Severe Mercy. Intro. Read Hab 3:17 Pray Intro

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1 Intr Read Hab 3:17 Pray Intr Severe Mercy CS Lewis - Gd whispers t us in ur pleasures, speaks in ur cnscience, but shuts in ur pains: it is his megaphne t ruse a deaf wrld. Many f us are in pain. With the tragic events this weekend we have a heightened sense f the brevity f life, and a deeper lnger fr the meaning f life. We need t hear frm Gd. Thankfully Gd has spken we have his wrd. And as we ve seen thrughut this series, Gd s wrd is a grand stry. The Bible is nt a gld-mine rule bk hall f fame It s a stry f redemptin It is the stry f the peple f Gd being In the great unflding stry f Gd tday we arrive at the prphets Prphets: Gd speaking truth int the chas f a wrld shattered by sin exactly what we need. The minr prphets [explain] will make n sense apart frm the brader stry f redemptin. Wh s Habbakuk? Why is Gd s upset? Did Gd really cmmand smene t marry a prstitute? Is Gd wrathful r gracius? 10 least ppular bks f the Bible. 6 are in the Minr Prphets. Where we re ging Tday we re ging t talk abut all 12 f the minr prphets (Table f Cntents) Gd s judgment is mre severe than yu imagined, but his mercy is sweeter than yu dreamed. Severe Judgment Intr Start with that which makes the minr prphets s difficult. There is sme gnarly stuff in the minr prphets. Wrath. Judgment. Vengeance. Passage: Nahum: 1:2-3 Happy Sunday everyne. Gd is POed. What d we d with this? Evelyn cutting ut a page f my Bible. Thmas Jeffersn Augustine If yu believe what yu like in the gspels, and reject what yu dn t like, it is nt the gspel yu believe, but yurself. Hw can a lving Gd be wrathful? We all value justice. When we re wrnged by anther Cntext f stry. 1

2 Assume: mrally neutral peple and an arbitrary Gd. Sinful peple rebelling against a hly Gd. Nineveh (Nahum) Built n Slavery Wmen were treated as less than human Demlish thers arund them Skin their enemies alive and dismember them publically Judgment is a part f Gd s greater prject f renewal. Judgment = cleansing. Maybe the wrath f Gd is hard fr yu t swallw. What if Gd was indifferent t injustice? If Gd batted an eye at evil wuld he be wrthy f praise? If he simply verlked injustice wuld he be gd? My kids. If yu lve smething yu hate that which seeks t destry it. Gd is hly His hly and righteus respnse t sin is anger and wrath Gd s wrath is nt incmpatible with his lve but arises fr the purpse f prtecting what he lves. Judgment n enemies and judgment n Israel. Ams 5:21-24 Jesus went after the religius peple My testimny Slw t anger. Patient. Jnah: Gd s relentless pursuit f sinners. But dn t mistake Gd s patience fr his apprval. Transitin This is hard t hear. But yu dn t appreciate the gd news unless yu knw the bad news. Presuming upn Gd s grace. Gd s jb t save us. He s gd at saving The severity f Gd s judgment is matched nly by the sweetness f his mercy. Sweet Mercy Hsea Sin is spiritual adultery Hsea 2:14-15, 19 What des Gd feel when he lks at yu? Read Zeph 3:15-17 The Gd wh sings Greeks thught Gd was a philspher Only a gd wh is lve sings Narna. Aslan sings creatin int existence. Gd sings ver yu If yu are in Christ, Gd des nt tlerate yu, he delights in yu. We stp shrt at justificatin 2

3 Wisdm f the Crss If yu asked me hw I feel abut my kids I sing ver my kids every night This is yur identity: yu are the belved f Gd. Hw des the Father feel abut the Sn? Jhn 17:26 nt a generic lve. We share in the Father s lve fr the Sn. Hw can he judge wickedness and yet save wicked peple? Hw can Gd be hly and lving? It s at the crss where we see the hliness and lve f Gd cnverge the clearest. Display f lve Rm 5:8 Why wuld Gd send his sn? Lve. The crss as the greatest display f Gd s judgment Ams 8 Darkness = judgment Jesus desn t verlk r dwnplay the ugliness f this wrld, he takes it head n. The wisdm f Gd has rdained a way fr the lve f Gd t deliver us frm the wrath f Gd withut cmprmising the justice f Gd. Piper This has been Gd s plan all alng. Jnah Gd s relentless pursuit f sinners A sign pinting t a greater reality. Resurrectin text message Zechariah Ch. 9: Humble king wh wuld bring peace t the ends f the earth Ch. 12 & 13: pierced and stricken Zech 3 Jshua wearing a filthy garment and being accused by Satan Respnse Remving the stained garments and receiving a pure white garment Cvered in the righteusness f Christ Repentance Jel 2:12-13 Return t me It s kindness that leads t repentance His judgment is nt meant t scare yu int faith but t cast yu upn his grace Because f the gspel we re mtivated Faith (Hab 2:4) Cnclusin Where is Gd in the midst f suffering? On the crss. Thrugh Christ he understands ur suffering and he s ding smething abut it Gd is with us in ur suffering, transfrms us thrugh ur suffering, and ne day will put an end t all suffering. 3

4 Nah. 1:2 Nah. 1:3 The LORD is a jealus and avenging Gd; the LORD is avenging and wrathful; the LORD takes vengeance n his adversaries and keeps wrath fr his enemies. The LORD is slw t anger and great in pwer, and the LORD will by n means clear the guilty. His way is in whirlwind and strm, and the cluds are the dust f his feet. Ams 5:21 I hate, I despise yur feasts, and I take n delight in yur slemn assemblies. Ams 5:22 Even thugh yu ffer me yur burnt fferings and grain fferings, I will nt accept them; and the peace fferings f yur fattened animals, I will nt lk upn them. Ams 5:23 Ams 5:24 Zeph. 3:15 Take away frm me the nise f yur sngs; t the meldy f yur harps I will nt listen. But let justice rll dwn like waters, and righteusness like an ever-flwing stream. The LORD has taken away the judgments against yu; he has cleared away yur enemies. The King f Israel, the LORD, is in yur midst; yu shall never again fear evil. Zeph. 3:16 On that day it shall be said t Jerusalem: Fear nt, O Zin; 4

5 let nt yur hands grw weak. Zeph. 3:17 The LORD yur Gd is in yur midst, a mighty ne wh will save; he will rejice ver yu with gladness; he will quiet yu by his lve; he will exult ver yu with lud singing. Jel 2:12 Yet even nw, declares the LORD, return t me with all yur heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with murning; Jel 2:13 and rend yur hearts and nt yur garments. Return t the LORD yur Gd, fr he is gracius and merciful, slw t anger, and abunding in steadfast lve; and he relents ver disaster. 5