WEBVTT

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 Let's bow our heads in prayer together.

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 Our gracious God and Father, we thank you for bringing us to this place and time.

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 And we bless you that we have before us the living and enduring Word of God.

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 And now we come to you and pray that you will do for us that which we cannot do for ourselves.

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 Lord, open your Word to our hearts and open our hearts to your Word.

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 Give to each one of us the grace of understanding and the greater grace of obedience.

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 And we ask it in Jesus' name. Amen.

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 Well, as you will have gathered from the little opportunity I had with your pastor earlier,

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 we're going to be looking at the clean pages in this first service this morning.

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 So if you'd like to get a head start on some people and go back to those clean pages,

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 the minor prophets, just before the New Testament begins.

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 And we're going to be looking at, well, if I were to ask you,

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 which do you think is the greatest verse in the entire Bible,

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 I wonder how many of you would turn to the minor prophets.

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 Now, to say which is the greatest verse in the Bible is actually an illegitimate question,

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 but I think you know the kind of reasons it's asked.

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 Which do you think would be the greatest verse in the entire Bible?

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 How many would go to one of the minor prophets?

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 But I believe there's a case to be made out that it is there.

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 And it's in what in England we call the prophet Habakkuk.

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 And I understand that in America you call it Habakkuk,

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 but I will take no lessons in the English language from a country that parks its cars on the driveway

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 and drives them on the parkway.

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 So, but I will try to concede to my country cousins,

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 and it may be a mixture between the two, but at least you know exactly.

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 It's the one that begins with H, and then A, and then B.

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 And so if we get there, we'll have done well.

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 I don't want to give you the history lesson here for the sake of time,

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 but I will keep a very close eye on the time that's been allocated,

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 and I think we'll be absolutely fine.

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 Habakkuk wrote to the nation of Judah about 600 B.C.

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 You'll remember the Exodus and the journey to the Promised Land,

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 the ructions in the nation split into the ten northern tribes which became Israel,

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 the two southern tribes became Judah, and so on.

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 Well, some of the minor prophets ministered to the northern tribes before their exile,

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 some to the southern tribe before their exile,

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 and some to the southern tribe when they were,

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 and they were the only ones who were repatriated to their home country.

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 Well, Habakkuk prophesied to Judah when it was a terrible tailspin,

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 so much so that God raised up four prophets to warn it of the coming catastrophe.

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 That is to say of invasion and deportation.

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 Jeremiah, Nahum, Zephaniah, and Habakkuk.

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 And of the four, our friend Habakkuk is the mystery man.

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 We know nothing about him, about his tribe, his home, his family, his occupation, or his background.

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 But if we have problems with him because we are told very little about him,

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 they are nothing, now hear me carefully,

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 they are nothing compared to the problems that he had with God.

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 The prophet had problems with God.

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 Look at the beginning of the book.

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 The oracle that Habakkuk the prophet received,

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 How long, O Lord, must I call for help?

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 And you do not listen.

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 Or cry out to you, violence, but you do not save.

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 Why do you make me look at injustice?

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 Why do you tolerate wrong?

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 Destruction and violence are before me.

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 There is strife and conflict abounds.

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 Therefore the law is paralyzed.

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 Justice never prevails.

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 Wicked him in the righteous.

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 Justice is perverted.

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 You could get that on CNN tomorrow.

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 Who says the Bible is out of date?

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 These words could be written over tomorrow's headlines.

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 But this was the prophet's problems.

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 See, he and others were praying that God would do something about this situation.

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 And his whole concern was, why don't you listen?

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 And the particular word listen there simply means, well, why don't you listen and do something?

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 Habakkuk may, I hope, have doubted that God actually heard what they were praying.

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 When are you going to deliver our nation from this dreadful state?

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 Their problem was that God didn't seem to be answering in a way that led to any answer being given.

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 So all of this mess was going on in Judah at the time.

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 But that was not Habakkuk's problem.

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 The heart of man is so corrupt that while the excesses of sin should always, of course, sadden us, they should never surprise us.

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 And this was Habakkuk's first problem.

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 The country was an immoral and spiritual mess.

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 If we have a true grasp of the depravity of the human heart, that should never shock us.

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 We are hearing things.

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 I take what would be called, I think, a quality newspaper, a broadsheet in England.

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 There are now things appearing in full color on the front page of a quality broadsheet

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 that would never have been found in three lines on page 27 of that paper 50 years ago.

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 And it's the sheer excesses of violence, of immorality, of skullduggery in high places, corruption in the corridors of power.

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 It's the sheer volume of it that is so distressing in these days.

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 But, to repeat, if we knew of the depravity of the human heart, that would not shock us.

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 Habakkuk's problem was not man's actions.

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 It was God's inaction.

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 God was apparently not doing anything in answer to the fervent prayers of the prophet,

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 and we must imagine a godly remnant with him.

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 Now, we've all heard growing up in our particular ecclesiastical circles,

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 the phrase prayer changes things.

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 And you may have that in your home somewhere, on a plaque or a wall or worked out in wood or in some other fashion.

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 Prayer changes things.

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 Do you know you won't find those words in the Bible?

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 That's not a text from Scripture.

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 Prayer changes things is not actually taken verbatim from the Bible.

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 Now, we don't have time to develop what we mean when we say that prayer changes things.

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 Habakkuk's problem, however, was it seemed to change nothing.

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 And these verses we've read so far are some of the most honest in the whole of the Bible.

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 But notice carefully, and it seems to me importantly, at the beginning of verse 2,

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 how long.

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 That seems to me to be a clue that the prophet wasn't giving up.

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 He did not say, I'm going to give up praying.

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 Nothing is happening.

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 That's the end of that.

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 It's, but Lord, we will carry on praying.

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 I think this is the unwritten text.

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 We're going to carry on praying.

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 But Lord, please tell us, how long before you answer?

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 The issue, it seems, was not whether God would answer, but when.

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 Well, in verses 5 through 11, God answers Habakkuk.

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 And he begins like this, I am going to do something.

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 What music that must have been to the ears of the prophet.

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 I am going to do something.

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 If you've been praying for something for a long time, a physical situation, something within

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 your family, a situation outside of your family that you're desperately concerned about, a

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 nagging, a chronic problem within the church or whatever, and you in some way receive what

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 seems to you to be a clear word from God, I am going to do something.

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 Wouldn't that make your heart rate increase just a little bit?

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 God is going to do something.

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 But look, it gets better.

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 I am going to do something in your days.

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 Well, that's even more exciting.

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 I mean, to take this church family, for example, and I have no knowledge whatever of where the

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 church stands in all sorts of areas at the moment.

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 I know that it stands firmly theologically because I read and heard about your pastor and

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 I rejoice in the ministry that God has given him here.

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 But there are issues within the church and you say, you know, for a long time we've wanted

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 to make a move forward in that area.

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 And if God were to say these things to you in order, firstly, I have heard your prayers

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 and I'm going to do something.

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 Well, that would please you, although please seems a very weak word to use.

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 If he were then to say, and it's going to happen in your days, in other words, well, it's

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 going to happen, but you'll be dead and buried long before that.

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 It's going to happen in your day.

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 Just imagine your pulse racing a little bit more.

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 And God goes on.

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 I'm going to do something you would not believe even if you were told.

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 In other words, he is saying to the prophet, it is going to be something so stupendous that

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 unless I, God, had told it to you, if somebody else had said to you, this is going to happen

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 and God is going to do it, you'd say, we have a phrase in England, tell it to the Marines,

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 which simply means nobody's going to believe you.

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 Nobody's going to believe you.

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 But I can just imagine the prophet now hyperventilating.

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 God says, I'm going to do something massive in your day.

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 You will see it.

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 And you can just imagine the prophet saying, what on earth is this going to be?

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 And God tells him, I'm raising up the Babylonians.

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 Now, that, if you're not familiar with the picture here, you may say, well, he's raising

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 up the Babylonians.

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 What does that mean?

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 Well, the Babylonians were the most violent, cruel, oppressive pagan people you could imagine.

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 And God was saying, I'm going to answer your prayer and you're going to be invaded by this

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 pagan nation with whom I have no covenant at all and they're going to sweep in and destroy

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 the land.

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 If Habakkuk could play tennis and his name was John McEnroe, he'd have said, you can't

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 be serious.

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 So God's answer to the first problem raised was an even bigger one.

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 And the reason was because of who these Babylonians were.

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 Look at verse 8.

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 Their horses are swifter than leopards, fiercer than wolves at dusk.

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 Their cavalry gallops headlong.

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 Their horsemen come from afar.

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 They fly like a vulture, swooping to devour.

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 They all come bent on violence.

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 Their hordes advance like a desert wind and gather prisoners like sand.

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 That doesn't sound much like a positive answer to prayer.

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 But the real reason why it was such a problem to Habakkuk was of what he knew about God.

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 Look at verse 12.

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 This is Habakkuk's statement of faith.

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 I like a confessional church.

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 A church that has a confession, a statement of faith.

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 I think of the great Westminster Confession in England and the 1689 Baptist Confession of

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 Faith and so forth.

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 These are great formulations brought together by godly men and securely based on Scripture.

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 And so this is Habakkuk's statement of faith.

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 O Lord, are you not from everlasting?

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 My God, my Holy One, we will not die.

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 O Lord, you have appointed them to execute judgment.

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 O Rock, you have ordained them to punish.

