WHAT WILL BECOME OF THE DISHONEST?

Habakkuk 2:9-11

INTRODUCTION:   

Although death claimed Kenneth Lay before he served a day in prison, the convicted former CEO of the Enron Corporation will forever be an icon of ill-gotten gain. The son of a Baptist minister, Lay--who in May of 2006 was found guilty of fraud and conspiracy charges in one of America’s biggest corporate scandals--maintained his innocence until he died. "We believe that God in fact is in control, and indeed He does work all things for good for those who love the Lord," he said after the verdict.

Despite Lay’s protestations of purity, evidence presented during his trial painted a picture of wretched material excess that included a $200,000 yacht for his wife’s birthday, as well as $100 million in personal debt, all of which Lay defended by saying "It was difficult to turn off that lifestyle like a spigot."

Kenneth Lay’s experience perfectly illustrates the truth that dishonest gain does not last, it is not honorable and it will eventually be exposed.

In those ways, the experience of Kenneth Lay parallels the experience of the Babylonians of Habakkuk’s time.  They had been rapacious in their use of the nations they conquered (including the Jews) to build their own wealth.  Habakkuk warned that no investment is so secure as to shelter unjust gains from the audit of the Lord.

^9 “Woe to him who builds his realm by unjust gain

to set his nest on high,

to escape the clutches of ruin!

^10 You have plotted the ruin of many peoples,

shaming your own house and forfeiting your life.

^11 The stones of the wall will cry out,

and the beams of the woodwork will echo it.  

I.                    DISHONEST GAIN IS NOT DURABLE (2:9)

^9 “Woe to him who builds his realm by unjust gain

to set his nest on high,

to escape the clutches of ruin!

The picture God paints for Habakkuk is one of ultimate futility.  God describes a dishonest person setting “his nest on high to escape the clutches of ruin.”  The image is that of a bird that hopes if she has her nest high enough, no predator can prey upon her.

In scripture, the eagle is a most interesting bird.  According to the Law of Moses, the eagle, along with its cousin, the vulture, is classified as an unclean bird and it cannot be eaten.  But even though God said it is unclean, the eagle became an image used, on occasion, to symbolize God’s people and even the Lord, Himself.

The first Biblical example that is used is the way God, in Exodus 19:4, carried the people of Israel “as on eagles' wings” out of Egypt. This application expresses God's paternal nature, but also how Israel was a very spiritually immature people from all its years in bondage and could not fend for itself. Parent eagles teach their young birds how to fly by taking them on their wings, acclimatizing them to what it takes to make it on their own.

All species of eagles are known for their keen vision, which is eight times greater than man's vision. They are able to spot their prey from as high as 1½ miles (from about 8,000 feet) up in the air and then swoop down and pluck their prey out from their environment with talons (claws).

Typically, eagles nest in the topmost branches of the tallest trees in the area of their habitat.  From that vantage point, the adults can use their keen vision to watch for snakes or other intruders that will try to raid their eggs or eat their young.

Ironic, isn’t it, that the predator worries about becoming the prey?  It happens among predatory people, too.  Those who take advantage of others to acquire their ill gotten gain end up forfeiting contentment and losing sleep because they worry about someone else doing to them what they have done to others.

No matter how high the predator builds his nest, no matter how high the crook builds his walls, he cannot fortify himself from his mind.  His imagination will vex him and pilfer his peace.

Now friends, the fact is that no material wealth is really durable.

On January 1, 1999, eleven European counties adopted a common currency called the Euro.  Greece joined that economic community on January 1, 2001 so now twelve countries share the Euro as their legal tender.

I want you to imagine that the United States has decided to adopt the Euro as our unit of currency.  Imagine that the President has announced that at some date in the future, we will all be using the Euro as our money and that, as of that date, dollars will be worthless.  But here’s the catch: the President is not going to announce when the switch in currency will take place.

If you knew for sure that at some point in the future, your dollars would be worthless and the Euro would be our money, what would you do?  Well, of course you would convert as many of your dollars to Euros as you could and you would only keep enough dollars to live on: just enough to get by.

Well, guess what.  At some point in the future, your dollars will be worthless.  At some time, and you do not know when, you will no longer be a citizen of this world.  That is why Jesus told us to lay up treasures in heaven.

II.                  DISHONEST GAIN IS NOT HONORABLE (2:10)

^10 You have plotted the ruin of many peoples,

shaming your own house and forfeiting your life.

I’ve already mentioned Kenneth Lay and the dishonor he brought upon his own name and that of his family because of his dishonest financial dealings.  But Lay is neither the first, nor will he be the last, to sell his honor for earthly treasure.

From the book of Joshua, the name of Achan will forever be associated with dishonest gain.  When Joshua and the Israelites went up against the city of Jericho, God promised them a miraculous victory over the heavily fortified city.  God told Joshua to march his people around the city once each day for six days and then, on the seventh day, to march the people around the city seven times that day.  God said that if the people would obey His instructions, the city would fall into their hands without a battle.

The people did what God commanded and after the seventh time around the city on the seventh day of their march, the people shouted “and the walls came a tumblin’ down!”  God had also told the Israelites that the city of Jericho and everything in it was “devoted” – that is, set apart as God’s.  The Israelites were to take no plunder from the city and the city was never to be rebuilt.

