In my study this morning, from Warren Wiersbe’s book, Be Amazed: Restoring An Attitude Of Wonder And Worship, I was reading about Habakkuk and how he sought Israel’s repentance. He believed Israel would turn from their sins and get right with God.
Josiah had been king and was a good king, but now his son, Jehoiakim, was king and he was nothing like his father. He led the people to stray from God and His Law. As Habakkuk prayed about this, the Lord showed him what was to come. God was sending the Babylonians to deal with Israel, not what Habakkuk had thought, nor did he expect. Why would the Lord send an un-godly nation to destroy His chosen people?
While
Habakkuk wrestled with God’s decision, he never lost his faith, but he did have
questions. Wiersbe writes, “keep in mind that there is a difference between
doubt and unbelief. Like Habakkuk, the doubter questions God and may even
debate with God, but the doubter doesn’t abandon God. But unbelief is rebellion
against God, a refusal to accept what He says and does. Unbelief is an act of
the will, while doubt is born out of a troubled mind and a broken heart.”
Wiersbe
goes on to say:
The prophet needed to remember two facts: (1) God
had used other tools to chasten His people – war, natural calamities, the
preaching of the prophets – and the people wouldn’t listen; (2) the greater the
light, the greater the responsibility. Yes, the Babylonians were wicked
sinners, but they were idolaters who didn’t know the true and living God. This
didn’t excuse their sins (Rom. 1”18ff.), but it did explain their conduct. The
Jews claimed to know the Lord, and yet they were sinning against the very law
they claimed to believe! Sin in the life of a believer is far worse than sin in
the life of an unbeliever. When God’s people deliberately disobey Him, they sin
against a flood of light and an ocean of love.
So
God had tried to get their attention but they just kept ignoring the warning
signs and this brought God’s righteous judgment down upon His chosen people,
the people who were called to be His priests to the nations.
Does
this sound familiar?
America,
founded on belief in God and His holy Word, are we witnessing God’s warning
signs against us? A nation who knows God and His Word, yet we have allowed
abortion, Hollywood’s garbage to rot our brains, corrupt politicians to do
whatever they will, pornography, human trafficking, etc.
We
have seen floods, droughts, hurricanes, tornadoes, terrorist attacks, school
shootings, thugs capturing and holding a downtown hostage while the city’s
leadership looks on, approving this violence, and much, much more. Is this not
God trying to warn us of impending judgement? I believe what we are witnessing
today is our last chance, maybe it’s too late already, but if we don’t want to
suffer the consequences of our own rebellion, we had better hit our knees and
pray while we still can.
I beg you, brothers and sisters, repent now and take this warning seriously!
.