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 Your eyes are too pure to look on evil.

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 You cannot tolerate wrong.

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 Now can you see why it was such a problem to Habakkuk?

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 If he didn't really know very much about God, God's characteristics, God's attributes,

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 the things that govern everything, that self-govern everything that God did,

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 he would say, well, if that's the way God does things, that's the way God does things.

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 But just look again at verses 12 and 13.

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 He speaks of God's eternality.

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 You are from everlasting.

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 Of God's holiness, we won't be wiped out.

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 Of his faithfulness, we will not die.

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 Of his sovereignty, you have appointed them to execute.

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 Of his justice, to execute justice.

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 O Rock, he speaks of his stability.

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 Your eyes are too pure to look on evil.

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 He speaks of God's purity.

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 Well, that's great stuff.

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 But it's not the end of the problem.

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 Biblical doctrine is not like a jigsaw.

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 You get this bit of doctrine and put it in place,

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 and another bit over here, and another bit here, and another bit here.

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 And as you come here Sunday by Sunday and sit under Brother Stone's ministry,

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 you get to the point where you say,

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 my doctrine is now in place.

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 Now I can fold my arms and breeze through the rest of my Christian life.

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 There are few things more important than having a good, basic theological structure.

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 Not just a collection of nice texts floating around in your mind.

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 I would urge you to become systematic theologians.

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 That sounds pretty daunting.

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 What I mean is, begin to get an overall grasp, and a clear grasp,

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 and an ordered grasp of what the Bible is saying.

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 I heard of a man who once said he had no problems believing what the Bible said in general,

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 until he read a book claiming to solve them all.

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 And the Bible doesn't do that.

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 The fact is that only believers have Habakkuk's kind of problem.

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 So look at verse 13 again.

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 Your eyes are too pure to look on evil.

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 You cannot tolerate wrong.

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 Why then do you tolerate the treacherous?

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 That's what made the problem so great for Habakkuk.

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 He knew that God was a holy God, a pure God, a righteous God,

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 a God who could do no wrong.

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 And this righteous, pure, holy, do-no-wrong God was saying,

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 I'm answering your prayer for my people by sending in a nation with whom I don't even have a covenant,

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 a nation of pagan people, and they're going to wipe the country out.

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 And you see why he had a problem.

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 I mean, he really did.

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 Well, God's response comes, is developed at the beginning of chapter 2,

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 and the key phrase here is in verse 3.

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 It will come at the appointed time.

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 God is never in a hurry, never caught on the hop,

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 never up against a tight schedule.

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 Whenever God does something, it's never a moment too soon or a moment too late.

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 And this is the message to Habakkuk, of course.

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 In verse 8, I'm doing a work in your days.

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 God is never sitting on his hands.

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 And so, look at verse 4 in particular.

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 See, he, that is the Babylonian, he is puffed up.

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 His desires are not upright.

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 But, now in that one verse, and I know it may not come across instantly in reading it,

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 now God is speaking, not about the Babylonians,

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 but about his righteous people in Judah.

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 But, the righteous will live by his faith.

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 In other words, we are called to trust God even when we cannot trace him.

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 And I put it to you, and this is a purely personal thought,

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 that this has a claim to be the greatest verse in the whole Bible.

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 It is so important.

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 I mean, this phrase, the just shall live by faith.

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 So important that it's mentioned three times in the New Testament.

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 Once in Romans, once in Galatians, and once in Hebrews.

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 Now, the Galatians context and feeling is the same as the Romans one.

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 So, we'll miss that out.

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 So, we're going to turn first to the one in Romans.

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 So, this is where we go from now to the end of the service.

00:16:51.759 --> 00:16:53.480
 We'll look first at the reference in Romans,

00:16:53.980 --> 00:16:55.159
 then at the one in Hebrews,

00:16:55.159 --> 00:16:57.459
 and then we'll come back to the one in Habakkuk.

00:16:57.559 --> 00:16:59.559
 So, now you know exactly where we are.

00:16:59.659 --> 00:17:03.919
 So, turn with me, please, to Romans chapter 1 and verse 17.

00:17:10.420 --> 00:17:12.819
 And this is the verse that God used

00:17:12.819 --> 00:17:19.500
 to trigger off the great 16th century Reformation,

00:17:20.339 --> 00:17:24.559
 Protestant Reformation, first of all, in Germany.

00:17:25.160 --> 00:17:30.259
 And here we have it in Romans 1 and verse 17.

00:17:31.500 --> 00:17:32.560
 At the end of the verse,

00:17:32.680 --> 00:17:34.700
 the righteous will live by faith.

00:17:34.779 --> 00:17:35.920
 Do you see it there in your Bibles?

00:17:36.279 --> 00:17:37.779
 Well, he's quoting Habakkuk.

00:17:38.960 --> 00:17:39.860
 In Germany,

00:17:41.460 --> 00:17:43.500
 in the 16th century,

00:17:44.840 --> 00:17:47.040
 a young man had been wrestling for years

00:17:47.040 --> 00:17:48.900
 with the problem of how to get right with God.

00:17:50.060 --> 00:17:52.320
 He was so earnest about it,

00:17:52.319 --> 00:17:56.019
 he joined a group called the Hermits of St. Augustine,

00:17:56.819 --> 00:17:58.720
 the most strict,

00:17:58.779 --> 00:18:00.139
 or one of the strictest orders

00:18:00.139 --> 00:18:01.919
 in the Roman Catholic Church.

00:18:02.000 --> 00:18:03.740
 He poured himself into study

00:18:03.740 --> 00:18:06.919
 and prayer and meditation and rituals.

00:18:07.059 --> 00:18:07.879
 He said, and I quote,

00:18:07.880 --> 00:18:09.580
 I was a good monk

00:18:09.580 --> 00:18:12.880
 and I kept the rule of my order so strictly

00:18:12.880 --> 00:18:15.940
 that if ever a monk got to heaven by his monkery,

00:18:16.320 --> 00:18:17.000
 it was I.

00:18:17.500 --> 00:18:17.900
 Unquote.

00:18:18.700 --> 00:18:20.620
 He fasted for days on end,

00:18:21.400 --> 00:18:22.920
 he slept without any blankets,

00:18:23.100 --> 00:18:24.280
 even in the dead of winter,

00:18:24.980 --> 00:18:27.520
 and nearly froze to death.

00:18:27.519 --> 00:18:31.859
 He was overwhelmed by a sense of two things,

00:18:32.339 --> 00:18:35.519
 God's holiness and his own sin.

00:18:36.000 --> 00:18:38.059
 And this is how it worked out in his mind.

00:18:38.559 --> 00:18:40.279
 If he was ever going to be forgiven,

00:18:40.559 --> 00:18:43.139
 if he was ever going to be made right with God,

00:18:43.460 --> 00:18:46.119
 he would need to have his sins forgiven,

00:18:46.480 --> 00:18:47.099
 wiped out.

00:18:48.480 --> 00:18:51.379
 If he was going to have his sins forgiven,

00:18:52.379 --> 00:18:54.579
 he would need to confess them.

00:18:54.579 --> 00:18:58.679
 And if he was to confess them,

00:18:58.919 --> 00:19:00.439
 he would need to remember them.

00:19:01.839 --> 00:19:03.960
 But what if he couldn't remember them all?

00:19:05.059 --> 00:19:06.819
 And some were left unconfessed

00:19:06.819 --> 00:19:08.720
 and therefore unforgiven.

00:19:09.039 --> 00:19:11.399
 And the more he turned that around in his mind,

00:19:11.859 --> 00:19:13.899
 the more depressed he got.

00:19:14.019 --> 00:19:16.480
 He went constantly to confession,

00:19:17.399 --> 00:19:20.159
 sometimes up to six hours at a time.

00:19:20.899 --> 00:19:23.099
 He drove his confessor crazy,

00:19:23.099 --> 00:19:24.519
 who once told him,

00:19:24.639 --> 00:19:26.399
 go away and do something worth confessing.

00:19:27.779 --> 00:19:32.019
 He was in a torment of guilt and fear and despair.

00:19:32.259 --> 00:19:32.819
 I quote again,

00:19:33.079 --> 00:19:36.599
 I was more than once driven to the very abyss of despair,

00:19:36.879 --> 00:19:39.059
 so that I wished I had never been created.

00:19:39.439 --> 00:19:41.279
 Love God, I hated him.

00:19:41.279 --> 00:19:46.539
 And it was while he was in that mood

00:19:46.539 --> 00:19:50.539
 that the Roman Catholic Church appointed him to lecture in the Bible,

00:19:51.259 --> 00:19:53.299
 on which I make no further comment.

00:19:54.279 --> 00:19:55.559
 But that's when it happened.

00:19:56.619 --> 00:19:59.180
 And so he started going through Romans 1.

00:20:00.759 --> 00:20:04.279
 And eventually he came to verse 17.

00:20:04.279 --> 00:20:04.839
 17.

00:20:06.539 --> 00:20:07.500
 In the gospel,

00:20:07.700 --> 00:20:09.859
 a righteousness from God is revealed,

00:20:09.960 --> 00:20:12.639
 a righteousness that is by faith from first to last.

00:20:14.839 --> 00:20:15.700
 And he thought,

00:20:15.799 --> 00:20:17.799
 this is worse than I thought.

00:20:18.339 --> 00:20:20.160
 That crushed him even further.