After the city fell, Achan disobeyed and took some of the devoted things that God had required to be set apart to Him.  Achan took a beautiful Babylonian robe, over $1000 worth of silver and almost $16,000 worth of gold.  In a few days when the Israelites went to battle against the city of Ai, they were soundly defeated.  Joshua sought the Lord to find out why and God told him it was because of sin in the Israelite camp.  Then God led Joshua to discover that Achan was the one guilty of stealing that which was rightfully God’s.

Joshua 7:24-25 says,

^24 Then Joshua, together with all Israel, took Achan son of Zerah, the silver, the robe, the gold wedge, his sons and daughters, his cattle, donkeys and sheep, his tent and all that he had, to the Valley of Achor. ^25 Joshua said, “Why have you brought this trouble on us? The Lord will bring trouble on you today.” Then all Israel stoned him, and after they had stoned the rest, they burned them.

The punishment seems severe, particularly since it was also applied to Achan’s family.  But people, I know, and you know, whole families that have suffered because of the sin of one member.  And this is also true of the sin of dishonest gain. 

A number of years after Achan, King Saul repeated his sin by keeping some of the finest livestock from the Amalekites when Israel defeated them.  God had said destroy everything that belongs to the Amalekites but Saul wanted to keep some of it for himself and his dishonest gain cost him his kingdom.

From the pages of the New Testament, Demas will always be remembered as the one who forsook Paul because he loved this present world. 

Dishonest gain can bring dishonor to your name.  The ten most popular boys’ names in the United States are: Jacob, Michael, Joshua, Matthew, Ethan, Andrew, Daniel, Anthony, Christopher and Joseph.  Seven of those ten are Biblical names.  I’ve often seen Biblical names given to babies.  But you know something I’ve never seen?  I’ve never seen a parent name his child “Judas”.  Those five letters, those two syllables, that one name has been so dishonored that no one would ever give it to his child.  And how did Judas dishonor his name?  He sought silver more than his Savior  and pursued dishonest gain.

III.                DISHONEST GAIN IS NOT CONFIDENTIAL (2:11)

^11 The stones of the wall will cry out,

and the beams of the woodwork will echo it.

You’ve heard the advertising slogan, haven’t you?  “What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas.”  That is a lie.  Sexually transmitted diseases contracted in Vegas do not stay in Vegas.  Marriages performed in Vegas do not stay in Vegas.  Divorces granted in Vegas do not stay in Vegas.  My goodness, if what happened in Vegas really stayed in Vegas like the tourism bureau wants you to think it does, they’d let you fly out and leave your gambling debts in Vegas.

What happens in Vegas does not necessarily stay in Vegas.  Nor does what happens anywhere else stay there.  Dishonest gain, acquired under the cloak of secrecy, will eventually be exposed.

Most of us are pretty familiar with John 3:16.  But do you know the verses that follow?

^16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. ^17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. ^18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.  ^19 This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. ^20 Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed.

Do you understand what Jesus was saying in that last verse?  He was saying that people try to hide their evil deeds for fear that they will be exposed.  And they will be exposed – and that includes the evil of dishonest gain.

You will recall that when the Israelites left Egypt and God led them to the promised land of Canaan, they shrank back from entering the land because they had more fear for the Canaanites than they had faith in God.  As a result, the Israelites were forced to wander in the desert for forty years until that whole generation died off.  

Forty years later, as the next generation was given the opportunity to receive what their fathers had forfeited, Moses told them to go in and possess the land and not to be faithless like their forefathers had been. 

The people told Moses that they would gladly go in to Canaan and conquer it but they asked permission to build cities for their families and pens for their livestock on the east side of the Jordan so they could leave them there before they began their assault on Canaan.

Moses granted permission but he cautioned them not to settle permanently on the east side of the Jordan but to be sure to follow through and subdue Canaan once they had their families and livestock settled.  The Moses gave this stern warning:

^23 “But if you fail to do this, you will be sinning against the Lord; and you may be sure that your sin will find you out.

There was a specific context to that adage, “Be sure your sin will find you out.”  It was given as a caution to people who might let the lure of the material seduce them from obeying God.

“Be sure your sin will find you out.”  It applies to all those who seek dishonest gain.  They may think they are getting away with some clever ruse, some slick trick, some cunning scam.  But do not be deceived, their sin will find them out.  Their dishonesty will be exposed and their lack of character revealed.  Dishonest gain is not confidential and will not remain hidden.

CONCLUSION:      

For a time, it looked like Saddam Hussein was living the high life.  He and his family enjoyed opulent palaces, unlimited wealth and unchallenged power.  But in the end, his dishonest gain was taken from him, his name was vilified and his brutality was exposed.  Hussein’s experience bears out the truth that there can be a high cost to low living.  Likewise, a person of integrity will be rewarded – eventually.  And if you are not yet being rewarded for your honorable life, do not despair, God pays interest at a great rate!

^17 How useless to spread a net

in full view of all the birds!

^18 These men lie in wait for their own blood;

they waylay only themselves!

^19 Such is the end of all who go after ill-gotten gain;

it takes away the lives of those who get it.

(Proverbs 1:17-19)

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