Israel is described 00:21:26.899 --> 00:21:27.539 as a nation 00:21:27.539 --> 00:21:29.480 that is God's fig tree. 00:21:29.679 --> 00:21:30.519 It is his olive garden. 00:21:30.679 --> 00:21:31.740 So for it to be destroyed, 00:21:32.139 --> 00:21:33.000 it would be a picture 00:21:33.000 --> 00:21:34.559 you could use 00:21:34.559 --> 00:21:35.379 the similar language. 00:21:37.220 --> 00:21:38.159 However you interpret it, 00:21:38.159 --> 00:21:38.659 it is clear. 00:21:39.079 --> 00:21:39.519 In the face 00:21:39.519 --> 00:21:40.639 of absolute ruin, 00:21:41.839 --> 00:21:42.759 terrible devastation, 00:21:42.839 --> 00:21:43.299 complete loss, 00:21:43.379 --> 00:21:45.179 Habakkuk is able to say, 00:21:45.180 --> 00:21:47.039 I will rejoice 00:21:47.039 --> 00:21:47.519 in the Lord. 00:21:47.640 --> 00:21:47.900 Yet, 00:21:49.039 --> 00:21:50.580 I will take joy 00:21:50.580 --> 00:21:51.340 in the God 00:21:51.340 --> 00:21:52.180 of my salvation. 00:21:54.740 --> 00:21:55.660 And he's able to do it 00:21:55.660 --> 00:21:56.380 because the God 00:21:56.380 --> 00:21:57.779 is his God of salvation. 00:21:58.519 --> 00:21:58.779 He says, 00:21:58.880 --> 00:21:59.220 the Lord God 00:21:59.220 --> 00:21:59.840 is my strength. 00:22:00.100 --> 00:22:00.799 He makes my feet 00:22:00.799 --> 00:22:01.340 like the deers. 00:22:01.420 --> 00:22:02.480 He makes me tread 00:22:02.480 --> 00:22:04.180 on my high places. 00:22:04.660 --> 00:22:05.620 This description 00:22:05.620 --> 00:22:06.500 of having feet 00:22:06.500 --> 00:22:06.980 like the deers, 00:22:07.060 --> 00:22:07.880 the Lord being his strength 00:22:07.880 --> 00:22:09.880 is almost a direct quote 00:22:09.880 --> 00:22:10.920 from Psalm 18. 00:22:11.519 --> 00:22:11.980 Psalm 18 00:22:11.980 --> 00:22:13.019 is described 00:22:13.019 --> 00:22:13.819 by its subtitle 00:22:13.819 --> 00:22:14.360 as a psalm 00:22:14.360 --> 00:22:15.019 in which David 00:22:15.019 --> 00:22:16.039 celebrates God 00:22:16.039 --> 00:22:17.160 rescuing him 00:22:17.160 --> 00:22:17.980 from the hand 00:22:17.980 --> 00:22:18.700 of all his enemies 00:22:18.700 --> 00:22:19.559 in the hands of Saul. 00:22:20.980 --> 00:22:21.740 There's another story 00:22:21.740 --> 00:22:22.599 of God saving people 00:22:22.599 --> 00:22:23.839 from disaster. 00:22:24.319 --> 00:22:25.460 If you have feet 00:22:25.460 --> 00:22:25.860 like a deer, 00:22:25.960 --> 00:22:27.559 you can bound up a mountain. 00:22:27.680 --> 00:22:28.200 You go faster 00:22:28.200 --> 00:22:29.180 than any human. 00:22:29.740 --> 00:22:30.380 If you are treading 00:22:30.380 --> 00:22:31.180 on the high places, 00:22:31.420 --> 00:22:33.079 you have at least 00:22:33.079 --> 00:22:33.920 a military advantage 00:22:33.920 --> 00:22:36.140 because you can see farther. 00:22:36.380 --> 00:22:36.880 Your projectiles 00:22:36.880 --> 00:22:38.160 have the help of gravity. 00:22:39.420 --> 00:22:39.880 The high places 00:22:39.880 --> 00:22:41.319 also have a spiritual connotation 00:22:41.319 --> 00:22:42.419 because the higher you are, 00:22:42.480 --> 00:22:43.819 the closer you are to God, 00:22:43.919 --> 00:22:44.399 which is why 00:22:44.399 --> 00:22:45.539 by that time, 00:22:45.939 --> 00:22:46.599 the word high places 00:22:46.599 --> 00:22:47.859 referred to places of idols, 00:22:48.439 --> 00:22:49.259 places where they were 00:22:49.259 --> 00:22:50.119 enemies of God 00:22:50.119 --> 00:22:52.099 and God was expected 00:22:52.099 --> 00:22:53.179 to trample down 00:22:53.179 --> 00:22:54.559 those enemies, 00:22:55.179 --> 00:22:56.500 tread them underfoot. 00:22:57.279 --> 00:22:58.139 So this picture of 00:22:58.139 --> 00:23:00.259 flight, 00:23:00.539 --> 00:23:01.259 the flight of the deer 00:23:01.259 --> 00:23:03.079 who treads upon 00:23:03.079 --> 00:23:03.659 the high places 00:23:03.659 --> 00:23:04.379 is a picture of the Lord 00:23:04.379 --> 00:23:05.039 giving safety 00:23:05.039 --> 00:23:06.119 and victory. 