00:20:20.819 --> 00:20:21.500
 You see, he read,

00:20:21.920 --> 00:20:25.619
 a righteousness from God means God's righteousness.

00:20:25.619 --> 00:20:28.259
 So in the gospel,

00:20:28.399 --> 00:20:29.500
 this was the bit that bothered him,

00:20:29.559 --> 00:20:30.479
 was this gospel thing.

00:20:30.859 --> 00:20:31.500
 In the gospel,

00:20:31.799 --> 00:20:33.639
 the righteousness from God is revealed.

00:20:33.719 --> 00:20:34.199
 In other words,

00:20:34.739 --> 00:20:37.759
 it's telling me my death sentence in capital letters.

00:20:38.139 --> 00:20:39.379
 Or as we say in modern,

00:20:39.519 --> 00:20:40.639
 in a larger font.

00:20:41.819 --> 00:20:44.539
 I know that I'm condemned because of my sin.

00:20:45.079 --> 00:20:46.379
 And what is this gospel?

00:20:46.839 --> 00:20:49.119
 Oh, it tells me about the holiness of God.

00:20:49.339 --> 00:20:50.500
 Well, I already know that.

00:20:51.139 --> 00:20:52.419
 That's half of my problem.

00:20:52.419 --> 00:20:55.379
 My other problem is my own horrible sin.

00:20:55.619 --> 00:20:58.059
 And then one day,

00:20:59.059 --> 00:21:00.319
 the truth of the verse

00:21:00.319 --> 00:21:02.639
 broke in on him.

00:21:03.259 --> 00:21:04.379
 And he saw this,

00:21:04.699 --> 00:21:06.819
 that the righteousness of God

00:21:06.819 --> 00:21:09.819
 was not a quality of God.

00:21:10.179 --> 00:21:11.559
 It was a gift from God

00:21:11.559 --> 00:21:13.779
 granted in the gospel of Jesus Christ

00:21:13.779 --> 00:21:16.279
 who had fulfilled the law in every part

00:21:16.279 --> 00:21:19.379
 by meeting every part of it in his daily life

00:21:19.379 --> 00:21:22.159
 and meeting its penalty in full in his death.

00:21:22.159 --> 00:21:23.419
 And now this is what he says.

00:21:23.839 --> 00:21:25.299
 When I saw the difference,

00:21:25.619 --> 00:21:27.419
 that the law is one thing

00:21:27.419 --> 00:21:29.099
 and the gospel is another,

00:21:29.359 --> 00:21:30.500
 I broke through.

00:21:30.839 --> 00:21:33.939
 I felt myself to have gone through open doors

00:21:33.939 --> 00:21:35.119
 into paradise.

00:21:37.319 --> 00:21:38.599
 And the monk's name

00:21:38.599 --> 00:21:41.099
 was Martin Luther.

00:21:41.099 --> 00:21:43.459
 And the rest,

00:21:44.039 --> 00:21:44.899
 as they say,

00:21:45.539 --> 00:21:46.639
 is history.

00:21:47.699 --> 00:21:50.980
 Now this is the key to salvation.

00:21:52.179 --> 00:21:55.459
 The righteous will live by faith.

00:21:56.259 --> 00:21:58.740
 Jesus has done something that we

00:21:58.740 --> 00:22:00.480
 have not done,

00:22:00.539 --> 00:22:01.059
 any of us.

00:22:01.539 --> 00:22:04.219
 He fulfilled the law of God

00:22:04.219 --> 00:22:05.599
 in every part.

00:22:05.599 --> 00:22:08.199
 I do always those things

00:22:08.199 --> 00:22:09.719
 that please the Father.

00:22:10.119 --> 00:22:11.579
 He was tempted in every way

00:22:11.579 --> 00:22:12.519
 just as we are,

00:22:12.919 --> 00:22:15.699
 but was without sin.

00:22:16.119 --> 00:22:17.480
 He is Jesus Christ,

00:22:17.899 --> 00:22:19.139
 the righteous.

00:22:19.939 --> 00:22:21.159
 So he has fulfilled

00:22:21.159 --> 00:22:23.099
 every demand of the law

00:22:23.099 --> 00:22:25.439
 in terms of his daily life.

00:22:25.759 --> 00:22:26.319
 And then,

00:22:26.559 --> 00:22:27.500
 having done that,

00:22:27.879 --> 00:22:29.419
 and having been without any

00:22:29.419 --> 00:22:31.500
 traction in him

00:22:31.500 --> 00:22:33.000
 for the penalty

00:22:33.000 --> 00:22:34.779
 for sin,

00:22:35.660 --> 00:22:37.440
 he then offered that life.

00:22:38.579 --> 00:22:40.099
 He gave himself up.

00:22:40.460 --> 00:22:41.480
 And on the cross,

00:22:41.559 --> 00:22:42.160
 he suffered

00:22:42.160 --> 00:22:44.460
 everything that the Bible means

00:22:44.460 --> 00:22:45.380
 by death

00:22:45.380 --> 00:22:47.160
 in his body

00:22:47.160 --> 00:22:48.299
 and spirit.

00:22:49.099 --> 00:22:50.299
 On our behalf,

00:22:50.460 --> 00:22:51.200
 Christ died,

00:22:51.299 --> 00:22:51.960
 the Bible says,

00:22:52.319 --> 00:22:53.000
 the righteous

00:22:53.000 --> 00:22:54.420
 in the place

00:22:54.420 --> 00:22:55.359
 of the unrighteous

00:22:55.359 --> 00:22:56.559
 to bring us

00:22:56.559 --> 00:22:58.039
 to God.

00:23:01.419 --> 00:23:02.480
 And the one

00:23:02.480 --> 00:23:03.679
 who trusts in him

00:23:03.679 --> 00:23:05.279
 is declared

00:23:05.279 --> 00:23:06.440
 right with God,

00:23:06.839 --> 00:23:07.980
 not on the basis

00:23:07.980 --> 00:23:09.579
 that he's been

00:23:09.579 --> 00:23:11.379
 graded on a curve

00:23:11.379 --> 00:23:11.940
 and he's done

00:23:11.940 --> 00:23:12.679
 fairly well.

00:23:13.399 --> 00:23:14.200
 He is declared

00:23:14.200 --> 00:23:15.139
 right with God

00:23:15.139 --> 00:23:16.460
 on this basis alone.

00:23:17.119 --> 00:23:18.339
 Jesus fulfilled

00:23:18.339 --> 00:23:19.440
 every demand

00:23:19.440 --> 00:23:20.000
 of the law

00:23:20.000 --> 00:23:20.740
 in his life

00:23:20.740 --> 00:23:22.319
 and paid every penalty

00:23:22.319 --> 00:23:23.119
 of the law

00:23:23.119 --> 00:23:24.059
 in his death.

00:23:24.440 --> 00:23:25.099
 So the person

00:23:25.099 --> 00:23:25.759
 who trusts,

00:23:25.759 --> 00:23:26.519
 but the person

00:23:26.519 --> 00:23:27.500
 who trusts in Christ

00:23:27.500 --> 00:23:28.579
 has this amazing

00:23:28.579 --> 00:23:29.299
 experience.

00:23:29.700 --> 00:23:30.879
 All of his sin

00:23:30.879 --> 00:23:33.160
 is debited to Christ

00:23:33.160 --> 00:23:35.000
 and all of Christ's

00:23:35.000 --> 00:23:35.519
 righteousness

00:23:35.519 --> 00:23:36.980
 is credited

00:23:36.980 --> 00:23:38.240
 to him.

00:23:39.039 --> 00:23:40.119
 So the Christian

00:23:40.119 --> 00:23:40.980
 now stands

00:23:40.980 --> 00:23:42.119
 in God's sight

00:23:42.119 --> 00:23:43.319
 as if he had

00:23:43.319 --> 00:23:44.579
 never sinned.

00:23:47.279 --> 00:23:48.599
 And as one of our

00:23:48.599 --> 00:23:49.299
 old hymn writers

00:23:49.299 --> 00:23:49.720
 put it,

00:23:49.799 --> 00:23:50.879
 my hope is built

00:23:50.879 --> 00:23:52.799
 on nothing less

00:23:52.799 --> 00:23:53.420
 than Jesus'

00:23:53.680 --> 00:23:54.660
 blood and righteousness.

00:23:54.660 --> 00:23:56.100
 I dare not trust

00:23:56.100 --> 00:23:57.340
 the sweetest frame

00:23:57.340 --> 00:23:58.940
 but wholly lean

00:23:58.940 --> 00:24:00.400
 on Jesus' name.

00:24:00.480 --> 00:24:01.180
 On Christ,

00:24:01.800 --> 00:24:02.800
 the solid rock

00:24:02.800 --> 00:24:03.480
 I stand,

00:24:03.900 --> 00:24:05.000
 all other ground

00:24:05.000 --> 00:24:07.740
 is sinking sand.

00:24:08.320 --> 00:24:09.060
 Let me ask you

00:24:09.060 --> 00:24:09.500
 this morning,

00:24:09.580 --> 00:24:10.120
 are you there?

00:24:10.820 --> 00:24:11.240
 Have you come

00:24:11.240 --> 00:24:12.800
 to that place?

00:24:13.660 --> 00:24:14.840
 Or are you still

00:24:14.840 --> 00:24:15.820
 just a Southern Baptist?

