Habakkuk

INTRODUCTION:

Mommy-

What are we doing today?

Why are we going there?

Why are there clouds?

Why isn’t it warmer?

Why do I have to go to school?

Why can’t I have pancakes?

Why do I have to eat vegetables?

Why are you wearing that?

Why do I have a belly button?

Why is the sky blue?

Why do bad things happen?

Why do people feel sad?

Why do people get really sick?

Why doesn’t everyone love Jesus?

Why are people so mean?

Why do people die?

Why?

Why?

Why?

Research tells us that an average 4-year old asks somewhere between 200-300 questions per day.

Being the mother of a 4- year old- I can assure you that this is in fact true.

Sometimes the questions they ask are totally random- they feel small, insignificant, and obvious to us. Those questions are easy to answer.

However- sometimes the questions are harder...

Why...

The way you answer this questions is deeply important- it shapes the way that you view the world, how you live, and where your true security lives.

As we open up the book of Habakkuk today- our last book of this study- we find- in my opinion- one of the most relatable prophets.

In the 3 short chapters of Habakkuk, we find a prophet having an honest and real conversation with God.

He’s got questions....hard questions…with no easy or simple answers...

but in the end, Habakkuk rests in the sovereignty of who God is.

So turn with me to Habakkuk, chapter 1, and lets jump in...

WRESTLE:

The start of this book is different than some of our most recent prophets we have studied like Jeremiah and Isaiah…

there is no introduction about who he is and when he lived…simply an acknowledgement that he was a prophet who received a prophecy.

The emphasis of this book is not about Habakkuk and the time period in which he was writing- but more so on the message he was bringing...

throughout the first two chapters- we see Habakkuk wrestling with what he sees in the world and who he knows God to be...

In these chapters we will see him first wrestle with the why and then wrestle with the who.

a. With the Why? 1:2-11

He jumps in, vs 2…”How long, Lord, must I call for help, but you do not listen...”

here comes our 1st why…vs 3..

vs 3....WHY do you make me look at injustice?

and again...

WHY do you tolerate wrongdoing?

why…why…why...

Hab. is frustrated…he isn’t looking out into the world and saying- man- it’s bad out there...

he is lamenting- because he is looking at his own family- the people of God...

He says…God where are you?…don’t you see that the people are not following your ways..

He is crying out to God saying..this is a mess. your people are a mess..my people, my family…are a mess...

look at vs 4…vs 4 he says the law is paralyzed and because of that justice NEVER prevails.

Do you hear the frustration and heartbreak of Hab. for God’s people as he cries out to God with his questions...

Why are you just sitting back and letting your people continue in sin? Why aren’t you doing something?

What hard and painful why’s are you sitting in today?

If you aren’t sure- maybe ask yourself- when was the last time you felt a rise of anger, fear, distress or anxiety within you…it’s usually those closest to us, those we love the most- that cause us the deepest pain and force us to ask the hardest why’s...

WHY does my life look like this?…God this isn’t what I wanted…

WHY did you let me get here?

WHY did you let that person hurt me?

WHY God??

in vs’s 5-11 God responds to Hab.’s why....

vs 5…Look at the nations and watch- and be utterly amazed. For I am going to do something in your days that you would not believe, even if I told you.

Now- if we look at this verse all by itself out of context you might think...

Oh this is great- God is gonna show up and do the awesome and amazing...it’s going to be so great…there is no need to worry- he’s got it…he’s good right…good things are coming...

but wait…let’s keep reading..

vs. 6- I am raising up the Babylonians, that ruthless and impetuous people, who sweep across the whole earth to seize dwellings not their own. They are a feared and dreaded people...

So…God’s response to Hab. is…I hear you..I haven’t forgotten...

be amazed..cuz I am going to do something you can’t imagine..

I am going to do something about Judah’s wickedness…In fact, I am going to raise up someone even more wicked than Judah- and judge Judah through them...

Now- remember- the Babylonian’s were violent.

God knew that...

in 6-11 he tells Hab. just how awful they were

which takes us to Hab. 1:12-2:1...

With the Who?

And here…Hab. switches from wrestling with the why’s....to the who...

Hab. goes.....woah, woah, woah, God…hold up a minute…I think we have a little bit of a disconnect here..

vs 12....Lord, are you not from everlasting?

My God, my Holy One, you will never die.

