As most of you know, an eighteen-year-old young man took twenty-one lives at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, TX, on Tuesday. Nineteen of these lives were elementary-aged children. This is the deadliest school shooting in Texas history and it’s incomprehensible to me that we have such a category. Some of us have heard and watched reports of parents pleading with the police to enter the building earlier. I have thought about the parents of those elementary-aged children. Not that many years ago, Traci and I were dropping off little ones in public schools. I cannot imagine the heartache and the anger these parents are feeling for this awful, heinous deed. Satan filled this young eighteen-year-old young man in this shooting rampage. We are dealing with mental illness in our country but we are also dealing with an unmitigated evil. We are wondering how we can protect our loved ones? How can we ensure guns do not go into the hands of such hate-filled, evil people? There are so many questions that should be asked of our legislators, community leaders, and also in our homes. But the questions are not just of us but we wonder of God Himself. And we want to know why God is allowing such violence. We are not the first to ask this question as the prophet Habakkuk asked this question 2,600 years ago:
“O Lord, how long shall I cry for help,
and you will not hear?
Or cry to you “Violence!”
and you will not save?
3 Why do you make me see iniquity,
and why do you idly look at wrong?
Destruction and violence are before me;
strife and contention arise.
4 So the law is paralyzed,
and justice never goes forth.
For the wicked surround the righteous;
so justice goes forth perverted” (Habakkuk 1:2-4).
Note his words, “the law is paralyzed,” in verse four. The prophet is weary – weary with the word as it is. Habakkuk sees open robbery go unpunished and the poor being oppressed. And believers of a good and all-controlling God want to know, “Why?” Pollster George Barna was once commissioned to inquire of people what one question they would ask of God if they had the opportunity and know that God would give the answer. By an overwhelming majority, the most urgent question was this – “Why is there so much suffering in the world?” The prophet Habakkuk asked the same question in his day.
Today’s Scripture
“I will take my stand at my watchpost
and station myself on the tower,
and look out to see what he will say to me,
and what I will answer concerning my complaint.
2 And the Lord answered me:
“Write the vision;
make it plain on tablets,
so he may run who reads it.
3 For still the vision awaits its appointed time;
it hastens to the end—it will not lie.
If it seems slow, wait for it;
it will surely come; it will not delay.
4 “Behold, his soul is puffed up; it is not upright within him,
but the righteous shall live by his faith” (Habakkuk 2:1-4).
The Minor Prophets
Christians often divide the “prophets” of the Old Testament into Major and Minor prophets. All these books are a little smaller, while the major prophets are a little bigger. The Minor Prophets were known in the Jewish tradition as the Book of the Twelve because, in ancient times, they circulated on one single scroll. Habakkuk and Malachi are two of the minor prophets. Today, we continue to examine a short book toward the end of the Old Testament that is 2,600 years old, but the questions it asks are highly contemporary. It’s a book that deals with questions of injustice.
Habakkuk is Unique
Habakkuk’s contribution to the Bible is unique. Habakkuk doesn’t speak to the people for God, but he speaks to God for the people. He is more like a priest in some ways than a prophet. He deals with deep, often dark questions of our existence and God’s actions. When you dig into the pages of Habakkuk, you discover a dialogue between Habakkuk and God.
Quick Review
Let’s review last week for just a minute. Habakkuk and other godly people in Judah were struggling with this question, “Why does God Allow Evil People to Prosper while Good People Suffer?” And “Why isn’t God answering our prayers?” (Habakkuk 1:2-4). Then God answered Habakkuk’s prayer and he now had a bigger problem! The Lord said, “You’re not going to believe this, but I’m going to send the Chaldeans to punish Judah’s sins” (Habakkuk 1:5-6). That’s like God saying, “I’m going to have Russian President Vladimir Putin teach first graders how they should line up at the door to go to recess!” Habakkuk thought, “No way! The Babylonians are far more evil than the evildoers in Judah that they’re coming to punish! How can a holy God do such a thing?” If you had laid out on a spreadsheet the bad qualities of Babylon and the bad qualities of Judah and asked, “Who was the better nation?” It would have been no contest. Everyone would think, “Wait a minute, Lord! The cure is far worse than the illness! I call out to you for a fix and this is what you come up with?”
Be like Habakkuk
Would that every one of us be like Habakkuk. Habakkuk was an honest doubter. He dared to talk to God rather than about him. He wasn’t a fault-finding critic but he was an honest searcher. He raised his questions to God because he had such confidence in God.
1. Wait on God – He Keeps His Word
The first thing you should do in a difficult situation where you do not hear from God, is to wait: “I will take my stand at my watchpost
and station myself on the tower,
and look out to see what he will say to me,
and what I will answer concerning my complaint” (Habakkuk 2:1).