00:24:15.819 --> 00:24:18.539
 Well, there's nothing

00:24:18.539 --> 00:24:19.359
 wrong with being

00:24:19.359 --> 00:24:20.119
 a Southern Baptist.

00:24:21.500 --> 00:24:22.059
 Some of them

00:24:22.059 --> 00:24:22.720
 will be in heaven.

00:24:25.339 --> 00:24:26.339
 The pastor agrees,

00:24:26.460 --> 00:24:27.159
 well, he's just

00:24:27.159 --> 00:24:27.480
 nodded,

00:24:27.539 --> 00:24:27.939
 so that's,

00:24:28.279 --> 00:24:28.960
 you can take that

00:24:28.960 --> 00:24:30.419
 as good.

00:24:32.159 --> 00:24:32.659
 But here,

00:24:32.700 --> 00:24:32.980
 be careful,

00:24:33.099 --> 00:24:33.559
 there are many

00:24:33.559 --> 00:24:33.980
 who won't.

00:24:35.980 --> 00:24:37.539
 That's a heartbreak

00:24:37.539 --> 00:24:38.399
 to your pastor,

00:24:38.539 --> 00:24:38.939
 to me,

00:24:39.480 --> 00:24:40.480
 and to any

00:24:40.480 --> 00:24:41.480
 Baptist pastor

00:24:41.480 --> 00:24:42.639
 who's got a heart

00:24:42.640 --> 00:24:43.460
 for God at all.

00:24:44.040 --> 00:24:44.800
 There are many

00:24:44.800 --> 00:24:45.860
 whose Christianity

00:24:45.860 --> 00:24:46.700
 will be,

00:24:47.040 --> 00:24:48.060
 I'm a Southern Baptist.

00:24:49.220 --> 00:24:49.980
 Their Christianity

00:24:49.980 --> 00:24:51.140
 ought to be,

00:24:51.920 --> 00:24:53.580
 Christ died for me

00:24:53.580 --> 00:24:55.020
 and lives in me.

00:24:55.140 --> 00:24:55.700
 I live,

00:24:55.780 --> 00:24:56.300
 yet not I,

00:24:56.360 --> 00:24:57.340
 but Christ lives

00:24:57.340 --> 00:24:58.000
 in me.

00:24:58.640 --> 00:24:59.620
 So it's the key

00:24:59.620 --> 00:25:00.600
 to salvation.

00:25:00.600 --> 00:25:01.880
 Now turn with me

00:25:01.880 --> 00:25:04.300
 to Hebrews chapter 10

00:25:04.300 --> 00:25:05.600
 and verse 38.

00:25:08.860 --> 00:25:09.860
 We're doing well,

00:25:09.940 --> 00:25:10.580
 but only just.

00:25:10.579 --> 00:25:11.480
 We will need to hurry.

00:25:14.199 --> 00:25:14.980
 Hebrews 10

00:25:14.980 --> 00:25:16.439
 and verse 38.

00:25:20.139 --> 00:25:20.879
 This is written,

00:25:21.019 --> 00:25:21.179
 of course,

00:25:21.240 --> 00:25:21.679
 to Jews,

00:25:21.779 --> 00:25:22.199
 to Hebrews

00:25:22.199 --> 00:25:23.099
 who had been converted,

00:25:23.419 --> 00:25:24.519
 possibly living in Rome,

00:25:24.759 --> 00:25:25.559
 and they were caught

00:25:25.559 --> 00:25:26.220
 between a rock

00:25:26.220 --> 00:25:26.899
 and a hard place.

00:25:27.000 --> 00:25:27.460
 They were hated

00:25:27.460 --> 00:25:28.139
 by the Jews,

00:25:28.240 --> 00:25:28.779
 you'll find that

00:25:28.779 --> 00:25:29.559
 all over Acts,

00:25:30.019 --> 00:25:30.759
 and they were hated

00:25:30.759 --> 00:25:31.480
 by the Romans,

00:25:31.740 --> 00:25:32.779
 so they had a great

00:25:32.779 --> 00:25:33.599
 deal of suffering.

00:25:33.740 --> 00:25:34.359
 Look at verses

00:25:34.359 --> 00:25:35.319
 32,

00:25:35.720 --> 00:25:36.199
 3,

00:25:36.319 --> 00:25:36.879
 and 4.

00:25:36.880 --> 00:25:41.040
 Remember those

00:25:41.040 --> 00:25:41.760
 earlier days

00:25:41.760 --> 00:25:42.620
 after you'd received

00:25:42.620 --> 00:25:43.020
 the light,

00:25:43.100 --> 00:25:43.640
 when you'd stood

00:25:43.640 --> 00:25:44.240
 your ground

00:25:44.240 --> 00:25:45.460
 in a great contest

00:25:45.460 --> 00:25:46.520
 in the face of suffering.

00:25:46.840 --> 00:25:47.580
 Sometimes you were

00:25:47.580 --> 00:25:48.460
 publicly exposed

00:25:48.460 --> 00:25:49.780
 to insult and persecution,

00:25:49.940 --> 00:25:50.560
 and other times

00:25:50.560 --> 00:25:51.880
 you stood side by side

00:25:51.880 --> 00:25:52.820
 with those who were

00:25:52.820 --> 00:25:53.380
 so treated.

00:25:53.500 --> 00:25:54.260
 You sympathized

00:25:54.260 --> 00:25:55.060
 with those in prison

00:25:55.060 --> 00:25:56.460
 and joyfully accepted

00:25:56.460 --> 00:25:57.280
 the confiscation

00:25:57.280 --> 00:25:57.960
 of your property

00:25:57.960 --> 00:25:58.960
 because you knew

00:25:58.960 --> 00:25:59.920
 that you yourselves

00:25:59.920 --> 00:26:00.680
 had better

00:26:00.680 --> 00:26:02.360
 and lasting possessions.

00:26:02.359 --> 00:26:04.539
 So what were they

00:26:04.539 --> 00:26:04.839
 to do?

00:26:04.919 --> 00:26:05.399
 They were now

00:26:05.399 --> 00:26:06.319
 in this terrible mess.

00:26:06.459 --> 00:26:07.359
 The writer goes on,

00:26:07.599 --> 00:26:08.899
 So do not throw away

00:26:08.899 --> 00:26:09.919
 your confidence.

00:26:10.079 --> 00:26:11.579
 It will be richly rewarded.

00:26:12.059 --> 00:26:13.439
 You need to persevere

00:26:13.439 --> 00:26:14.619
 so that when you've done

00:26:14.619 --> 00:26:15.279
 the will of God,

00:26:15.379 --> 00:26:16.159
 you will receive

00:26:16.159 --> 00:26:17.479
 what he has promised.

00:26:18.079 --> 00:26:18.839
 For in just a very

00:26:18.839 --> 00:26:19.519
 little while,

00:26:19.639 --> 00:26:20.419
 he who is coming

00:26:20.419 --> 00:26:21.359
 will come

00:26:21.359 --> 00:26:23.299
 and will not delay.

00:26:24.099 --> 00:26:25.319
 So they were given

00:26:25.319 --> 00:26:27.639
 these two instructions,

00:26:27.919 --> 00:26:29.359
 these two encouragements.

00:26:29.359 --> 00:26:33.619
 they were to lay hold

00:26:33.619 --> 00:26:34.279
 upon the fact

00:26:34.279 --> 00:26:35.559
 that what he has promised,

00:26:35.679 --> 00:26:36.439
 what God had promised

00:26:36.439 --> 00:26:36.899
 to them,

00:26:37.339 --> 00:26:38.539
 would be given to them.

00:26:38.599 --> 00:26:39.419
 That is to say,

00:26:39.899 --> 00:26:41.519
 they would go to heaven

00:26:41.519 --> 00:26:42.339
 when they died.

00:26:42.740 --> 00:26:44.119
 And then in verse 37,

00:26:44.519 --> 00:26:45.299
 they are promised

00:26:45.299 --> 00:26:46.599
 the Lord's return.

00:26:46.759 --> 00:26:48.119
 In just a very little while,

00:26:48.219 --> 00:26:49.019
 he who is coming

00:26:49.019 --> 00:26:49.859
 will come

00:26:49.859 --> 00:26:50.979
 and will not delay.

00:26:51.399 --> 00:26:52.279
 So here they are

00:26:52.279 --> 00:26:53.719
 in a desperate position,

00:26:54.039 --> 00:26:54.919
 being persecuted,

00:26:55.259 --> 00:26:56.259
 having a hard time,

00:26:56.539 --> 00:26:57.139
 between a rock

00:26:57.139 --> 00:26:57.959
 and a hard place.

00:26:57.960 --> 00:26:59.400
 And the writer says,

00:26:59.640 --> 00:26:59.860
 look,

00:27:00.860 --> 00:27:01.960
 don't give up

00:27:01.960 --> 00:27:03.860
 because God is true

00:27:03.860 --> 00:27:04.620
 to his promises.

00:27:05.420 --> 00:27:06.480
 And when all of this

00:27:06.480 --> 00:27:06.980
 is over,

00:27:07.460 --> 00:27:08.440
 you will be in his

00:27:08.440 --> 00:27:09.720
 glorious presence forever

00:27:09.720 --> 00:27:10.640
 because you've trusted

00:27:10.640 --> 00:27:11.279
 in Christ.

00:27:12.240 --> 00:27:12.980
 And secondly,

00:27:13.400 --> 00:27:14.240
 the Lord has promised

00:27:14.240 --> 00:27:14.920
 to return

00:27:14.920 --> 00:27:16.720
 and he will return.