00:23:06.439 --> 00:23:07.000 And this is what 00:23:07.000 --> 00:23:07.960 Habakkuk believes in. 00:23:11.319 --> 00:23:12.359 He believes that 00:23:12.359 --> 00:23:13.259 he can live. 00:23:14.599 --> 00:23:16.980 Habakkuk 2, 4 00:23:16.980 --> 00:23:19.759 specifically says, 00:23:20.079 --> 00:23:20.439 the righteous 00:23:20.439 --> 00:23:21.700 shall live by his faith. 00:23:21.779 --> 00:23:22.879 The Lord tells Habakkuk, 00:23:23.019 --> 00:23:23.379 the righteous 00:23:23.379 --> 00:23:25.119 shall live by his faith. 00:23:25.279 --> 00:23:26.000 And we see that 00:23:26.000 --> 00:23:27.019 literally throughout 00:23:27.019 --> 00:23:27.859 the Old Testament. 00:23:29.019 --> 00:23:29.779 We don't know 00:23:29.779 --> 00:23:30.899 what happens to Habakkuk, 00:23:31.119 --> 00:23:31.720 but we do know 00:23:31.720 --> 00:23:33.460 what happens to Daniel 00:23:33.460 --> 00:23:34.379 and a lot of the people 00:23:34.379 --> 00:23:35.220 who are captured 00:23:35.220 --> 00:23:36.099 by the Babylonians 00:23:36.099 --> 00:23:36.799 and exiled. 00:23:38.099 --> 00:23:38.480 Daniel, 00:23:39.279 --> 00:23:40.039 there are many stories 00:23:40.039 --> 00:23:40.740 of this in Daniel, 00:23:41.039 --> 00:23:41.500 but one of them 00:23:41.500 --> 00:23:43.879 is that of Daniel 00:23:43.879 --> 00:23:44.619 in the lion's den, 00:23:44.839 --> 00:23:45.440 a very common 00:23:45.440 --> 00:23:46.799 Sunday school story. 00:23:47.519 --> 00:23:49.259 Daniel faces a law 00:23:49.259 --> 00:23:49.779 that says, 00:23:49.920 --> 00:23:50.639 if you pray to any 00:23:50.639 --> 00:23:51.480 other God but him, 00:23:51.720 --> 00:23:52.440 you'll be thrown 00:23:52.440 --> 00:23:53.480 to the lions. 00:23:55.119 --> 00:23:56.139 But he keeps faith 00:23:56.139 --> 00:23:56.639 in God, 00:23:56.899 --> 00:23:57.460 prays to God. 00:23:57.839 --> 00:23:58.440 And when he is thrown 00:23:58.440 --> 00:23:59.039 to the lions, 00:23:59.460 --> 00:24:00.339 God sends an angel 00:24:00.339 --> 00:24:01.720 and shuts the lion's 00:24:01.720 --> 00:24:02.839 mouth and he comes 00:24:02.839 --> 00:24:03.259 out alive. 00:24:03.379 --> 00:24:04.639 He lives by his faith. 00:24:06.659 --> 00:24:07.019 Now, 00:24:07.639 --> 00:24:08.460 Hebrews 11 tells us 00:24:08.460 --> 00:24:09.139 these stories 00:24:09.140 --> 00:24:11.380 these saints 00:24:11.380 --> 00:24:12.040 of great faith 00:24:12.040 --> 00:24:12.720 are examples 00:24:12.720 --> 00:24:13.500 for us today 00:24:13.500 --> 00:24:14.660 of what it means 00:24:14.660 --> 00:24:15.700 to live by faith. 00:24:16.040 --> 00:24:16.720 And we are going 00:24:16.720 --> 00:24:17.300 to need that faith 00:24:17.300 --> 00:24:18.259 because a day of trouble 00:24:18.259 --> 00:24:18.880 is coming. 00:24:19.720 --> 00:24:20.640 And this day of trouble 00:24:20.640 --> 00:24:21.660 is not just for 00:24:21.660 --> 00:24:22.800 great criminals, 00:24:24.480 --> 00:24:25.759 invading empires, 00:24:26.520 --> 00:24:27.460 but it is a day 00:24:27.460 --> 00:24:28.100 of trouble for you 00:24:28.100 --> 00:24:28.360 and me. 00:24:30.560 --> 00:24:30.800 You see, 00:24:30.860 --> 00:24:31.980 all have fallen short 00:24:31.980 --> 00:24:33.340 of the glory of God. 00:24:34.500 --> 00:24:34.680 Now, 00:24:34.700 --> 00:24:35.540 I spoke about Jesus 00:24:35.540 --> 00:24:36.220 saying that anyone 00:24:36.220 --> 00:24:37.220 who is angry 00:24:37.220 --> 00:24:37.660 with his brother 00:24:37.660 --> 00:24:38.560 is liable to hellfire. 