1.1 A Higher Perspective
Back in Bible days, cities, as you know, were surrounded by walls with gates. At certain parts of the city wall, they would build a watchtower or a rampart. Typically they were mounds of earth that were raised up so you could see far above the city and you could see everything from caravans bringing goods to enemies that might be coming to attack the city. In reality, it was a way that you could get away from everybody and everything and get a higher
perspective. That is exactly what you need to do when you can’t find God in your situation, when you can’t seem to hear God, go up and look up. Get above your problem and wait for the One who can solve your problem.
Remember this principle: Delay is not denial. In verses 2 and 3, God speaks in order to answer our question, “Will God let Evil Go Unpunished?” Notice God doesn’t answer the question directly. God says, “I do things My way in My time. I don’t hurry and I won’t be pushed. I will act and when I do, I will do the right thing in the right way, but it will be on My timetable, not yours.”
“And the Lord answered me: ‘Write the vision;
make it plain on tablets,
so he may run who reads it.
3 For still the vision awaits its appointed time;
it hastens to the end—it will not lie.
If it seems slow, wait for it;
it will surely come; it will not delay” (Habakkuk 2:2-3).
God says, “Slow down. Wait for an answer.”
1.2 Spiritual Power
For some of you, it’s not good enough that God doesn’t give an answer. For the cancer patient who prays, “God heal me,” and God doesn’t seem to lift His hand. Then, a family cries out, “God, where are you?” over an open grave. You want an answer and you want it now. Listen to God’s Word: “Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, 3 for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness” (James 2:2-3). Patience develops perseverance. Perseverance develops persistence. Persistence develops spiritual power.
Do you know what tough times are? Tough times are a chance for you to show how a person acts who truly trusts God.
1. Wait on God – He Keeps His Word
2. Watch for God: He Will Bring Justice
“Behold, his soul is puffed up; it is not upright within him, but the righteous shall live by his faith” (Habakkuk 2:4).
2.1 The Just Shall Live by Faith
The second half of verse four was THE spark that ignited the Protestant Reformation. It is one of the most quoted Old Testament verses in the New Testament. It is quoted in Romans 1:17, Galatians 3:11, and Hebrews 10:38. It is the key to the entire book. It is not only the best answer, but it is THE only answer you will have when you are trying to find God in tough times. The relationship of every human being to God, who has ever lived, beginning with Adam all the way down to this present moment, can be boiled down to one word – F A I T H. In this verse alone, you have the key to how to understand the entire history of the world.
2.2 Two Kinds of People
There is a great conflict raging on the earth right now. There are the only two kinds of people who have ever lived. It is a conflict between the proud on the one hand and people of faith on the other. I’m not saying that everyone who ever questions God is full of pride. Even Habakkuk questions God. But really, there are trust themselves and those who put their trust in God. Again, there are the only two kinds of people who have ever lived.
2.2.1 EGO – Edging God Out
On the one hand, you’ve got those who He says in verse four are “his soul is puffed up; it is not upright within him…” This is a person who cannot be right with God because he is so puffed up with pride that his ego gets in the way. EGO stands for Edging God Out. I know everyone is a football fan and I started this sermon out with baseball, but I need to go to basketball to show you this. I was the tallest guy on my high school basketball team. Where do you put the tall guys in basketball? You put them under the basket. Now, when you play under the basket, you must be physical. You have to learn how to lean on the opposing player. You have to learn how to use your derriere to push the opposing player out of the paint. In a word, if you play the post position, you need to control the paint. The paint on a basketball floor is among the most coveted positions. EGO stands for Edging God Out. All of you have an ego and many of you are doing everything possible to push God out of the “paint of your life.” You are pushing God out of your life by your EGO.
2.2.2 Keep the Faith
Then, you have the righteous. What makes them righteous is not first what they do, but it is first who they believe. That was so good that I need to hear myself say that again: What makes them righteous is not first what they do, but it is first who they believe. Again, you have two kinds of people: people who trust themselves and people who trust God. Life for every follower of Jesus Christ ultimately comes down to faith. It comes down to questions like these:
Will God keep His word?
Will God meet my needs?
Will God do what is right?
Will God bring justice?
Will I really overcome death?
Is the Gospel really true?
The only way you will get the right answer to those questions is if you make up your mind that you are going to trust God.
2.3 God, Where Are You?
Vincent Bugliosi spent eight years as a prosecutor for the Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office, where he won 105 out of 106 felony jury trials. In his book, entitled Outrage: The Five Reasons That O.J. Simpson Got Away With Murder, he writes these words:
“When tragedies like the murders of Nicole [Brown-Simpson] and Ron [Goldman] occur they get one to thinking about the notion of God. Nicole was only thirty-five, Ron was just twenty-five, both outgoing, friendly, well-liked young people who had a zest for life. Their lives were brutally extinguished by a cold-blooded murderer. How does God, if there is a God, permit such a horrendous and terrible act to occur along with the countless other unspeakable atrocities committed by man against his fellow man throughout history? And how could God - all-good and all-just, according to Christian theology, permit the person who murdered Ron and Nicole to go free... When Judge Ito’s clerk, Deidre Roberson, read the jury’s not-guilty verdict, Nicole’s mother whispered, “God where are you?”