00:27:16.960 --> 00:27:17.900
 It may or may not be

00:27:17.900 --> 00:27:19.220
 during your lifetime,

00:27:19.559 --> 00:27:20.400
 but God is going

00:27:20.400 --> 00:27:21.120
 to return

00:27:21.120 --> 00:27:22.799
 and wrap this whole thing up

00:27:22.799 --> 00:27:24.039
 and bring in the glory

00:27:24.039 --> 00:27:25.120
 of the new heavens

00:27:25.120 --> 00:27:25.980
 and the new earth.

00:27:25.980 --> 00:27:27.299
 And you could just imagine

00:27:27.299 --> 00:27:28.500
 people reading this

00:27:28.500 --> 00:27:29.220
 for the first time

00:27:29.220 --> 00:27:29.559
 and saying,

00:27:29.880 --> 00:27:30.160
 well then,

00:27:30.240 --> 00:27:30.900
 what should we do

00:27:30.900 --> 00:27:31.440
 in the meantime?

00:27:31.920 --> 00:27:32.700
 And there it is,

00:27:32.880 --> 00:27:34.440
 a quotation from Habakkuk.

00:27:34.799 --> 00:27:35.740
 But in the meantime,

00:27:36.180 --> 00:27:37.339
 my righteous one

00:27:37.339 --> 00:27:38.420
 will live by faith.

00:27:38.519 --> 00:27:39.039
 There it is

00:27:39.039 --> 00:27:40.480
 in verse 38.

00:27:41.700 --> 00:27:42.360
 Now my friends,

00:27:42.460 --> 00:27:42.839
 you and I

00:27:42.839 --> 00:27:43.759
 in the 21st century,

00:27:43.940 --> 00:27:44.799
 we're in exactly

00:27:44.799 --> 00:27:45.839
 the same position.

00:27:47.120 --> 00:27:48.000
 It's tough

00:27:48.000 --> 00:27:48.880
 being a Christian

00:27:48.880 --> 00:27:50.759
 in today's world.

00:27:51.319 --> 00:27:52.079
 But we have

00:27:52.079 --> 00:27:53.019
 these two promises.

00:27:53.019 --> 00:27:54.740
 We have the promise

00:27:54.740 --> 00:27:55.920
 of a new heavens

00:27:55.920 --> 00:27:57.019
 and a new earth.

00:27:57.720 --> 00:27:58.440
 And God is going

00:27:58.440 --> 00:27:59.299
 to bring that about.

00:28:00.279 --> 00:28:00.960
 And you'll see

00:28:00.960 --> 00:28:01.960
 a lot of that

00:28:01.960 --> 00:28:02.759
 developed in ways

00:28:02.759 --> 00:28:03.359
 you perhaps

00:28:03.359 --> 00:28:04.160
 have not quite caught

00:28:04.160 --> 00:28:05.460
 before in the book

00:28:05.460 --> 00:28:06.319
 The Hitchhiker's Guide

00:28:06.319 --> 00:28:06.700
 to Heaven.

00:28:06.819 --> 00:28:07.379
 So there's going

00:28:07.379 --> 00:28:08.240
 to be the new heavens

00:28:08.240 --> 00:28:09.220
 and a new earth.

00:28:09.779 --> 00:28:10.819
 And the second is

00:28:10.819 --> 00:28:13.000
 Jesus will return.

00:28:13.859 --> 00:28:14.619
 Now you go on

00:28:14.619 --> 00:28:16.339
 some so-called

00:28:16.339 --> 00:28:17.740
 Christian television programs

00:28:17.740 --> 00:28:18.400
 on this side

00:28:18.400 --> 00:28:19.420
 of the Atlantic

00:28:19.420 --> 00:28:20.720
 and you would be

00:28:20.720 --> 00:28:22.060
 assured by the

00:28:22.060 --> 00:28:23.100
 practitioners there

00:28:23.100 --> 00:28:24.420
 pretty much that

00:28:24.420 --> 00:28:25.180
 they know exactly

00:28:25.180 --> 00:28:25.960
 when it's going to be.

00:28:26.000 --> 00:28:26.580
 And it's going to be

00:28:26.580 --> 00:28:27.380
 soon and it's going

00:28:27.380 --> 00:28:28.539
 to be any day now.

00:28:28.880 --> 00:28:30.080
 I am here to tell you

00:28:30.080 --> 00:28:32.160
 I haven't got a clue

00:28:32.160 --> 00:28:33.100
 when it's going to be.

00:28:33.580 --> 00:28:34.660
 And I don't know

00:28:34.660 --> 00:28:35.759
 when it's going to be.

00:28:36.080 --> 00:28:36.700
 And let me tell you

00:28:36.700 --> 00:28:37.180
 something else.

00:28:37.480 --> 00:28:38.700
 They don't either.

00:28:38.900 --> 00:28:39.680
 But they need to

00:28:39.680 --> 00:28:40.340
 raise money for

00:28:40.340 --> 00:28:41.539
 their television programs.

00:28:41.539 --> 00:28:47.539
 And of course

00:28:47.539 --> 00:28:47.920
 some of them

00:28:47.920 --> 00:28:48.379
 have been to Heaven

00:28:48.379 --> 00:28:49.079
 and been given

00:28:49.079 --> 00:28:50.059
 an inside track on it

00:28:50.059 --> 00:28:50.599
 and come back

00:28:50.599 --> 00:28:50.980
 as you know.

00:28:51.399 --> 00:28:52.579
 And if you believe that

00:28:52.579 --> 00:28:54.599
 I've got a second-hand car

00:28:54.599 --> 00:28:55.299
 I'd like to sell you

00:28:55.299 --> 00:28:56.359
 please see me afterwards.

00:28:58.159 --> 00:28:59.019
 But just here's

00:28:59.019 --> 00:29:00.279
 a fundamental principle

00:29:00.279 --> 00:29:01.139
 of the Christian faith.

00:29:01.379 --> 00:29:03.500
 We live by faith

00:29:03.500 --> 00:29:04.559
 not by sight.

00:29:04.799 --> 00:29:06.220
 We simply don't know

00:29:06.220 --> 00:29:07.659
 how these swirling

00:29:07.659 --> 00:29:08.639
 circumstances fit

00:29:08.639 --> 00:29:09.559
 into God's

00:29:09.559 --> 00:29:10.220
 eternal plan.

00:29:10.220 --> 00:29:12.240
 and we don't need

00:29:12.240 --> 00:29:12.920
 to know.

00:29:14.299 --> 00:29:15.440
 We don't need to know.

00:29:16.880 --> 00:29:18.059
 And the same is true

00:29:18.059 --> 00:29:19.279
 about our trials

00:29:19.279 --> 00:29:19.900
 and traumas.

00:29:20.000 --> 00:29:20.680
 The only answer

00:29:20.680 --> 00:29:21.900
 that makes natural sense

00:29:21.900 --> 00:29:22.779
 is to get rid of them

00:29:22.779 --> 00:29:23.740
 and to get rid of them

00:29:23.740 --> 00:29:24.079
 soon.

00:29:24.519 --> 00:29:25.360
 We want illness

00:29:25.360 --> 00:29:25.920
 to be cured,

00:29:26.019 --> 00:29:27.000
 our pains to disappear,

00:29:27.160 --> 00:29:28.019
 our financial problems

00:29:28.019 --> 00:29:28.600
 to be solved

00:29:28.600 --> 00:29:30.019
 and we want it

00:29:30.019 --> 00:29:31.519
 to happen immediately.

00:29:32.160 --> 00:29:34.140
 And these guys

00:29:34.140 --> 00:29:34.700
 on television

00:29:34.700 --> 00:29:35.700
 are banking on that.

00:29:36.759 --> 00:29:38.019
 But there's another option.

00:29:38.200 --> 00:29:39.660
 Faith has another option.

00:29:39.660 --> 00:29:40.840
 And let me quote

00:29:40.840 --> 00:29:41.680
 and I think it's

00:29:41.680 --> 00:29:42.740
 a brilliant statement

00:29:42.740 --> 00:29:44.740
 by Joni Erickson Tader

00:29:44.740 --> 00:29:45.740
 and I don't need

00:29:45.740 --> 00:29:46.740
 to explain who she is.

00:29:48.340 --> 00:29:49.540
 When we learn

00:29:49.540 --> 00:29:50.400
 to lean back

00:29:50.400 --> 00:29:51.240
 on sovereignty,

00:29:52.220 --> 00:29:53.300
 fixing and settling

00:29:53.300 --> 00:29:54.060
 our thoughts

00:29:54.060 --> 00:29:55.320
 on that unshakable,

00:29:55.540 --> 00:29:56.840
 unmovable reality,

00:29:57.740 --> 00:29:59.080
 we can experience

00:29:59.080 --> 00:30:00.800
 great inner peace.

00:30:02.100 --> 00:30:03.180
 Our troubles

00:30:03.180 --> 00:30:04.200
 may not change.

00:30:04.200 --> 00:30:06.500
 our pain

00:30:06.500 --> 00:30:07.319
 may not diminish.

00:30:08.319 --> 00:30:09.279
 Our loss

00:30:09.279 --> 00:30:10.640
 may not be restored.

00:30:11.840 --> 00:30:12.640
 Our problems

00:30:12.640 --> 00:30:13.700
 may not fade

00:30:13.700 --> 00:30:14.600
 with the new dawn.

