Habakkuk (Pt. 3)
Text: Habakkuk 1:12 – 2:1
Well if you’ve been with us the last few weeks you know that we’ve been looking at the Book of Habakkuk, and we’ve been talking about how this man – Habakkuk… who was a profit in Judah, was burdened by the sin he was seeing around him. He began praying, and seeking God, and for a time, God seemed silent and distant… and that was a burden to Habakkuk as well… but he continued to pray and seek the Lord, and finally God answered him. But it wasn’t the answer Habakkuk was looking for. Instead of revival, God has told him that His intention is to raise up the Chaldeans and use them as His instrument of judgment upon Judah. And Habakkuk’s initial response to this was shock, and confusion. Because it didn’t fit into his idea of what God was like. He couldn’t understand how God could judge His people – who were sinful… with people who were actually MORE sinful than God’s people. And that brings us to where we are this morning… So let’s take our Bibles, and open them up to Habakkuk chapter 1 and we’re going to begin in verse 12, and read all the way to chapter 2, verse 4.
(READ TEXT)
So this is interesting… and it’s helpful to us as well… because here we have this guy Habakkuk and he’s just been floored with this vision that God has given to him, and like I said, he’s shocked and confused, but look at what he does… in verse 12 he says, “God is everlasting… God is holy… He is our rock.” Basically what Habakkuk is doing here is encouraging himself in the Lord. He’s encouraging himself by reminding himself of God’s character. He’s basically at this point where he’s thinking… “Ok, this sounds crazy. This sounds bad… but I know God. I know that He’s eternal. He’s everlasting. He’s Immutable – that means He’s unchanging. He’s the same yesterday, today, and forever. He’s eternal… no beginning and no end.” And what that means is that God is bigger than my understanding. He declares the end from the beginning. And if God is bringing this about, there’s a bigger purpose here than I understand. There’s more to it than I can see. God’s been here way longer than I have, and He’ll be here way after I’m gone.
And to us who are believers, knowing that God is eternal, and knowing that God is everlasting, should be an encouragement to us. To know that God saw you before you were born. He sees your life, every instant, every event… He sees your struggles and He sees your successes. He sees your death. He’s already seen it. He knows what’s ahead for each and every one of us. So nothing takes Him by surprise. Nothing happens without Him knowing it, and in a sense allowing it. And in this instance with Habakkuk… God is actually the One who is bringing it to pass. God Himself is the One who said, “I will raise up the Chaldeans.” And so Habakkuk is saying, “Ok… if God is doing this, then He’s got a plan and a purpose for it.”
And then notice, Habakkuk moves on from the eternity of God to God’s holiness. He says, “God, you’re not only everlasting, you’re Holy.” And if you go down to verse 13 Habakkuk even says, “God you’re so holy you can’t even look upon evil… you can’t even look upon wrong.” And this is important to understand here, because what Habakkuk is telling us is that God cannot look upon sin in an approving way. He cannot look upon, and legislate, and approve of sin in any shape, or form, or fashion, or in ANY WAY. Make sure you get that! People try to rationalize their sin all the time. They have sex before marriage. They get divorces. They lie. They Steal. They slander and gossip. They engage in all kinds of sinful behavior… or should I say, “WE” engage in all kinds of sinful behavior. And you’ll hear things like: “I know that the Bible says this is wrong, but I know that God wants me to be happy, so He’s got to make an exception for me in this.”
GOD CANNOT, AND WILL NOT APPROVE OF SIN!
So Habakkuk is running this stuff through his head. He’s going over what he knows about God, and about God’s attributes and God’s character. And he says, “Wait a minute… we’re not going to die.” So he gets it… he’s like – “This judgment isn’t to wipe God’s people from the face of the earth.” Now don’t misunderstand. IT IS a judgment, and it’s going to be bad, but it’s not to destroy God’s people from the face of the earth.
Why?
Because God is our Rock! That’s speaking of shelter there. God is our Rock, and if I’m built on the Rock, then even when the storm comes, after its all over, my house will still be standing.
So Habakkuk is working through this. He’s thinking through this… but then look what happens… the doubts and questions start coming back in. And I don’t know about you, but I’ve been there. I’ve wrestled with God in prayer, and gone back and forth in my thoughts. You know… “Ok God, there’s this… and I know you’re good, and I know you’re holy, and I know you’re all mighty… but what about this? What about this thing over here? Why are you allowing this to happen? How does that fit in with who you are God? How does that line up with your character?” So we’re actually getting insight into the mind of a prophet. We’re getting insight into this spiritual wrestling match that Habakkuk is having with God. We’re getting to see that even God’s prophets struggled to understand God sometimes, and understand His ways, and His plans. They were regular people just like you and me.
No human being can fully understand God. He is far beyond our ability and our capabilities to fully grasp. So again… it has to come down to faith.
Habakkuk has been told about what God plans to do. He’s been given insight into God’s plan to raise up the Chaldeans, and use them as an instrument of His judgment upon His people. So he sees WHAT God is going to do, but he doesn’t understand WHY God is going to do it in that particular way.
So in verses 14 – 17 Habakkuk asks another question. He basically says, “Ok… Lord; so I can see this. It’s part of Your plan that You’ve made us like the fish of the sea. You’ve allowed us to be fractured and in disunity, and we don’t have a strong centralized government or a strong leader… and I see that You’re raising up the Chaldeans… they’re going to gather us up in nets. And God I don’t get that. Because they’re going to rejoice over us… The Chaldeans are going to think they’re better than Your people… and they’re going to give glory and praise to their idols and false gods when they do this… So God… I see what You’re doing and what You’re going to bring about, but I don’t understand why it has to be like this. I don’t understand how this is going to bring you glory.”
