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We can turn in your Bibles to 
the prophet Habakkuk. We'll look at chapter 3 this 
evening. This morning we looked at Hebrews 10 and specifically 
verse 38. The apostle quotes Habakkuk chapter 
2 verse 4. And the primary purpose for the 
apostle doing that is to exhort the people, to encourage the 
people that it's by faith that they endure It's by faith they 
persevere. It is faith, the foundational 
principle from which those graces of endurance and perseverance 
flow. The Apostle quotes Habakkuk 2.4 
as well in Romans chapter 1 and in Galatians chapter 3. It's 
a very important passage in Scripture. We've already covered it or looked 
at it or thought about it. The just shall live by his faith. Tonight I want us to see how 
Habakkuk puts this principle into practice in his prayer, 
or his psalm, rather, in chapter 3. So, beginning in verse 1, 
a prayer of Habakkuk the prophet on Shigionoth. O Lord, I have 
heard your speech and was afraid. O Lord, revive your work in the 
midst of the years. In the midst of the years, make 
it known. In wrath, remember mercy. God came from Teman, the 
Holy One from Mount Paran, Selah. His glory covered the heavens, 
and the earth was full of His praise. His brightness was like 
the light. He had rays flashing from His 
hand, and there His power was hidden. Before Him went pestilence, 
and fever followed at His feet. He stood and measured the earth. 
He looked and startled the nations. The everlasting mountains were 
scattered. The perpetual hills bowed. His 
ways are everlasting. I saw the tents of Kushan in 
affliction. The curtains of the land of Midian 
trembled. O Lord, You were displeased with 
the rivers. Was Your anger against the rivers? 
Was Your wrath against the sea that You rode on Your horses, 
Your chariots of salvation? Your bow was made quite ready. 
Oaths were sworn over your arrows. Selah. You divided the earth 
with rivers. The mountains saw you and trembled. The overflowing of the water 
passed by. The deep uttered its voice and 
lifted its hands on high. The sun and moon stood still 
in their habitation. At the light of your arrows they 
went. At the shining of your glittering spear. You marched 
through the land in indignation. You trampled the nations in anger. 
You went forth for the salvation of your people. For salvation 
with your anointed, you struck the head from the house of the 
wicked by laying bare from foundation to neck, Selah. You thrust through 
with his own arrows the head of his villages. They came out 
like a whirlwind to scatter me. Their rejoicing was like feasting 
on the poor in secret. You walked through the sea with 
your horses, through the heap of great waters. When I heard, 
my body trembled. My lips quivered at the voice. 
Rottenness entered my bones, and I trembled in myself, that 
I might rest in the day of trouble. When he comes up to the people, 
he will invade them with his troops. Though the fig tree may 
not blossom, nor fruit beyond the vines, though the labor of 
the olive may fail, and the fields yield no food. Though the flock 
may be cut off from the fold, and there be no herd in the stalls, 
yet I will rejoice in the Lord. I will joy in the God of my salvation. The Lord God is my strength. 
He will make my feet like deer's feet, and He will make me walk 
on my high hills. To the chief musician with my 
stringed instruments. Amen. Well, let us pray. Father, 
thank you for the Word of God, and thank you for these prophets 
that we learn so much from, and we would pray that tonight, as 
we consider this particular psalm of Habakkuk, that it would be 
an encouragement to us, that we would see it flashed out, 
how the righteous shall live by faith. We thank You, Lord 
God, that You have justified us freely by Your grace, and 
we know that faith that justifies is not alone. It's given all, 
or it is accompanied by all those other graces, and we pray that 
You would just help us to persevere, help us to endure, help us to 
do so by faith in the One who lived for us, who died for us, 
and who rose again for us. Again, forgive us for all of 
our sins and our transgressions. Provide to us now the Holy Spirit 
that we would find much benefit from this passage of Scripture. 
And we pray through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Well, the book 
of Habakkuk, we can't just jump into chapter 3 without giving 
some background concerning the book as a whole. It's broken 
down, or it breaks down into three primary sections. In the 
first place, chapter 1, verse 2, to chapter 2, verse 4, is 
a dialogue between Habakkuk and God. In fact, there are two specific 
questions that Habakkuk asks of God in chapter 1. The Lord then answers those particular 
questions. Secondly, there are woes of judgment 
pronounced in chapter 2, most likely upon Babylon. And then, 
as I've said and have mentioned, this third chapter is a psalm 
of the prophet. The only personal information 
we know about Habakkuk is his name. We also know that he agonized 
over the wickedness in Judah during the time in which he ministered. The reference to Chaldeans in 
this book has reference to the Babylonians. Now, he most likely 
prophesied about 608 to 605 BC. This was on the brink of the 
fall of Jerusalem, on the brink of the fall of the Southern Kingdom. 
This would take place in 587, 586. roughly around that period. Nebuchadnezzar would lead the 
Babylonians in and would ultimately devastate the nation of Israel, 
specifically the southern kingdom. The temple would be destroyed, 
the people would be exiled for a period of 70 years, and then 
they would return, and thus the prophets Haggai, Zechariah, and 
Malachi prophesied during that particular time. But when we 
see the context in which he lived, impending judgment is coming. 
