13 August 2016

Stone 31 - Habakkuk and Zephaniah

Let's hear about what a couple more prophets have to say.


Habakkuk
The first few verses of Habakkuk have likely crossed the minds and mouths of many people in some form or another over the years. They present a question that many continue to ask to this very day. The assumption is that God is not listening and that He tolerates evil.

**Have you ever asked why God does not listen? Just because things do not happen on our timeline or in the manner by which we think it should happen does not mean that God is not listening. God is not at our beck and call to do whatever we wish. It does not work that way. Patience and trust are needed. How do you respond when God does not answer the way you want Him to...?

God replies by telling Habakkuk that the Chaldeans are being raised to come in and clean house (Hab 1:6). Habakkuk has a problem with this too...

**How often have we felt the way Habakkuk does? He says wait a minute... How can you let these guys who are worse than us win over us...!? What gives? (Hab 1:13)

God replies to Habakkuk with a vision and five 'woes'.

  1. Woe to him who amasses what is not his (Hab 2:6)
  2. Woe to him who unjustly gains wealth for his house (Hab 2:9)
  3. Woe to him who builds a city with bloodshed and founds a town with injustice (Hab 2:12)
  4. Woe to him who gives his neighbor drink in order to look at their nakedness (Hab 2:15)
  5. Woe to him who says to wood: Wake up! or to mute stone: Come alive! (Hab 2:19)
Just as Israel is being punished for their wrongdoing, so will the other nations. God is just and all will receive their due.

Habakkuk recounts the power of God and reaffirms his trust in Him.

**So many struggle with this very idea of evil and suffering in the world and we should be upset by evil. We should also seek out the only force that is capable of dealing with it and trust on His timing and manner by which it will be dealt with.

Please enjoy this four part series of talks from Ravi Zacharias on the problem of evil and suffering called 'Though The Fig Tree Does Not Bud'.
Also please enjoy the video on Habakkuk from the guys at Join the Bible Project



Zephaniah
Zephaniah has a similar message to many of the other prophets. We hear about the day of the Lord coming, a call to repentance, and a message of hope.

The first chapter describes the downfall of the nation and specifically the tearing down of the temples of the false gods that i are being worshiped there.

The first few verses of the second chapter is the call to repentance while the rest outlines the downfall of many nations and it isn't pretty.

The last half of chapter three provides the message of hope.

**It is worth noting that because of the righteousness of God, He cannot allow sin to go unpunished. He does not tolerate the worship of other gods and He does not tolerate any other sin. God will address the sin and evil in the world but it will not be at the time or in the manner that we may want. God will not deal with His creation using a human understanding of things. He will use divine understanding - something we just don't get but will have to trust.

We need to stop and listen to the voice that cries out, seek him, and worship him.

Please enjoy the video on Zephaniah from the guys at Join the Bible Project


Until next time...

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