00:24:39.140 --> 00:24:42.180 I imagine that 00:24:42.180 --> 00:24:43.520 that would include 00:24:43.520 --> 00:24:44.040 all of us. 00:24:45.720 --> 00:24:47.020 We all need 00:24:47.020 --> 00:24:49.040 to live. 00:24:51.840 --> 00:24:52.900 How can we do that? 00:24:56.100 --> 00:24:58.300 600 to 700 years later, 00:24:59.000 --> 00:24:59.600 the apostle Paul 00:24:59.600 --> 00:24:59.960 would write 00:24:59.960 --> 00:25:01.380 in Romans 1, 16, 00:25:01.460 --> 00:25:02.340 that he is not ashamed 00:25:02.340 --> 00:25:02.840 of the gospel 00:25:02.840 --> 00:25:04.000 for it is the power 00:25:04.000 --> 00:25:04.480 of God 00:25:04.480 --> 00:25:05.280 for salvation 00:25:05.280 --> 00:25:05.720 to everyone 00:25:05.720 --> 00:25:06.280 who believes, 00:25:06.520 --> 00:25:07.259 to the Jew first 00:25:07.259 --> 00:25:08.059 and also to the Greek. 00:25:08.059 --> 00:25:08.940 For in it, 00:25:09.200 --> 00:25:09.779 the righteousness 00:25:09.779 --> 00:25:10.319 of God 00:25:10.319 --> 00:25:10.859 is revealed 00:25:10.859 --> 00:25:11.980 from faith to faith. 00:25:12.059 --> 00:25:12.640 As it is written, 00:25:12.940 --> 00:25:13.400 the righteous 00:25:13.400 --> 00:25:14.720 shall live by faith. 00:25:14.779 --> 00:25:15.700 That is a direct quotation 00:25:15.700 --> 00:25:17.660 from Habakkuk 2, 4. 00:25:18.200 --> 00:25:19.000 This salvation 00:25:19.000 --> 00:25:20.420 that Habakkuk wrote about 00:25:20.420 --> 00:25:21.500 is fulfilled 00:25:21.500 --> 00:25:22.599 in the gospel. 00:25:23.200 --> 00:25:23.779 In the gospel, 00:25:24.059 --> 00:25:24.920 Christ reveals himself 00:25:24.920 --> 00:25:26.059 as Lord and Savior. 00:25:26.299 --> 00:25:27.119 And if we believe 00:25:27.119 --> 00:25:27.640 in him, 00:25:27.839 --> 00:25:28.980 we take him 00:25:28.980 --> 00:25:30.700 as our God, 00:25:31.500 --> 00:25:32.720 then we will be saved. 00:25:33.019 --> 00:25:33.779 His righteousness, 00:25:33.779 --> 00:25:35.299 his perfect righteousness 00:25:35.299 --> 00:25:36.240 from that life 00:25:36.240 --> 00:25:37.440 of purity 00:25:37.440 --> 00:25:38.180 that he lived 00:25:38.180 --> 00:25:39.599 will be granted to us 00:25:39.599 --> 00:25:40.379 and our sins 00:25:40.379 --> 00:25:41.559 will be placed on him. 00:25:41.960 --> 00:25:42.839 And in that divine trade, 00:25:42.920 --> 00:25:43.740 we will have the righteousness 00:25:43.740 --> 00:25:44.220 of Christ 00:25:44.220 --> 00:25:44.899 and by that, 00:25:45.160 --> 00:25:46.059 we will survive 00:25:46.059 --> 00:25:47.500 that day of judgment. 00:25:47.839 --> 00:25:48.759 The books will be opened 00:25:48.759 --> 00:25:50.079 and our names 00:25:50.079 --> 00:25:50.839 will be written there 00:25:50.839 --> 00:25:52.940 and instead of a long list 00:25:52.940 --> 00:25:54.379 of every evil we've done, 00:25:54.899 --> 00:25:56.139 it'll just be Jesus' name. 00:25:57.299 --> 00:25:57.740 Righteous. 00:25:57.740 --> 00:26:02.160 So that is something 00:26:02.160 --> 00:26:03.039 worth taking joy in. 00:26:03.819 --> 00:26:04.900 And this joy 00:26:04.900 --> 00:26:06.460 is not a happy-go-lucky 00:26:06.460 --> 00:26:07.000 type of joy. 00:26:07.140 --> 00:26:08.559 It's not that fleeting high 00:26:08.559 --> 00:26:09.460 that people chase 00:26:09.460 --> 00:26:10.000 in this world 00:26:10.000 --> 00:26:11.440 through, among other things, 00:26:11.500 --> 00:26:12.359 sex, money, and drugs. 00:26:13.120 --> 00:26:14.019 But it's a deep, 00:26:14.579 --> 00:26:16.059 deep abiding joy. 00:26:17.819 --> 00:26:18.859 And that joy starts 00:26:18.859 --> 00:26:19.559 with thankfulness. 00:26:20.339 --> 00:26:21.120 John Piper says that 00:26:21.120 --> 00:26:22.819 thankfulness is a species 00:26:22.819 --> 00:26:23.220 of joy, 00:26:23.279 --> 00:26:23.759 and I love that. 00:26:25.519 --> 00:26:26.339 Christ has risen 00:26:26.339 --> 00:26:26.900 from the dead. 00:26:26.900 --> 00:26:28.180 Let us rejoice in that. 00:26:28.259 --> 00:26:29.220 He has not only risen 00:26:29.220 --> 00:26:29.640 from the dead, 00:26:29.700 --> 00:26:31.180 but he promises new life 00:26:31.180 --> 00:26:32.140 to all those 00:26:32.140 --> 00:26:32.640 who believe in him. 00:26:32.840 --> 00:26:34.000 Death, that final enemy, 00:26:34.720 --> 00:26:35.440 is defeated. 