And so chapter 2, verse 4, that definitive statement is absolutely 
crucial for us to understand. He says, Behold the proud, his 
soul is not upright in him, but the just shall live by his faith. Again, this is an answer to two 
questions. Go back to chapter 1 for just 
a moment. Habakkuk cries out to God. He engages in lamentation. There's 
an ethical issue that perplexes him. And in verses 2 to 4, he 
asks God. He sees the nation around him. 
He sees the sin of Judah. And he's essentially crying out 
to God, how long? And the answer comes in verses 
5 to 11. Note specifically what Yahweh 
says. Verses 5 and 6, look among the 
nations and watch, be utterly astounded for I will work a work 
in your days which you would not believe though it were told 
you. For indeed I am raising up the Chaldeans, a bitter and 
hasty nation which marches through the breadth of the earth to possess 
dwelling places that are not theirs. In other words, God answers 
the prophet's question by saying, I am going to deal with the ethical 
transgression of Israel by sending judgment via Babylon and Nebuchadnezzar. This leads into the prophet's 
second question, beginning in verse 12. He says, Are you not 
from everlasting, O Lord my God, my Holy One? We shall not die. O Lord, you have appointed them 
for judgment. O Rock, you have marked them 
for correction. You are of purer eyes than to behold evil and 
cannot look on wickedness. Why do you look on those who 
deal treacherously and hold your tongue when the wicked devours 
a person more righteous than he? Essentially, what the Prophet 
says at this particular time is that the answer to his question 
seems a bit more severe than he bargained for. Perhaps you've 
heard those advertisements before for a particular medicine, and 
it says, this medicine will help treat this particular issue. 
but the side effects may involve death, suicidal thoughts, plagues, 
lice, boils, all these horrific things, and you kind of reason 
to yourself, it might actually be better just to have the original 
malady, because if I take this corrective medicine, it may cause 
all of these other things. The prophet says, God, you're 
going to send the Chaldeans? You're going to send the Babylonians? 
You're going to send this bitter and hasty nation to deal with 
the southern tribes of Judah? This perplexed the prophet. God's 
response in chapter 2, specifically beginning in verse 2. Then Yahweh 
answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain 
on tablets, that he may run who reads it. For the vision is yet 
for an appointed time. But at the end it will speak, 
and it will not lie. Though it tarries, wait for it, 
because it will surely come. It will not tarry." In other 
words, God's not going to relent. Judah has indeed filled up the 
measure of her guilt. She has violated the covenant 
with God, vis-à-vis Deuteronomy 28, and she will reap the curses 
associated with that. And then in verse 4, God, through 
the prophet, prescribes to the people of God the disposition 
they need to adopt. Remember that not everybody in 
Judah was a vile, wretched, unsaved person. There was always a remnant. 
There were the faithful ones. And so God gives this prescription. 
Verse 4, behold the proud, his soul is not upright in him, but 
the just shall live by his faith. That's the principle that governs 
the thought of Habakkuk as he comes to compose this psalm in 
Habakkuk chapter 3. In other words, we are to reflect 
upon this and we are, by God's grace, to put these same things 
into practice in our own lives. And this psalm breaks down into 
three parts. First, the prophet's petition 
to God in verses 1 and 2. Secondly, the prophet's remembrance 
of God in verses 3 to 15. And then the prophet's refuge 
in God in verses 16 to 19. But note his petition in verses 
1 and 2. says a prayer of Habakkuk the 
prophet on Shigionoth. Now, that word Shigionoth is 
in the margin at Psalm 7. The superscription calls it a 
meditation. If you look at the margin, it 
says Shigion. And it's probably a musical term, 
it's probably a musical direction, much like the Selahs are. The 
Selahs are inscripturated. These superscriptions in the 
Psalms are inscripturated. They are to be received as the 
Word of God. Selah was probably a musical 
pause, and this whole idea of Shigienoth was most likely something 
that indicate how the psalm was to be chanted or sung. Now note, he says in verse 2, 
O Lord, I have heard your speech and was afraid. Before we move 
on, we ought to notice and observe that this is a good response 
to the word of the living God. I heard your word and I was afraid. You see this throughout scripture. 
You see that when men or women receive the truth of God's word, 
specifically concerning judgment, they are afraid. He has understood 
all too well God's plan to deal with the sin of Judah. He understands 
all too well this bitter and hasty nation. He knows that the 
Chaldeans are going to come in and they're going to wipe out 
Judah and take them into exile. He hears that speech and he is 
indeed afraid. Notice the specific request in 
verse 2b, O Lord, revive your work in the midst of the years. 
In the midst of the years make it known. I know that we deserve 
this. I know the calamity is coming. 
