In the Midst of Difficult Times: Vision and the Work of God

How do you respond to difficult times when you observe them? My hope is that we all take these situations to the Lord! But what happens when it seems as though God doesn’t respond? What is our reaction then?

This is the sort of situation that we see from Habakkuk throughout these three chapters. As a bit of context, verse 1 tells us that this book contains an interaction that the prophet has with the Lord. What is interesting in this specific oracle is that there is a dialogue between Habakkuk and God. As we will discover, they go back and forth regarding the state of things among the people of God. In my first point of three this morning, I want to recognize

The Value of Vision

Habakkuk is certainly distressed here. He feels as though his prayers are reaching no higher than his own ears and his concerns seem to be unaddressed.

The cry of “how long” is one that is familiar in the bible.

Exodus 16:28 | And the Lord said to Moses, “How long will you refuse to keep my commandments and my laws? Revelation 6:10 | They cried out with a loud voice, “O Sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long before you will judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?”

The importance of vision in the complaint of Habakkuk is that he sees the state of things through the eyes of a holy and sovereign God. In verse 2 he points out what he sees that has not been dealt with by God. There is great iniquity or wickedness among the people of God. The violence that has been pointed out is not merely from the enemies of Judah but occurs among the people of God.

It is as if Habakkuk sees all these things that are wrong and knows they are also wrong in the eyes of God but He does nothing about them. While there is not a great deal of information about this prophet from the scriptures, we can learn about his character based on the fact that the things that he sees wrong around him reflect how his Lord feels about them as well!

But how do we apply this vision to our world today? We could begin with the wrong in the world. The news from the Middle East is troubling. Yet, I want to zoom in a bit more. There is a great deal of sin here in our country. However, that is not a great parallel between the complaint of this prophet and our situation. If we focus in even more, there is seemingly a great deal wrong in the Church in our country and in the church worldwide.

Just this past week, a pastor in our community was in the news because of sin in his life. We see this and cry out to God, “How can this happen?!” We observe false teaching in churches with inflated budgets, scandal everywhere that is a blight on the church. “Lord, why is this happening within YOUR church?!”

I need to point back to the responsibility of Habakkuk to be concerned about the things of God. When we talk about taking on the holiness of God, we include such a deep concern for His church that we are brought to our knees. Within the vision of Habakkuk regarding the sin he sees among the God of people, it is also observed that he sees the consequences of the sin as well.

In the same way, we observe sin in this world. We have observed it in our own community this past week and we observe the consequences of this sin as well. Our vision of all that is around us ought to bring about heartbreak as we consider how God desires that we live as opposed to the reality of things. We see the consequences of sin all around us and we should cry out to God to intervene.

The phrase “perception is reality” comes to mind when we read verse 4. For Habakkuk, it seems as though justice has been halted and the law that God has put into place is no longer valid. Why does it seem like this is the case? “...the wicked surround the righteous;” it is as if everyone around the prophet loves only evil.

Verse 5 is where the first response from God to Habakkuk comes into play. It is in the response from the Lord that we are reminded that

God is Always Working

This point allows us to tie the vision into what God is doing. Verses 5-11 are God explaining that He is actively doing something that man cannot see at the moment. He is going to punish those for their sinfulness and bring His people back to Him but He is going to allow their capture at the hands of the Babylonians to accomplish this.

Verse 5 points out the importance again of vision. Look and see! He describes the Chaldeans in a way that truly causes those who are looking on to stand amazed and fearful. God announces, that you would not even believe the destruction that I am bringing upon my people if you were told in detail.

The Chaldeans, we are told, feared no other nations. Many times, God’s people were defended, with the providence of God, by their allies. But this would not be the case here.

But how is it that God will allow evil men to be successful? Verse 11 explains to Habakkuk that once God’s will is accomplished, the Chaldeans will go back to nothing and will be swept away “like the wind and go on.” While the end of this portion of the oracle is comforting, surely Habakkuk was disturbed. Yes, justice is coming but it will be at the cost of many lives and great oppression.

So once again, we need to apply this. As we look around with concern at the universal Church, we should remember that God’s hand is at work. “For I am doing a work” is in the present tense. Do we believe that God is at work at this very moment? Do we see everything that He is doing and know what He is going to accomplish?

Well, yes and no. The yes is found in places like Matthew 16 where Jesus says that He is going to build His church. And we read in the book of Revelation that the church conquers at the end of time because of strength from God. So, we know the end of the story but we may not know the specifics of how it is going to happen.

The book of Habakkuk is not a direct parallel to our situation. It is certainly possible that justice will take place in a horrifying manner but it is also possible that God will accomplish His will in some other way that we cannot conceive right now. The point that we should keep in mind is that God is and has always been just. He desires that His people will be holy is will build His church.

As we will see next week, this answer still isn’t quite what Habakkuk is looking for. He is still troubled.

But what do we do with the answer? There is a command here that we ought to take seriously and that is to

Look, See, and Be Astounded

The command here is three-fold but all together at the same time. As we are concerned about the things of God and periods of time where it seems as though He is not working, we should look for the ways that He is working. When we look, we will inevitably see His hand. Our vision will change as we look for the ways that God is working and we will see that He is actively working to ensure that His will is done and His Kingdom is built. And as is the case with any work of God, we will be astounded. This word, astounded, hints at sheer amazement. There will be no doubt in our minds that a divine work is taking place that can only have happened because of the work of God Almighty.

Let me give you a small example. It can be easy for me, at times, to become discouraged with things in the church. Is God not moving? Why does it seem like my sermons are reaching people? And yet there are things each and every week that remind me that God is working whether or not I can see it. People are seeking God and His word. They are working out their own salvation with fear and trembling.

This is the case when we observe the events of the world! Are we heartbroken at sin and its consequences? Have you looked to see what God is doing? Will you be astounded at the work He is doing and is going to do?

Pray.