00:26:35.980 --> 00:26:36.800 And not just death, 00:26:36.860 --> 00:26:38.240 but the power of death, 00:26:38.360 --> 00:26:39.040 which is sin. 00:26:39.480 --> 00:26:40.420 Sin is the source. 00:26:40.620 --> 00:26:41.640 It is the actual source 00:26:41.640 --> 00:26:42.200 of the suffering 00:26:42.200 --> 00:26:42.700 in this world, 00:26:42.780 --> 00:26:43.280 not God. 00:26:45.320 --> 00:26:46.740 And while sin reigns 00:26:46.740 --> 00:26:47.120 in this world 00:26:47.120 --> 00:26:47.680 for a moment, 00:26:48.019 --> 00:26:48.860 there will be that day 00:26:48.860 --> 00:26:49.700 after that judgment 00:26:49.700 --> 00:26:50.340 where there will be 00:26:50.340 --> 00:26:51.160 no more sin. 00:26:52.820 --> 00:26:53.840 And we can look forward 00:26:53.840 --> 00:26:54.400 to that day 00:26:54.400 --> 00:26:55.340 by the Spirit, 00:26:55.340 --> 00:26:56.200 the same Spirit 00:26:56.200 --> 00:26:56.880 who allow Jesus 00:26:56.880 --> 00:26:57.400 to overcome 00:26:57.400 --> 00:26:58.000 the temptations 00:26:58.000 --> 00:26:58.480 in the wilderness. 00:26:58.680 --> 00:26:59.960 We too can overcome 00:26:59.960 --> 00:27:00.900 the lies of the devil. 00:27:01.140 --> 00:27:03.299 We can take his word, 00:27:03.740 --> 00:27:04.360 the sword, 00:27:04.920 --> 00:27:07.480 and have victory, 00:27:07.860 --> 00:27:08.400 the same victory 00:27:08.400 --> 00:27:09.160 that Christ has. 00:27:09.400 --> 00:27:10.180 And we can do that 00:27:10.180 --> 00:27:10.980 with our eyes fixed 00:27:10.980 --> 00:27:12.160 on that final day. 00:27:12.519 --> 00:27:13.120 And that is something 00:27:13.120 --> 00:27:14.019 worth rejoicing over. 00:27:15.200 --> 00:27:15.559 Now, 00:27:15.600 --> 00:27:16.080 that doesn't mean 00:27:16.080 --> 00:27:17.779 in this life 00:27:17.779 --> 00:27:18.860 that we'll be free 00:27:18.860 --> 00:27:20.200 from troubles 00:27:20.200 --> 00:27:22.880 and free from trials 00:27:22.880 --> 00:27:23.559 and tribulations. 00:27:25.380 --> 00:27:25.900 Apostle Paul 00:27:25.900 --> 00:27:26.740 in 2 Corinthians 00:27:26.740 --> 00:27:27.519 gives a long list 00:27:27.519 --> 00:27:28.500 of his various trials. 00:27:28.700 --> 00:27:29.200 One of the most 00:27:29.200 --> 00:27:30.160 faithful apostles 00:27:30.160 --> 00:27:31.480 was faced with 00:27:31.480 --> 00:27:32.500 imprisonments, 00:27:33.340 --> 00:27:34.880 countless beatings, 00:27:35.140 --> 00:27:36.000 being shipwrecked, 00:27:36.779 --> 00:27:37.519 toil and hardship, 00:27:37.720 --> 00:27:38.400 sleepless nights, 00:27:38.940 --> 00:27:39.700 hunger and thirst, 00:27:41.080 --> 00:27:41.980 and cold and exposure. 00:27:44.160 --> 00:27:44.460 Indeed, 00:27:44.580 --> 00:27:45.180 Jesus says, 00:27:45.480 --> 00:27:46.200 in this world, 00:27:46.200 --> 00:27:47.700 you will have tribulation. 00:27:48.440 --> 00:27:49.039 But in John 16, 00:27:49.080 --> 00:27:49.360 33, 00:27:49.460 --> 00:27:49.900 he also says, 00:27:50.160 --> 00:27:50.519 take heart. 00:27:51.340 --> 00:27:51.819 Take heart. 00:27:51.980 --> 00:27:52.720 I have overcome 00:27:52.720 --> 00:27:53.160 the world. 00:27:53.279 --> 00:27:53.519 Jesus, 00:27:54.160 --> 00:27:55.120 our Lord of salvation, 00:27:55.240 --> 00:27:56.039 has overcome the world 00:27:56.039 --> 00:27:56.920 so we can take heart 00:27:56.920 --> 00:27:58.779 by faith in him. 00:28:00.600 --> 00:28:01.779 So we should ask ourselves, 00:28:02.340 --> 00:28:04.360 what does it look like 00:28:04.360 --> 00:28:05.759 to live by that faith 00:28:05.759 --> 00:28:06.319 that Jesus 00:28:06.319 --> 00:28:08.539 is our salvation? 00:28:09.080 --> 00:28:09.299 You know, 00:28:09.319 --> 00:28:10.460 we may not be like Paul. 00:28:10.740 --> 00:28:11.539 We may not have been 00:28:11.539 --> 00:28:12.360 shipwrecked 00:28:12.360 --> 00:28:13.180 or facing beatings, 00:28:13.180 --> 00:28:15.000 but we will also face 00:28:15.000 --> 00:28:15.640 toils and hardship 00:28:15.640 --> 00:28:16.580 in this world. 