You, Lord, have appointed them to execute judgement...you, MY ROCK....

Hab. knows God....He KNOWS His attributes....and here he is like...

I know you are holy…I know you are my rock…I KNOW that to be true..so then...

how come you are going to judge the wicked, with more wickedness...

how can that be just?

Hab. is saying…God…are you who you say you are??

in short..he says- This doesnt make sense..

Hab. here is WRESTLING with God’s sovereignty against WHO he knows Him to be..

At first read- you might see this as a form of worship and praise-- however-this isn’t really a form of worship for who God is- it is more of a wrestling with what he KNOW’s is true to what He sees happening in front of him.

Ladies- God is a personal God…he can handle your questions…your doubts…your frustration....have you, like Hab., taken them to him?

Have you wrestled with them? With God?

Sometimes we jump to frustration with God and his ways and we forget to take our concerns to him...

We get angry…and push him aside- never even bothering to talk to him.

we think- well- that was unfair- or I cannot believe he allowed that...

we forget who He is..we don’t ask the hard questions…and so we just walk away from him…

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In the fall I spent time praying for a specific situation, and this past week I found that not only did God not answer my prayer in the way I asked- but the situation went in the complete opposite direction in just about every way possible.

This past Thursday evening I found myself saying.. hey God…remember when I told you..remember when I prayed…did you not hear me…was there some sort of miscommunication- maybe I wasn’t specific enough...

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When we bring our why’s to God…we have to move to the “who” because what we are really asking when things are NOT going the way we prayed or wanted..or when life looks hopeless- at the heart we are saying..

God…are YOU really sovereign?

Are you really in control?

Are you really who you say you are?

Hab continues his complaint…and I love what he does here…see, God just got done telling him how he was going to raise up the Babylonians- that he was sovereign and in control of that situation…

and Hab., in his complaint to God tells God about how wicked they are…even though God just acknowledged their wickedness.

Hab. is saying..surely not God…surely this is not how you are going to deal with the wickedness of your people…

God- I know who you are…I know your character....but this…this doesnt make sense to me.

and then…I love chp. 2:1- he says..I will stand at my watch and station myself on the ramparts; I will look to see what he will say to me and what answer I am to give to this complaint.

ha…thats a bold move right there. I like Hab..he is my kind of dude...He’s like ok God..you say you hear..that you will answer…and so I am gonna plop myself down and wait on you to be you....

and in 2:2, God answer’s…now..I think it is important to point out that we have no idea how long Hab. had to wait on God’s answer..

but when things are hard..when I’m waiting on God to act..to answer…or to give me some sort of glimmer of Him in the middle of the hard…waiting can feel agonizing…whether he waited 5 minutes, 5 days, 5 months or 5 years we don’t know…but what we do know..is that God did answer...

vs 2.

Write down the revelation and make it plain on tablets so that a herald may run with it. For the revelation awaits an appointed time; it speaks of the end and will not prove false. Though it linger, wait for it…it will certainly come and will not delay.

God here not only responds to Hab…but he tells him to write down his words..and then herald- or spread it out to everyone....

and then he says to Hab…keep on WAITING....because I am going to do it in my way…and my time...

but he challenges him to an active waiting…not a passive one..

…God says get up..get moving-- you are gonna wait- but while you are waiting- spread my words…write them down…tell others...

Today- we live in a state of waiting…waiting on God to fulfill his promises to his people…today, believers are WAITING on God to come and restore…for Jesus to come back and bring his kingdom in full to earth..

its a now, but not yet..

but God’s children are not to passively wait..

we are to herald God’s word’s…we are called to active waiting..

How might God be calling you to actively wait on Him today?

Are you sitting back- passively buying time waiting on Jesus to return or take you home? Doing just enough to feel like you are getting by?

Or are you spreading the news that Jesus IS coming back to others? Are you actively engaged in your church and your community? Are you telling others about God’s words, or keeping them for yourself?

Believers today are called to active waiting as we also trust in God’s sovereignty with the things we don’t understand.

And then…in vs. 4- God says:

"See the enemy is puffed up; his desires are not upright- but the righteous person will live by his faithfulness.

God here contrasts the enemy- or Babylon- with the righteous.

He says- the unrighteous will die b/c of their arrogance..but the righteous- they will live by faith…

now we know that this life he refers to is salvation found in the gospel...

