Habakkuk 3:11-19 · Habakkuk 1:1-4 · Habakkuk 2:6-20 · Habakkuk 3:2 · Habakkuk 3:16 · Habakkuk 3:19 · Galatians 4 · Acts 4
Habakkuk: Prophet of God's Majesty
God is sovereign and operates according to his plan. The righteous live by faith, trusting God's timing even when evil seems to prevail, and finding ultimate confidence in Christ's death and resurrection.
Introduction
No nation or generation can claim a corner market on evil. Evil abounds today just as it abounded in years past. Every generation perhaps sees evil escalating, but it may be more perception than reality. Listen to this: “we have fallen on evil times, and the world has grown very wicked. Governments are corrupt, and even children are no longer respectful to their parents.” Sounds familiar. It did to those who heard it in ancient Turkey before Christ was born. Is the world worse now than it ever was? Probably not. Because of technology and information, we hear and see a whole lot more than generations before us. But evil has been around for a long time and it will continue after us.
For those who are trying to follow God, the presence of evil is particularly disconcerting. We want truth and good to win. We despise that which takes the place of God. But this isn’t new. As we shall see today even God’s prophets wonder about the presence of evil and why God isn’t doing something to set things right. The prophet Habakkuk was a contemporary of Jeremiah and his prophecy was given before Babylon became a world power. Habakkuk wondered about God’s plans and wondering aloud, he asks for some answers to the problem of evil. What we will discover this morning is that Habakkuk’s questions are our questions and God’s answers to Habakkuk still serve us well as we approach the next century.
Two Complaints and Two Answers
Habakkuk looks around the nation of Judah. What he sees distresses him. Evil and sin have seemingly taken over. So in 1:1-4, Habakkuk asks when God will put a stop to this evil. There are some righteous among the people but they are powerless. Injustice reigns in the city of Jerusalem and in the nation of Judah. Habakkuk has been praying for God to do something. He has been asking God to set things right, but God has not answered. Habakkuk cannot understand why God was allowing the people of Judah to sin so much without punishing them.
God answers Habakkuk’s complaint. He is doing something. Habakkuk is going to see God’s answer. Babylon is going to rise up and punish Judah. Babylon who is seemingly powerless; who no one would pick as the next world power is going to rise up. They will be ruthless in their destruction. They will trust in their own strength. They will destroy as none has destroyed before. They will take thousands upon thousands prisoner. It will be a complete and total destruction of Jerusalem and all nations. But this answer brings a deeper problem. So we have the second complaint from Habakkuk.
How can God cause a nation more wicked than Judah to punish the less wicked? How is it that God, who hates all evil, can use an evil nation to punish a less evil nation? Basic logic says that righteous should punish the evil. Habakkuk questions God’s plan. Habakkuk questions if God knows what he is doing. And God gives an answer to Habakkuk’s second complaint. This answer is found in chapter 2. While God will use the Babylonians to punish Judah, in time, God will punish the Babylonians as well. In fact, a series of five woes are pronounced against Babylon.
They are condemned for their merciless plundering and violence (2:6-8). They are derided for gaining at the expense of others (2:9-11). They are denounced for destroying those who are weaker and priding themselves on their own achievements (2:12-14). They are chastened for venting their wrath on those who could not defend themselves (2:15-17). They are chided for trusting in idols (2:18-20). Babylon is going to be God’s tool to punish Israel; however, God will in time punish Babylon.
The Heart of the Matter
What is really going on? Habakkuk complains about God’s lack of activity. Habakkuk believes that the evil in this world must be punished. Justice demands that the righteous get that opportunity. But that isn’t God’s answer. Do you ever wonder if God knows what he is doing? Do you ever think that injustice needs to be rectified and that you might be the one who can do a good job? We see the evil around us and we wonder why God doesn’t do something. We see evil multiplying and we think why hasn’t God taken care of this. And God listens and he answers. I am working. Give it time.
And our response is to say that we don’t have time. It is too hard to be patient. It is too hard to wait when evil seems to be winning. And so God answers a second time in 2:4. “The righteous will live by faith.” What kind of comfort is that? Here is what God is saying. “Righteous people do the right things even when evil seems to be winning. When you think I don’t understand; when you think I don’t care; when you think I forgot to eat my Wheaties, then go out and demonstrate your faith in my faithfulness. Live like you trust me rather than what you see. Learn to be patient.”
We learn to live by faith. We learn to trust God even when all hell is breaking loose around us. When we are battered and wind blown; when evil abounds; the righteous live by faith. We demonstrate our trust in God’s timing by doing the right things when it appears that evil is going to win. This is what Habakkuk recognizes in chapter 3. Habakkuk has been given a glimpse of the future and what he sees astounds him. Babylon will be used to punish Israel but within two generations they will be destroyed and Judah will be restored. Look at Habakkuk’s words in 3:2, “I stand in awe of your deeds.” Reverent amazement is Habakkuk’s response. A cosmic puzzle is put together in his mind so that he can understand how God works and plans.
God plans. Nothing escapes his attention. And as he carries out his plans, the righteous live by faith. Look at 3:19 “The Sovereign Lord is my strength.” Here is Habakkuk’s admission. God is sovereign which means that he sees and is actively involved in this world and second that his encouragement comes only from God. Our God carefully plans and carries out those plans. We must learn as 3:16 says to be patient.
Jesus is the ultimate example of God’s careful planning to answer the evil in this world. In Galatians 4, Paul writes that “at just the right time, Jesus came into this world.” This statement demonstrates God’s plan had a timetable. God while not limited by time, still operates with a clear definite view of a timetable. But in an obscure passage in Acts 4, in a prayer, we are allowed a valuable insight. Peter and John have been severely warned to quit preaching about Jesus. They return to the believers and have a prayer together. Don’t miss the beginning. No “dear God” instead there is the proclamation about what they believe about God. “Sovereign.” Ruler, the one who knows what is going on. Now read the rest of the prayer. Herod and Pilate thought they were working on their own. They were doing what God had planned would happen. Jesus was going to die on a cross. Evil men like Pilate and Herod helped God accomplish his task.
The righteous live by faith because we know God has not left us alone. He is carrying out his plan. While evil swirls around, we patiently await God’s plan to be revealed to us. In the meantime, we take confidence in the plan revealed in Christ. We learn from his death and resurrection the sovereign plan of God.
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