00:28:16.579 --> 00:28:18.579 And we await his salvation 00:28:18.579 --> 00:28:19.740 and his vindication 00:28:19.740 --> 00:28:22.259 that on that final day, 00:28:22.319 --> 00:28:23.099 when the books are opened, 00:28:23.379 --> 00:28:23.899 he will make 00:28:23.899 --> 00:28:25.299 all things new. 00:28:26.000 --> 00:28:27.059 Everything will make sense. 00:28:27.139 --> 00:28:28.079 And we will be able to say, 00:28:28.159 --> 00:28:29.019 as we've seen in Revelation, 00:28:29.159 --> 00:28:29.779 that we will call 00:28:29.779 --> 00:28:31.179 God's justice and judgment 00:28:31.179 --> 00:28:32.879 true and holy. 00:28:35.279 --> 00:28:36.419 And we can do that by faith. 00:28:36.460 --> 00:28:36.699 And again, 00:28:36.759 --> 00:28:37.500 the faith that does that 00:28:37.500 --> 00:28:38.899 is not this blind faith 00:28:38.899 --> 00:28:39.619 that just 00:28:39.619 --> 00:28:41.679 has 00:28:41.679 --> 00:28:44.559 no bearing on reality. 00:28:46.579 --> 00:28:48.199 Habakkuk looked back 00:28:48.199 --> 00:28:48.939 to God's work 00:28:48.939 --> 00:28:50.159 to inspire his faith 00:28:50.159 --> 00:28:50.699 and we can look 00:28:50.699 --> 00:28:51.799 to God's greatest work, 00:28:52.099 --> 00:28:53.079 the death of his son 00:28:53.079 --> 00:28:54.019 on the cross 00:28:54.019 --> 00:28:55.359 to inspire our faith 00:28:55.359 --> 00:28:56.500 that whatever may come, 00:28:57.220 --> 00:28:57.960 God is working. 00:29:00.460 --> 00:29:01.839 If God can take 00:29:01.839 --> 00:29:02.519 the death 00:29:02.519 --> 00:29:04.099 of his son 00:29:04.099 --> 00:29:06.379 and make it out 00:29:06.379 --> 00:29:06.939 to be something 00:29:06.939 --> 00:29:08.039 as great as the salvation 00:29:08.039 --> 00:29:08.740 of the world, 00:29:09.079 --> 00:29:10.259 then he can make good 00:29:10.259 --> 00:29:10.839 come out of 00:29:10.839 --> 00:29:12.000 whatever troubles 00:29:12.000 --> 00:29:12.759 come your way. 00:29:12.759 --> 00:29:16.140 Romans 8.32 says, 00:29:16.440 --> 00:29:17.000 He who did not 00:29:17.000 --> 00:29:17.640 spare his own son 00:29:17.640 --> 00:29:18.539 but gave him up for us, 00:29:18.819 --> 00:29:19.579 how will he not 00:29:19.579 --> 00:29:20.259 also with him 00:29:20.259 --> 00:29:21.319 graciously give us 00:29:21.319 --> 00:29:22.279 all things? 00:29:22.599 --> 00:29:23.440 God can make good 00:29:23.440 --> 00:29:24.039 come from the death 00:29:24.039 --> 00:29:24.480 of his son. 00:29:24.759 --> 00:29:26.079 He can make something 00:29:26.079 --> 00:29:27.240 good come from 00:29:27.240 --> 00:29:27.700 your troubles. 00:29:28.279 --> 00:29:29.240 Now, I can't tell you 00:29:29.240 --> 00:29:30.420 exactly what that looks like 00:29:30.420 --> 00:29:31.519 in the same way that 00:29:31.519 --> 00:29:32.900 I can't tell you 00:29:32.900 --> 00:29:34.079 exactly what God's judgment 00:29:34.079 --> 00:29:34.579 will be like. 00:29:34.619 --> 00:29:35.779 We can't fully imagine it, 00:29:35.819 --> 00:29:36.519 but I can tell you 00:29:36.519 --> 00:29:37.599 it will be right. 00:29:37.940 --> 00:29:38.740 It will be rich 00:29:38.740 --> 00:29:39.700 and it will be worth 00:29:39.700 --> 00:29:41.379 enduring with patience 00:29:41.380 --> 00:29:43.240 the troubles of this world. 00:29:45.380 --> 00:29:46.680 So when your fig tree 00:29:46.680 --> 00:29:48.620 does not blossom, 00:29:49.460 --> 00:29:50.860 when there's no fruit 00:29:50.860 --> 00:29:51.460 on your vine 00:29:51.460 --> 00:29:52.820 and when your olive tree 00:29:52.820 --> 00:29:53.560 has no produce 00:29:53.560 --> 00:29:55.120 and your field 00:29:55.120 --> 00:29:56.360 yield no food, 00:29:56.520 --> 00:29:58.220 how will you live? 00:30:02.240 --> 00:30:03.580 What will your heart say 00:30:03.580 --> 00:30:05.480 when instead of prosperity 00:30:05.480 --> 00:30:06.880 and abundance, 00:30:07.360 --> 00:30:08.640 we have desolation, 00:30:09.440 --> 00:30:09.980 utter loss? 00:30:10.100 --> 00:30:10.840 Will you rejoice 00:30:10.839 --> 00:30:12.039 in the Lord 00:30:12.039 --> 00:30:12.699 of your salvation? 