I know that hardship is rightly due to us. But Lord God, I don't 
want you to forget your work. I want you to be concerned with 
your work. In many respects, the prophet 
reflects what Jesus will teach later in the Lord's Prayer. When 
Christ tells us to pray, what comes first? It's not our work, 
it's not our happiness, it's not our desires, it's God. Jesus teaches us to pray that 
God's name be hallowed, that God's kingdom come, that God's 
will be done. And it's intriguing that the 
prophet imbibes that ethic in this particular situation. O 
Lord, revive your work. This is your people, these are 
your covenant bodies. These are the inheritance that 
you have purchased for yourself. And I want you to understand, 
Lord God, that I pray that you revive your work in the midst 
of the years." And then he makes this particular plea. He says, 
in wrath, remember mercy. there will be wrath. In fact, 
if you survey chapter 1, as you see God describe the Chaldeans, 
and as you see the prophet describe the Chaldeans, this is going 
to be an expression of God's wrath, similar to what we find 
in Ezekiel. Ezekiel is just a few further 
years down the pipe. Ezekiel is right in the thick 
of it at the time that he prophesied. Habakkuk is still right before 
it, or a few years before it, and he prays that God in his 
wrath would remember mercy, which we know that he does, because 
the exile lasts for 70 years, Judah returns to her land, and 
it is from that vantage point that Christ comes to redeem his 
people from their sins. This is a legit prayer for the 
people of God as intercessors at the throne of grace to pray. 
In wrath, remember mercy. It's legit because God is good. 
God is gracious. God is kind. God is just. God 
is righteous. God must punish sin. But we can 
beseech Him in His wrath to remember mercy. And then notice, secondly, 
the prophet's remembrance of God. We saw that this morning 
as well. The past is a present reminder, and it's as if the 
prophet understands that very concept, because what he does 
is rehearse the glory of God, and he reviews the power of God. Notice in verses 3 and 4. Essentially 
what you have in this section is a collage. Some of you kids 
have had to make collages before. And a collage is simply one big 
picture with a bunch of little pictures, right? That's what 
a collage is. And this convention is used. It's used in several places in 
Scripture. It's used obviously here in Habakkuk 
3, but it's in the Song of Moses in Exodus 15, the Song of Deborah 
in Judges 5, and then David, the victory chant in Psalm 68. 
It's pieces of a collection of who God is and what He has done, 
and it's put onto this one frame so that we can gaze at it and 
view it. And that is what the prophet is doing here. You see, 
he petitions God, and then he remembers God, and he realizes 
that in this he has great confidence, because the Lord has shown himself 
merciful, the Lord has shown himself gracious, the Lord has 
shown himself kind. You see this convention used 
here in terms of collage, but you see the convention of remembering 
who God is and what He has done several times throughout the 
Psalms as a means of encouragement to the psalmist himself. Now 
note, specifically he highlights the Exodus in verses 3 and 4. Now Timan is generally identified 
as a site in Edom or Seir's territory. Paran is identified with Sinai. And so this psalm, at least at 
this portion, traces the steps over which God led Israel as 
she journeyed to take possession of the promised land. It's a 
good place to start when we review the glory and the power of God. 
The Exodus. How many times does the Exodus 
come up in the Psalms as a means by which the psalmist himself 
encourages himself and encourages the church or the people of God? 
We might bring this into the New Testament. We might ponder 
the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. That great exodus, that great 
display of liberation, that great display of redemption that we 
find at the cross. So you see, what the prophet 
does here, we ought to be doing in our psalmody. We ought to 
be doing it in our hymnody. We ought to be doing it in our 
prayer closets, reviewing the glory of God and His redemptive 
acts. And that's where the prophet 
begins in this particular instance. Notice in 3B, His glory covered 
the heavens and the earth was full of His praise. His brightness 
was like the light. He had rays flashing from His 
hand and there His power was hidden. probably a description 
of God on Sinai, when there was that thundering and that lightning, 
and the people were afraid and they did not want to draw near, 
and they were prohibited from drawing near. But it's the redemptive 
act of God, having accomplished it at the Exodus, bringing the 
people of Israel to Sinai, to now command them how to live 
their lives in the land. Notice the power of God reviewed 
in verses 5 to 15. We won't spend a whole lot of 
time here, but note the plagues of Egypt is probably the reference 
in verse 5. Before him went pestilence and 
fever followed at his feet. You want to understand the power 
of God? See how God liberated Israel 
from Egypt. You want to understand something 
about the sovereignty of God? Review those ten plagues and 
see the demonstration of that power. In fact, he tells Moses 
specifically in Exodus 9, he did this, he raised up Pharaoh 
in order to demonstrate his power in all the earth. that all the 
earth would know there is a God in Israel. And so the prophet, 
as he comes to pray, encourages his own heart with this. It's 
the power of God over creation, found in verse 6. He stood and 
measured the earth. He looked and startled the nations, 
and the everlasting mountains were scattered. The perpetual 
hills bowed. His ways are everlasting. We 
see the vindication of God's people in verse 7. Two references 
to the book of Judges. the victory over Cushon Rishithim 
under the judgeship of Othniel. We see as well the victory over 
the Midianites under the judgeship of Gideon. You see, these things 
are to encourage us and not just the prophet in 608-605 BC. Brethren, this stuff is for us 
as well. Yes, we have the great redemptive act of God at the 
cross, but we also have the exodus. We also have the victory over 
Cushon-Rishathame under the judgeship of Othnia. We have the victory 
over the Midianites under the judgeship of Gideon. Those things 
are for us. When we come to pray to God and 
we beseech Him, in your wrath remember mercy, and we review 
His power, and we rehearse His glory, we ought to bespeak the 
great things of God, not just in one particular book in the 
Scriptures, but all the books of the Scriptures, because they 
provide for us this collage that feeds the faith of God's people. 
