This past week I taught a lesson at my church on the minor prophet Habakkuk. He lived in Judah just before the Babylonian destruction of that country around 605 B.C. The role of Habakkuk as a prophet was completely unique because it appears he did not speak to the people. Instead he spoke directly to God with some honest and uncomfortable questions. Two-thirds of the book outlines that back and forth dialogue. Habakkuk has been described by some as the “man who scolded God”. Not sure I would want that to be my ministry distinctive but his interaction is transparent and instructive for believers today.

The book of Habakkuk has been very helpful to me in processing how to deal with the evil that is happening in our world. Habakkuk saw violence and injustice happening all around him and He was asking God why He was allowing this to happen. God didn’t shoot him down for asking those questions. God didn’t respond in anger. He didn’t tell Habakkuk to be quiet. He didn’t discipline his prophet for his amazingly direct questioning.

God answered him with a simple response.

He had a plan.

Habakkuk’s first interaction with God was titled Habakkuk’s complaint. His questions were courageous and unsettling for me to read.

How long, O Lord, must I call for help?
    But you do not listen!
“Violence is everywhere!” I cry,
    but you do not come to save.
³ Must I forever see these evil deeds?
    Why must I watch all this misery?
Wherever I look,
    I see destruction and violence.
I am surrounded by people
    who love to argue and fight. (Habakkuk 1:2-4)

We often question what God is doing. Why does He seem to ignore the evil in the world? Yet God’s interaction with Habakkuk demonstrated that He is always present. God is Sovereign. He knows what the future holds. I have witnessed how the Holy Spirit can use challenging events of life in positive ways. God allows us to go through storms to make us stronger. Hard times cause us to wake up to our spiritual need and turn to Him. We don’t know why things happen. The one thing we do know throughout these challenging seasons is that He loves us. Jesus died and paid for our sins on the Cross. Why would the Father allow such a sacrifice and then simply turn away? I believe that God has a plan that gives us hope in Him. A lack of trust and patience can lead to anxiety instead of peace.

The answer that Habakkuk received was not what he had hoped to hear. Yes, God was judging the leaders of Judah for their sin and corruption. But He was allowing the evil Babylonians to invade, conquer, and punish His unfaithful followers. God sometimes uses ungodly people for godly purposes. Habakkuk absorbed God’s response and offered a second complaint but with more acknowledgement of who He believed his God to be.

² O Lord my God, my Holy One, you who are eternal—
    surely you do not plan to wipe us out?
O Lord, our Rock, you have sent these Babylonians to correct us,
    to punish us for our many sins.
¹³ But you are pure and cannot stand the sight of evil.
    Will you wink at their treachery? (Habakkuk 1:12-13)

At the end of his second round of questioning Habakkuk had an interesting response.

2 I will climb up to my watchtower
    and stand at my guardpost.
There I will wait to see what the Lord says
    and how he will answer my complaint. (Habakkuk 2:1)

Habakkuk realized he needed to focus on God and patiently wait for His response. We often question God but patiently waiting for His timing and response is hard. How often do we willingly accept the answers we receive? Our way is often not the best way and our short term desires can lead to a bad outcome.

This is the verse in God’s response that was a game-changer for Habakkuk and still is for us today. You can make a solid argument that Habakkuk 2:4 changed the world!

“Look at the proud!
    They trust in themselves, and their lives are crooked.
    But the righteous will live by their faithfulness to God.

This thought is quoted in Galatians 3:11, Hebrews 10:38, and Romans 1:17,

Martin Luther was struggling with his faith a mere 510 years ago. He was overwhelmed by the weight of his sin. He spent years trying to find out what he needed to do for God to grant him righteousness. In 1515 Martin Luther read Romans 1:17. A phrase in the verse struck his heart in a way he had never experienced before.

“For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith, as it is written, ‘The righteous shall live by faith.’” (Romans 1:17)

This was the moment of awakening for Luther. He wrote this.

“Paul is not talking about the righteousness by which God Himself is righteous, but a righteousness that God gives freely by His grace to people who don’t have righteousness of their own.” Luther now understood that righteousness didn’t come from what he could do. It came as a undeserved gift of love and grace.

Martin Luther said, “When I discovered that, I was born again of the Holy Ghost. And the doors of paradise swung open, and I walked through.”

The impact of this prophet is profound. He believed that God had a plan. He believed that God was his hope. And this praise in Chapter 3 shows that no matter what circumstances he would face his hope, joy, and strength was in the God of his salvation.

¹⁷ Even though the fig trees have no blossoms,
    and there are no grapes on the vines;
even though the olive crop fails,
    and the fields lie empty and barren;
even though the flocks die in the fields,
    and the cattle barns are empty,
¹⁸ yet I will rejoice in the Lord!
    I will be joyful in the God of my salvation!
¹⁹ The Sovereign Lord is my strength!
    He makes me as surefooted as a deer,
    able to tread upon the heights.

Here are a few takeaways from this amazing book.

• It is okay to ask questions of God. He knows your heart.
• God’s ways are not our ways. Trust in His ways.
• The world may feel chaotic and frightening but remember that God is sovereign and in control.
• My job is not understanding how God’s plan will work. My job is to trust Him.
• Our hope and peace are not tied to our circumstances. Those come from God.
• God’s timing is perfect. Be patient.

This quote from Henri Nouwen beautifully sums up the need to live out of faith no matter our circumstances.

“Our life is full of brokenness – broken relationships, broken promises, broken expectations. How can we live with that brokenness without becoming bitter and resentful except by returning again and again to God’s faithful presence in our lives.”