00:30:14.779 --> 00:30:16.619 One great way 00:30:16.619 --> 00:30:18.059 we can express that joy 00:30:18.059 --> 00:30:19.339 is through song. 00:30:20.740 --> 00:30:21.619 If you noticed 00:30:21.619 --> 00:30:22.639 in Habakkuk 3, 00:30:23.240 --> 00:30:23.859 there's various, 00:30:24.079 --> 00:30:24.740 it's not just a prayer, 00:30:24.939 --> 00:30:26.119 it's actually a song. 00:30:28.139 --> 00:30:30.199 It says in Habakkuk 3, 1, 00:30:30.279 --> 00:30:30.799 that it's according 00:30:30.799 --> 00:30:31.459 to the Shigiona, 00:30:31.619 --> 00:30:32.720 that's a musical direction, 00:30:32.819 --> 00:30:33.959 saying it's kind of like 00:30:33.959 --> 00:30:35.119 how the song 00:30:35.119 --> 00:30:35.939 All Glory Be to Christ 00:30:35.939 --> 00:30:37.079 is according to 00:30:37.079 --> 00:30:37.799 Agil Sing, 00:30:37.899 --> 00:30:38.939 which is that New Year's song. 00:30:38.940 --> 00:30:40.799 Throughout it, 00:30:40.860 --> 00:30:41.240 it's punctuated 00:30:41.240 --> 00:30:42.059 with the word Selah, 00:30:42.140 --> 00:30:43.960 another common refrain 00:30:43.960 --> 00:30:44.640 during Psalms, 00:30:44.680 --> 00:30:45.120 and it ends 00:30:45.120 --> 00:30:46.799 to the choir master 00:30:46.799 --> 00:30:47.740 with string instruments. 00:30:49.279 --> 00:30:49.680 You see, 00:30:50.220 --> 00:30:51.840 on that dark night 00:30:51.840 --> 00:30:52.340 in Auschwitz, 00:30:52.680 --> 00:30:53.380 these three rabbis 00:30:53.380 --> 00:30:53.900 convened, 00:30:54.279 --> 00:30:55.039 and they set God 00:30:55.039 --> 00:30:55.340 in trial, 00:30:55.400 --> 00:30:55.920 and they came down 00:30:55.920 --> 00:30:56.440 with a sentence. 00:30:56.880 --> 00:30:57.700 Their sentence, 00:30:58.240 --> 00:30:59.620 depending on the interview 00:30:59.620 --> 00:31:00.480 with Elie Wiesel, 00:31:00.539 --> 00:31:01.320 was either guilty 00:31:01.319 --> 00:31:03.539 or recompense needed. 00:31:05.200 --> 00:31:06.279 But Habakkuk's verdict 00:31:06.279 --> 00:31:07.279 was not a verdict, 00:31:07.439 --> 00:31:08.639 but a verse. 00:31:09.019 --> 00:31:09.980 It was not a sentence, 00:31:10.159 --> 00:31:11.039 but a song, 00:31:11.279 --> 00:31:12.099 and we can learn 00:31:12.099 --> 00:31:12.740 from him. 00:31:14.740 --> 00:31:15.679 And we should learn 00:31:15.679 --> 00:31:16.539 that we should be people 00:31:16.539 --> 00:31:17.319 to sing 00:31:17.319 --> 00:31:17.839 in the face 00:31:17.839 --> 00:31:18.460 of our trials. 00:31:20.720 --> 00:31:21.579 We should be people 00:31:21.579 --> 00:31:21.980 of song, 00:31:22.099 --> 00:31:23.279 and not just on Sundays, 00:31:23.399 --> 00:31:24.480 because trials come 00:31:24.480 --> 00:31:25.359 every day of the week. 00:31:26.279 --> 00:31:27.339 I highly recommend 00:31:27.339 --> 00:31:28.919 if singing 00:31:28.919 --> 00:31:29.679 is not a part 00:31:29.680 --> 00:31:31.180 of your regular devotional 00:31:31.180 --> 00:31:32.060 daily practice, 00:31:32.160 --> 00:31:33.320 I recommend you 00:31:33.320 --> 00:31:34.440 to make it a part of it. 00:31:35.000 --> 00:31:35.580 So, for example, 00:31:35.860 --> 00:31:36.539 every morning, 00:31:36.680 --> 00:31:37.160 I try to, 00:31:37.240 --> 00:31:37.700 with Nora, 00:31:37.820 --> 00:31:38.640 my two-year-old daughter, 00:31:39.000 --> 00:31:40.380 I try to read a little bit 00:31:40.380 --> 00:31:40.759 from the Bible. 00:31:40.860 --> 00:31:41.600 She doesn't understand much. 00:31:41.600 --> 00:31:41.940 That's okay. 00:31:42.400 --> 00:31:43.420 I try to sing a little, 00:31:43.960 --> 00:31:44.980 and then I just do 00:31:44.980 --> 00:31:45.740 the Lord's Prayer together. 00:31:46.580 --> 00:31:47.380 If you're not singing 00:31:47.380 --> 00:31:47.860 every day, 00:31:48.240 --> 00:31:49.200 I think you're missing out. 00:31:51.600 --> 00:31:52.740 And don't just sing. 00:31:52.860 --> 00:31:54.039 I would highly recommend 00:31:54.039 --> 00:31:54.900 you to also consider 00:31:54.900 --> 00:31:56.340 writing your own psalms. 