We need to put collages in our heads. We need to piece these 
things together to review the great power of God. We come against 
a particular temptation or a trial or a difficulty at work. We start 
to put together a particular collage. We see Joseph in Potiphar's 
house. We see Job making a covenant 
with his eyes. We see our Lord Jesus telling 
us to cut off right hands or gouge out right eyes. We see 
the apostle Paul. We see Peter. We see the apostles 
in the New Testament. This is a collage for the people 
of God to review the glory of God and the power of God in order 
to steady them in the present. This is the just living by faith, 
faith in the One who has revealed Himself in the Scriptures. And 
the prophet is displaying this for us now. He poses this question 
in verses 8 to 11. Essentially, he says, were you 
upset with the rivers? Were you upset with the created 
order? Were you upset with the mountains? And the answer comes 
in verses 12 to 15. No, God did these things because 
He was angry with the nations. He was angry with sinners. He 
was not upset, but He was showing His wrath and demonstrating His 
power in the judgment of the nations of the earth. So the 
power of God is revealed by the prophet of God after having given 
his petition to God, and that brings us finally to consider 
the prophet's refuge in God. The prophet's refuge in God, 
verses 16 to 19, and I just want to bring out four observations 
here concerning faith. Faith, because if the just shall 
live by faith, We see in Habakkuk 3 an expression of this faith. Again, what's happening? The 
Chaldeans are coming, this bitter and hasty nation. They're coming 
not to have tea with Judah. They're coming not to have parties 
with Judah. They're coming to devastate Judah. They're going to destroy the 
temple, they're going to destroy the city, they're going to take 
the people and lead them back to their own nation. They are 
going to do so in a manner that is very, very severe. And so, this is a tumultuous 
time for the prophet Habakkuk. And so, he needs to activate 
this principle found in Habakkuk 2.4, that Josh shall live by 
his faith. So, let's look at these four things that faith 
provides in these tumultuous times. In the first place, faith 
provides rest in the day of trouble. Notice at verse 16, when I heard 
my body tremble, my lips quivered at the voice. Again, a good response 
when we understand God's Word. In Psalm 119, 120, the psalmist 
says, my flesh trembles in fear of thee. Daniel, after receiving 
visions, trembled. He was physically affected by 
the things that he had heard. In Isaiah 66, 20, God looks upon 
those who are lowly and of a contrite spirit, those who tremble at 
His Word. And so Habakkuk here joins the 
chorus of men who understand the word of the living God, and 
he says, I might rest in the day of trouble. 
When He comes up to the people, He will invade them with His 
troops." Now there's a couple of different ways perhaps we 
can understand verse 16. The ESV seems to indicate, I 
will rest or I will quietly wait for the recompense of God to 
come upon the Babylonians. So the idea being that Babylon 
is going to accomplish what God sends them to do with reference 
to Judah. But after that 70-year period, 
as prophesied through Isaiah, God's going to raise up Cyrus, 
king of Persia, and he's going to deal a death blow to Babylon. 
So, ultimately, Babylon is going to get what's coming to them, 
and so the understanding on this reading says he will rest quietly, 
he will be content until the day of trouble comes upon Babylon, 
until they are revisited by God for their sins against God. Or, 
it may just mean that he rests in the day of trouble when he 
comes up to the people, specifically Babylon, he will invade them 
with his troops. In other words, I understand 
this is coming. It produces great fear in my 
heart. It produces this trembling flash, but I will rest. I will 
trust. I will have confidence. I will 
seek my refuge in God because if God has spoken and God has 
deemed it appropriate, then I will not buck His system. In other 
words, I resign and I resolve that I will rest no matter what. Faith provides rest in the day 
of trouble. Haven't we tried God in this 
and proven it to be the case? Isn't this the whole argument 
in Hebrews 10, 32-39? Remember, when you were illuminated, 
remember when you had been enlightened, remember that you suffered reproach 
and difficulty and hardship. The apostle uses that as an argument 
to steady them in the present. The idea, the implication seems 
to be that the audience would read that and say, you know, 
he's right. We went through those hardships. We had our goods plundered. We had people thrown in prison. 
We ourselves were thrown in prison, but we've always seen God faithful. 
We've always seen Him deliver us. We've always seen Him restore 
us. We've always seen Him put things back to right. It may 
not happen in our time frame. It may not happen like that. 
It may not happen for 70 years if you happen to be in exile 
in Babylon. That could seem like an eternity. 
I mean, seven days seems like a long time for some of us, doesn't 
it? Imagine one of your kids are 
going to go do something cool next Monday. That's a long way. 