00:30:15.880 --> 00:30:16.880
 But the power

00:30:16.880 --> 00:30:17.860
 of those things

00:30:17.860 --> 00:30:18.980
 to harm us

00:30:18.980 --> 00:30:20.039
 is broken

00:30:20.039 --> 00:30:22.100
 as we rest

00:30:22.100 --> 00:30:22.980
 in the fact

00:30:22.980 --> 00:30:24.519
 that God

00:30:24.519 --> 00:30:26.660
 is in control.

00:30:26.660 --> 00:30:28.940
 and that

00:30:28.940 --> 00:30:30.100
 is the just

00:30:30.100 --> 00:30:31.460
 living by faith.

00:30:32.400 --> 00:30:32.900
 We learn

00:30:32.900 --> 00:30:33.840
 to trust God

00:30:33.840 --> 00:30:35.120
 when we cannot

00:30:35.120 --> 00:30:35.740
 trace Him.

00:30:35.940 --> 00:30:36.120
 Well,

00:30:36.240 --> 00:30:36.840
 quickly back

00:30:36.840 --> 00:30:37.720
 as we close

00:30:37.720 --> 00:30:38.279
 to Habakkuk.

00:30:38.340 --> 00:30:38.820
 I hope you haven't

00:30:38.820 --> 00:30:39.560
 lost the place.

00:30:40.460 --> 00:30:41.160
 And we're in Habakkuk

00:30:41.160 --> 00:30:41.800
 chapter 2

00:30:41.800 --> 00:30:42.580
 and verse 4

00:30:42.580 --> 00:30:43.460
 and we see

00:30:43.460 --> 00:30:44.140
 that it's the key

00:30:44.140 --> 00:30:45.380
 to understanding history.

00:30:45.680 --> 00:30:46.140
 Now you know

00:30:46.140 --> 00:30:46.620
 the background,

00:30:46.759 --> 00:30:47.380
 you know the story

00:30:47.380 --> 00:30:48.220
 and haven't forgotten it.

00:30:48.779 --> 00:30:49.460
 The Babylonians

00:30:49.460 --> 00:30:50.000
 are going to come.

00:30:51.519 --> 00:30:52.000
 God is going

00:30:52.000 --> 00:30:52.840
 to execute judgment

00:30:52.840 --> 00:30:53.460
 on a nation

00:30:53.460 --> 00:30:54.200
 that's dishonored

00:30:54.200 --> 00:30:56.180
 His covenant

00:30:56.180 --> 00:30:57.100
 by means of a nation

00:30:57.100 --> 00:30:57.759
 with which He'd never

00:30:57.759 --> 00:30:58.579
 established one.

00:30:59.279 --> 00:31:00.100
 What should believers

00:31:00.100 --> 00:31:00.860
 do in the meantime?

00:31:01.700 --> 00:31:02.220
 And the message

00:31:02.220 --> 00:31:03.000
 from God is

00:31:03.000 --> 00:31:04.259
 live by faith.

00:31:05.079 --> 00:31:05.740
 Now we live

00:31:05.740 --> 00:31:07.279
 in the in-between time

00:31:07.279 --> 00:31:07.980
 between the second

00:31:07.980 --> 00:31:08.819
 coming of Christ

00:31:08.819 --> 00:31:09.960
 and the

00:31:09.960 --> 00:31:11.180
 between the first

00:31:11.180 --> 00:31:11.799
 coming of Christ

00:31:11.799 --> 00:31:12.620
 and the second coming.

00:31:13.880 --> 00:31:15.240
 The in-between time

00:31:15.240 --> 00:31:15.819
 is tough.

00:31:16.720 --> 00:31:17.380
 And we see it

00:31:17.380 --> 00:31:17.819
 globally

00:31:17.819 --> 00:31:19.500
 in World War II

00:31:19.500 --> 00:31:20.460
 the Cold War

00:31:20.460 --> 00:31:22.740
 the constant conflict

00:31:22.740 --> 00:31:23.380
 in the Middle East

00:31:23.380 --> 00:31:24.320
 endless sufferings

00:31:24.320 --> 00:31:24.820
 in Africa

00:31:24.820 --> 00:31:26.040
 the crushing

00:31:26.040 --> 00:31:26.860
 of human rights

00:31:26.860 --> 00:31:27.400
 in China

00:31:27.400 --> 00:31:27.980
 persecution

00:31:27.980 --> 00:31:28.960
 of the Christian church

00:31:28.960 --> 00:31:29.540
 in many ways

00:31:29.540 --> 00:31:30.020
 and places

00:31:30.020 --> 00:31:31.420
 almost everywhere

00:31:31.420 --> 00:31:32.740
 moral standards

00:31:32.740 --> 00:31:33.280
 seem to be

00:31:33.280 --> 00:31:33.980
 in free fall

00:31:33.980 --> 00:31:35.220
 and then there are

00:31:35.220 --> 00:31:35.920
 all the heartaches

00:31:35.920 --> 00:31:36.800
 and disappointments

00:31:36.800 --> 00:31:37.300
 and difficulties

00:31:37.300 --> 00:31:38.020
 we experience

00:31:38.020 --> 00:31:39.120
 at a personal level.

00:31:41.460 --> 00:31:42.980
 And it is natural

00:31:42.980 --> 00:31:44.480
 for us to ask

00:31:44.480 --> 00:31:48.020
 what's going on?

00:31:49.540 --> 00:31:50.600
 And the answer

00:31:50.600 --> 00:31:51.200
 is this

00:31:51.200 --> 00:31:52.500
 God is working

00:31:52.500 --> 00:31:53.140
 out his

00:31:53.140 --> 00:31:53.819
 eternal

00:31:53.819 --> 00:31:55.319
 unchangeable

00:31:55.319 --> 00:31:56.680
 and perfect

00:31:56.680 --> 00:31:57.160
 purposes

00:31:57.160 --> 00:31:58.460
 for the glory

00:31:58.460 --> 00:31:59.160
 of his name

00:31:59.160 --> 00:32:00.319
 and the eternal

00:32:00.319 --> 00:32:01.380
 good of his people.

00:32:02.480 --> 00:32:03.259
 Now most of you

00:32:03.259 --> 00:32:03.900
 will be familiar

00:32:03.900 --> 00:32:04.559
 with that great

00:32:04.559 --> 00:32:04.940
 statement

00:32:04.940 --> 00:32:06.839
 in Romans 8

00:32:06.839 --> 00:32:08.740
 but we know

00:32:08.740 --> 00:32:11.099
 that in all things

00:32:11.099 --> 00:32:12.500
 God works

00:32:12.500 --> 00:32:13.319
 for the good

00:32:13.319 --> 00:32:14.640
 that is the eternal

00:32:14.640 --> 00:32:15.019
 good

00:32:15.019 --> 00:32:16.500
 of those who love him

00:32:16.500 --> 00:32:17.859
 those who are called

00:32:17.859 --> 00:32:18.819
 according to

00:32:18.819 --> 00:32:20.299
 his purpose.

00:32:21.579 --> 00:32:22.439
 My dad

00:32:22.439 --> 00:32:22.879
 who was

00:32:22.879 --> 00:32:25.159
 a laborer

00:32:25.159 --> 00:32:27.000
 had a hobby

00:32:27.000 --> 00:32:27.899
 of repairing

00:32:27.899 --> 00:32:28.359
 watches

00:32:28.359 --> 00:32:30.039
 and you know

00:32:30.039 --> 00:32:30.500
 they were

00:32:30.500 --> 00:32:31.379
 real watches

00:32:31.379 --> 00:32:32.339
 before the Japanese

00:32:32.339 --> 00:32:32.919
 were invented

00:32:32.919 --> 00:32:34.000
 and you open them

00:32:34.000 --> 00:32:34.480
 at the back

00:32:34.480 --> 00:32:35.339
 and there were

00:32:35.339 --> 00:32:36.379
 wheels and cogs

00:32:36.379 --> 00:32:37.019
 and sprockets

00:32:37.019 --> 00:32:37.619
 and levers

00:32:37.619 --> 00:32:38.399
 going this way

00:32:38.399 --> 00:32:38.700
 and that

00:32:38.700 --> 00:32:39.399
 and it seemed

00:32:39.399 --> 00:32:40.240
 to be totally

00:32:40.240 --> 00:32:40.859
 confusing.

00:32:41.279 --> 00:32:42.099
 There'd be a big

00:32:42.099 --> 00:32:43.579
 wheel turning

00:32:43.579 --> 00:32:44.179
 this way

00:32:44.179 --> 00:32:45.119
 and three little

00:32:45.119 --> 00:32:45.659
 wheels going

00:32:45.659 --> 00:32:46.259
 the other way

00:32:46.259 --> 00:32:47.099
 and it just

00:32:47.099 --> 00:32:47.819
 looked totally

00:32:47.819 --> 00:32:48.259
 confusing.

00:32:48.599 --> 00:32:49.319
 It just didn't

00:32:49.319 --> 00:32:50.140
 make any sense

00:32:50.140 --> 00:32:51.059
 but watch carefully.