00:31:57.340 --> 00:31:58.220 Write your own psalms. 00:31:58.720 --> 00:31:59.279 They don't have 00:31:59.279 --> 00:31:59.759 to be good. 00:32:00.240 --> 00:32:00.599 You don't have 00:32:00.599 --> 00:32:01.319 to perform them. 00:32:01.359 --> 00:32:01.639 They're not going 00:32:01.639 --> 00:32:02.339 to be stuck in a Bible 00:32:02.339 --> 00:32:03.740 for literally billions 00:32:03.740 --> 00:32:04.339 of people to read. 00:32:06.740 --> 00:32:07.759 They can be stolen 00:32:07.759 --> 00:32:08.920 and copied from other people, 00:32:08.960 --> 00:32:09.619 just like Habakkuk 00:32:09.619 --> 00:32:10.839 probably copied from David. 00:32:12.220 --> 00:32:13.259 All they have to be 00:32:13.259 --> 00:32:15.000 is dreadfully honest to God. 00:32:15.779 --> 00:32:16.799 Every trouble of your life, 00:32:16.839 --> 00:32:18.420 from the worst to the least, 00:32:19.000 --> 00:32:19.799 bring before Him. 00:32:20.700 --> 00:32:22.160 Recount your current struggles, 00:32:22.440 --> 00:32:23.440 your fears for the future, 00:32:23.619 --> 00:32:26.680 and recount His good works. 00:32:26.680 --> 00:32:29.560 I don't know what your psalm 00:32:29.560 --> 00:32:30.000 would sound like, 00:32:30.060 --> 00:32:31.860 but I've thrown something together. 00:32:32.940 --> 00:32:33.539 Maybe it would sound 00:32:33.539 --> 00:32:34.279 something like this. 00:32:39.160 --> 00:32:39.940 Though the traffic 00:32:39.940 --> 00:32:40.680 in Boston suck, 00:32:41.240 --> 00:32:43.920 and though the guy 00:32:43.920 --> 00:32:44.299 in front of me 00:32:44.299 --> 00:32:44.840 at the stoplight 00:32:44.840 --> 00:32:45.320 won't look up 00:32:45.320 --> 00:32:46.580 from his phone, 00:32:46.680 --> 00:32:47.900 and now I'm late from work, 00:32:48.420 --> 00:32:50.100 I will rejoice in the Lord. 00:32:50.099 --> 00:32:53.319 Though I can't find a date, 00:32:54.419 --> 00:32:55.779 and my romantic hopes 00:32:55.779 --> 00:32:56.379 and dreams are shattered, 00:32:56.459 --> 00:32:57.179 I will take joy 00:32:57.179 --> 00:32:58.599 in the God of my salvation. 00:32:59.259 --> 00:33:00.480 Though the price of groceries 00:33:00.480 --> 00:33:02.079 skyrockets, 00:33:02.539 --> 00:33:03.179 money is tight, 00:33:03.599 --> 00:33:04.519 and the job market 00:33:04.519 --> 00:33:05.579 is hopeless, 00:33:07.000 --> 00:33:07.579 you, God, 00:33:08.799 --> 00:33:09.579 are my strength. 00:33:10.659 --> 00:33:12.000 Though political turmoil, 00:33:12.319 --> 00:33:13.339 war, and rumors of war 00:33:13.339 --> 00:33:14.019 are on the horizon, 00:33:14.500 --> 00:33:15.079 you, Lord, 00:33:15.139 --> 00:33:16.659 make my feet like the deer's. 00:33:16.660 --> 00:33:20.600 Though I lose everything 00:33:20.600 --> 00:33:21.060 I have 00:33:21.060 --> 00:33:22.440 because of my faith. 00:33:24.440 --> 00:33:25.660 Though I may even be 00:33:25.660 --> 00:33:26.540 diagnosed with cancer, 00:33:26.840 --> 00:33:27.740 have but months to live. 00:33:28.279 --> 00:33:28.540 Though 00:33:28.540 --> 00:33:29.779 maybe 00:33:29.779 --> 00:33:30.540 my wife, 00:33:30.640 --> 00:33:30.900 child, 00:33:30.980 --> 00:33:31.400 my loved ones 00:33:31.400 --> 00:33:32.360 pass away before me. 00:33:32.600 --> 00:33:33.540 Though all my friends 00:33:33.540 --> 00:33:34.519 be miserable comforters, 00:33:34.580 --> 00:33:35.380 and I have nothing left 00:33:35.380 --> 00:33:35.720 but you. 00:33:36.080 --> 00:33:36.860 Though you give, 00:33:37.019 --> 00:33:37.980 and you take away, 00:33:38.040 --> 00:33:38.840 and you take away, 00:33:39.240 --> 00:33:40.400 you still make me tread 00:33:40.400 --> 00:33:41.920 on my high places. 00:33:42.060 --> 00:33:43.259 I will rejoice in you, 00:33:43.360 --> 00:33:43.500 Lord. 00:33:44.160 --> 00:33:44.779 You are the God 00:33:44.779 --> 00:33:45.500 of my salvation. 