Paul tells us in Romans 1:17 that this verse is the biblical foundation for the gospel when he says “…For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile. 17 For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed—a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.”

Paul tells us in Romans that the righteous are those that trust God’s righteousness and not their own....in other words- there is only salvation when you put your faith in Christ…there is no salvation for those who try to achieve it on their own..

and a genuinely righteous faith perseveres in trusting the vision from God that he just told him to write down.

And that vision…is God’s word..

Genuine faith trusts the word of God through and through…unlike the Babylonians- their faith was in themselves…and in the following verses God tells Hab. what would happen to the enemy....to the one’s who trusted in themselves.

starting in vs 6 through the end of the chapter, God brings 5 woe’s, or laments towards the Babylonians....

He essentially tells Hab. here that Babylon will not escape his judgement. They too will be judged for their wickedness.

The last words of God are found in chp. 2:20…he says “The Lord is in his holy temple; let all the earth be silent before him...”

God’s last words to him remind him that he is NOTHING compared to the army of Babylon....he is not an idol- he is alive and active- he has not forgotten his people- he is still in his temple...

PRINCIPLE: God is sovereign over our questions???????

APPLICATION:

II. SURRENDER

As we move into chp. 3....we see the response of Habakkuk...

He begins his prayer with remembering what God has done…and then finishes with praise..

vs 2…Lord, I have heard of your fame.. I stand in AWE of your deeds, Lord. Repeat them in our day, in our time make them known, in wrath remember mercy.

Do you notice the shift in tone here in Habakkuk as he approaches God..

He is no longer questioning Him..He has surrendered his questions..his confusion…and he made the choice to rest in WHO he knew God to be..

His problems didn’t all get solved..in fact…God didn’t answer all his why questions…and the one’s he did answer- he certainly didn’t get the answer he was looking for....

But, God challenged him to trust in his sovereignty..to trust in who he was..

and here…he responds…with awe…awe in who God has been in the past and asking Him to be that now..

See Habakkuk wrestled— but in the end....He knew his God…and when his why’s weren’t answered he rested in who he was...

b/c he chose to engage God…to go to him..his whys....led him to who…which left him with nothing to do but stand in awe....to worship and praise God for who he knew him to be..

in vs 3-7- Hab’s words would have reminded the people how God had brought them out of Egypt back in the book of Exodus and how he walked with them through the wilderness into the promised land.

vs 3.Listen to the words about God here....”God came from Teman, the Holy one from Mount Paran. His GLORY covered the heavens and his praise filled the earth. His splendor was like the sunrise; rays flashed from his hand where his power was hidden.

Hab. gives us a picture of God here as a powerful warrior who triumphs over his adversaries- no one is too strong for him....

in vs 8-11 Hab. tells us that God will overcome the powers of darkness…that the rivers, mountains, seas, sun and moon will all see God’s victory over sin..deliverance was coming…even if judgement came first.

These verses are filled with poetic images which would have brought comfort to Hab. as he meditated on Who he knew God to be..he knew God was faithful…God would come through on his promise..

vs 12-15 continue with a description as God as the one leading the charge to deliver his people..listen to the words he uses in these verses....

you STRODE through the earth....

You THRESHED the nations...

You CAME OUT to deliver

To SAVE your anointed.

you CRUSHED the leader of the land of the wicked

You TRAMPLED the sea w/ your horses...

and as Hab. meditates on who God is and what he has done and will do…what is his response ?

vs 17-19

Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, 18 yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior.

19 The Sovereign Lord is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to tread on the heights.

This is his moment of surrender..

He says WHEN I lose it all…when it all comes crashing down…when the situation looks hopeless and I lose everything....

then…I will rejoice in the Lord....

earlier the Lord told him that the righteous will live by faith- and here- here we see Hab. living out that faith.

Hab. isn’t praising God here because everything got better...

in fact…it’s about to get worse..the judgement comes BEFORE the deliverance...

but Hab.’s tone has totally changed…he is saying..In the midst of the worst…I can praise you...

If you are a believer today…these words are for you..

in what circumstance do you need to surrender to who you know God to be so you can say “yet…I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior.”

In all of those things- God was doing something..

Do you believe that..do you believe and trust that God is doing something right now..in your circumstance- in the one that seems hopeless- that makes absolutely no sense?...

PRINCIPLE

APPLICATION

CONCLUSION