They'll never get here. Well, imagine 70 years in exile 
in a foreign country where the people are not very nice. You 
see, the prophet says that God has spoken, my flesh trembles, 
there's fear in my heart, but, but, but, but, I will rest in 
the day of trouble. Because I know whatever my God 
ordains is right. Trinity Hymnal number 94, whatever 
my God ordains is right. Brethren, that's confidence, 
that's faith. That's what it produces. It provides 
rest in the day of trouble. Notice, secondly, that faith 
provides joy in God in the midst of devastation. Faith provides 
joy in God in the midst of devastation. Notice in verse 17, he acknowledges 
the loss that is sure to come. Though the fig tree may not blossom, 
nor fruit be on the vines, though the labor of the olive may fail, 
and the fields yield no food, though the flock may be cut off 
from the fold, and there be no herd in the stalls." What's he 
saying? When Babylon comes, they're going to ruin our country. When 
Babylon comes, they're going to devastate our land. When Babylon 
comes, they're going to take us from the land, and certainly 
we're not going to be in the position to have those things 
that provided sustenance to us. In short, the absence of crops, 
the absence of flocks, the absence of herds, the devastation of 
Babylon upon Judah would be complete. It would be comprehensive. This 
would be akin to us saying something to the effect, no more Superstore, 
no more Walmart, no more Power Grid, no more Internet, no more 
texting, no more going down to the store and buying milk, no 
more benefits and produce and food from animals, none of that. 
They're going to devastate. They're going to lay us low. 
And this is consistent with Deuteronomy 28. Several times in those covenant 
curses, God explains how they will be exiled. And when they're 
exiled, it's not going to be Costco. It's not going to be 
Walmart. It's not going to be all the 
good things that they had come to rely on. So notice, there 
is this loss acknowledged. Let's just read it again for 
effect. Though the fig tree may not blossom. It's beautiful language as well. 
The literary merit of all this is just glorious. Though the 
labor of the olive may fail and the field yield no food, though 
the flock may be cut off from the fold and there be no herd 
in the stalls. What would we be tempted to say? 
Well, if there's no Costco, I don't want to live there. I mean, isn't 
that how they plant Costcos and plant Walmarts, based on population 
sort of centers, and if there's that many people, good. Perhaps 
people live that way. Well, I don't want to live there 
if there's not a Costco. I don't want to live there if there's not a Walmart. 
I can't live where there's no Superstore. I got to have a Canadian 
tie. I just can't have all that. He's facing certain devastation. And notice what his response 
is in verse 18. Yet I will rejoice in Yahweh. 
I will joy in the God of my salvation. Are we at that point? Has faith 
so worked in our heart that it provides joy in God in the midst 
of devastation? Would we complain? Would we cry? 
Would we whine? Would we murmur? Would we grumble? 
Would we just fall apart? I mean, think about it. It's 
one thing to just, you know, kind of entertain this theoretically, 
but really think about it. The people of God have suffered 
many things that we know nothing of. Habakkuk is standing on the 
brink of societal collapse. Societal collapse. We freak out 
if the person in our political party isn't going to be the president 
or the prime minister. The church has always flourished 
under whatever regime it may be because of the power of God 
Most High. We don't need a particular prime 
minister or a particular president to ensure the success of the 
church. We've got the spirit of the living God. We've got 
the gospel of Jesus Christ, our Lord. The church in the first 
century thrived and flourished and grew and conquered under 
Nero, the man whom John Fox called the beast. And yet the church 
triumphed. because they preached the gospel 
and depended upon the Holy Spirit. This man is facing devastation 
and he says, yet, I will rejoice in Yahweh, I will joy in the 
God of my salvation. I've always loved that sort of 
convention there. I will joy in the God of my salvation. I'm just going to joy in you, 
God. We don't talk that way, do we? 
I will rejoice, I will have joy, but he says, I will joy in the 
God of my salvation. Because you see what the prophet 
understood is that crop loss, the devastation of herds, the 
removal of flocks, the closing of a Costco, the outage of the 
power grid does not affect our salvation. They cannot take that 
from us. Once the Lord God has wrought 
this in our hearts, it is our possession till the end. Paul 
says in Philippians 1.6, I am confident of this very thing. 
He who began a good work in you will do what? He'll complete 
it on to the day of Christ, provided there's a Costco or a Walmart 
to tend to all your needs. No. He will complete it to the 
day of Jesus Christ. He understood that the salvation 
God provides does not depend on the political order. It does 
not depend on which empire is in control. It does not depend 
on sheep or on cows or on milk or on wool. It doesn't depend 
upon any of those things. The salvation of God is a certainty 
that the people of God possess and therefore when the just shall 
live by his faith, that faith provides joy in God in the midst 
of devastation. Calvin says, that is, our joy 
shall not depend on outward prosperity. It doesn't depend on outward 
prosperity. I'm not suggesting go get rid 
of everything, shave your head and put an orange robe on and 
go dance at the airport like the Hare Krishnas. There's nothing 
wrong. If God does provide and God does 
bless, I'm not suggesting you go get rid of all that or have 
some big, massive garage sale. But we need to understand that 
our joy is not contingent upon our outward prosperity. Our joy 
is contingent upon the cross, the gospel, the doing and the 
dying and the rising of Jesus. Our joy is uniquely connected 
to Romans 4.25. He was delivered up because of 
our offenses, and He was raised for our justification. Remember 
when the disciples come back from that preaching ministry 
and they're rejoicing because they say, Wow, Lord, we saw demons 
cast out and we saw people healed and we saw all these things. 