00:33:45.500 --> 00:33:48.640 Let us be a people 00:33:48.640 --> 00:33:50.259 who rejoice in song 00:33:50.259 --> 00:33:55.319 as we recognize 00:33:55.319 --> 00:33:56.160 that he saved us 00:33:56.160 --> 00:33:57.259 from that day of trouble. 00:33:58.859 --> 00:34:00.099 So I want to end 00:34:00.099 --> 00:34:00.799 by clarifying 00:34:00.799 --> 00:34:02.119 that I'm not being hard 00:34:02.119 --> 00:34:03.539 on these rabbis 00:34:03.539 --> 00:34:04.779 in Auschwitz. 00:34:04.880 --> 00:34:05.279 They, of course, 00:34:05.400 --> 00:34:06.500 they had reason 00:34:06.500 --> 00:34:07.059 to be asking 00:34:07.059 --> 00:34:08.440 the questions they did. 00:34:09.619 --> 00:34:10.000 In fact, 00:34:10.099 --> 00:34:10.619 Elie Wiesel 00:34:10.619 --> 00:34:11.719 ends his account 00:34:11.719 --> 00:34:12.500 with something 00:34:12.500 --> 00:34:14.760 in incredible detail. 00:34:15.500 --> 00:34:17.480 that after the rabbis 00:34:17.480 --> 00:34:18.139 had convened 00:34:18.139 --> 00:34:19.980 and delivered 00:34:19.980 --> 00:34:20.480 their verdict, 00:34:21.460 --> 00:34:22.500 God being guilty, 00:34:22.659 --> 00:34:23.119 they concluded 00:34:23.119 --> 00:34:23.619 by saying, 00:34:24.360 --> 00:34:24.679 it's time 00:34:24.679 --> 00:34:25.539 for evening prayers. 00:34:26.679 --> 00:34:27.460 Who are they praying to? 00:34:30.340 --> 00:34:31.059 There's something 00:34:31.059 --> 00:34:31.559 commendable 00:34:31.559 --> 00:34:32.440 in that type of faith. 00:34:34.000 --> 00:34:35.119 We, on the other hand, 00:34:35.159 --> 00:34:35.880 have the full, 00:34:36.420 --> 00:34:37.800 the true revelation 00:34:37.800 --> 00:34:39.219 of Jesus Christ. 00:34:39.219 --> 00:34:40.939 we, by faith, 00:34:41.279 --> 00:34:42.299 believe that he has died 00:34:42.299 --> 00:34:43.279 and he has risen 00:34:43.279 --> 00:34:44.879 and he will come again 00:34:44.879 --> 00:34:45.919 and he will come 00:34:45.919 --> 00:34:46.759 to judge the living 00:34:46.759 --> 00:34:47.279 and the dead 00:34:47.279 --> 00:34:48.359 and on that day 00:34:48.359 --> 00:34:48.779 he will make 00:34:48.779 --> 00:34:50.039 all things new. 00:34:50.439 --> 00:34:50.959 It will be a day 00:34:50.959 --> 00:34:51.439 of trouble 00:34:51.439 --> 00:34:53.079 for those who do evil 00:34:53.079 --> 00:34:54.019 who have not believed 00:34:54.019 --> 00:34:54.399 in him. 00:34:54.779 --> 00:34:55.619 The trouble for his enemy 00:34:55.619 --> 00:34:57.159 but it will be salvation 00:34:57.159 --> 00:34:58.319 for the one 00:34:58.319 --> 00:34:59.559 who loves him. 00:35:00.599 --> 00:35:01.379 So in the meantime, 00:35:01.899 --> 00:35:03.000 while we are on this earth, 00:35:03.079 --> 00:35:03.559 while trials 00:35:03.559 --> 00:35:04.039 and tribulations 00:35:04.039 --> 00:35:04.739 come our way, 00:35:04.819 --> 00:35:05.599 let us be people 00:35:05.599 --> 00:35:06.420 of faith. 00:35:08.039 --> 00:35:10.239 Let us wait quietly 00:35:10.239 --> 00:35:10.880 in that faith 00:35:10.880 --> 00:35:13.039 and rejoice triumphantly. 00:35:14.119 --> 00:35:14.980 Let's pray. 00:35:17.539 --> 00:35:18.400 Heavenly Father, 00:35:19.039 --> 00:35:22.900 we trust you 00:35:22.900 --> 00:35:24.219 that though 00:35:24.219 --> 00:35:28.259 the evils of this world 00:35:28.259 --> 00:35:28.860 are countless, 00:35:30.339 --> 00:35:32.239 you have let the evil 00:35:32.239 --> 00:35:33.199 of the death of your son 00:35:33.199 --> 00:35:35.139 be used for good 00:35:35.139 --> 00:35:36.960 we don't know exactly 00:35:36.960 --> 00:35:39.000 what that good is 00:35:39.000 --> 00:35:39.739 in its fullness 00:35:39.739 --> 00:35:40.759 but we trust one day 00:35:40.759 --> 00:35:41.500 we will see it 00:35:41.500 --> 00:35:42.699 face to face. 00:35:44.119 --> 00:35:45.359 Let us live 00:35:45.359 --> 00:35:47.359 rightly 00:35:47.359 --> 00:35:48.839 and well before you. 00:35:50.219 --> 00:35:51.059 In Jesus' name we pray. 00:35:51.519 --> 00:35:51.739 Amen.