00:32:51.579 --> 00:32:52.119
 When you turned

00:32:52.119 --> 00:32:52.759
 the watch over

00:32:52.759 --> 00:32:54.119
 and looked

00:32:54.119 --> 00:32:54.500
 on the other

00:32:54.500 --> 00:32:55.119
 side

00:32:55.119 --> 00:32:56.220
 you could see

00:32:56.220 --> 00:32:56.779
 that all of

00:32:56.779 --> 00:32:57.660
 those conflicting

00:32:57.660 --> 00:32:58.400
 things

00:32:58.400 --> 00:32:59.019
 apparently

00:32:59.019 --> 00:33:00.279
 were all

00:33:00.279 --> 00:33:00.960
 working to

00:33:00.960 --> 00:33:01.379
 the common

00:33:01.379 --> 00:33:01.819
 good

00:33:01.819 --> 00:33:02.980
 to keeping

00:33:02.980 --> 00:33:03.539
 the perfect

00:33:03.539 --> 00:33:04.299
 time in the

00:33:04.299 --> 00:33:04.619
 watch.

00:33:05.099 --> 00:33:05.779
 And my friends

00:33:05.779 --> 00:33:06.539
 and of course

00:33:06.539 --> 00:33:07.339
 in a brief visit

00:33:07.339 --> 00:33:08.059
 like this

00:33:08.059 --> 00:33:09.400
 but I hope

00:33:09.400 --> 00:33:09.839
 many of you

00:33:09.839 --> 00:33:10.519
 might want to

00:33:10.519 --> 00:33:11.099
 stay to the

00:33:11.099 --> 00:33:11.900
 second service

00:33:11.900 --> 00:33:12.359
 and hear

00:33:12.359 --> 00:33:13.359
 a sermon

00:33:13.359 --> 00:33:14.160
 on the five

00:33:14.160 --> 00:33:15.019
 most amazing

00:33:15.019 --> 00:33:15.619
 words

00:33:15.619 --> 00:33:16.859
 in scripture

00:33:16.859 --> 00:33:17.319
 and you'll

00:33:17.319 --> 00:33:17.699
 find it

00:33:17.699 --> 00:33:18.139
 easier

00:33:18.139 --> 00:33:18.559
 to find

00:33:18.559 --> 00:33:19.039
 the text

00:33:19.039 --> 00:33:19.459
 because we're

00:33:19.459 --> 00:33:19.719
 going to be

00:33:19.719 --> 00:33:19.919
 in the

00:33:19.919 --> 00:33:20.500
 New Testament.