And Jesus says, Don't rejoice in that, but rather rejoice that 
your names are written in heaven. Don't rejoice in what you can 
do. Rejoice in the reality that God has saved you. You see, when 
our joy is tied to what we can do, or our joy is tied to our 
outward prosperity, when we no longer can do it and we're no 
longer prosperous, what happens to our joy? It's dried up. But when our joy is locked in 
to the triune God of heaven and earth, when Father, Son, and 
Holy Spirit is the very source of our joy and our blessed privilege, 
then whatever comes, whatever happens, cannot dry up that joy. Calvin says, our joy shall not 
depend on outward prosperity, for though the Lord may afflict 
us in an extreme degree, there will yet be always some consolation 
to sustain our minds, that they may not succumb under evils so 
grievous, for we are fully persuaded that our salvation is in God's 
hand, and that He is its faithful guardian. Babylon can come, they 
can destroy everything, they can put hooks in our noses and 
lead us back to their country, but they can't take our salvation. 
Isn't that glorious? Do you ever ponder that? Maybe 
this is what led Paul to say, for to me to live is Christ and 
to die is gain. Now remember when Paul says that, 
he's in prison. It was a potential that he could 
die. It was a potential that he could be executed as a criminal, 
as a malefactor, as a person who brought tumult to the Roman 
Empire. Yet he says, for to me to live 
is Christ, and to die is gain. Have you ever wondered what you 
do with a guy like that? He's sitting in his prison cell, and 
you come to him, and you're the guard or the warden, and you 
say, OK, we're going to let you live. I get Christ. We're going 
to kill you. I get more Christ. We can't punish 
you, Paul. We can't hurt you. We can't make 
anything bad for you, because if you live, you're going to 
go out and preach and produce more fruit. And if you die, you're 
going to depart, which is far better, he describes in Philippians 
1.23. You see, with Paul, you can't 
really hurt him. But that's not just true for 
Paul. You can't really hurt us. If we have, by the grace of God, 
passed from death into life, it's not outward prosperity, 
it's not our outward usefulness, though that's important. We ought 
to seek, by the grace of God, to be useful in His hand. It 
is that inward salvation wrought by the Spirit of God, secured 
by the power of God. In the language of Calvin, he 
is a faithful guardian of that which has been given to us. Faith 
provides joy in the midst of devastation. A third lesson we 
learned from the prophet. Faith provides stability in God. Isn't this one of the things 
that I think everyone craves? We like stability, don't we? 
What could be more instability or in unstabilizing, I guess 
is the correct grammatical form there. What's more unstabilizing 
than the thought of the Babylonians coming and destroying your nation? 
That's a really unstabilizing thought. And for those of us 
who are a little bit OCD and we like everything in its place, 
where the herds are, where the flocks are, where the Costco's 
are and where our stuff is, that can throw us off our game. You 
see, he's not looking for that stability in his outward prosperity, 
he sees that stability in his God. Notice, verse 19, the Lord 
God is my strength. No matter what comes, no matter 
what happens, no matter what comes down the pipe, God is my 
strength. He will make my feet like deer's 
feet. Now, deer are pretty incredible 
when it comes to running and leaping. little hymn from the 
kids running and leaping and praising God. I guess deers are 
doing that. They're doing what God made deers 
to do. I was just thinking about this particular image, so I did 
what every pastor in the 21st century does. I googled it. Of 
course, there's all these Christian sites. It's actually from the 
Psalms. It's actually from Psalm 18.33, 
which comes from Psalm 2 Samuel 22. So David composed this. He uses this particular image. 
He will make my feet like deer's feet. But I went to a hunting 
site. I don't know if it was a hunting site, but it was something about 
deer. They can leap like eight feet. They can go up hills and 
mountains. They've got a stability when 
it comes to the rough terrain. They've got grounding. They've 
got the ability to stand fast in uncertain circumstances. And 
this is what the prophet says concerning God. He is my strength. He will make my feet like deer's 
feet, and He will make me walk on my high hills again. This 
isn't some bumper-sticker theology. In some health, wealth, and prosperity 
context, he is standing on the verge of societal collapse via 
Babylon and Nebuchadnezzar. And nevertheless, for him, faith 
provides stability in God. And then the fourth and final 
observation. Faith provides material for the 
church's worship. Faith provides material for the 
church's worship. Note verse 1, a prayer of Habakkuk 
the prophet on Shigianoth. As I said, that's a musical term. 
The Selahs in here indicate that we're dealing with a literature, 
a genre, that's psalmody. And then note the final statement 
in verse 19, to the chief musician with my stringed instruments. Do you know what Habakkuk is 
saying there? I have composed this psalm for 
the chief musician to be utilized in the churches, to be sung by 
God's people, to learn what it is that the just shall live by 
his faith. This is the sort of stuff that 
the people of God sing throughout the ages. The Psalms of David, 
the inspired hymn book given by God. Some call them the Songs 
of Zion. The church must take these Psalms 
seriously and sing them, for they give us the reality that 
there is suffering, there is devastation, there is hardship, 
there is woe, but none of those things get rid of God. You know, 
there's a big difference between what Habakkuk writes here and 
what many of the Psalms of David indicate from this one, for instance. Not a shadow can rise, not a 
cloud in the skies, but his smile quickly drives it away. Is that 
your experience? Because it ain't always mine. 