So let me ask you this – is Habakkuk wrong to ask this?
Well, I don’t think so… I don’t think Habakkuk is being disrespectful toward God, I don’t think he’s tempting the Lord in any way. I think he’s just honestly asking God how this can be? He asking a question based on his understanding of God. I think he’s just being open with God and saying:
“Ok, God please help me to understand… because right now I can’t see it.”
We see King David do this a lot in the Psalms.
The Bible teaches us that God actually enjoys showing His people things, and revealing His plans and His purposes to His people, but at the same time He doesn’t cast His pearls before the swine. Deuteronomy 4:29 says, “But from there you will see the Lord your God and you will find Him, IF you search after Him with all your heart and with all your soul.”
You know, for the past five years or so, as we’ve done the teachers luncheon here… I have had the privilege of speaking with the teachers and educators at our school, and I’ve been on one continuous theme… every year… And that theme is developing a “Well Trained Mind”. And I’ve talked to them and shown them how that doesn’t just happen. It involves rigorous study, and effort. Learning doesn’t “just” take place. It involves hard work. So God can just reveal something to you, but that’s the exception, not the norm. In most cases, God is looking for someone to search through His Word diligently, and He’s looking for those who will dig deep into His Word, and study it, and search it, and apply themselves to not only memorize a few verses here and there, but to really know it, and understand it, and live it.
So I don’t think Habakkuk is being disrespectful toward God. I think he’s just being open and honest and sincerely asking questions, and trying to understand what God’s plan is, and how God can do this thing. In other words, Habakkuk understands that the problem isn’t with God… it’s with his own understanding of God. The problem isn’t with God… the problem is that he’s not seeing the full picture as God does. And so he’s wrestling through this, and asking God to help him understand. So it’s not wrong TO ASK God questions… but where we can get messed up is when we ask the “wrong” questions. For Habakkuk it was an issue of Judah is more righteous than the Babylonians.
THAT’S WRONG THINKING.
Because from God’s standpoint – THERE ARE NONE WHO ARE RIGHTEOUS. NO NOT ONE!
God’s doesn’t owe Judah anything. They’ve sinned against Him, they’ve rebelled against Him, they’ve broken their covenant with Him. And when you think about it… the Chaldeans’… they didn’t have the knowledge of God. They didn’t have God’s Word, or God’s prophets. They actually weren’t in covenant with God. Israel and Judah were. They were the ones who were supposed to know. They were the ones who were supposed to be different, and distinct, and set apart. But they were sinning just like the Chaldeans. They had the knowledge and the Word, and the insight, and they still went astray and rebelled and sinned.
So… chapter 2, verse 1 (READ HABAKKUK 2:1).
Habakkuk has brought his prayers before God: “The world is wicked, the people are wicked, God please do something.” God has replied: “I am going to do something. I’m going to raise up the Chaldeans and use them as judgment.” And Habakkuk is confused, and frightened and shocked by this, so he again has gone to God and he says, “Wait a second Lord… how does doing that line up with Your character, and with your holiness, and with your goodness? How does using a people who are more wicked than we are for judgment upon your people show that you are God, and that you are good, and holy and righteous? And how does that bring glory to your Name?” And then he says, “Ok… I’m going to go stand my post. I’m going to go and see if God is going to do this thing that He’s said. And I’m going to wait upon the Lord and see how He answers me.”
And I think this is so helpful to us Church. Because we know that Habakkuk is concerned. We know he’s troubled by this. We know he doesn’t fully understand everything. But we’re also seeing that even in all of that, he’s still going to the Lord. He’s still seeking his answers in the right place. He’s still trusting in God.
In 20 years as a pastor I’ve seen it both ways. I’ve seen people go through hard things, and face hardship and just give up. I’ve seen them pack it in and quit. I’ve seen them walk away from the truth, from the Church, and from God… but I’ve also seen people go through incredibly difficult times and circumstances, and come out even with an even stronger faith, and deeper convictions, and a stronger commitment to the Lord.
Do you think that Habakkuk has maybe read Isaiah 40:31 – “They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength…”? He didn’t become an atheist. He didn’t walk away, and give up. No matter how many questions he had… and his faith was being tried and tested… and he was having to wrestle with things he was seeing, and things that God was showing him, and things he didn’t understand. He still trusted in the Lord. Do you think that Habakkuk had maybe read Proverbs 3:5 – 6, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make straight your paths.”
So Habakkuk is like: “I’ve been given information… but not all the information. I’m going to wait upon the Lord. I’m going to trust the Lord. I’m going to see what God has to say before I do anything else. I’m going to watch, and I’m going to act in faith on what He’s already revealed to me, but I’m going to wait to see what else He says. I’m going to see if He brings the Chaldeans or if He relents and has mercy.” Man… isn’t that good counsel from God’s Word to us? I think so. It’s good, it’s practical, it’s relevant; it’s helpful.
Church, I don’t know every single thing you’re facing today. I don’t know every single struggle that you all are going through. But God does. He sees the end from the beginning. And He is good. God is aware and He has a plan and purpose. No matter what you face, and no matter what you’re going through… even if you don’t fully understand, or see the whole picture. Go to the Lord. Trust Him. Wait on Him, and He will help you. Don’t stop doing what you know you should, but don’t rush ahead in those things He hasn’t shown you yet. Trust Him with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding… Acknowledge Him in all your ways. Go to Him in prayer, seek His counsel. Go to His Word and study it, ask Him for help and guidance, and listen as He gives it… because He will direct your paths.
CLOSING