2.4 The Five “Woe’s” of Babylon
God says, “Habakkuk if you are worried about the Babylonians, look what I have in store for them.” The two greatest sins in the Old Testament were pride and idolatry. You are going to see that Babylon was guilty of both.
He throws down five “woes” in this chapter on this pagan, idolatrous nation, “Woe, woe, woe, woe, woe.” We don’t have time to elaborate on these. I’ll just share them with you quickly. They were guilty of greed: “Shall not all these take up their taunt against him, with scoffing and riddles for him, and say, “Woe to him who heaps up what is not his own— for how long?— and loads himself with pledges!” (Habakkuk 2:6). They were guilty of injustice: “Woe to him who gets evil gain for his house, to set his nest on high, to be safe from the reach of harm” (Habakkuk 2:9)! They were guilty of violence: “Woe to him who builds a town with blood and founds a city on iniquity” (Habakkuk 2:12)! They were guilty of seduction: “Woe to him who makes his neighbors drink— you pour out your wrath and make them drunk, in order to gaze at their nakedness” (Habakkuk 2:15)! They were guilty of idolatry: “Woe to him who says to a wooden thing, Awake; to a silent stone, Arise! Can this teach? Behold, it is overlaid with gold and silver, and there is no breath at all in it” (Habakkuk 2:19).!
This is so important to understand. God wasn’t going to let the Babylonians get away with anything. We need to remember that with God, justice delayed is not justice denied. God said to Habakkuk, “Habakkuk, quit worrying. It is not a matter of WHETHER I will judge, but it is a matter of WHEN I will judge. I judge sin everywhere. I don’t play favorites. Nobody gets a free pass. Whether it is the Babylonians or My own people, sin brings judgment just as surely as a cloud brings rain.”
2.5 Cynicism
Habakkuk avoids a common obstacle that modern and ancient people have traditionally traveled when confronting questions about God and evil. And this obstacle is found especially among those who are nonreligious… cynicism. Cynicism is based on the idea that nobody is in charge and that life is random. They look at Uvalde and they conclude, “Life is just a matter of chance.” There is no one good, powerful God in charge of everything. This is a spiritual dead-end. While the modern skeptic says, “I’m not going to believe in a god who does those things.” Habakkuk does do this. Habakkuk will challenge God, but he follows that up by calling God, “O Lord my God, my Holy One?” He says, “If I can’t figure out life with you, how can I figure out life without you?” God wants us to be honest with Him but not irreverent. It is a wise man who takes his questions about God to God for answers.
2.6 It All Comes Down to Faith
If you only come to church once a year or once a lifetime, let me really clear with you in the next minute. If your question is, “How do I escape the judgment of God?” It all comes down to faith. Let me say that again: It all comes down to faith. There are only two possible ways you can approach God - with belief or unbelief. You either believe God, or you don’t believe him. You either put faith in Christ, or you don’t put faith in Christ. You only come to Him by faith in Jesus Christ, or you don’t come to Him at all. So, watch for God, He will bring justice.
1. Wait on God – He Keeps His Word
2. Watch for God: He Will Bring Justice
3. Worship God – He Is In Control
The last verse of this chapter is like a hammer that shatters every argument and every objection that Habakkuk, or Job, or you and me could ever bring against God: “But the LORD is in his holy temple; let all the earth keep silence before him” (Habakkuk 2:20).
3.1 God is in Charge
The God who made heaven and earth and every being in it has a throne of dominion over every part and parcel of this universe. From His holy temple, God is calling the shots. God is seeing to it that every piece of the puzzle is falling into place. God sees to it that all of history is headed exactly in the direction that He wants it to go. Yes, in His control of the world. Yes, God even uses evil to accomplish good. Hear that again: God will even use evil to accomplish good. God can use one nation more wicked than the other nation to get the attention of the less wicked nation.
The bottom line is when times are the toughest and days are the darkest, the only thing that will matter is that God is heaven and you trust Him no matter what. There is one thing that never changes. It doesn’t change when there is an attack on Pearl Harbor. It doesn’t change when there is a Great Depression crash on Wall Street. It doesn’t change when planes fly into a World Trade Center. The Lord is in His holy temple. He is in complete control.
3.2 God’s Fame
If you ever wonder sometimes where all history is headed, where our world is headed, where you and I are headed, it is summed up in verse fourteen: “For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD as the waters cover the sea” (Habakkuk 2:14).
God wants His name, His fame, His greatness and His glory to go out across the earth as the water covers the land so that everybody will eventually know that Jesus Christ is Lord. He died for our sins, came back from the dead and that if we will respond by faith in Him, we will not face judgment, will not taste death, and we will be saved. When it seems like the bad guys are winning and the good guys are losing and you think all of your goodness has been for nothing, watch for God.
Wait for God - He will keep His Word.
Watch for God - He will bring justice.
Worship God – He is in control.
When you think all hope is lost and there is no way out you, worship God. Every one of those things was proven at the cross of Jesus Christ and they will prove true in your life as well.