There's sorrow in the Christian life, isn't there? They're seasons, 
prolonged seasons, such that the psalmist was provoked to 
write 42 and 43. Why are you cast down, O my soul? Hope thou in God, he says. Why would he write that? Because 
his soul was cast down. He was hurting. He was perplexed. If Christ Jesus is characterized 
as a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief, we ought not to think 
it an odd thing if we go through our seasons, if we go through 
our difficulties, if we go through our trials. Now, I'm picking 
on this hymn. I was listening to a sermon by 
my favorite preacher, and he cited this particular hymn, and 
it made me reflect and compare it with what we find here in 
Habakkuk. Not a shadow can rise, not a cloud in the skies, but 
his smile quickly drives it away, not a doubt or a fear." How does 
Habakkuk begin his book? God! Judah's mess! Are you going to do something 
about it, Lord? Yeah, I'm going to raise up the Babylonians and 
I'm going to send them in to decimate. Lord, that seems a 
bit much. It seems like the answer, the 
correction, is even more severe than the problem. That's a faith 
that is somewhat perplexed. Brethren, can you enter in? Have 
you ever had a Habakkuk moment? I'm not saying get a pillow and 
hit it because you're mad and, you know, be mad at God and all 
that sort of thing. But we learn something from Habakkuk 
that God even answers his questions prayed in faith. His questions 
do not mean there's no faith. These are the questions faith 
promotes. Not a doubt or a fear, not a 
sigh or a tear can abide while we trust and obey, let alone 
it often puts, or this hymn puts it on us. Haven't you proved 
and tried God in this, that sometimes He comes to your aid when you 
haven't really trusted or obeyed like you should have? You ever 
say, yeah, God, you know, I've trusted and obeyed, you know, 
a hundred units, so therefore you have to come through. Isn't 
it the amazing thing that God sometimes delivers us, sometimes 
God smiles on us, sometimes God brings blessing upon us that 
we didn't deserve? Isn't that what grace and mercy 
definitionally are? In this scheme, as long as I 
do the formula, then God cannot do such and such. Again, I don't 
want to pick on this too much, but I think there's a difference 
here between the inspired songs of Zion and what we find in some 
of the non-inspired hymns of men. Not a burden we bear, not 
a sorrow we share, but our toil he doth richly repay. Now, again, 
there's some semblance of truth in that. We're going to be richly 
repaid in heaven. But the idea here is that if 
we trust and obey now, we're going to get richly repaid. Well, 
that's not always the case either. I mean, would you say Paul was 
richly repaid? Again, he was in heaven in terms of the eschaton. 
He departs, he's present with the Lord. But in terms of his 
life of trusting and obedience, was he richly repaid on this 
side of heaven? Absolutely not. I mean, he was 
just not treated well. Not a grief nor a loss, not a 
frown or a cross, but is blessed if we trust and obey." Again, 
God does bless our crosses, God does bless our losses, God does 
bless our frowns, but it seems different than what Habakkuk 
is indicating in his psalm. It just seems different from 
what the Psalms of David record. See, faith doesn't try and explain 
away difficulty. Faith doesn't just put a spiritual 
band-aid on difficulty. Faith doesn't just repeat mantras 
to try and deal with the trials of life. Faith sees God in the 
midst of devastation. Faith rejoices in God, even in 
the midst of devastation. And faith finds stability in 
God, though the nations around us and even our own crumble. Again, I don't want to pick on 
it too much. We just simply need to think about some of the things 
that we sing. and consider if, in fact, they are comparable 
to what we find in terms of the inspired hymnody or psalmody 
in Scripture. Well, in conclusion, I certainly 
think we'd all agree, based on what we learned this morning 
in Hebrews 10, 32 to 39, and what we see here in the prophet 
Habakkuk, that there are trials in the Christian life. If you 
haven't figured that out yet, you haven't been a Christian 
that long. And I hate to be the one to break it to you, but you're 
going to find out about it. He's the opposite of health, 
wealth and prosperity. He sent me home telling me that 
there's going to be trial. Yeah. You need to understand 
that. The Christian life isn't just 
about zippity-doo-dah, singing your way to heaven. Much of it 
is singing your way to heaven, praising God in the corporate 
place, praising God in the private place. All of that is most blessed 
and most excellent. But as the Apostle said to the 
Hebrews, you were made a public spectacle. You suffered reproach, 
you suffered tribulation, you joyfully accepted the plundering 
of your goods. There's hardship when you take 
up the cross of Christ. If the captain of our salvation 
suffered, then certainly his soldiers are going to suffer. 