00:33:25.000 --> 00:33:25.759
 Some of you

00:33:25.759 --> 00:33:26.319
 may be going

00:33:26.319 --> 00:33:26.679
 through

00:33:26.679 --> 00:33:28.939
 real hardship

00:33:28.939 --> 00:33:29.599
 difficulty

00:33:29.599 --> 00:33:30.319
 trauma

00:33:30.319 --> 00:33:32.519
 bereavement

00:33:32.519 --> 00:33:33.879
 heartache

00:33:33.879 --> 00:33:34.899
 pain

00:33:34.899 --> 00:33:36.000
 sorrow

00:33:36.000 --> 00:33:38.019
 these are

00:33:38.019 --> 00:33:38.279
 just

00:33:38.279 --> 00:33:39.399
 the common

00:33:39.399 --> 00:33:39.939
 things

00:33:39.939 --> 00:33:41.139
 in our

00:33:41.139 --> 00:33:41.599
 lives

00:33:41.599 --> 00:33:42.779
 and you say

00:33:42.779 --> 00:33:43.099
 but it's

00:33:43.099 --> 00:33:43.919
 also confusing

00:33:43.919 --> 00:33:44.419
 this is

00:33:44.419 --> 00:33:44.739
 happening

00:33:44.739 --> 00:33:45.259
 but that's

00:33:45.259 --> 00:33:45.539
 happening

00:33:45.539 --> 00:33:46.279
 that contradicts

00:33:46.279 --> 00:33:46.440
 this

00:33:46.440 --> 00:33:47.559
 watch me

00:33:47.559 --> 00:33:47.900
 carefully

00:33:47.900 --> 00:33:49.220
 when you

00:33:49.220 --> 00:33:49.500
 get to

00:33:49.500 --> 00:33:49.799
 the other

00:33:49.799 --> 00:33:50.220
 side

00:33:50.220 --> 00:33:52.019
 when we

00:33:52.019 --> 00:33:52.299
 get to

00:33:52.299 --> 00:33:52.599
 the other

00:33:52.599 --> 00:33:52.920
 side

00:33:52.920 --> 00:33:53.339
 we will

00:33:53.339 --> 00:33:53.720
 see

00:33:53.720 --> 00:33:55.079
 that even

00:33:55.079 --> 00:33:55.680
 the worst

00:33:55.680 --> 00:33:56.240
 things in

00:33:56.240 --> 00:33:56.799
 this life

00:33:56.799 --> 00:33:57.660
 are contributing

00:33:57.660 --> 00:33:58.420
 to the best

00:33:58.420 --> 00:33:58.879
 things

00:33:58.879 --> 00:34:00.240
 in the life

00:34:00.240 --> 00:34:00.599
 to come

00:34:00.599 --> 00:34:02.299
 and God

00:34:02.299 --> 00:34:02.779
 calls us

00:34:02.779 --> 00:34:03.119
 to have

00:34:03.119 --> 00:34:03.420
 that

00:34:03.420 --> 00:34:04.579
 attitude

00:34:04.579 --> 00:34:06.920
 I close

00:34:06.920 --> 00:34:07.299
 with this

00:34:07.299 --> 00:34:07.799
 illustration

00:34:07.799 --> 00:34:08.159
 of William

00:34:08.159 --> 00:34:08.500
 Cooper

00:34:08.500 --> 00:34:09.079
 William Cooper

00:34:09.079 --> 00:34:09.539
 was a great

00:34:09.539 --> 00:34:10.119
 friend of

00:34:10.119 --> 00:34:11.679
 John Newton

00:34:11.679 --> 00:34:13.460
 wrote a

00:34:13.460 --> 00:34:13.799
 number of

00:34:13.799 --> 00:34:14.039
 hymns

00:34:14.039 --> 00:34:14.239
 that we

00:34:14.239 --> 00:34:14.379
 know

00:34:14.379 --> 00:34:14.659
 quite

00:34:14.659 --> 00:34:15.000
 well

00:34:15.000 --> 00:34:17.440
 but he

00:34:17.440 --> 00:34:17.659
 had

00:34:17.659 --> 00:34:17.980
 periods

00:34:17.980 --> 00:34:18.199
 of

00:34:18.199 --> 00:34:18.599
 depression

00:34:18.599 --> 00:34:20.039
 and that

00:34:20.039 --> 00:34:20.399
 may help

00:34:20.399 --> 00:34:20.599
 some

00:34:20.599 --> 00:34:20.899
 people

00:34:20.899 --> 00:34:22.279
 as a

00:34:22.279 --> 00:34:23.119
 godly

00:34:23.119 --> 00:34:23.559
 man

00:34:23.559 --> 00:34:24.239
 and greatly

00:34:24.239 --> 00:34:24.619
 used

00:34:24.619 --> 00:34:24.940
 man

00:34:24.940 --> 00:34:25.500
 there were

00:34:25.500 --> 00:34:25.879
 times

00:34:25.879 --> 00:34:26.259
 when

00:34:26.259 --> 00:34:27.359
 he was

00:34:27.359 --> 00:34:27.679
 dipping

00:34:27.679 --> 00:34:29.099
 and on

00:34:29.099 --> 00:34:29.500
 one occasion

00:34:29.500 --> 00:34:29.799
 he came

00:34:29.799 --> 00:34:30.019
 to the

00:34:30.019 --> 00:34:30.179
 point

00:34:30.179 --> 00:34:30.399
 where he

00:34:30.399 --> 00:34:30.559
 thought

00:34:30.559 --> 00:34:30.839
 well

00:34:30.839 --> 00:34:31.339
 I really

00:34:31.339 --> 00:34:31.659
 want to

00:34:31.659 --> 00:34:31.819
 end

00:34:31.819 --> 00:34:31.940
 it

00:34:31.940 --> 00:34:32.119
 all

00:34:32.119 --> 00:34:35.599
 and so

00:34:35.599 --> 00:34:35.960
 he got

00:34:35.960 --> 00:34:36.339
 hold of

00:34:36.339 --> 00:34:36.500
 his

00:34:36.500 --> 00:34:36.960
 horseman

00:34:36.960 --> 00:34:38.900
 and

00:34:38.900 --> 00:34:39.859
 said

00:34:39.859 --> 00:34:40.099
 I want

00:34:40.099 --> 00:34:40.319
 to go

00:34:40.319 --> 00:34:40.759
 for a

00:34:40.759 --> 00:34:41.219
 drive

00:34:41.219 --> 00:34:43.119
 pitch black

00:34:43.119 --> 00:34:43.559
 middle of

00:34:43.559 --> 00:34:43.779
 the night

00:34:43.779 --> 00:34:45.179
 and the

00:34:45.179 --> 00:34:45.480
 horseman

00:34:45.480 --> 00:34:45.699
 said

00:34:45.699 --> 00:34:45.960
 well

00:34:45.960 --> 00:34:46.420
 where do

00:34:46.420 --> 00:34:46.639
 you want

00:34:46.639 --> 00:34:46.900
 to go

00:34:46.900 --> 00:34:47.119
 oh

00:34:47.119 --> 00:34:47.319
 don't

00:34:47.319 --> 00:34:47.500
 know

00:34:47.500 --> 00:34:47.759
 just

00:34:47.759 --> 00:34:48.079
 anywhere

00:34:48.079 --> 00:34:48.420
 somewhere

00:34:48.420 --> 00:34:48.679
 down

00:34:48.679 --> 00:34:49.000
 near the

00:34:49.000 --> 00:34:49.219
 river

00:34:49.219 --> 00:34:49.859
 the river

00:34:49.859 --> 00:34:50.299
 ooze

00:34:50.299 --> 00:34:51.500
 and so

00:34:51.500 --> 00:34:51.819
 they took

00:34:51.819 --> 00:34:52.119
 off

00:34:52.119 --> 00:34:53.000
 and it

00:34:53.000 --> 00:34:53.239
 was

00:34:53.239 --> 00:34:53.519
 pitch

00:34:53.519 --> 00:34:53.839
 black

00:34:53.839 --> 00:34:55.179
 and after

00:34:55.179 --> 00:34:55.579
 a while

00:34:55.579 --> 00:34:56.039
 the horse

00:34:56.039 --> 00:34:56.960
 the horseman

00:34:56.960 --> 00:34:57.279
 said

00:34:57.279 --> 00:34:57.759
 sir

00:34:57.759 --> 00:34:59.000
 I'm

00:34:59.000 --> 00:34:59.319
 lost

00:34:59.319 --> 00:35:00.559
 I don't

00:35:00.559 --> 00:35:00.799
 know

00:35:00.799 --> 00:35:01.079
 where

00:35:01.079 --> 00:35:01.659
 we are

00:35:01.659 --> 00:35:03.139
 and

00:35:03.139 --> 00:35:03.379
 Cooper

00:35:03.379 --> 00:35:03.759
 said

00:35:03.759 --> 00:35:04.179
 well

00:35:04.179 --> 00:35:05.159
 find a

00:35:05.159 --> 00:35:05.420
 light

00:35:05.420 --> 00:35:05.899
 somewhere

00:35:05.899 --> 00:35:06.059
 and

00:35:06.059 --> 00:35:06.319
 if we

00:35:06.319 --> 00:35:06.619
 see a

00:35:06.619 --> 00:35:06.779
 light

00:35:06.779 --> 00:35:07.139
 shining

00:35:07.139 --> 00:35:07.559
 make

00:35:07.559 --> 00:35:07.739
 for

00:35:07.739 --> 00:35:08.039
 that

00:35:08.039 --> 00:35:08.480
 and

00:35:08.480 --> 00:35:08.639
 then

00:35:08.639 --> 00:35:08.819
 we

00:35:08.819 --> 00:35:09.019
 can

00:35:09.019 --> 00:35:09.500
 orient

00:35:09.500 --> 00:35:09.879
 ourselves

00:35:09.879 --> 00:35:10.259
 and see

00:35:10.259 --> 00:35:10.539
 quite

00:35:10.539 --> 00:35:10.819
 where we

00:35:10.819 --> 00:35:11.019
 are

00:35:11.019 --> 00:35:12.559
 and so

00:35:12.559 --> 00:35:12.719
 the

00:35:12.719 --> 00:35:13.039
 horseman

00:35:13.039 --> 00:35:13.339
 eventually

00:35:13.339 --> 00:35:13.759
 saw a

00:35:13.759 --> 00:35:14.000
 light

00:35:14.000 --> 00:35:15.059
 made

00:35:15.059 --> 00:35:15.500
 for it

00:35:15.500 --> 00:35:16.879
 and

00:35:16.879 --> 00:35:17.139
 found

00:35:17.139 --> 00:35:17.279
 that

00:35:17.279 --> 00:35:17.399
 they

00:35:17.399 --> 00:35:17.519
 were

00:35:17.519 --> 00:35:17.759
 back

00:35:17.759 --> 00:35:18.119
 home

00:35:18.119 --> 00:35:20.899
 and

00:35:20.899 --> 00:35:21.159
 Cooper

00:35:21.159 --> 00:35:21.519
 wrote

00:35:21.519 --> 00:35:22.119
 God

00:35:22.119 --> 00:35:22.739
 moves

00:35:22.739 --> 00:35:24.239
 in a

00:35:24.239 --> 00:35:24.699
 mysterious

00:35:24.699 --> 00:35:25.159
 way

00:35:25.159 --> 00:35:25.399
 his

00:35:25.399 --> 00:35:25.719
 wonders

00:35:25.719 --> 00:35:25.940
 to

00:35:25.940 --> 00:35:26.339
 perform

00:35:26.339 --> 00:35:27.699
 he

00:35:27.699 --> 00:35:28.039
 plants

00:35:28.039 --> 00:35:28.279
 his

00:35:28.279 --> 00:35:28.659
 footsteps

00:35:28.659 --> 00:35:28.940
 in

00:35:28.940 --> 00:35:29.079
 the

00:35:29.079 --> 00:35:29.339
 sea

00:35:29.339 --> 00:35:30.779
 and

00:35:30.779 --> 00:35:31.119
 rides

00:35:31.119 --> 00:35:31.359
 upon

00:35:31.359 --> 00:35:31.539
 the

00:35:31.539 --> 00:35:31.960
 storm

00:35:31.960 --> 00:35:32.940
 ye

00:35:32.940 --> 00:35:33.599
 fearful

00:35:33.599 --> 00:35:34.139
 saints

00:35:34.139 --> 00:35:35.639
 fresh

00:35:35.639 --> 00:35:36.099
 courage

00:35:36.099 --> 00:35:36.460
 take

00:35:36.460 --> 00:35:37.819
 the

00:35:37.819 --> 00:35:38.179
 clouds

00:35:38.179 --> 00:35:38.380
 ye

00:35:38.380 --> 00:35:38.639
 so

00:35:38.639 --> 00:35:38.920
 much

00:35:38.920 --> 00:35:39.199
 dread

00:35:39.199 --> 00:35:39.380
 are

00:35:39.380 --> 00:35:39.639
 big

00:35:39.639 --> 00:35:39.839
 with

00:35:39.839 --> 00:35:40.199
 mercy

00:35:40.199 --> 00:35:40.380
 and

00:35:40.380 --> 00:35:40.539
 will

00:35:40.539 --> 00:35:40.940
 break

00:35:40.940 --> 00:35:42.139
 with

00:35:42.139 --> 00:35:42.659
 blessings

00:35:42.659 --> 00:35:43.139
 on

00:35:43.139 --> 00:35:43.319
 your

00:35:43.319 --> 00:35:43.619
 head

00:35:43.619 --> 00:35:44.359
 his

00:35:44.359 --> 00:35:44.799
 purposes

00:35:44.799 --> 00:35:45.859
 will

00:35:45.859 --> 00:35:46.319
 ripen

00:35:46.319 --> 00:35:46.779
 fast

00:35:46.779 --> 00:35:47.440
 unfolding

00:35:47.440 --> 00:35:47.779
 every

00:35:47.779 --> 00:35:48.139
 hour

00:35:48.139 --> 00:35:49.739
 the

00:35:49.739 --> 00:35:50.019
 bud

00:35:50.019 --> 00:35:50.559
 may

00:35:50.559 --> 00:35:50.940
 have

00:35:50.940 --> 00:35:51.079
 a

00:35:51.079 --> 00:35:51.279
 better

00:35:51.279 --> 00:35:51.759
 taste

00:35:51.759 --> 00:35:53.539
 but

00:35:53.539 --> 00:35:54.000
 sweet

00:35:54.000 --> 00:35:54.179
 will

00:35:54.179 --> 00:35:54.299
 be

00:35:54.299 --> 00:35:54.460
 the

00:35:54.460 --> 00:35:54.839
 flower

00:35:54.839 --> 00:35:56.900
 the

00:35:56.900 --> 00:35:57.319
 just

00:35:57.319 --> 00:35:58.759
 shall

00:35:58.759 --> 00:35:59.119
 live

00:35:59.119 --> 00:36:01.059
 by

00:36:01.059 --> 00:36:01.579
 faith

00:36:01.579 --> 00:36:03.179
 let's

00:36:03.179 --> 00:36:03.480
 pray

00:36:03.480 --> 00:36:07.839
 gracious

00:36:07.839 --> 00:36:08.379
 father we

00:36:08.379 --> 00:36:08.859
 thank you for

00:36:08.859 --> 00:36:09.500
 your word

00:36:09.500 --> 00:36:10.219
 for quietening

00:36:10.219 --> 00:36:10.839
 our hearts

00:36:10.839 --> 00:36:13.339
 speak to us

00:36:13.340 --> 00:36:13.840
 I pray

00:36:13.840 --> 00:36:14.600
 draw from

00:36:14.600 --> 00:36:15.220
 our hearts

00:36:15.220 --> 00:36:17.240
 the response

00:36:17.240 --> 00:36:17.860
 of repentance

00:36:17.860 --> 00:36:18.820
 and faith

00:36:18.820 --> 00:36:19.860
 and love

00:36:19.860 --> 00:36:21.140
 that you

00:36:21.140 --> 00:36:21.620
 deserve

00:36:21.620 --> 00:36:22.380
 and that we

00:36:22.380 --> 00:36:24.360
 long for

00:36:24.360 --> 00:36:26.579
 in Jesus name

00:36:26.579 --> 00:36:28.280
 amen

00:36:28.280 --> 00:36:33.860
 thank you