As well, the resolution of spiritual difficulty, or trials rather, 
in the believer's life. The prophet moves from this place 
of asking questions in a lamentation sort of a way to praise and worship. He does so by several things. He asks God, in your wrath remember 
mercy. He does so by remembering God, 
a consideration of who God is in terms of His being and His 
attributes, in terms of His works, as a great encouragement to the 
people of God facing severe trial. Thank God when you go through 
trouble. And as well, it is this principle, 
the just shall live by faith. Prophet learned the practical 
necessity of this. And notice, a believer is not 
steadied by his endurance, his works, or anything that is human, 
but he is steadied by faith in the One who lived and died and 
rose again for him. The believer needs to be reminded 
of this to enjoy, to understand, to enter into this state that 
the Prophet is in. You can't say, well, that's only 
a backache. I really have a mess in my life. 
I don't know what you're facing, but I know we're not facing the 
Babylonian captivity. I know that. That's not going 
to happen. Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonians 
aren't going to show up in Chilliwack tomorrow and take over. So whatever 
we're facing is probably a whole lot less than what Habakkuk faced, 
and yet the just shall live by his faith, as evidenced here. 
Walt Kaiser, in summary, makes this observation. He says, Habakkuk's 
faith was not just salvific. It certainly was. The just shall 
live by faith, in the context of Romans 1 and Galatians 3, 
is specifically soteriological. Paul is arguing there. The means 
by which a sinner is brought into saving union with Christ 
is faith. But as we studied, or as we looked 
at this morning, with reference to justifying faith, we learned 
that it's not, I'm sorry, in chapter 11, faith thus receiving 
and resting on Christ and His righteousness, that's the Romans 
1, Galatians 3, is the alone instrument of justification, 
yet it is not alone, in the person justified, but is ever accompanied 
with all other saving graces, and is no dead faith, but worketh 
by love." So we are justified by faith, but that faith is not 
alone. It produces perseverance, endurance, 
stability, joy, those things that the prophet has in his God. 
So Kaiser says, Habakkuk's faith was not just salvific, redemptive, 
and personal. It was that. Don't miss this. 
But it was practical and mundane in its implications. It could 
stand the test of total crop failure and the destruction of 
everything one held dear. It did not depend on God's promise 
that he would always supply health, wealth, and prosperity in order 
to earn Habakkuk's trust, belief, and respect. He could still be 
loved and worshipped in the midst of tragedy. When the lid blew 
off everything, He was still the sole object of praise and 
adoration. The reason was simple. He was 
Lord. He was in charge. He would remain 
true to His Word even at the end of the historic process when 
all else had come and gone. Thus, in the face of all extremities 
of life, we can go on because He goes on. Justified people 
really live, and they live by faith. So this is the application 
of the 2-4 principle in the Psalm of Habakkuk. As we saw this morning, 
this is the Apostle's sort of foundational principle for those 
Hebrew believers. that they endure, that they persevere, 
that they run with endurance the race that is set before them, 
but never forgetting the fundamental principle is faith, faith in 
Christ, faith in the power of God, faith in the one who has 
displayed himself in the exodus, faith in the one who has displayed 
himself in the victories and judges, faith in the one who 
has displayed himself victorious in the wars of David, faith in 
the One who has brought us out of darkness into marvelous light 
through the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. Brethren, the just 
shall live by faith. And if you are not a believer 
here this evening, that's absolutely crucial as well. It's not works, 
it's not your good deeds, it's not your law-keeping that commends 
you to God, because the best that you do is tainted with sin. 
We think of that particular statement of the prophet Isaiah, all our 
righteousnesses are like filthy rags in your sight, the best 
that Israel had to offer to God. The prophet says they're like 
a menstrual rag, they do not commend us to God, they are vile, 
they are wretched, they are unclean things. And that is precisely 
the sinner today, when he tries to bring the good works to God, 
when he tries to argue with God, well, I've never killed anyone, 
I've never committed adultery, I'm a pretty good guy, I'm a 
member of this particular social club, my family seems to like 
me, I'm a productive member of society. That's not going to 
cut it. What God demands in the Word 
is specific. You are to obey God's law perfectly. exactly, entirely, perpetually, 
and personally, if you choose to go that route. So you see, 
there's no way you can ever find favor with God through the works 
of the law. This is Paul's point in Romans 
1. For I am not ashamed of the gospel, 
for it is the power of God unto salvation, for everyone who believes, 
to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness 
of God is revealed from faith to faith, that just as it is 
written, the just shall live by faith. In other words, it's 
not the works of the law that the sinner brings to God, it 
is looking to Christ in faith. It is to look upon Him and live. It is to look upon Him and receive 
the forgiveness of sins and the imputed righteousness of Christ 
that is received by faith alone. It is the grand instrument, under 
the gracious hand of God, to bring a sinful soul into vital 
union, saving union, with our Lord Jesus Christ. So the just 
shall live by faith. Let us pray. Our Father, we thank 
You very much for Your Word. We thank You for the practical 
implications. Yes, the soteriological, this 
is the means by which we are brought to Christ, but as well 
the practical. Help us to never forget that 
each and every day we are to believe in God, His Word, His 
promises, His excellence, and as well trusting always in the 
Lord Jesus Christ and in Him above all things. I ask that 
You would go with us now, that You would watch over us, that 
You would bless and strengthen us, so that we may honor and 
adore you. And we pray through Jesus Christ 
our Lord. Amen.